kW-level USP lasers for high-rate drilling of airplane structures

Emeric Biver; Alexandre Vendramini; Julien Pouysegur; Julien Dupuy; Anne Henrottin; Yves Hernandez; Roberto Ocaña

doi:10.1117/12.2653227

17 March 2023 kW-level USP lasers for high-rate drilling of airplane structures

Emeric Biver, Alexandre Vendramini, Julien Pouysegur, Julien Dupuy, Anne Henrottin, Yves Hernandez, Roberto Ocaña

Proceedings Volume 12409, Laser-based Micro- and Nanoprocessing XVII; 124090W (2023) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2653227
Event: SPIE LASE, 2023, San Francisco, California, United States

Abstract

We report on the use of a kW USP (ultrashort pulse) laser system for high throughput industrial drilling, applied to the production of large micro-perforated panels, used for a new airplane drag reduction technique. In order to limit the heat accumulation due to the high power and maximize productivity, we parallelize the process: the beam is first split into sub-beams sent to different processing units, and then further split into multi-beams focused on the workpiece. Handling a kW USP laser beam makes it necessary to consider thermal regulation and potential damages. We discuss several design challenges, present results of a drilling study that illustrates how beam management strategies impact drilling quality and yields, and finally present the technical solutions implemented within a functional industrial prototype using a kW femtosecond laser.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

Emeric Biver, Alexandre Vendramini, Julien Pouysegur, Julien Dupuy, Anne Henrottin, Yves Hernandez, and Roberto Ocaña "kW-level USP lasers for high-rate drilling of airplane structures", Proc. SPIE 12409, Laser-based Micro- and Nanoprocessing XVII, 124090W (17 March 2023); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2653227

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available