Component marking is an essential part of any manufacturing process, and the modern solution to marking without any applied mechanical force is by the use of lasers. Whether identification is required for in-house quality control/tracking or externally for part branding/traceability lasers provide a fast, indelible, quality mark with virtually no post processing of the component. Lasers have gained a strong market position in the manufacturing process of component marking, and today in the manufacturing industry lasers are routinely used to mark a diverse range of components of differing material types. The non-contact marking method allows for the marking of complex shapes with hard to reach locations. High quality marks can be applied at any stage in the production process, whether blanks, semi-finished or finished components.

The Windows based operating software allows for the marking of serial numbers, barcodes, data-matrix codes, symbols and logos. Individual jobs are easily set-up and advanced programming allows for complex scenarios, such as automatic job selection according to part type, data extraction from remote locations etc.

Identisys supply the full range of cab laser products which includes three conventional diode pumped NdYag lasers (Magic, Genesis, and Nexus) as well as two diode pumped fiber lasers (FL10 and FL20). When these laser units are combined with a safety housing/parts handling station and Windows based marking software you have complete Class 1 component marking solution.

The lasers supplied by Identisys are capable of marking a wide range of material and in general the best way to check a specific material is to send a sample to our applications team for assessment. Here are a few examples of the types of marks that can be applied to Metal and Plastic components

Metal

Various metals absorb the laser radiation differently and depending on the intensity of the laser light and the reaction time, either a surface heating effect giving rise to a tempered mark (colour change) occurs, or vaporization of the material which gives rise to an etched mark. It is also possible to coat the metal as in anodized aluminium whereby the laser removes the surface (anodized) layer thus giving rise to a mark by exposing the underlying layer.

Plastic

Many plastics types can be marked using the NdYag laser, and the type of mark achieved will depend on the composition. Special additives can be introduced into the plastic material to assist the marking process. The different types of marks fall into one of four categories: Surface or sub-surface colour change. Engraving – ablation of the material surface. Foaming – whereby the surface of the material is disrupted to give a contrast change. Removal of overlay material to expose base plastic.