Polyether Ether Ketone, also known as "PEEK", is a common thermoplastic used for demanding high-stress engineering applications. It is a desirable plastic for these types of applications because of its strong resistance characteristics even in extreme conditions. At high temperature and pressure, the plastic can retain much of its robustness. As a result, it is commonly found in automotive and aerospace applications, especially for components used in building engines, pumps, and valves.

For this application, we marked a PEEK sample with a large 2D code containing a 36-character part number. The marking setup consisted of an FH Flyer marking head and a 48-2 (25 W) laser controlled by our WinMark Pro Laser Marking software. The Flyer head was equipped with a 125 mm focal length lens that provided a 180 µm (0.007") spot size.

The 36-character, 0.8" x 0.8" 2D code on this PEEK sample was laser marked using 25 watts of power at a speed of 50 inches per second in an overall cycle time of 5.22 seconds.

 

Using 90 watts of power at a rate of 2.25 inches per second, we cut this section of nylon webbing to length and added two bolt holes in a cycle time of 1.8 seconds per belt.

 

This close-up view shows how the CO2 beam has bonded individual nylon fibers to one another, which eliminates fraying of fibers in the cut area.

When using automated equipment to manufacture small PCBs (Printed Circuit Boards), it is far easier to fabricate boards and insert components while working with a single large board. PCB designers accomplish this task by nesting many smaller boards to fit within the confines of standard size boards. The first photo shows a partial view of a 20-up board where 20 smaller boards are contained within the larger parent board. After board fabrication and component insertion is complete, individual boards are cut from the parent board prior to integration into the final product.

The customer request for this application was to verify the feasibility of degating, or trimming, individual multi-layer PCBs from the parent board. Boards are held in place by four trim points on each end with the trim points measuring 0.775 mm (0.0305") thick by 0.635 mm (0.025") wide. Our laser cutting setup consists of a Firestar f400 laser mounted behind an XY gantry with 90-degree "flying optics" delivering the beam down to the focusing optic in our cutting head. We chose a 63.5 mm (2.5") positive meniscus lens with a 1.8 mm (0.07") depth of focus based on the required spot size and board thickness. In addition, we supplied 4.1 bars (60 PSI) of air as a gas assist to blow vaporized FR4 through the cut kerf.

To assist the customer in determining the right laser solution for his budget and throughput requirements, we performed tests using both 200 and 400 watts of power. At the 200-watt power level, we cut through the FR4 trim points at a speed of 3.18 meters per minute (125 inches/min). Using 400 watts, we cut out the PCBs at a rate of 6.35 meters/minute (250 in/min). In both cases, cut edges exhibit the typical FR4 charring; however the surface area is too small to be readily noticeable or affect the PCB in any way.

This photo shows a partial view of a 20-up board where 20 separate PCBs are contained within the confines of the larger board.

 

This multi-layer surface mount PCB was degated from a larger FR4 circuit board using 400 watts of power at a speed of 250 inches per minute.