ARGES GmbH | About UsARGES entwickelt und produziert innovative Laser-Scan-Systeme zur Formung und Ablenkung von Laserstrahlen in anspruchsvollen Applikationen für den Laser.
ARGES develops and manufactures innovative laser scan systems for positioning and deflecting laser beams in industrial materials processing and medical applications, in particular for the field of ophthalmology. We are also actively involved in a variety of research projects relating to the development of novel laser processes and techniques. Our range of services includes a versatile product range of scan heads and scan modules, tailored customer- and application-specific solutions, and the implementation of complete laser subsystems for integration into laser processing facilities.
We are part of Novanta, a trusted technology partner to medical and advanced industrial OEMs. Novanta combines its deep proprietary expertise in photonics, vision and precision motion technologies to engineer components and sub-systems that deliver extreme precision and performance, enabling customers to improve productivity and enhance people’s lives. Novanta (Nasdaq: NOVT) is a global company with headquarters in Bedford, Massachusetts, USA.
The name ARGES is synonymous with customer-oriented technology solutions. As a reliable and innovative partner in the development of laser-assisted processes and systems, we look forward to supporting you with our decades of experience, wide-ranging cross industry know-how, and the required knowledge of current developments and future trends in the market.
Our customers include manufacturing companies, laser equipment manufacturers, system integrators and OEM suppliers. Our products and solutions are used in a wide variety of industrial sectors around the globe, for example in the photovoltaic, electronic and automotive fields, in medical technology and research facilities, in colleges and universities, and in micro and macro laser processing.
Mythology praises the cyclops ARGES, a son of Uranus and Gaia, as a skillful and intelligent warrior who could throw beams of light precisely with his single eye.
We offer a comprehensive selection of scan heads with 2-8 axes for a broad range of applications in the field of industrial laser material processing. Our products are available either as separate scan heads incl. controller and control software, or as subsystems complete with laser source and a tailored beam path.
A further key area of our business is the development of customer-specific scan modules and laser scan systems for a wide variety of applications and tasks.
Our 2D scan heads are employed in a wide variety of applications in the fields of material and surface processing. With different scan head sizes, power ranges and mirror apertures on offer, we have the flexibility to find the optimal solution for any 2D application. Thanks to our wide selection of high quality F-theta lenses and coatings, we are able to precisely tailor the scan heads to a specific application.
Our 3D high-performance scan heads are primarily used for cutting and welding applications. The scan heads have been specially developed for large work areas and offer a very good spot performance over the entire scan range, even over large working distances. They are employed, amongst other things, on robots in automated applications and are available in various models with and without a fiber connection.
The Precession Elephant and Precession Elephant 2 are world leading, tried-and-proven scan heads for high precision laser drilling, cutting and micro-processing of the highest quality and have been specially designed for mass production applications. The newer version, the Precession Elephant 2, offers additional functions, in particular in the area of process control and monitoring. The Precession Elephant scan heads can be used in conjunction with any of the ultra-short pulse laser sources currently available on the market.
Another key component of our service offerings is the implementation of complete subsystems for system and machine integration. Each of these subsystems comprises a unit with integrated beam source, a scanner, the necessary control architecture and software, and the beam guiding and shaping components. Thanks to the flexibility with which our ARGES scan systems can be combined with a diverse range of beam sources, we are able to produce laser subsystems that are precisely tailored to your processes.
To control the components of the laser scan system, we offer PCI plug-in boards (NCC system controller) as well as the comprehensive range of controllers in our ASC product family. Our ARGES system controllers in a 19" rack are available in a variety of models for controlling either one or two scan heads, and with or without an integrated laser. Our InScript® control software is included with every ASC.
The ARGES InScript® software is the user interface for controlling and monitoring our scan heads and the other components of the laser scan system, for example the ARGES System Controller (ASC) and laser source. InScript® is used to create, visualize and manage laser material processing jobs including all associated parameters. Thanks to the many detailed functions provided, you can achieve the highest possible scan head performance and optimal processing results even for complex applications.
Novel applications require application-specific tailored solutions distinguished by a special optical design, custom mechanical construction or specialized hardware and software solutions. Our product development departments support our customers from the concept phase right through to the finished solution and turn challenging requirements into innovative and reliable products.
