Laser Cut Highly Reflective Aerospace Metals Up to Four Times Faster

Fonon Corporation (Lake Mary, FL) offers their Titan FX large-format laser cutting system with an advanced direct drive magnetic motion system and innovative CleanCut laser technology that balances high acceleration, cut speeds and positioning with maximum accuracy. The Titan FX is capable of adaptive thin-to-thick laser beam shaping for manufacturers who need to precisely cut highly reflective aerospace metals at production speeds. Its fiber engine is capable of cutting highly reflective material, such as copper, brass, and titanium, while processing common materials at speeds three to four times faster than CO2 lasers of equal wattage. Traditional flatbed laser cutting systems that rely on rack and pinion, ball screws, or belt drives to traverse the cutting head face limitations common to all mechanical, high-contact systems, including wear and tear of the gears, reduced belt tension over time, and damage from the inevitable accretion of contaminants, grit, and dust generated by normal production conditions. But the Direct Drive Motion System in the Titan FX uses direct drive linear motion technology, effectively levitating the cutting head smoothly and quickly across the working surface area.

“This is the same technology the U.S. Navy is testing to launch fighter jets from an aircraft carrier,” said Jay Schlegel, the vice president of Fonon. “This direct drive magnetic motion system allows for smoother motion, higher acceleration speed of the cutting head, less stress and vibration on the carriage frame, a lower system weight, and decreased maintenance requirements. There simply are no ball screws, belts or gears to deteriorate or break down.” CleanCut technology improves the precision and slimness of the laser beam itself. Conventional laser cutting methods create an area of discoloration, potentially weakening and stressing the material on either side of a cut associated with an excessive Heat Affected Zone. CleanCut technology reduces or eliminates the Heat Affected Zone by producing a beam narrower than any conventional laser.

Adaptive thin-to-thick beam shaping technology automatically adjusts the laser beam’s properties to process a wide range of material thicknesses. Built to take advantage of Fonon’s deep understanding of the reflective characteristics of any given material when it reaches the temperature at which it transitions from a solid to a liquid or gas, Adaptive Beam Shaping provides economical operation, superior edge quality on thick plate, and high speed cutting of thin material. Users of the Titan FX typically experience a 10 percent to 30 percent increase in speed and accuracy and a 10 percent to 30 percent decrease in kerf loss over similar systems. Manufacturers who cut and engrave other highly reflective metals will also benefit from the Titan FX, particularly producers of construction equipment, aluminum vehicles, kitchenware, copper and brass gaskets, and food processing equipment of any kind.

Fonon Corporation, 36 Skyline Drive, Lake Mary, FL 32746, 407-477-5618, www.fonon.us.