Laser cutting machine VS Plasma cutting machine

The working principle of plasma cutting machine is based on oxygen or nitrogen as the working gas, use high temperature plasma arc quantity of heat to make the workpiece incision of the metal local melting and evaporation, and with the help of a high speed of the plasma momentum ruled out a molten metal to form a slot of a kind of machining method. 

Laser cutting machine is a laser beam of light produced by a laser, through a series of mirror transmission, finally by the focus lens on the workpiece surface, produce local high temperature at focus, make the artifact is added hot melt or instant vaporization slot. And assist in the process of cutting gas would slot in slag blow out, ultimately achieve the purpose of processing. 

Laser cutting machine VS Plasma cutting machine

Plasma cutting is suitable for cutting various metal materials, mainly in thick plate cutting. Advantage is cutting speed, narrow slot, small heat affected zone, the deformation is small, operation cost is low; Defect is in the cross section vertical degree is 0.5 ° ~ 1.5 ° Angle, hardening of incision. 

Laser cutting, mainly in sheet cutting material range is very wide (metal, nonmetal, ceramics, glass, etc.). Due to the direction of laser with high, high brightness, high strength etc., so the laser cutting speed, high machining accuracy, cutting is very narrow, subsequent processing are generally not required. 

To sum up, in terms of cutting materials, laser cutting of material selection range is wider than plasma cutting; In terms of sheet cutting, laser cutting is more significant advantage; And in terms of cost, plasma cutting relative to the laser cutting is a lot cheaper. 

Compared with general way of cutting, laser cutting machine has some significant advantages: 

1. small laser cutting slot, cutting surface can be directly used for welding, don't need to be polished. 

2. laser cutting machine speed: cutting thin plate speed can be up to 10 m/min, much faster than the speed of plasma cutting machine. 

3. good cutting quality of the laser cutting machine, small deformation, surface roughness value is low, oblique piece. 

4. high precision laser cutting machine, precision can reach 0.05 mm, repetitive positioning accuracy can reach 0.02 mm. 

5. laser cutting machine cutting materials widely: besides can cut metal, also can cutting wood, plastic, rubber, PVC, leather, textiles, and organic glass, and other materials, a wide range of application. 

The disadvantage of laser cutting machine: laser cutting cost is high, the initial investment and maintenance needs higher cost; At present, laser cutting thin plate high cost performance, but when the cutting plate efficiency is low, unless the quality of the demand is higher, or inappropriate use laser cutting. 

The advantage of plasma cutting machine: thick plate in cutting process, can achieve very high cutting speed, far higher than that of laser and flame. Late early than low laser equipment, the maintenance cost is lower than the laser. 

Plasma cutting disadvantages: 

1. poor perpendicularity of the cut surface: on one side of the cutting surface will produce very big bevel, vertical degree will be poor.  

2. to produce more cutting slag on the surface of the cutting process in cutting down cutting slag, as does not affect the quality of the process, after the cutting slag must be through grinding, also increased labor costs. 

3. will produce harmful gas and arc: plasma cutting principle determines the cutting process will produce harmful dust and arc, however, at present also appeared to avoid the defect of underwater plasma cutting. 

4. cutter consumption will be more late, and now the cutting nozzle mainly depend on import, the cost is higher. 

According to the experience of we used before, laser cutting machine and plasma cutter machine is as follows: 

1. will not damage parts, laser cutting machine and plasma cutting machine to plank is big or small injury, especially in the process of cutting plasma cutting machine cutting torch nozzle problems arise will cause obvious flaw to the plate. 

2. because of the focused laser beam into very small points of light, so narrow kerf width laser cutting machine, plasma cutting machine cutting of the cutting seam than laser cutting machine cutting seam slightly larger. 

3. laser cutting machine speed, cutting speed can be up to 10 m/min, much faster than the speed of plasma cutting machine. 

4. laser cutting machine cut surface is smooth, without burr, cutting quality is good, is a non-contact cutting, trimming heat effect is very small, almost no thermal deformation of workpiece, completely avoid material formed when punching and shearing edge collapse, generally do not need secondary processing kerf width. But the thickness of the cutting board restricted and high processing cost. And plasma cutter according to the different type and size can be cut power over 6 ~ 40 mm steel plate, processing costs are relatively cheap. 

