JP2989759B2 - Method and apparatus for controlling mirror angle / position in light irradiator - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a light irradiator applied to a laser marking device, a laser processing device, and the like, and more particularly, to a light irradiator provided in the light irradiator to reflect and irradiate light such as laser light. The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for controlling a position of a mirror for controlling a position.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A method of irradiating a laser beam has conventionally been used as a method of marking a work, such as a character or a figure, or processing a work. For example, a laser marking method is used to draw characters / graphics on a work (object to be irradiated), and the laser marking is performed as follows. (A) The mask (stencil) inserted in the optical path is irradiated with laser light, and the object to be irradiated is marked with the laser light passing through the character / graphic pattern applied to the mask. (B) A predetermined character / figure pattern is marked by controlling the movement of the irradiation position of the laser beam in a single stroke.

The movement control of the laser beam in the method (b) is performed, for example, using two sets of mirrors attached to a motor capable of controlling the rotation angle. That is, by operating one of the mirrors to move the laser beam in the X-axis direction, and operating the other mirror to move the laser beam in the Y-axis direction, and by combining the operations of these mirrors, the desired character / A graphic pattern can be printed / drawn.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a configuration of a marking device for marking a moving body by the method (b) described above. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a laser that emits a laser beam, and 2 denotes an irradiation position control unit that includes the two sets of mirrors described above. Reference numeral 4 denotes a conveyor, and the conveyor 4 is driven by a conveyor driving mechanism 4a, and the work W on the conveyor 4 moves in the direction of the arrow in FIG.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a CPU for transmitting a character / graphic pattern signal Sl, and reference numeral 6 denotes a pattern signal Sl output from the CPU 5.
And a position signal Sp output from the position signal output circuit 7. The position signal output circuit 7 outputs a position signal Sp corresponding to the position of the workpiece W based on the conveyor speed information. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the irradiation position control means 2 described above.

The irradiation position control means 2 comprises an X-axis mirror 2a, a Y-axis mirror 2b, an X-axis scanner 2c for rotating the X-axis mirror 2a, and a Y-axis for rotating the Y-axis mirror 2b, the rotation axes of which are arranged orthogonally. The X-axis scanner 2c and the Y-axis scanner 2d rotate the X-axis mirror 2a and the Y-axis mirror 2b according to a control signal sent from the adder 6 shown in FIG. 1
A predetermined position on the workpiece W is irradiated with a laser beam emitted from the workpiece W.

In FIGS. 12 and 13, the marking on the work W is performed as follows. In FIG.
U5 sends a pattern signal Sl corresponding to the character / graphic pattern to be printed / drawn. Here, the irradiation position control means 2
Is fixed and the work W on the conveyor 4 is fixed.
Is moving, the desired pattern cannot be printed / drawn on the work W by simply giving a character / graphic pattern signal to the irradiation position control means 2.

That is, when the workpiece W is moving in the X direction as shown in FIG. 14, the irradiation position at the position of x1 at the time t1 becomes x2 at the time t2 and at the time t3
Now move to x3. Therefore, in order to irradiate the same position on the work W, extra X is required for the movement of the work W.
It is necessary to tilt the mirror for axial driving. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12, an adder 6 and a position signal output circuit 7 for outputting a signal corresponding to the position of the work W are provided. Then, the position signal Sp of the workpiece W output from the position signal output circuit 7 is added to the pattern signal Sl sent from the CPU 5 to obtain an irradiation position control signal St, and the irradiation position control signal St is applied to the irradiation position control means. Send to 2. Similarly, when the work W is moving in the opposite direction, the CPU 5
The irradiation position control signal can be obtained by subtracting or inverting the position signal Sp of the workpiece W from the pattern signal Sl sent from the controller.

Here, the position of the irradiation position control means 2 is fixed, and the rotation angle of the mirror is limited, so that the laser beam irradiation range (printing / drawing range) is within a predetermined range. It is limited (this range is hereinafter referred to as an irradiable range (drawable range)). Therefore, when the rotation angle of the mirror reaches the maximum angle (predetermined angle),
It is necessary to reset the mirror position to the initial angle again.

Therefore, the position signal output circuit 7 is, for example,
It is composed of a counter for counting pulse signals of a frequency proportional to the conveyor speed. Then, the mirror of the irradiation position control means 2 sets the maximum count value to the maximum angle (predetermined angle).
The number of pulses required for rotation is set, and when the counter reaches the maximum count value, the counter is reset. That is, by making the output of the position signal output circuit 7 a sawtooth wave, the rotation angle of the mirror can be controlled within a predetermined range.

