Materials Processing

Beam delivery system

For materials processing with lasers, beam delivery systems are necessary for directing the radiation from the laser head to the working point on the work piece. The more new fields of application are assumed by the laser, the greater the need for beam delivery systems which have been appropriately designed to meet the requirements of the task to be performed. Depending on the task on hand the appropriate design may be a fixed pipe with a focussing lens at its end or a six-axis articulated arm. This paper will describe the design principles and their optical and mechanical properties. The discussion of the advantages and disadvantages may be of some help in choosing an adequate delivery system.