5. high precision laser cutting machine, laser cutting machine positioning accuracy of 0.05 mm, repetitive positioning accuracy of 0.02 mm, but the working environment demand is high, plasma cutting machine, laser cutting machine machining precision is not better than, but low requirements for the work environment and strong maneuverability, adapt to a wider range of cutting, skills water quality requirements for the personnel relatively lower laser cutting. 

The advantages of laser cutting machine is cutting accuracy is higher, faster, plate deformation is small, suitable for complex shape parts inventories, but right now my company's equipment, cutting thickness is restricted, generally: 8 mm the following sheet, set piece using the laser cutting machine with relatively high precision blanking, the material cost is higher, to the purity of the plate also to have certain requirements. 

The advantage of plasma cutting machine is cutting area wide, can cut all sheet metal; Quick cutting speed, high efficiency; Cutting accuracy is higher than CNC flame cutting, fine plasma cutting has higher precision. Drawback is that cut thick plate, especially more than 20 mm steel plate is difficult, need high power plasma power supply, the high cost. 

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STYLECNC® 6090 CNC router for wooden relief buddha engraving

6090 CNC router

STYLECNC® 6090 CNC router is used for wooden relief buddha engraving, advertisement engraving and cutting, stone processing, mold manufacturing, wood processing, craft manufacturing, light box cutting, building model cutting, indoor decoration cutting, light equipment mold processing, sign and mark manufacturing, acrylic board processing, etc.

STYLECNC® 6090 CNC router is suitable for the materials such as Stone,Wood, aluminum board, plastic, density board, wave board, PVC, PCB, acrylic, crystal, light marble and other nonmetal materials and light metal material. 

Features of our 6090 CNC wood router:

1. Thicker & Stronger Cast iron frame body much stronger than other Aluimnum frame, make the machine more stable & much better bearing capacity. 

2. 1.5KW China best Air or Water cooling spindle China top quality Changsheng brand, More durable & much lower nose & longer life-time 

3. Taiwan HIWIN Linear Guide for Y axis Top brand Taiwan imported with global service. 10 times longer life- time than round rail or the common brand linear rail. More stable, lower noise, harder to distort. 

4. Taiwan TBI ball screw High precision top brand Taiwan imported TBI Ball Screw 

5. Separated control box It has 2 separated parts which can prevent electrostatic interferenceWires, high soft shielding twisted-pair cable, fire-resistant and with low failure rate, could be bent min 30,000,000 times 

6. Top brand electric part: Japanese Omron limit switch 

7. Tool calibration sensor(Tool auto-checking instrument) 

① More easier tofind the working original home, avoid the manual error, save time. 

② Ensure the accuracy. 

8. Tool Box (free Accessories) Including ArtCAM/Type3 Software CD, Water pump, Clamps, Tool holder, Collet, Collet nut, Wrench, Port cable, Power cable, 18 pieces CNC Tool Bits 

9. Offline operated DSP control system / Computer controller Economical NCstudio controller DSP handle controller with USB port, no need to connect into the computer when operate machine, support offline operation, very popular & easily- operated. 

What is a CNC wood router?

What is a CNC wood router?

A CNC wood router works almost the same as any other CNC machine. A CNC machine or a Computer Numerically Controlled system which uses computer software and CNC controller electronics to drive a mechanical system. Using this setup, it is possible to achieve far better accuracy and precision than a human operator.

How A CNC wood router works?

A traditional CNC router can move and cut in three directions which are usually referred to at the X, Y, and Z directions. The X-axis is usually the longest of the three running front to back. The Y-axis runs from left to right while the Z-axis runs up and down. Below you can see each axis labeled respectively.

These machines are very efficient in that they work in all three directions in near perfect unison, giving this machine the capability of carving complex shapes.

The CNC wood router components

Let’s identify the major components of these machines and see how they come together to make it all work. Below you can see a picture labeling the major components on a generic CNC wood router. There are many other components and additions available but most all routers have these components in common.

Let’s look at these components in further detail:

The CNC Controller and Computer System

The CNC controller and computer system work together as the “brain” for these machines, telling the motors and drive system which direction to move and how far. Of course the computer must be given a design.

Most designs start in a digital format such as a dxf drawing or some other similar format. The user would then use a CAM software package along with the CNC controller software provided. These types of software convert a 3D or 2D digital image into a tool path code such as G-code.

The computer then converts these commands into a digital signal which it relays to the CNC controller which converts the digital signal to varying voltages and currents that control the mechanical drive systems.

Most of this is far more than anyone operating a CNC wood router would need to know. It is usually plug and play. The user interface varies depending on the type or manufacturer, but the overall process is the same. You begin with a digital design and then use additional software to make tool paths for the machine to follow.

