CNC cutting, laser and nesting · Lesson 4 of 4

CNC cutting, laser and nesting: defects, verification and case study

Edge and holding defects and their causes, nesting plan errors, an AFS case study of a planning tool that charged a kerf to every stick, an inspection checklist for cut parts, and how to record corrections.

You will be able to: Diagnose a cutting or nesting defect from its evidence, choose a correction, check cut parts against the drawing and record what changed for review.

9 min · 10 slides · 6 questions

All lessons in this module

Slide 1 of 10

Edge defects and their causes

TRUMPF: a cutting speed set too high or too low can raise surface roughness and burr formation.

TRUMPF: in flame cutting, oxygen burns and oxidizes the melt.

For edges free of burrs or oxides it describes fusion cutting with nitrogen or argon. The maker's settings decide the fix.

Sources

Laser cutting as a contact-free slitting process (applications page) - TRUMPF

Videos for this lesson

What this video shows: TRUMPF's nano joints: a small stop point at the bottom of the kerf holds the part to the skeleton, to stop it tilting, with less contour damage than micro joints and closer nesting.

Video: TRUMPF laser cutting: Nanojoints by TRUMPFtube, on YouTube. AFS checked its description against this lesson.

What this video shows: TRUMPF on tilted parts, which it calls a frequent problem in laser cutting, and how its cutting head gives way in a collision, with an immediate axis and laser stop.

Video: TRUMPF laser cutting: collision protection by TRUMPFtube, on YouTube. AFS checked its description against this lesson.

What this video shows: A TRUMPF software feature that suggests cutting parameters from a test part evaluation, or from a handheld scan that analyzes burr and roughness: a maker measuring edge quality to set its settings.

Video: TRUMPF laser cutting: Cutting Assistant by TRUMPFtube, on YouTube. AFS checked its description against this lesson.

Glossary

Burr: Unwanted material left on a cut edge. TRUMPF says a cutting speed set too high or too low can increase burr formation.
Slug destroy: A nesting feature, in Hypertherm's words, that cuts up interior profiles that might otherwise tip up into the cut path.
Skeleton: The sheet left after the parts are removed. Hypertherm offers skeleton cut-up for easier scrap removal, and TRUMPF says nano joints let parts nest closer so less metal stays in the skeleton.
Tipped part: A small or narrow part that tips up out of the sheet during cutting; OSH Cut says micro-joints prevent it, and that it puts both the part and the machine at risk.