How to assess the cutting quality of a laser cutting machine

When using a laser cutting machine, you need to be sure that the cutting quality of the machine is up to standard. In order to ensure the quality of the cutting, as well as the quality of the machine, there are a few things that need to be checked. Here’s how to assess the cutting quality of a laser cutting machine:

Line roughness

To determine the cutting quality of the laser cutting machine, you should focus on the roughness of the edges of the lines. When using a high-quality cutting machine, these edges should be smooth, but if the cutting machine is not cutting the lines at the highest quality the lines may look and feel very rough along the edges. The depth of the line will also determine how rough the edges are. There are no excuses for a light line to be rough around the edges, so if this is the case there could be something wrong with your machine or its settings.

Perpendicular positioning

In order to maintain a straight, high quality cut with your laser cutting machine, you will need to ensure that the laser is positioned perpendicularly to the sheet it is cutting. Any deviations in terms of its positioning will decrease the quality of the cut.

Deformation

A very common, and easily fixable problem when it comes to the cutting quality of your laser cutting machine is deformation. Deformation can occur if the area of cutting becomes too hot. This can be corrected by ensuring that the laser cutting machine is set to cut in short pulses, therefore reducing the overall heat.