The Spindle

The spindle is the part of the machine doing the cutting. Think of it as the actual router, such as a standard wood router. The router spindle is classified by its power rating, horse power in English units and Watts in SI units.

The spindle works bye rotating a cutting tool, such as router bits, at varying speeds. A typical spindle designed to cut wood plastics and other soft materials usually have a range of 8000 to 30,000 revolutions per minute. Spindles designed to cut metals operate between 2000 and 10,000 RPMs.

Most CNC wood routers are capable of cutting metals as well. However, it is usually limited to non ferrous metals such as aluminum. When cutting metals or carbon based composites at high spindle speeds, a coolant system that cools the material being cut and the tool itself is usually necessary.

Some spindles are controlled via the CNC controller which regulates the RPM based on material and the feed rate of the machine. There are other options that may be installed as well, some of which include an automatic tool changer, tool sensor, and touch probe.

The Cutting Bed

The cutting bed is where all the action happens. The cutting bed may come in several different types but the function remains the same. The cutting bed is designed to support and secure the piece of material being cut.

There are several different designs that do this effectively. Some of the most common cutting bed designs cutting bed designs are the T-slot, pictured above, and the vacuum table. The T-slot style table works well for most any part as it uses bolts and clamps to secure the piece to the bed.

The vacuum table is found on many high end models and works well for companies cutting the same design several times a day. However, it is limited to relatively flat pieces such as wood and sheet material. The T-slot is more versatile in that is can hold virtually any piece but lacks in efficiency and speed of setup.

There are many other types available, some are a hybrid mix employing both a T-slot and the vacuum design. However, these are the two primary types of cutting beds.

The Linear Drive Systems of wood CNC router

Each axis employs a linear drive system that moves the spindles in that axis. The CNC linear drive system includes a motor, a linear bearing system, and some sort of lead screw assembly.

The motor is the link between the mechanics and the electronics of the system. The motor receives its power via the CNC controller providing rotational power when needed to the lead screw assembly.

CNC Ball screw There are two types of motors found on CNC wood router machines, which are stepper motors and servo motors. Steppers motors are the cheaper alternative and offer good performance and reliability but are usually not a closed loop system. Servo motors offer a closed loop system, which means after receiving their directions from the CNC controller, they send a signal back to the controller that verifies they have completed the task.
Closed loop systems are usually found on high end models. The type of controller depends on the type of motor. The controller for a stepper motor or a servo motor is not the same.

The motor offers the power in the form of rotational motion which needs to be converted to linear motion. This is where the lead screw assembly takes over. Combined with a linear bearing assembly , the lead screw assembly moves the gantry or spindle along its axis.

Different designs employ varying methods of converting rotational motion to linear motion and some are better than others. The most common are a lead screw and nut assembly, a ball screw and nut assembly, or a rack and pinion assembly. Each system has its own advantages and disadvantages but that information is too detailed for this section. However, you may find all this detailed information elsewhere in our site.

Other Features

Most CNC wood routers employ a gantry style design. This is where the whole Y-axis assembly is suspended above the cutting bed. The whole gantry assembly glides on a linear bearing assembly and moves along the X-axis. The base is of course the base of the machine that holds everything together.

Summary

Hopefully by now you have a good understanding of how a CNC wood router or any CNC Router works. The computer gives commands to the CNC controller which controls the motors. The motors turn the linear drive system which moves the spindles in 3 dimensions. The spindles turns cutting tools rapidly that carve the material being cut.

If you want more in depth information regarding any if these subjects and much more, check out the other sections of this website. It’s all good information that can help you buy, build or just learn as much as possible about CNC wood routers.

If you now have a basic understanding on how these machines work, let’s continue on to the next section which takes a look at the different types and features that are available.

The difference between Laser engraving machine, Laser etching machine and Laser marking machine

What is the difference between Laser engraving machine, Laser etching machine and Laser marking machine?

Laser engraving machine, Laser etching machine and Laser marking machine provide a permanent message on an in-process or finished component. We can engrave, etch or mark text, serial numbers, part numbers, company logos, bar codes, QR Codes, ID matrix codes or 2D codes on all plain, painted, anodized, or plated metal surfaces, whether they are flat sheets, curved surfaces, or cylinders.

With the development of the CNC laser technology, the processes of Laser engraving, Laser etching and Laser marking are increasing in popularity. All the three laser services provide a permanent marking solution, fulfilling regulations and adding distinction to your products and parts.

