Multikilowatt laser to boost automotive manufacturing speed and efficiency

July 1, 2019
Operating at 1.5 km/s, the new laser will be powerful enough to cut the hardest boron steel used in car construction at 1 cm3/min.

TAMPERE, FINLAND – A team of European scientists is developing a new high-power multikilowatt laser for the automotive manufacturing industry that aims to reduce waste products by 10%, chassis costs by 5%, and manufacturing time by two-thirds (FIGURE). Operating at 1.5 km/s, the new laser will be powerful enough to cut the hardest boron steel used in car construction at 1 cm3/min—over 1000X faster than existing technology that currently ablates steel at 1 mm3/min.

Exerting an average power of 2.5 kW, or 100 kW in a single pulse, and with repetition rates up to 1 GHz, the laser will have the control and refinement to etch molds for vehicle parts at micron-scale accuracy as well as micro-weld dissimilar metals for solar thermal absorbers.

Boron steel, which is used in car bodies because of its super strength, is so durable that it is often difficult to cut or shape. The processes used to ensure its durability usually remove many of the steel’s fundamental properties, such as the workability. Although boron steel can be cut with a plasma arc torch (a tool that cuts using high-pressure, accelerated jet of hot plasma), this can instantly heat the metal to over 650°C (1200°F) and is not as precise or as quick as a pulsed laser.

Going by the acronym PULSE, the consortium behind the powerful new laser draws on expertise from 11 research institutions and industry partners from six different European countries and is coordinated by Tampere University in Finland.

“By harnessing the unique characteristics of a patent-protected tapered double-clad fiber amplifier power-scaled multichannel laser, the PULSE project will create unparalleled high-power beam qualities, M2 <1.1, and pulse energies 2.5–250 µJ,” says project coordinator Regina Gumenyuk.

The laser system will enable an improved digital design to lighten vehicle chassis weight with benefits to fuel economy and increase the range of electric vehicles. The consortium expects a prototype to be ready by 2021.

For more information, please visit pulse-laser.eu.

Sponsored Recommendations

Advancing Neuroscience Using High-Precision 3D Printing

March 7, 2025
Learn how Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Used High-Precision 3D Printing to Advance Neuroscience Research using 3D Printed Optical Drives.

From Prototyping to Production: How High-Precision 3D Printing is Reinventing Electronics Manufacturing

March 7, 2025
Learn how micro 3D printing is enabling miniaturization. As products get smaller the challenge to manufacture small parts increases.

Sputtered Thin-film Coatings

Feb. 27, 2025
Optical thin-film coatings can be deposited by a variety of methods. Learn about 2 traditional methods and a deposition process called sputtering.

What are Notch Filters?

Feb. 27, 2025
Notch filters are ideal for applications that require nearly complete rejection of a laser line while passing as much non-laser light as possible.

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of Laser Focus World, create an account today!