In-line thermal monitoring of acrylic surfaces processed by a segmented pixel drawing method using a slab-RF excited CO2 laser

Visualization of thermal surfaces has been used in various fields. In this study, thermal monitoring of acrylic surfaces has been performed which were processed by a segmented pixel drawing (SPD) method using a slab-RF excited CO, laser. The SPD method has been newly developed to make an artistic sculpture. In this method, it is possible to obtain various effects on processed surfaces by controlling processing parameters. This method demands uniform processing shapes in a pixel and reproducibility of results. The purposes of this study are to evaluate the processing results and to investigate the causes of unfavorable processing shapes by capturing thermal phenomena. Thermal distribution on laser processed surfaces obtained by this study can be useful to correct some important data for acrylic laser sculptures. The causes of unfavorable processing can be improved so as to obtain uniform processing shapes.