Beam distributor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10067294-B2
Application number	US-201715786221-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 17, 2017
Priority date	Oct 19, 2016
Publication date	Sep 4, 2018
Grant date	Sep 4, 2018

Abstract

The beam distributor includes a housing, at least one beam entrance, two or more beam exits, a motor, and a beam turning part fixed to a rotary axis member of the motor and changing a direction of a beam input to the inside of the housing through the beam entrance so as to guide the input beam to the beam exit. A rotary axis of the motor is arranged parallel to an optical axis of the beam so as to input the beam to the beam turning part at a constant angle independently of a rotational angle about the rotary axis of the motor. The beam exit is arranged in a direction to which the direction of the beam is changed by the beam turning part in response to rotation of the rotary axis member. A storage stores an angular information recorded in advance about the rotary axis.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A beam distributor comprising:
a housing for passage of a beam;
at least one beam entrance;
two or more beam exits;
a motor;
a position detection device that detects a rotational position about a rotary axis member of the motor;
a controller that controls the rotational position about the rotary axis member of the motor;
a storage that stores the rotational position about the rotary axis member of the motor; and
a beam turning part fixed to the rotary axis member of the motor and changing a direction of a beam input to an inside of the housing through the beam entrance so as to guide the beam being input to one of the beam exits, wherein
a rotary axis of the motor is arranged parallel to an optical axis of the beam input through the beam entrance so as to input the beam to the beam turning part at a constant angle independently of a rotational angle about the rotary axis of the motor,
each of the beam exits is arranged in a direction to which the direction of the beam is changed by the beam turning part in response to rotation of the rotary axis member of the motor, and
the storage stores an angular information recorded in advance about the rotary axis of the motor corresponding to a position of each of the multiple beam exits, wherein
the beam distributor includes a scattered light sensor that detects scattered light of a reflected beam at one of the beam exits changed in direction by the beam turning part, wherein the angular information in the storage is changed so as to minimize a value detected by the scattered light sensor while the reflected beam is output to one of the beam exits.

2. A beam distributor comprising:
a housing for passage of a beam;
at least one beam entrance;
two or more beam exits;
a motor;
a position detection device that detects a rotational position about a rotary axis member of the motor;
a controller that controls the rotational position about the rotary axis member of the motor;
a storage that stores the rotational position about the rotary axis member of the motor;
a beam turning part fixed to the rotary axis member of the motor and changing a direction of a beam input to an inside of the housing through the beam entrance so as to guide the beam being input to one of the beam exits; and
a guide laser that oscillates a visible ray, wherein
a rotary axis of the motor is arranged parallel to an optical axis of the beam input through the beam entrance so as to input the beam to the beam turning part at a constant angle independently of a rotational angle about the rotary axis of the motor,
each of the beam exits is arranged in a direction to which the direction of the beam is changed by the beam turning part in response to rotation of the rotary axis member of the motor, and
the storage stores an angular information recorded in advance about the rotary axis of the motor corresponding to a position of each of the multiple beam exits, wherein
the beam turning part has dichroism by which the beam turning part reflects an input beam input to the housing through the beam entrance and causes the visible ray to pass through, and
the guide laser is arranged in such a manner that the visible ray oscillated by the guide laser passes through the beam turning part to travel in conformity with an optical axis of a reflected beam.

3. The beam distributor according to claim 1 , wherein
a temperature switch is installed on an extension of an optical axis of an input beam input to the housing through the beam entrance and behind the beam turning part, and the temperature switch is configured in such a manner that it is determined whether or not the beam turning part has been burned by turning on or off of the temperature switch.

Assignees

• Fanuc Corp

Inventors

• Matsuda Munekazu

Classifications

• G02B6/3604

  Rotary joints allowing relative rotational movement between opposing fibre or fibre bundle ends · CPC title

• G02B6/3512 Primary

  the optical element being reflective, e.g. mirror · CPC title

• G02B6/4296

  coupling with sources of high radiant energy, e.g. high power lasers, high temperature light sources · CPC title

• G02B6/359 Primary

  of the position of the moving element itself during switching, i.e. without monitoring the switched beams · CPC title

• G02B6/352

  the reflective optical element having a shaped reflective surface, e.g. a reflective element comprising several reflective surfaces or facets that function together · CPC title