As described above, the irradiation position control signal St is obtained by adding the pattern signal Sl output from the CPU 5 and the position signal Sp of the workpiece W output from the position signal output circuit 7,
The irradiation position control signal St is sent to the X-axis scanner 2c and the Y-axis scanner 2d of the irradiation position control device 2. The X-axis scanner 2c and the Y-axis scanner 2d of the irradiation position control means 2 rotate the X-axis mirror 2a and the Y-axis mirror 2b in accordance with the irradiation position control signal St to shift the laser beam emitted from the laser 1 to a predetermined position on the workpiece W. Irradiation. As a result, a desired character / graphic pattern is printed / drawn on the work W. When printing / drawing on the work W is completed, for example, X
The angles of the axis mirror 2a and the Y-axis mirror 2b are returned to the angle at which the writing start position of the printing / drawing pattern (the irradiation start position of the laser beam) is irradiated, so as to prepare for printing / drawing of the next work.

[0012]

In the above-described marking device, when printing and drawing on one work are completed, the angles of the X-axis mirror 2a and the Y-axis mirror 2b are illuminated to the position where the writing of the printing / drawing pattern is started. The X-axis mirror 2a and the Y-axis mirror 2b stand by at that angle.

For this reason, when the printing / drawing pattern is frequently changed, the mirror angle must be moved to the irradiation angle of the new writing start position each time, and it takes time to move the mirror. Cannot perform quick marking. Therefore, when printing / drawing of a pattern on one work W is completed, the angle of the mirror is changed to the work W
If the entire center of the work W at the time when printing / drawing is started is returned to the irradiation position and waits after the whole enters the irradiation range (drawing range), the mirror movement time can be reduced. .

That is, if the mirror angle is returned to the position where the approximate center position of the work W is irradiated, the writing start position for the next supplied work W can be any position on the work W for a relatively short time. Can move the mirror angle to the angle at which a new writing start position is irradiated, and can shorten the average moving time of the mirror. FIG. 15, FIG.
FIG. 17 is a diagram for explaining the operation in the case where the mirror angle is returned to the position where the approximate center position of the work is irradiated as described above and the work is made to stand by.

As shown in FIG. 15A, the work W is conveyed in the X direction by the conveyor 4, and the irradiation position control means 2
And the length of the workpiece W in the X-axis direction is WL, and the length of the drawable range Ar in the X-axis direction is DL. Also,
The edge on the downstream side in the transport direction of the workpiece W is WE1, and the edge on the upstream side in the transport direction is WE2. Also, the drawable range A
The edge on the upstream side in the transport direction of r is AE2, and the edge on the downstream side in the transport direction of the drawable range Ar is AE1.

In the figure, the work position (work W1 in the figure) when the entire area of the work W enters the drawable range Ar and the work edge WE2 are drawn in the drawable range A.
(the edge WE1 of the work is a distance L1 from the edge AE2 of the drawable range Ar).
(Work W2 in the same figure) at the time of ().

Further, when the mirror is on standby, the mirror angle is, as shown in FIG. 15 (a), approximately the center of the irradiated object at the time when the entire area of the work W enters the drawing range Ar [FIG. When the workpiece W is supplied at the angle at which the point R] in (a) is irradiated and the workpiece W is supplied, the mirror moves from the angle at which the point R is irradiated to the angle at which the writing start position of the print / drawing pattern is irradiated. Then, the laser 1 is turned on to start printing / drawing on the next work W.

Here, consider the case where character patterns P1 and P2 are printed on the work W as shown in FIGS. That is, one line is printed while the laser beam is moved in the Y-axis direction of the work W (the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the work W), and then the irradiation position of the laser beam is shifted to the upstream side in the movement direction of the work W by one. The next line is printed after moving by the number of lines, and the required number of lines are printed in the same manner as described above.

In this case, the patterns P1, P2
It is assumed that the width of each row in the X-axis direction is sufficiently smaller than the length of the work W in the X-axis direction. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing the movement trajectory of the beam when characters are printed on the work on the premise shown in FIG. 15, where the horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the distance from the edge AE2 of the drawable range Ar. is there.

In the figure, time t1 is the time when the edge WE1 of the work W reaches the edge AE2, time t2 is the time when the edge WE2 of the work W reaches the edge AE2, and time t3 is the time. Work W is shown in FIG.
This is the time when the position of W2 in (a) is reached. The movement from the standby position R is started when the entire area of the work W enters the drawable range Ar, that is, at time t2.

For example, when printing the pattern P1, first, the mirror angle is shifted from the angle for irradiating the standby position R to the angle for irradiating the writing start position Q1 of the pattern P1.
Then, when the mirror angle reaches the position for irradiating the position Q1, the irradiation of the laser beam is started, and the first line is printed while maintaining a constant distance PL1 from the edge WE1 of the work W.

