Real-time laser beam diameter determination in a laser-materials processing system
First Claim
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1. Apparatus, for use in a laser-materials processing system, for determining the diameter of a laser beam at a point of laser beam-material interaction on a workpiece, said beam diameter determination apparatus comprising:
- means for providing an image of the laser beam-material interaction point; and
means for processing said image to determine the diameter of said laser beam at the laser beam-material interaction point.
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Abstract
A laser-materials processing system including means for determining an incident diameter of a laser beam at a point of laser beam-material interaction on a workpiece, is disclosed. A filtered image of the interaction point is transmitted, via an imaging fiber bundle, to a video camera. The analog video signal generated thereby is digitized and provided to a computer which evaluates the pixel magnitudes along a beam image diameter line to determine therefrom the incident laser beam diameter.
37 Citations
15 Claims
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1. Apparatus, for use in a laser-materials processing system, for determining the diameter of a laser beam at a point of laser beam-material interaction on a workpiece, said beam diameter determination apparatus comprising:
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means for providing an image of the laser beam-material interaction point; and means for processing said image to determine the diameter of said laser beam at the laser beam-material interaction point. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A laser-materials processing system comprising:
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means for subjecting a workpiece to a laser beam generated by a materials processing laser; means for providing an image of a laser beam-material interacting point on the workpiece; and means for processing said image to determine the diameter of said laser beam at the laser beam-material interaction point. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method for determining an incident diameter of a laser beam at a point of laser beam-material interaction on a workpiece in a laser-materials processing system, comprising the steps of:
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providing an image of said laser beam-material interaction point; representing said image as a plurality of pixels each having an intensity magnitude and a pixel address; and evaluating the magnitudes of a selected group of said pixels at corresponding selected pixel addresses along a predetermined beam image diameter line to determine said laser beam diameter therefrom. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15)
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Specification