Back in 2007 when the Tour de France started in London, Kewell Converters were tasked with providing thousands of small Foam bicycles carrying a promotional message. These units were to be fired out of a cannon at the start line of the race, by the then Lord Mayor of London.
A CO2 laser marking system was used to create the promotional message placed in very small text around each of the wheels. Here, the laser marking process melts the material to create the impression. Depending on the density of the foam, the melting can be controlled with reasonable ease to provide a nice sharp image. Using low powers and multiple passes, the image can be processed quite deep leaving it clear and well formed. For your information, the actual shapes were water jet cut by Kewell Converters.
Caution must be used when designing images for CO2 laser marking. Traditionally, the spot sizes are quite big, compared to those from ND:YAG or fibre, and there are restrictions to the character sizing that can be used for laser marking. Plotter based marking systems, provide a smaller spot than Galvo based units but, it is always better to expand your image where possible to achieve the best results.
If you would like further information on this laser marking application, or any other application, please request a call back, or talk to one of our laser marking specialists on 01737 826902.