How to distinguish between Laser engraving machine, Laser etching machine and Laser marking machine?

Although these terms are often used interchangeably, there are differences between Laser engraving machine, Laser etching machine and Laser marking machine. Each type of laser machine has its own applications and attributes that make it ideal for different jobs.

Laser engraving machine

Laser engraving is a process where the laser beam physically removes the surface of the material to expose a cavity that reveals an image at eye level.

1. This creates a cavity in the surface that is noticeable to the eye and touch.
2. It’s a quick process, as the material is vaporized with each pulse.
3. To form deeper marks with the laser engraver, repeat with several passes.
4. The laser creates high heat during the engraving process, which essentially causes the material to vaporize.

Although laser engraving is a subsection of laser marking, it still differs in many ways:

1. This is the most common option for people who want something personalized or customized.
2. There are three types of laser engraving: etching, deep laser engraving and laser ablation (the difference between the three is what the surface is and how much you remove).
3. Not ideal for marking safety critical parts.
4. This is the fastest way to mark with a laser.
5. Maximum engraving depth is 0.020″ in metals but can go as deep as 0.125″ in materials such as graphite.
6. It’s great for parts expected to experience high wear.
7. You can engrave on almost any kind of metal, plastic, wood, leather and glass surface.
8. It’s typically used to engrave serial numbers and logos, among other things.

Another important comparison to make is how laser engraving compares to traditional engraving:

1. It provides you with more font options.
2. It can be done on a number of materials.
3. It is more legible than traditional engraving for small objects such as jewelry.
4. Laser engraving machines are faster than traditional methods.
5. There is a smaller chance of product damage or deformation.

You can learn more about laser engraving machine from:
https://www.stylecnc.com/laser-engraving-machine/
Laser etching machine

Laser etching, which is a subset of laser engraving, occurs when the heat from the beam causes the surface of the material to melt.

1. Unlike with engraving, the depth in etching is typically no more than 0.001”.
2. The laser beam uses high heat to melt the surface of the material.
3. The melted material expands and causes a raised mark.

The differences between laser etching, engraving and marking include:

1. It removes 0.001″ or less of the material.
2. It can be done on bare, anodized or plated metal surfaces, as well as polymers and ceramics.
3. Since a laser etcher changes the surface finish of metals, it alters its reflectivity and enhances contrast.

Laser marking machine

Laser marking is what happens when the beam interacts with the surface of a material, slightly altering its properties or appearance.

Laser heats the material, causing oxidation under the surface and turning the material black.
It is achieved by moving a low-powered beam slowly across the material using a method called discoloration, which creates high-contrast marks without disrupting the material.
All of this is done while leaving the surface intact.

It applies low temperatures to metal to anneal the surface.

You can learn more about laser marking machine from:
https://www.stylecnc.com/laser-marking-machine/
Laser marking machine differs from laser engraving machine and laser etching machine in a number of ways:

1. A laser marker is ideal for bar codes, UID codes, QR codes, logos and other identification needs.
2. There are four common types of laser marking: annealing, carbon migration, foaming and coloration.
3. It’s popular in the medical device industry for stainless steel and titanium parts, but can be performed on other materials as well.
4. It is also referred to as laser coloration or laser dark marking, as well as charring for plastic materials and annealing for metals.
5. It is less common and not all places offer these services.

Laser engraving machine and laser marking machine used in consumer electronics

Sample of Laser engraving machine and laser marking machine

Laser engraving machine and laser marking machine are now widely used in consumer electronics. It greatly simplifies the manufacturing processes. Nowadays, almost all large consumer electronics companies use laser process to improve the products quality and reduce the manufacture cost.

Advantages of Laser engraving machine and laser marking machine：

Two overriding characteristic of consumer electronic products are the trend of ever-falling prices and rising quality. To solve this problem, laser engraving machine and laser marking machine had been widely used in consumer electronic production and consumer electronic manufacture process, and its quite different from traditional methods that using stickers or ink jet printing to make marks, which are easily rubbed off and trigger secondary pollution, laser engraving and laser marking technology provide the solutions to these problems, moreover, it has the advantage of low cost and low consumption.

Samples of Laser engraving machine and laser marking machine：

Samples of Laser engraving machine and laser marking machine

You can get a laser engraving machine from: https://www.stylecnc.com/laser-engraving-machine/

You can get a laser marking machine from: https://www.stylecnc.com/laser-marking-machine/