State-of-the-Art Laser Marking Systems for Glass

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, May 4, 2001, -- In 1850 John D. Matthews came to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from Sheffield, England. When he opened a shop in this steel-producing town, the first products he produced were stamping machines for the identification of metal products. We have expanded his legacy to form the broadest product range available for identifying all type of materials. Since the turn of the century, a focus of continued growth has made Matthews a leading manufacturer and distributor of all major marking technologies, most recently, the introduction of Laser marking systems (Offering over six CO2 and YAG models ranging in price and capability).

Laser marking offers a flexible and economic solution to a wide variety of standard marking requirements. These systems perform consistent and permanent marking with no requirement for expensive consumables and minimal maintenance. Offering high speed coding of several lines of text, these systems match the performance requirements of the fastest production lines.

This marking process is achieved by removing material from the substrate or by changing the surface of the substrate. The most important consideration is how well the material being coded absorbs the laser beam.

This can determine the type of laser used as different wavelengths can have different absorption characteristics. Matthews offers two styles of laser: a Scanning laser and a Dynamic laser. Scanning lasers operate by steering a single beam with two galvanometric mirrors essentially drawing with a single beam of light. We offer both CO2 and YAG scanning lasers. A dynamic laser prints in a dot matrix pattern with 18 dots top to bottom allowing for one, two or three lines of marking. The CO2 laser is used for some soft glasses and the YAG laser is used for the more reflective glass. The Linemark YAG laser system can mark on a wide range of materials and obtains excellent results even on highly reflective surfaces. It also features a highly compact design that enables installation on production lines where space is a problem.

For additional information on any of Matthews products contact: Matthews International Corporation, Marking Products Division, 6515 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206. Telephone: 412-665-2500. Fax: 412-365-2042. Internet: www.matthewsmarking.com