When the printing of the first line is completed, the mirror angle moves to the position where the writing start position Q2 of the next line is irradiated, and the next line is printed in the same manner as described above. When the printing of the pattern P1 is completed, the mirror angle returns to the angle for irradiating the standby position R, and waits for the next irradiation object to be transported. By the way, when the mirror is controlled as described above, if the printing speed is slow or the line length to be printed is long, depending on the printing position on the work W, the work W may come out of the drawing range Ar during printing. In some cases, printing cannot be performed partially.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a case where a desired pattern cannot be printed on the work W as described above. That is, as described above, since the installation position of the irradiation position control means 2 is fixed, the drawable range Ar is limited, and when the printing speed is slow (when the line length to be printed is long), FIG. As shown, during the printing, the movement trajectory of the laser beam protrudes from the drawable range Ar and a part of the laser beam cannot be printed.

As described above, if the angle of the mirror is returned to the position for irradiating the substantially center position of the work W at the time of starting the printing / drawing and the apparatus is made to stand by, the mirror moving time can be shortened. / If the drawing speed is slow,
Printing a part of the desired character / graphic pattern on the work W
I can't draw. In such a case, the drawable range Ar may be increased or the printing / drawing speed may be increased. However, in order to increase the drawable range Ar, the rotatable angles of the mirrors 2a and 2b may be increased. Must be increased, and accuracy and response speed decrease accordingly. Further, in order to increase the printing / drawing speed, it is necessary to increase the output of the beam to be irradiated or to increase the moving speed of the mirror.
Alternatively, it is necessary to use a high-speed and high-response control unit as the irradiation position control unit 2.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and a first object of the present invention is to effectively utilize the entire area of a drawing area to obtain desired characters / characters.
Mirror position control method and apparatus capable of printing / drawing a graphic pattern on an irradiation target and increasing the printing / drawing amount as compared with the conventional example even when the printing / drawing speed is slow It is to provide.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a mirror position control method and apparatus which can quickly move a beam irradiation position to a writing start position and can perform quick printing / drawing. It is.

[0027]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for controlling an angle / position of a mirror for reflecting a light beam radiated from a light source to move a illuminated object. In a method of controlling a mirror angle / position in a light irradiator that irradiates a body with a light beam in accordance with a given irradiation pattern, an object to be illuminated starts from an edge of an irradiable range on an upstream side in a traveling direction of the object to be illuminated. A standby position, which is a point separated by a predetermined distance determined according to the width of the irradiation pattern in the traveling direction of the body, and passing through a substantially center of the end side and parallel to the traveling direction of the irradiated body, The mirror is made to stand by at the angle / position for irradiating the standby position, and when the irradiation area of the irradiation object enters the irradiation range, the mirror angle / position is controlled in accordance with the movement of the irradiation object. Light beam along the pattern The moved by irradiating a light beam on the irradiated body, when the irradiation along the pattern has been completed, it is obtained so as to stand back mirror to an angle / position of irradiating the standby position.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the angle / position of a mirror that reflects a light beam emitted from a light source is controlled to move a subject to be irradiated along a given irradiation pattern. In the method of controlling a mirror angle / position in a light irradiator that irradiates a light beam, a middle point on an edge of an irradiation range on an upstream side in a traveling direction of the irradiation object is set as a standby position.
The mirror is made to stand by at the angle / position for irradiating the standby position,
When the irradiation area of the irradiation object enters the irradiation range, the light beam is moved along the pattern while controlling the mirror angle / position in accordance with the movement of the irradiation object, and the light is irradiated on the irradiation object. The beam is irradiated, and when the irradiation along the pattern is completed, the mirror is returned to the angle / position for irradiating the standby position to be on standby.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an irradiation position control means for irradiating a moving irradiation object with a light beam, and a mirror angle / position of the irradiation position control means. Processing means for controlling the irradiation position of the light beam emitted from the irradiation position control means on the object to be irradiated,
A position signal output unit that outputs a relative position of the irradiation target with respect to the irradiation position control unit, and an adder that adds an output of the processing unit and an output of the position signal output unit and provides an addition result to the irradiation position control unit. In the apparatus for controlling a mirror angle / position in a light irradiator provided, the processing means includes a standby position setting means and an irradiation position movement control means for controlling movement of an irradiation position of a light beam, wherein the standby position setting means ,
From the end of the irradiation range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the irradiation object,
The standby position is a point that is a predetermined distance determined according to the width of the irradiation pattern in the traveling direction of the irradiation object and that is on a straight line that passes through substantially the center of the above-mentioned edge and is parallel to the traveling direction of the irradiation object. The irradiation position movement control means causes the mirror to stand by at an angle / position for irradiating the standby position based on the output of the standby position setting means, and the irradiation area of the irradiation target enters the irradiation possible range. When outputting the signal for moving the light beam along the pattern to the adder, after the irradiation along the pattern is completed, the mirror is returned to the angle / position for irradiating the standby position and the mirror is made to stand by. It was done.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an operation means for inputting a width of the irradiation pattern in the traveling direction of the irradiation object, and the width of the irradiation pattern input from the operation means is provided. , The standby position setting means sets the standby position. According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an irradiation position control unit that includes a rotatable mirror and irradiates a moving irradiation target with a light beam, and controls a mirror angle / position of the irradiation position control unit to perform irradiation. Processing means for controlling the irradiation position of the light beam emitted from the position control means onto the irradiation object, position signal output means for outputting the relative position of the irradiation object with respect to the irradiation position control means, and the output of the processing means A mirror angle / position control device for the light irradiation device, comprising: an adder that adds the output of the position signal output device to the irradiation position control device and provides an addition result to the irradiation position control device. Irradiation position movement control means for moving and controlling the irradiation position of the light beam, wherein the standby position setting means sets a middle point on an edge of an irradiation range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the irradiation target as a standby position. ,Up The irradiation position movement control means causes the mirror to stand by at an angle / position for irradiating the standby position based on the output of the standby position setting means. A signal for moving the light beam along the pattern is output to the adder, and after the irradiation along the pattern is completed, the mirror is returned to the angle / position for irradiating the standby position and the standby is performed.