The Precession Elephant and the Precession Elephant 2 are the world’s leading scan heads for high-precision laser drilling, cutting and micromachining, specifically designed for demanding applications in mass production.
The new Precession Elephant 2 scan head version offers extra functionality, especially for process control and set-up. The Precession Elephant scan heads can be used with all ultra-short pulsed laser sources available on the market today.
Overview Media Functionality Specifications Downloads
Industry-proven scan heads with between 5 and 8 axes for high-precision drilling and cutting applications
| 0.02 - 1.5 mm |
| 0.5 s |
| 25 - 700 µm |
| > 16 ° |
| > 12:1 |
| < 0.25 % variation |
| < 0.2 µm |
| > 95 % |
| < 1 µm |
| Ra < 0.1 µm |
Precession scan heads allow not only the positioning of a laser beam, but also the setting of the incidence angle of the beam at each point of the workpiece,. For a drilling process, the incidence angle is also called the precession angle. When drilling a borehole with high precision, the inclination of the internal hole surface, the so-called taper angle, can only be produced in a reliable and reproducible way if a precession scan head is used. The production of defined edge angles in laser cutting or laser micromachining also requires the use of precession heads.
The Precession Elephant and the Precession Elephant 2 are the world’s first and most used laser scan heads for precession applications. The heads are designed for high-precision laser drilling, cutting and micromachining applications. They are used 24/7 in production facilities around the world.
The Precession Elephant scan heads offer maximum flexibility for the drilling of innovative borehole-and edge geometries of differing conicity, taper angles and shapes, and allow the production of perfectly round, elliptical and custom-shaped micro holes. The Precession Elephant 2 is available for ultraviolet, green and two infrared wavelength ranges, each with two different focal lengths.
The scan heads can be used with all major ultra-short pulsed laser sources available on the market today. In addition, the new Precession Elephant 2 makes it possible to monitor the laser process and the laser beam properties during production. The new scan head offers improved particle extraction, beam attenuation control and additional functionalities designed for mass production of the highest quality. Several other options, such as tools for the setting and calibration of the polarization, simplify the set-up of the scan head and minimize downtimes for the end-user.
Please feel free to contact ARGES or its distributors if you have any further questions.
Process gases such as nitrogen or helium are frequently used in laser material processing to ensure the best possible results.
When using process gases, it is important not only to select a suitable protective gas, but to also consider the flow dynamics aspects, which can significantly affect the processing quality and processing time.
The drilling nozzle of the Precession Elephant 2 has been designed to precisely guide the process gas and, together with the system design and configuration, is an important contributor to ensuring optimum results in laser microprocessing.
The protective gas flows through a channel in the drilling nozzle directly onto the workpiece. Due to the compression of the protective gas, the nozzle exit pressure is significantly higher than the ambient pressure. This underexpanded flow behavior is evident by the formation of a compression structure that is similar in shape to polished diamonds and leads to the creation of so-called Mach discs.
The process gas density is higher within a Mach disc, which results in an improved ablation process in laser material processing.
Through targeted control of the process gas pressure, it is possible to precisely position these Mach discs to suit the specific working distance between the nozzle and workpiece, and to optimize the machining process for each particular system design.
This exact tailoring of the process gas control to the specific application is an important aspect in achieving the highest possible processing quality in laser micromachining.
