An analytical model to estimate angle formed by laser

In this paper, an analytical model to estimate the angle formed by a laser is established. In the proposed model, the angle induced by the laser is co nsidered to be the sum of the angle bent during the heating process and tha t bent during the tooling process. The angle bent during the heating proces s is assumed to be a function of the temperature distribution at the moment that the highest temperature is achieved, whilst the angle bent during the cooling process is assumed to be a function of the surrounding temperature . By using the proposed model with known temperature distributions, the ben ding angle induced by the laser can be calculated. Ln order to verify the p roposed model, bending angles estimated by the proposed model are compared with those measured experimentally and those estimated using other analytic al models. The results show that the proposed model is more accurate than t he analytical models proposed by other researchers in predicting the angle formed by a laser. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.