[0031]

According to the first and fourth aspects of the present invention, according to the width of the irradiation pattern in the traveling direction of the irradiation object from the edge of the irradiation range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the moving irradiation object. A point on a straight line that passes through the approximate center of the above-mentioned end side and is parallel to the direction of travel of the irradiation object, and a mirror is set at an angle / position for irradiating the standby position. When the irradiation area of the irradiation object enters the irradiation range, the light beam is moved along the pattern while controlling the mirror angle / position in accordance with the movement of the irradiation object. Irradiate the irradiating object with a light beam,
When the irradiation along the pattern is completed, the mirror is returned to the angle / position for irradiating the standby position so as to be in a standby state. Character / graphic patterns can be printed / drawn on the work, and even when the printing / drawing speed is slow, the amount of printing / drawing can be increased as compared with the conventional example.

Further, since the standby position is a point on a straight line passing through substantially the center of the end of the irradiable range and parallel to the traveling direction of the irradiation target as described above, the pattern irradiation start position from the standby position. (Writing start position) in a short time. Furthermore, since the printing / drawing is started immediately when the irradiation area of the irradiation object enters the irradiation range, even if the printing / drawing position / pattern is changed, the above-mentioned standby position is set. Can be made substantially the same time to move to the pattern irradiation start position.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an operating means for inputting the width of the irradiation pattern in the traveling direction of the irradiation object, and the standby position is determined based on the width of the irradiation pattern input from the operating means. Can be set to the optimal standby position according to the irradiation pattern. According to the second and fifth aspects of the present invention, the midpoint on the edge of the irradiation range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the irradiation target is set as the standby position, and the mirror is set at the angle / position at which the standby position is irradiated. , The desired character / graphic pattern is printed / drawn on the work by effectively utilizing the entire drawable range (irradiable range) as in the first and third aspects of the present invention. And the waiting position can be determined without considering the size of the pattern and the like, and the processing can be simplified.

[0034]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a marking device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG.
The same components as those shown in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals. In this embodiment, an operator console 8 is provided. Can be set.
The CPU 5 is provided with a unit 5a for holding a standby position setting parameter, a standby position setting unit 5b, an irradiation position movement control unit 5c, and a pattern data signal sending unit 5d.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a standby position of a mirror for starting printing / drawing in this embodiment. In this embodiment, printing / drawing is performed on a moving workpiece W.
The above-described standby position is moved from the center coordinates of the work W to the upstream side in the traveling direction of the work W. In other words, as shown in FIG.
The position A is on the upstream side of the (irradiation range) and at a position where printing / drawing at the start of writing does not protrude beyond the drawing range Ar. For example, the width in the traveling direction of the pattern is 10 m
If it is m, it is 2mm ~ 3mm more than the width as shown in the figure
It is desirable to set the position about 12 to 13 mm from the upstream end of the drawable range Ar in consideration of a margin.

In the above manner, writing can be started from the end of the irradiation range (drawable range), and the number of printing / drawing can be maximized. Further, by setting the mirror standby position to the coordinate center of the character / graphic pattern, the time delay of movement to the writing start point (irradiation start position) of the character / graphic pattern can be reduced. The standby position of the mirror can be set to point B in FIG. In this case, depending on the characters / graphics to be printed / drawn, the movement time of the mirror to the writing start point is slightly longer than when the standby position of the mirror is set to the point A.
The number of printing / drawing can be maximized.

FIGS. 3, 4, and 5 are views for explaining the operation of the present embodiment when the standby position of the mirror is set as described above. As described with reference to FIG. 15, as shown in FIG. 3A, it is assumed that the work W is conveyed in the X direction by the conveyor 4 and enters the drawing range Ar of the irradiation position control means 2. The length of W in the X-axis direction is WL, and the length of the drawable range Ar in the X-axis direction is DL. Also, the edge of the workpiece W on the downstream side in the transport direction is WE
1. The edge on the upstream side in the transport direction is WE2. The edge on the upstream side in the transport direction of the drawing range Ar is AE2, and the edge on the downstream side in the transport direction of the drawing range Ar is AE1.

