There has been an increase in demand for the development of lightweight and high-strength materials for applications in the transportation industry. Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) is known as one of the most promising materials owing to its high strength-to-weight ratio. To apply CFRP in the automotive industry, various machining technologies have been reported because it is difficult to machine. Among these technologies, picosecond laser beam-induced machining has attracted great interest because it provides negligible heat transfer and can avoid tool wear. In this work, we conducted and compared machining of 2.15 mm-thick thermoset and 1.85 mm-thick thermoplastic CFRPs by using a green picosecond laser. The optimized experimental conditions for drilling with a diameter of 7 mm led to a small taper angle (average ~ 3.5°). The tensile strength of the laser-drilled specimens was evaluated, and the average value was 570 MPa. Our study indicates that green picosecond laser processing should be considered as a promising option for the machining of CFRP with a small taper angle.

With nuclear power plants worldwide approaching their design lifespans, plans for decommissioning nuclear power plants are increasing, and interest in decommissioning technology is growing. Laser cutting, which is suitable for high-speed cutting in underwater environments and is amenable to remote control and automation, has attracted considerable interest. In this study, the effects of laser cutting were analyzed with respect to relevant parameters to achieve high-quality underwater laser cutting for the decommissioning of nuclear power plants. The kerf width, drag line, and roughness of the specimens during the high-power laser cutting of 50 mm-thick stainless steel in an underwater environment were analyzed based on key parameters (focal position, laser power, and cutting speed) to determine the conditions for satisfactory cutting surface quality. The results indicated that underwater laser cutting with a speed of up to 130 mm/min was possible at a focal position of 30 mm and a laser power of 9 kW; however, the best-quality cutting surface was obtained at a cutting speed of 30 mm/min.

In this study, the laser cutting characteristics were analyzed according to the shape of the back side of the specimen, and the laser cutting characteristics were compared according to the thickness of the edge (10 mm, 20 mm, and 30 mm). A Yb-YAG laser was used in this study, and the cutting target was STS304 with a thickness of 50 mm, and the cutting process was analyzed using a high-speed camera. In the experiment, it was found through image analysis that the cutting performance was excellent at 30 mm thickness of the edge. In order to analyze this reason, a thermal conduction analysis (numerical simulation) was performed, and it was confirmed that the thicker thickness of the edge caused a preheating effect during laser cutting due to a large amount of heat accumulation. This effect can be used as a reference for the initial processing state while cutting thick metals as it is a characteristic that has not been revealed before.

Laser shock peening creates compressive residual stress on the surface of the material, reducing stress corrosion cracking and increasing fatigue life. FE simulation of laser shock peening is an effective way to determine the mechanical effects on the material. In conventional FE simulations of laser shock peening, explicit analysis is used while pressure loads are applied and switched into implicit analysis to dissipate kinetic energy. In this study, static damping was adopted to dissipate kinetic energy without conversion into implicit analysis. Simulation of a single laser shock and multiple shocks was performed, and deformation and minimum principal stress were compared to evaluate the static damping effect. The history of the internal and kinetic energy were analyzed to compare the stabilization time depending on the damping value. Laser shock peening experiments were also performed on stainless steel 304 material. The residual stress of the specimen was measured by the hole drilling method and it was compared to the FE simulation result. The residual stress from the experiment and the simulation results showed similar distributions in the depth direction. Anisotropic residual stress distribution due to the laser path was observed in both results.

This article presents an extended Cartesian space robot control framework that features a virtual force tracking impedance control to enhance the end‐effector trajectory tracking performance. Initially, the concept of a virtual surface is introduced, which is assumed to be at some constant distance from the desired end‐effector trajectory. This virtual surface generates a virtual contact force when interacting with the torque‐controlled robot end‐effector. The interaction is then manipulated using an impedance control model to track a constant desired force. If the robot end‐effector deviates from the desired trajectory, the constant force‐tracking impedance control generates a compliance trajectory that regulates the end‐effector movements, constraining it to the desired trajectory. For robust force tracking, impedance parameters are optimally tuned using a closed‐loop dynamic model incorporating both robot and impedance dynamics. Additionally, super twisting sliding mode control (STSMC) is integrated to overcome uncertainties and the impact of robot dynamics on force‐tracking performance. Experimental validation confirms the theoretical claims of the proposed approach. It demonstrates that force‐tracking impedance control improves the end‐effector trajectory tracking by quickly reacting to the dynamic trajectories compared to position control only and effectively maintains it on the desired trajectories.