In metal tube processing, fiber optic laser technology has ushered in a new era of production. Thanks to its exceptional advantages in efficiency, flexibility, and the quality of the final product, fiber laser has established itself as a leading technology in numerous production sectors.
For some time now, companies involved in cutting steel tubes and profiles have been using fiber lasers to achieve high-profile processing with extreme precision and speed. However, the evolution of fiber laser technology today offers increasingly advanced and sophisticated systems that allow performance levels once thought impossible. Let’s explore the advantages of fiber laser technology for cutting metal tubes and the most cutting-edge technology currently available.
Advantages of Fiber Optic Laser for Tube Cutting
Fiber optic laser technology is the most advanced method for cutting metal tubes, offering numerous advantages over other cutting techniques. These include:
- Precision and Cut Quality: The precision of the laser beam results in an extremely clean and smooth cut, eliminating the need for deburring and making tubes perfect and easier to assemble.
- Speed and Efficiency: The tube-cutting process is very fast, as it doesn’t require rigid tools or molds to design, produce, and assemble, nor does it require additional finishing operations. This significantly increases the company’s productivity and optimizes processing, both for large series and small batch production.
- Cost Reduction: Fiber optic laser technology reduces operating costs due to the shorter processing time, less required maintenance, and greater energy efficiency of the system.
- Versatility in Processing: Suitable for different types of metals and thicknesses, fiber laser technology is extremely flexible. It also allows for quick changes in cutting geometries using a single system and can easily perform operations such as beveling or processing metal profiles.
Safety and Risk Reduction: The absence of mechanical actions on the piece minimizes the risk of deformation, saving material and ensuring higher quality in the final product.
Metals that Can Be Cut with Fiber Laser
One of the most appreciated features of fiber optic laser technology is its ability to work with a wide range of metals. The processing of stainless steel tubes is particularly common due to the corrosion resistance of this material and its wide applicability in various industries.
Another metal frequently processed with fiber laser is aluminum, especially used in the automotive and aerospace industries.
Unlike CO2 lasers, fiber optic lasers can also work with metals with high thermal and electrical conductivity, such as copper or brass tubes. The shorter wavelength of the fiber laser beam allows for better absorption by the material. Finally, fiber laser machines can also process carbon steel tubes, used in many structural and mechanical applications.
Workable Formats for Laser Tube Cutting
In addition to square or rectangular section tubes, fiber laser systems are also ideal for processing special and customized metal profiles. Laser tube cutting machines adapt to different angular openings, offering maximum flexibility for achieving:
- Round tubes
- Square or rectangular tubes
- Oval and elliptical tubes
- L, C, U, FLAT profiles + special profiles
The innovation of the laser tube cutting process also allows for the execution of complex cutting profiles with exceptional precision.
FiberTube: Automated Revolution in Metal Tube Processing
When discussing fiber laser technology for metal tube processing, the cutting-edge technology available is the Tube system. Resulting from Cutlite Penta‘s extensive experience in metal cutting, FiberTube allows the production of a complete tubular piece, with all the required cutting operations, in a single production cycle.
This automatic metal tube processing system minimizes production times by eliminating the need for multiple steps for cutting, deburring, drilling, facing, notching, and special processing.
The machine’s CNC controls all cutting operations as per the program and the unloading of finished pieces, providing an exclusive operational and strategic advantage that allows companies to achieve exceptional competitiveness in this sector.
The essential components determining the efficiency of the Tube laser system include:
In-house Designed Tube Head
Cutlite Penta offers various configurations for the Tube cutting head, adaptable to market needs. The FIBER TUBE systems boast a unique cutting head, the result of our R&D department’s ingenuity.
The streamlined design, optimized to minimize maintenance, features a fully sealed optical system, ensuring long-lasting durability. The compact and modular configuration of the Tube head is distinguished by the simplicity of the consumables. The protective glass of the optics, easily replaceable thanks to the manually extractable drawer, and the nozzles designed by Cutlite Penta reduce the consumption of technical gases while maintaining impeccable cutting results.
Cutting quality is ensured by the capacitive sensor, which keeps the nozzle at a constant distance from the material’s surface.
Strengths
- Real-time, contactless calibration maintenance via integrated capacitive sensor
- Proprietary design
- Control of technical gases
- Neatly arranged connections and cabling concentrated at the top of the system
- Easily replaceable protective glass and ceramic
Highly Reliable Laser Source
The fiber laser source of FiberTube ensures high efficiency, excellent beam quality, and low electrical absorption. Enclosed in a NEMA 12 conditioned and fully sealed cabinet, the source guarantees maximum reliability even in harsh environments. Its high versatility makes the source suitable for processing different types of metals, while its stability results in low maintenance costs.
Cutting-Edge Software for Maximum Precision
Like all Cutlite Penta systems, Tube uses the latest generation software, simple and intuitive. Designed to ensure the highest level of customization, the software allows for the full potential of the machine to be realized.
High-Tech Hardware Accessories
Tube is equipped to accommodate various hardware accessories, either standard or optional, such as:
- Smart Weld, to detect the position of the weld seam (both external and internal) before the bar is loaded into the machine, in time completely masked by the processing of the previous bar
- Positioning camera that allows remote control and monitoring of the machine’s work.
- Tube position detection and cutting path correction system.
- Optional automation for optimizing processing times, reducing loading and unloading times for the sheet metal.
- Optional Smart Mandrel, an electro-spindle with an automatic tool changer device with 10 stations, for performing flow drilling and tapping up to M12.
- Optional Smart Cleaning to protect the tube during the cutting phase and collect internal scraps on round tubes.
The Tube system also features a step-by-step automatic loader and an automatic bundle loader, customizable with plastic-coated sliding surfaces to prevent damage and scratches on delicate tubes.
Adopting the Tube system thus offers an exceptional leap in quality in terms of efficiency, speed, and final product quality. This technology not only revolutionizes the production process but also provides a substantial competitive advantage, making production more flexible, economical, and high-performing.
Discover all the details of the laser system for cutting tubes and metal profiles or contact us for more information.