In the figure, the work position when a part of the work W enters the drawable range Ar (work W
1), the edge WE2 of the work is located at a distance L2 from the edge AE2 of the drawable range Ar (the edge WE1 of the work);
Indicates a work (work W2 in the same drawing) when the drawing is within the distance L1 from the edge AE2 of the drawing range Ar.

Here, in order to facilitate understanding,
The width of the pattern to be printed on the work W in the X-axis direction is
Is assumed to be small enough for the size of. Under the above assumption, the standby positions A and B of the mirror shown in FIG. 2 substantially coincide with each other, and the standby position A (standby position B) is shown in FIG.
As shown in (a), the edge AE2 of the irradiation range Ar
When the workpiece W is supplied, the mirror moves from the angle of irradiating the point A to the angle of irradiating the writing start position (irradiation start position) of the print / drawing pattern. Is turned on, and printing / drawing on the work W is started. The case where the width of the pattern in the X-axis direction is large will be described later.

Here, similar to FIGS. 15B and 15C,
Consider the case where character patterns P1 and P2 are printed on the work W as shown in FIGS. That is, one line is printed while the laser beam is moved in the Y-axis direction of the work W (the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the work W), and then the irradiation position of the laser beam is shifted to the upstream side in the movement direction of the work W by one. The next line is printed after moving by the number of lines, and the required number of lines are printed in the same manner as described above.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the movement trajectory of the laser beam irradiation point in this embodiment when characters are printed on the work on the premise shown in FIG. 3, where the horizontal axis represents time and the vertical axis represents drawing. This is the distance from the edge AE2 of the possible range Ar. In the same figure, time t1 is the time when the print position of the pattern P2 on the workpiece W reaches the edge AE2 of the drawable range Ar, and time t2 is the time when the print position of the pattern P1 reaches the edge AE2 of the drawable range Ar. And also
Time t3 is a time when the workpiece W reaches the position of W2 in FIG. When the patterns P2 and P1 are printed, the movement of the mirror from the standby position A is started at times t1 and t2, respectively. At this time, the mirror angle is set to the pattern writing start position (irradiation start position). The beam moves to the irradiation angle, and beam irradiation starts.

For example, when printing the pattern P1, first, at time t2, the mirror angle moves from the angle for irradiating the standby position A to the angle for irradiating the writing start position Q1 of the pattern P1 on the workpiece W (note that During this time, since the work W is moving, the actual mirror angle is an angle in consideration of the movement of the work W.) Then, when the mirror angle reaches the position for irradiating the position Q1, the irradiation of the laser beam is started, and a certain distance PL from the edge WE1 of the work W is started.
Print the first line while keeping 1.

When the printing of the first line is completed, the mirror angle moves to the position where the writing start position Q2 of the next line is irradiated, and the next line is printed in the same manner as described above. When the printing of the pattern P1 is completed, the mirror angle returns to the angle for irradiating the standby position A, and waits for the next irradiation object to be transported. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the movement locus of the beam irradiation position in this embodiment when the printing speed for printing is high or the line length of the pattern to be printed is short.

When the printing speed for printing is high or the line length of the pattern to be printed is short, the printing position of the next line of the work W can be drawn even after the printing of the first line is completed as shown in FIG. Because it does not come within the range, during time t1,
After printing / drawing, it waits for time t2, and when the print position of the next line of the work W comes within the drawable range, printing of the next line starts.

FIG. 6 (a) shows the movement locus of the beam irradiation position when the standby position is point A in FIG. 2 when the pattern is wide in the X-axis direction as shown in FIG. FIG. 4B is a diagram showing the position of the workpiece W when the mirror angle moves to the pattern writing start position Q1. Note that, in the figure, the pattern P3 is shown as a rectangle for easy understanding.

In the same figure, LL1 is a drawable range Ar
LL2 is the distance from the edge AE2 to the standby position A (12 to 13 mm in FIG. 2), LL2 is the character width (10 mm in FIG. 2), and LL3 is the edge WE1 of the work W when printing / drawing on the work W is started. And LL4 is the edge WE of the workpiece W.
This is the distance from 1 to the print / drawing pattern.

As shown in the figure, in this case, when the distance between the edge WE1 of the work W and the edge AE2 of the drawing range Ar reaches LL3, the mirror angle is changed to the standby position A.
Is moved from the position for irradiating the pattern writing start position Q1 to the position for irradiating the pattern writing start position, the beam irradiation is started from the position Q1, and the pattern P3 is printed / drawn on the work W. When the standby position is the point B in FIG. 2 (a point substantially at the center of the edge AE2 in FIG. 6B), the mirror stands by at the position where the point B in FIG. It moves to the writing start position Q1. Therefore, rather than waiting at position A,
The movement time of the mirror slightly increases.

