CREDIT: TRUMPF
The high-tech company TRUMPF is making medical technology more sustainable and cost-effective with its new TruMicro Mark 1020 marking laser. TRUMPF is presenting the new ultrashort pulse marking laser to the North American market at the 2024 Medical Design & Manufacturing (MD&M) West show in Los Angeles, California.
"Manufacturers in medical technology can utilize ultrashort pulse lasers to mark stainless steel surgical instruments without compromising their corrosion resistance during cleaning cycles. This ensures prolonged use of these expensive instruments over many years, a feat unachievable through conventional marking techniques,” says Clinton Coleman, product and project manager responsible for marking lasers at TRUMPF Inc.’s Laser Technology Center in Michigan.
Use in the medical technology and aerospace industries
The TruMicro Mark 1020 facilitates medical technology manufacturing by applying three-dimensional product markings to complex part geometries using the innovative TruTops Mark 3D CAD Software. Utilizing short pulses, operators can mark components and minimize heat generation. Known as black marking, this process forms a nanostructure on the surface that captures light, resulting in a deep black marking visible from every angle. This technique is crucial for medical technology manufacturers, ensures product traceability and facilitates extended reuse.
With the laser’s focus diameter of under 50 micrometers, users achieve precise marking even on extremely small components.
“This is a significant advantage, especially in the case of marking stents,” Coleman notes.
Mere millimeters in size, these implants play a critical role in maintaining open blood and nerve pathways. This ability enables doctors to exert more control over lifestyle diseases, such as heart attacks and strokes. In the United States, patients receive more than two million stents annually, a number that continues to increase.
The aerospace sector also relies on cold marking. With strict requirements for material structural integrity, the marking process must not compromise the components’ structure or strength to avoid potential breakage in aircraft or rockets.
"Only the TruMicro Mark 1020 ultrashort pulse laser enables this ‘cold’ black marking process on complex 3D surfaces made of metal," Coleman says.
Utilizing ultra-short pulse marking lasers for microprocessing materials
The TruMicro Mark 1020 offers more than just marking capabilities – it enables cutting, drilling and structuring of diverse materials, such as metal, glass, ceramics or plastics, leveraging its high peak pulse powers. The permanent measurement and documentation of the laser power ensures marking and processing quality that can be tracked at any time. This function is important for quality assurance.
Simple operation and integration into line production
Large companies can easily integrate the TruMicro Mark 1020 into their line production. This is made possible by the laser's modular design and compact dimensions. Since the TruMicro Mark 1020 has all the common industrial interfaces, it is suitable for use in networked manufacturing. Users can expand the TruMicro Mark 1020 into a complete solution, with the TruMark Station for example.
The system is also ideally suited for smaller operations. If desired, TRUMPF can take care of installation and operations qualification (IQ/OQ).