News

• Cielle & Imaks: International Jewelry Show 2009 - Istanbul
  
  
• Cielle solutions for Braille
  
  
• New laser technology to create dies for leather/hides and ceramics

Laser Yag technologies

• How to achieve perfect finishes on metal by laser? New end pumped laser source

Special software

• Presentation of FPC (Flying Precision Cutting)
  
  

As regards new Cielle technologies for communication in Braille, here we have reproduced the article published on the INAIL SuperAbile web portal, on 7 September 2009.

Tactile maps: new software available

Software that translates words into Braille language can be used to make, easily and error-free, tactile maps to help people with sight impairments get around. The news comes from Cielle, a company from Treviso and leader in the sector

ROME - Software that reads written text and translates it into Braille and that, installed on the "large table" machines in any engraving facilities, can be used to create tactile maps, error-free and without wasting valuable time. This has been developed by Cielle, a company from Treviso and leader in the sector that, anticipating European legislation that will make signs providing directions in public places for people with impaired vision compulsory, is working full time on developing such aids. An important part of its consulting service, in fact, is the design and creation of tactile maps, special sheets made from brass or aluminium that show information to help people who cannot see or are sight impaired to move independently in places they don’t know well. Tactile maps are in fact written in Braille, a special technique of writing with "raised dots" used by the majority of blind people to read and write.
So how does this new engraving technique work? By a combination of software and accessories, today any engraver can create tactile maps in Braille, error-free and controlling the engraving machinery quickly and easily. The machine is controlled by computer, and, guided by the software, "drills" the Plexiglas (a special type of rigid plastic) prototype just like a normal punch on a sheet of paper. Subsequently, it inserts plastic spheres into the holes made to create the combinations of dots that make up the Braille system. This process, involving making a "positive" of the sheet, in fact contrasts with the method used until now of making "negatives" of the plates.
Indeed, in the engraving sector, before this new software was available on the market, signs in Braille were applied manually using special dies, small metal plates that the letters in Braille alphabet had been engraved on beforehand. These dies were pressed (by hand or hammer) against the back of the plate, thus raising the dots from the front. In other words, "reverse" engraving, produced "from behind" the map. Widely used all over Italy, this method however delayed the spread of tactile maps, as - the Cielle press office explained - "there were too many difficulties in production, relating to the length of the products, as well as the high labour costs involved".
The Cielle software therefore represents a minor revolution in the engraving business. Not just because it allows the creation of a sheet that is immediately legible and usable, but also because the software can be used by any engraver. Indeed the software not only "translates" written text into Braille, but also detects any differences in the flatness of the sheet, creates the holes that house the spheres to a precise depth using a special air pistol connected to the engraving machinery and, finally, inserts the spheres individually into the holes made beforehand. The map created in this way can be used directly. "The entire process - the Cielle press office stated - is performed at high speed, without any manual operations required between the different stages and, above all, without the quality of the result being affected in any way. Using this system, in fact, the operator can create Braille tactile maps as simply as any other plate".
(Erica Battaglia)

 

New technology has been developed especially to reduce production times for leather and hide dies.

This innovative system has been designed to simplify the process for the creating dies, replacing aluminium, the traditional material used for the die, with a sheet of resinous material.

The die is engraved by laser, which faithfully reproduces the pattern of the hide, after this has been processed by software.

This laser engraving technique optimises processing times by up to 20 fold compared to the normal procedure, an effective solution that responds to the need to shorten the normally long hide processing chain due to the need to use cutters with a very small base to faithfully reproduce the details on the die.

This particularly versatile and decidedly advanced technology is however not only applicable to this context. It can in fact also be adopted in the sector of dies for ceramics, with a very similar procedure.




Some details of the new resinous stamps, created by laser engraving.

From the CIELLE Research & Development laboratories comes the Nd:YAG “End Pumped”, the new solid state source pumped by a fibre-coupled diode-laser system.

The flexibility of this modern technologymakes it ideal for multiple types of processing in different segments of the industry, ranging from jewellery and metal engraving, to fashion and fashion accessories, as well as assisting in the shaping and creation of dies. This laser source can also be used for bas-relief and high relief engraving on metal punches, engraving for hot stamping (typically on brass) and engraving on finished products (gold, silver, etc.).

The new “End Pumped” Nd:YAG source allows deep marking with an excellent finish on all types of metal, perfect for deep engraving with extremely little roughness. Precision is combined with high marking speed, guaranteed by a latest generation scanner head with movement speeds up to 9 m/s.

Further processing opportunities include engraving on 3D surfaces, for example texturing or aluminium or steel tools for blow moulding (example: moulds for bottles), through the combination of a 3 axis marking system and a 4th/5th axis indexing head.

The source is very high tech: the resonator is Q-Switch pulsed, with repeat frequencies from 1 kHz to 100 kHz and 40 W average power, while peak power exceeds 100 kW at modulation frequencies below 10 kHz. These values, combined with the short duration of the pulse, ensure good definition in deep marking, both in terms of surface roughness and precision on the edges and the walls. In addition, the high modal quality of the “End Pumped” Nd:YAG gives a spot at the limit of the theoretically available limit (M2<2), thus guaranteeing excellent engraving quality.

Finally, no less important are the cost savings due to an “expected lifetime” of the pumping system that exceeds 20,000 hours (almost twice as long as the others).



Image of 808 nm radiation absorbed by the crystal during pumping

What does FPC mean? It stands for Flying Precision Cutting, technology used to automatically calibrating printed materials, using the combination of video camera and recently developed software.

The procedure uses a small, precise latest generation digital video camera to acquire images of the markers printed on the sheets of material, so as to identify the position. Following rapid processing of this information, the software then guides the machine along the path to cut the shapes, considering the positioning and orientation of the panel on the working table, as well as any deformations of the material with reference to the initial graphic design.

The digital video camera fitted on the FPC features a wide light spectrum, easily adjustable by the user. The wide operating range of the lens means the tool can read the markers easily and functionally even in very different light conditions, making the machine simple to use.

FPC also introduces a fundamental mechanical innovation: the video camera is installed alongside the spindle and - when it starts working - it automatically comes out of its protective housing and positions itself in the centre of the tool socket. This ingenious solution means the entire working area can be scanned, identifying the markers over a vast area.

Integration between the video camera and Cielle software exploits all the automation strategies implemented by the company over the years, such as the following examples:

1. emptying mode;
2. cutting mode for small entities;
3. steel cutting mode;
4. Plexiglas cutting and polishing mode;
5. access to the archive of tools and materials to acquire the most suitable parameters for the process in question.

In addition, the graphic interface is large and intuitive and can display both the project being processed and the video camera view of each marker.

The FPC system stands out in quality terms from the other proposals available on the market, featuring advanced functions that can satisfy the needs of operators in the visual communication sector, such as optimisation of production times for displays, POPs, exhibitors, etc.

Example of a job that can be read by the video camera, based on special markers.