FIG. 7 is a view showing the movement locus of the beam when the printing / drawing direction on the work W is the same as the traveling direction of the work W (in the case of the opposite direction from FIGS. 3 and 4). That is, as shown in FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C, the work W
When printing / drawing on the first line, after the printing / drawing of the first line is completed, the irradiation position of the mirror is changed to the edge AE of the drawable range Ar.
2 shows a case in which it moves in a direction away from 2 and prints / draws the next line, and the other points are the same as in FIGS. 3 and 4 described above.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 7, the irradiation position of the mirror moves in the direction approaching the edge WE1 of the work W each time a line feed is performed. Therefore, the irradiation position of the mirror reaches the upper limit of the drawable range Ar earlier than in the case of FIGS. 3 and 4, and the amount of characters / graphic patterns that can be printed / drawn is as shown in FIGS.
It is slightly reduced from the case of FIG.

FIGS. 9 and 10 are diagrams showing the relationship between the output of the position signal output circuit 7 and the movement timing to the writing start position (irradiation start position) of the character pattern. FIG. 9 shows the case where the standby position of the mirror is point A, and FIG. 10 shows the case where the standby position is point B. Also, in FIG.
1 is the distance between the standby position A and the edge AE2 of the drawing range Ar, and LL2 is the character width of the work W in the traveling direction.

As shown in FIGS. 9B and 10B,
When the work W enters the drawable range Ar and the distance between the edge WE1 of the work W and the edge AE2 of the drawable range Ar becomes a distance LL3 at which the pattern to be printed can be written on the work W, the mirror angle becomes the standby position A. Alternatively, the writing start point is moved from the angle of irradiating B to the angle of irradiating the writing start point Q1, and printing / drawing of the character / graphic pattern is started.

That is, at time t1 when the output of the position signal output circuit 7 for outputting a signal corresponding to the position of the edge WE1 of the work W reaches the value a1 corresponding to the distance LL3, the mirror is in the standby position A (or B). , The movement to the writing start position Q1 is started, and the printing / drawing of the character pattern is started. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the relationship between the output of the position signal output circuit 7 and the movement timing of the character pattern to the writing start position Q1 when the character pattern is large, and LL1 indicates the standby position A and the edge AE2 of the drawing area Ar. Distance, LL
Reference numeral 2 denotes a character width of the work W in the traveling direction.

In the case where the character width is large, FIGS.
The output of the position signal output circuit 7 for outputting a signal corresponding to the position of the edge WE1 of the workpiece W
At time t2 when the value a2 corresponding to the distance LL3 between E1 and the edge AE2 is reached, movement of the mirror is started, and printing of a character pattern is started. As shown in the figure, when the character width LL2 is large, the edge A of the drawable range Ar
The distance LL1 from E2 to the standby position A of the mirror is desirably approximately half the character width LL2. As a result, the mirror can be moved from the position where the approximate center coordinates of the character / graphic pattern to be printed are irradiated to the position where the writing start position Q1 is irradiated, and printing / drawing can be started in a short time.

Even when the width of the character / figure pattern to be printed in the work traveling direction is large, the character / figure pattern may be made to stand by at the standby position A or the standby position B shown in FIG. In this case, compared to the case shown in FIG.
The time to move from (or B) to the writing start position Q1 is slightly longer. Next, printing / drawing on the work W according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. (1) The operator inputs the width of the character / graphic pattern to be drawn in the work traveling direction as a parameter from the operator console 8. The parameters are stored in the standby position setting parameter storage unit 5a of the CPU 5. CP
The standby position setting means 5b of U5 determines the coordinates of the standby position A (or B) shown in FIG. 2 based on the above parameters.

When the width of the character / graphic pattern to be printed / drawn in the work traveling direction is less than a certain value, as shown in FIG.
The coordinate center A of 13 mm is set as a default value, and the operator automatically sets the coordinate center A as a mirror standby position without setting the width of the character / graphic pattern in the work traveling direction as a parameter. It may be. (2) The irradiation position movement control means 5c sets the drawable range Ar
The mirror angle of the irradiation position control means 2 is controlled so that the angle irradiates the standby position A (or B).

The pattern signal Sl output from the irradiation position movement control means 5c is added in the adder 6 to the position signal Sp output from the position signal output circuit 7, so that
The actual mirror angle reciprocates on a straight line in the traveling direction of the work W. (3) Next, when the output of the position signal output circuit 7 becomes a value corresponding to the distance (LL3 described above) at which a character / graphic pattern can be printed / drawn on the work W, the irradiation position movement control means 5c outputs a pattern data signal. A signal for controlling the mirror angle of the irradiation position control means 2 is output based on a signal from the sending means 5d, and the irradiation position is moved to a writing start position (irradiation start position) of a character / figure for printing / drawing, and the laser 1 is turned on. Turn on to start printing / drawing of character / graphic patterns.

