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18 June 2008

Laser Marking Silicone Tubing

Silicone tubing is widely used in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries where ultra-pure fluid transfer is essential for health and safety. In addition to its flexibility and puncture-resistance, silicone tubing is free of additives that could leach into, or contaminate, fluids carried by the tubing.

The purpose of this application is to demonstrate the feasibility of marking silicone tubing. Using WinMark Pro, a mark file was created containing 15 sets of two-digit numeric characters laid diagonally across the mark field of an FH Series FLA200 lens. This technique allows a section of tubing to be marked measuring approximately 210 mm (8.3") versus the maximum field length of 165 mm (6.5") possible with a vertical orientation. Text objects were created using "Simple", one of WinMark's twelve built-in stroke fonts at a Text Height value of 2.7 mm (0.11").

Using 25 watts of Power at a Velocity of 508 mm per second (20 inches/sec), a string of 30 characters was marked in a cycle time of 0.68 seconds.

Silicone tubing provides readable, engraved marks using 25 watts at a speed of 20 inches per second.


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