| Technical specifications | PRECESSION ELEPHANT 2 | PRECESSION ELEPHANT |
|---|---|---|
| Number of axes | 8 axes: | 5 axes: |
| XYZ coordinates | XYZ coordinates | |
| Two beam inclination angles | Two beam inclination angles | |
| Two polarization parameters | – | |
| Beam attenuation value | – | |
| Laser wavelength | 343-355 nm (ultraviolet) | – |
| 515-532 nm (green) | 515-532 nm (green) | |
| 1020-1080 nm (near infrared) | 1020-1080 nm (near infrared) | |
| 1500-2100 nm (infrared) | 1500-2100 nm (infrared) | |
| Laser pulse energy | 300 µJ | 100 µJ |
| Average power | 100 W | 40 W |
| Pulse length | 250 fs to 20 ps | 500 fs to 10 ps |
| Adjustment of the spot geometry and beam caustic | Manual and motorized | Manual |
| Focal length of objective lens | 60 mm or 120 mm, second generation | 60 mm or 120 mm |
| Focal diameter | 10 to 30 µm | 20 to 40 µm |
| Polarization in the focus | Circular or elliptical, with optional electronic control | Circular, manually adjustable |
| Z positioning | +/- 1mm electrical, +/- 2 mm manual | +/- 1mm electrical, +/- 2 mm manual |
| Maximum mechanical Z velocity | 500 mm/s | 200 mm/s |
| Theoretical Z positioning resolution | 30 nm | 30 nm |
| Aperture | 26 mm | 21 mm |
| Precession frequency | 200 - 600 Hz (12 000 - 36 000 rpm), depending on incidence angle | 200 Hz (12 000 rpm) |
| Max. precession angle (full cone angle) | 18° | 14° |
| Field size | 0.8 mm to 3.0 mm, depending on nozzle | 0.8 mm to 2.0 mm, depending on nozzle |
| Hole diameter accuracy | < 0.2 µm | < 0.25 µm |
| Step width adjustment of hole diameter | 0.015 µm | 0.1 µm |
| Cooling | Water | Water |
| Purge gas (head/lens) | Air or nitrogen | Air or nitrogen |
| Process gas | Air, nitrogen or shielding gas | Air, nitrogen or shielding gas |
| Process gas pressure | Any, 0 to 4 bar | Any, 0 to 4 bar |
| PROCESS CONTROL OPTIONS | ||
|---|---|---|
| | Customized suction cups for integrated particle extraction with external pressure control | Customized suction cups for integrated particle extraction |
| | Through-the-lens vision module with internal sample illumination | – |
| | Polarization control for sharpest edges over complete circumference | – |
| | High-speed laser stop for consistent edge results on exit surface | – |
| | Energy monitor for long-time process stability | – |
| | Optical beam attenuator | – |
| | Confocal detector | – |
| | Plasma emission sensor | – |
| | Single pulse energy measurement sensor | – |
| | Beam position and profile monitor | – |
| SET-UP OPTIONS | ||
|---|---|---|
| Two alignment cameras for beam adjustment | – | |
| Beam position and beam profile monitoring | - | |
| Automatic calibration of the beam position and direction | – | |
| Safety shutter | – | |
| INTEGRATION OPTIONS | ||
|---|---|---|
| Available as scan head | Available as scan head | |
| Available as scan head, adjusted to your laser source | Available as scan head, adjusted to your laser source | |
| Available as scan head with matched laser and beam path | Available as scan head with matched laser and beam path | |
| Stationary or moveable mounting | Stationary or moveable mounting | |
| XY table control | ||
| Beam splitter control | ||
| Control of external acousto- and electro-optical modulators | ||
| CONTROL OPTIONS | ||
|---|---|---|
| User interface | InScript® V3 with precession drill nodes | InScript® V2 with Spiro3D nodes |
| Network | Controller lib via TCP/IP | Controller lib via TCP/IP |
| PLC | Profibus, EtherCAT, 24V | Profibus, EtherCAT, 24V |
| System control | System Controller ASC-2 | System Controller ASC-2 |
| Inputs (ASC-2) | RS232, CAN/CANopen, Ethernet (TCP/IP), Profibus, EtherCAT, digital inputs (TTL up to 24V) | RS232, CAN/CANopen, Ethernet (TCP/IP), Profibus, EtherCAT, digital inputs (TTL up to 24V) |
| Outputs (ASC-2) | RS232, CAN/CANopen, Ethernet (TCP/IP), Profibus, EtherCAT, analog outputs (0-10V), digital outputs (TTL up to 24V) | RS232, CAN/CANopen, Ethernet (TCP/IP), Profibus, EtherCAT, analog outputs (0-10V), digital outputs (TTL up to 24V) |
Note: The table shows the total capabilities of our Precession Elephant systems. Not all parameters and options can be used in combination. Please contact us for further information. | ||
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