The pattern signal Sl output from the irradiation position movement control means 5c of the CPU 5 is added to the adder 6 as described above.
In step (1), the position signal Sp, which is the output of the position signal output circuit 7, is added to the irradiation position control means 2 as an irradiation control signal St, and the character / graphic pattern is converted to the work W
Printed / drawn on top. (4) When the printing / drawing on the work W is completed, the irradiation position movement control means 5c adds a signal which gives an angle at which the mirror irradiates the standby position A (or B) in the drawing possible range Ar to the adder 6. To the irradiation position control means 2 via the controller and wait at that angle until the next work is supplied.

As described above, in this embodiment, when printing characters / graphics on a moving work, the standby position of the mirror is set to the upstream of the moving direction of the moving body in the irradiation range (drawable range). Side so that printing / drawing starts when the workpiece print / drawing position enters the irradiation range (drawing range), so that the entire irradiation range (drawing range) can be used effectively. A desired character / figure pattern can be printed / drawn on a work by utilizing the same, and even when the printing / drawing speed is slow, the printing / drawing amount can be increased as compared with the conventional example.

Also, by changing the standby position of the mirror in accordance with the width of the pattern to be printed / drawn in the work traveling direction, the time required to move from the standby position to the writing start position (irradiation start position) can be reduced. It is possible to perform printing / drawing quickly. In the above embodiment, an example is shown in which a conveyor is used as a means for transporting the work W, but an XY stage or the like for moving the work W in the X and Y directions is used as a means for transporting the work W in addition to the conveyor. You can also.

In the above embodiment, the standby position setting means, the irradiation position movement control means and the like can be constituted by software, or can be constituted by hardware such as an electronic circuit. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the embodiment of the marking apparatus using the laser is described, but the present invention can be applied to other apparatuses using a laser, such as a laser processing apparatus. The light to be irradiated is not limited to the laser, and other light such as infrared light, ultraviolet light, or the like may be used depending on the irradiation object.

In the above embodiment, the irradiation position of the laser beam is controlled by controlling the angle of the mirror. However, the irradiation position can be controlled in the same manner by controlling the position of the mirror in addition to the angle. Can be.

[0062]

As described above, in the present invention,
The following effects can be obtained. (1) A point that is a predetermined distance determined according to the width of the irradiation pattern in the traveling direction of the irradiation target from an end of the irradiation range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the moving irradiation target, and A point on a straight line that passes through the approximate center of the side and is parallel to the traveling direction of the irradiated object is set as a standby position, and the mirror is made to stand by at an angle / position for irradiating the standby position, so that the irradiated area of the irradiated object can be irradiated. When entering the range, the light beam is moved along the pattern while controlling the mirror angle / position in accordance with the movement of the irradiation object, and when the irradiation along the pattern is completed, the standby position is changed. Since the mirror is returned to the irradiation angle / position and made to stand by, the entire area of the irradiation range (drawable range) is effectively used to obtain desired characters / characters.
Graphic patterns can be printed / drawn on the work,
Even when the printing / drawing speed is slow, the printing / drawing amount can be increased as compared with the conventional example. (2) Since the standby position of the mirror is a point on a straight line that passes through the approximate center of the edge of the irradiable range and is parallel to the traveling direction of the irradiation target, it can be moved to the irradiation start position of the pattern in a short time. The time required for marking, processing, and the like can be reduced. In addition, since printing / drawing is started immediately when the irradiation area of the irradiation object enters the irradiation range, even if the position / pattern for printing / drawing is changed, the mirror waits. The time required to move from the position to the irradiation start position of the pattern can be substantially the same time. (3) By making the mirror stand by at a position where the mirror irradiates the approximate center of the irradiable range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the irradiation object, the standby position can be determined without considering the size of characters and the like. , Processing can be simplified. (4) Providing an operation means for inputting the width of the irradiation pattern in the traveling direction of the irradiation object, and setting the standby position of the mirror based on the width of the irradiation pattern input from the operation means, according to the irradiation pattern The mirror can be set at the optimal standby position.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a standby position where printing / drawing is started.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a relationship between a work and a drawable range and a print pattern.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a movement locus of a beam irradiation position when a printing speed for printing is high.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a movement locus of a beam when the width of the pattern in the X-axis direction is large.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a movement locus of a beam when a printing direction and a traveling direction are the same.

