Apparatus and method for recognizing irradiation-enabled area of beam irradiating device and for establishing a moving path of the device

摘要

An apparatus that can change an irradiating direction of the beam and a method of recognizing an irradiation-enabled area with respect to a processing course for a work piece. The method establishes an irradiation-enabled area at a focal length that corresponds to one point along the processing course, even when the beam irradiating device is moved away from the one point along the processing course of the work piece. The method further recognizes the irradiation-enabled area with respect to the one point along the processing course.

主权项

1. A method of positioning a beam irradiating device configured to change an irradiating direction of a beam of a laser welding robot by determining an irradiation-enabled area of the beam irradiating device in which the beam irradiating device can be positioned to irradiate a plurality of points along a processing course of a work piece, comprising:
establishing a cone-shaped region based on a minimum focal length and a maximum focal length of the beam and a maximum angle range from one point along a processing course of a work piece, the minimum focal length and the maximum focal length of the beam defined by the bounds of the movement of a condensing lens of the beam irradiating device, and the maximum angle range defined by the bounds of the movement of a reflecting mirror of the beam irradiating device, the cone-shaped region including a plane on a bottom surface thereof and a vertex coinciding with the one point along the processing course, wherein the height of the cone-shaped region equals the focal length; determining the bounds of the irradiation-enabled area of the beam within the bottom surface of the cone-shaped region based on the focal length and the angle range from which the one point can be irradiated even when the beam irradiating device is moved within the irradiation-enabled area; forming a plurality of the irradiation-enabled areas based on a plurality of points spaced apart from each other by a resolution distance along the processing course; combining the irradiation-enabled areas into a combined irradiation-enabled area with respect to the entire processing course; and positioning the beam irradiating device along an optimum moving path in the combined irradiation-enabled area, without requiring that the moving path track the processing course, such that all points in the processing course are processed in a minimum amount of time or with a minimum amount of movement of the beam irradiating device.