Aachen, Germany--The Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology (ILT) will present a novel, compact, and industry-ready plant concept to laser weld plastics using fiber lasers at Fakuma (October 13 – 17, 2009, Messe Friedrichshafen). Thanks to the TWIST® (Transmission Welding by an Incremental Scanning Technique) radiation concept, a quick, temporal and localized beam modulation forms the basis for this new laser method.
When compared to standardized laser plastic welding plants, this new concept significantly reduces investment costs as well as plant size, and is nearly maintenance-free. Furthermore, the TWIST concept is characterized by its higher process speed and flexibility when structuring welding contours, as compared to conventional joining methods, making it suitable for small and medium production runs, which require quick retooling. By using new wavelengths in combination with this concept, operators are now able to weld transparent components together without an infrared absorber and at high speeds.
To bond metal with commercially available plastics, the Fraunhofer ILT has developed a laser-supported joining process that can dispense with using additional material. A suitable structuring of the metal's surface at high speed allows form fit joints to be attained above the bonds with high strength.
For additional information contact: Dr.-Ing. Arnold Gillner at Fraunhofer, [email protected].