8 is a diagram showing a relationship between a work and a drawable range and a printing direction in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a relationship between output of a position signal output circuit and movement of a beam.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a position signal output circuit output and beam movement.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between output of a position signal output circuit and movement of a beam.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a marking device that performs marking on a moving body.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an irradiation position control unit.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a movement of a work and an irradiation position.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of a relationship between a work and a drawable range and a print pattern.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating the operation of a conventional example.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a case where printing on a work cannot be performed at a low printing speed.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 laser 2 irradiation position control means 2a X-axis mirror 2b Y-axis mirror 2c X-axis scanner 2d Y-axis scanner 4 conveyor 4a conveyor driving mechanism 5 CPU 5a means for holding standby position setting parameters 5b standby position setting means 5c irradiation position movement control Means 5d Means for sending pattern signal 6 Adder 7 Position signal output circuit 8 Operator console

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A light irradiator that irradiates a moving irradiation target with a light beam in accordance with a given irradiation pattern by controlling the angle / position of a mirror that reflects a light beam emitted from a light source. In the method of controlling the mirror angle / position in the above, from the end of the irradiation range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the irradiation object,
The standby position is a point that is a predetermined distance determined according to the width of the irradiation pattern in the traveling direction of the irradiation object and that is on a straight line that passes through substantially the center of the above-mentioned edge and is parallel to the traveling direction of the irradiation object. And controlling the mirror angle / position in accordance with the movement of the irradiation target when the irradiation target area of the irradiation target enters the irradiation range. While irradiating the light beam along the pattern while irradiating the object with the light beam, when the irradiation along the pattern is completed, returning the mirror to the angle / position for irradiating the standby position and making the mirror stand by. A method for controlling a mirror angle / position in a light irradiator. 2. A light irradiator for irradiating a moving object to be irradiated with a light beam in accordance with a given irradiation pattern by controlling the angle / position of a mirror that reflects a light beam emitted from a light source. In the method for controlling the mirror angle / position in the above, the mirror is made to stand by at the angle / position for irradiating the standby position, with the middle point on the end of the irradiation range upstream of the irradiation direction of the irradiation object as the standby position. When the irradiation area of the irradiation object enters the irradiation range, the light beam is moved along the pattern while controlling the mirror angle / position in accordance with the movement of the irradiation object, and the light beam is transmitted to the irradiation object. Irradiating the mirror and returning the mirror to the irradiating angle / position at the standby position when the irradiating along the pattern is completed, and causing the mirror to stand by. 3. An irradiation position control means comprising a rotatable mirror for irradiating a moving irradiation target with a light beam, and controlling a mirror angle / position of the irradiation position control means.
Processing means for controlling the irradiation position of the light beam emitted from the irradiation position control means onto the irradiation object; position signal output means for outputting the relative position of the irradiation object to the irradiation position control means; output of the processing means And an output of the position signal output means for adding the result of the addition to the irradiation position control means. An irradiation position movement control means for moving and controlling the irradiation position of the light beam, wherein the standby position setting means, from the end of the irradiation range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the irradiation object, from the side of the irradiation direction of the irradiation object A point separated by a predetermined distance determined according to the width of the irradiation pattern,
And, a point on a straight line passing through the approximate center of the end side and parallel to the traveling direction of the irradiation object is set as a standby position, and the irradiation position movement control means sets the mirror in the standby state based on an output of the standby position setting means. The position is made to stand by at the irradiation angle / position, and when the irradiation area of the irradiation object enters the irradiation range, a signal for moving the light beam along the pattern is output to the adder, and the signal is output to the adder. A mirror angle / position control device for a light irradiator, wherein the mirror is returned to the angle / position for irradiating the standby position after the irradiation along the mirror is completed, and the mirror is returned to the standby position. 4. An operation means for inputting a width of an irradiation pattern in a traveling direction of an object to be irradiated, wherein the standby position setting means sets a standby position based on the width of the irradiation pattern input from the operation means. The mirror angle / position control device in the light irradiator according to claim 3, characterized in that: 5. An irradiation position control means comprising a rotatable mirror for irradiating a moving irradiation object with a light beam, and controlling a mirror angle / position of the irradiation position control means,
Processing means for controlling the irradiation position of the light beam emitted from the irradiation position control means onto the irradiation object; position signal output means for outputting the relative position of the irradiation object to the irradiation position control means; output of the processing means And an output of the position signal output means for adding the result of the addition to the irradiation position control means. And an irradiation position movement control means for moving and controlling the irradiation position of the light beam, wherein the standby position setting means sets a middle point on an edge of the irradiation range on the upstream side in the traveling direction of the irradiation target as a standby position. The irradiation position movement control means causes the mirror to stand by at an angle / position for irradiating the standby position based on the output of the standby position setting means, so that the irradiation area of the irradiation target enters the irradiation range. A signal for moving the light beam along the pattern is output to the adder, and after the irradiation along the pattern is completed, a mirror is returned to an angle / position for irradiating the standby position and the mirror is made to stand by. Control device for the mirror angle / position in the light irradiator.