Visotek

Last updated
Visotek Inc
Type Private
Industry Photonics
Founded2001
Headquarters
Livonia, Michigan, United States
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Products Lasers
Website Official Website
Visotek headquarters Visotek headquarters Livonai Michigan.JPG
Visotek headquarters

Visotek Inc. is an American company, located in Livonia, Michigan, that designs, develops and manufactures individual fiber coupled diode laser modules, complete turn-key systems and peripheral components used in industrial, military, medical and research applications. [1] Visotek also provides high volume laser processing services and is a Tier Two supplier to the automotive industry, manufacturing up to a half million pieces annually.

Contents

Company profile

The company was established in 2001, originally as a spin-off of Fraunhofer USA's Center for Laser Technology (CLT), Plymouth, Michigan. [2] [3] Today, it is a privately held, woman-owned business that works together with its research and development partner, Fraunhofer USA, on various projects to create new laser applications and laser sources for direct materials processing, research, defense and homeland security applications. [4] [5] Under a long term technology transfer agreement, [6] Visotek manufactures fiber coupled diode laser systems patented by Fraunhofer USA [7] [8] and special laser optics. [9]

Since its inception, Visotek's goal has been to address the new technology economy emerging in Michigan. [1] It is concentrating on unique customized smart tools for laser cladding, laser cleaning, laser welding, laser ablation and laser soldering.

Visotek's DLF Series high powered fiber coupled diode lasers and process expertise are incorporated into the new solid lubricating polymer film technology developed by TriboCoreLogic in Dundas, ON, Canada. After laser curing with the DLF Series System and special optic, this new coating maintains extreme adhesion to a metal substrate and provides a very low coefficient of friction, high load-carrying capacity and exceptional corrosion resistance. A significant advantage of the technology is its chamber-less application and portability of the system, making it highly suitable for surfaces of large, heavy and expensive equipment components, such as turbines, compressors and centrifuge shafts, journal bearings, hydraulic parts. WC seals and pump plungers, etc.

Another core product of Visotek, the lower power DL Series fiber coupled diode laser, has been utilized in advanced technology research performed at the University of Kansas and Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, MI for "laser-assisted milling of silicon nitride ceramics" and "micro-laser-assisted machining" respectively. [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]

In 2003, based on funding from the Office of Naval Research, [15] Visotek led a team consisting of Fraunhofer USA CLT and Bender Shipbuilding & Repair that enabled Bender to become the first U.S. shipyard to successfully laser weld a structural steel panel from one side, without flipping it over, utilizing the shipyard's production equipment. [16] It was proven that laser welding is not only feasible in shipbuilding; it is the future of welding in shipbuilding. [17] A proprietary special laser processing tool, FLO (Flexibible Laser Optic), was developed for this application that enables rapid two dimensional scanning and auto focus using a variety of laser sources with output powers up to 15 kW. Welding of thick plates with variable weld seam width was achieved, successfully overcoming the gap and tight tolerance fit-up issues. [18] This is a particular breakthrough as the barriers to effective laser welding implementation in shipbuilding are formidable. The same laser processing tool was also successfully applied in the automotive industry for 3-D robotic remote welding. The process achieved 250 welded spots per minute with 6 kW of laser power. [19] [20]

In its newest endeavor, Visotek has partnered with biotherapeutics company, Laser Tissue Welding, Inc. (LTW), to bring new lifesaving surgical techniques to patients in the operating suite and on the battlefield. LTW's patented technology combines laser assisted tissue welding with human serum albumin as the solder, which together quickly stops bleeding and fluid leaks without using mechanical compression, sutures, haemostatic clotting factors (platelets/thrombin/fibrin), or thermal ablation (diathermy/radiofrequency ablation), all of which damage surrounding tissues. [21] A custom DL series laser and handheld optics is being developed by Visotek and tested by LTW so the surgeon can efficiently coagulate an albumin-ICG solder together with a solid transparent albumin scaffold and provide quick and accurate hemostasis and biliary sealing. Special areas of unmet clinical need are rapid hemostasis of solid visceral organs (liver/kidney/spleen) involved in trauma, tumors and transplantation and specifically in patients with coagulation failure or therapeutic anticoagulation.

There are many advantages to the LTW method. It saves lives because it quickly repairs and controls hemorrhage in patients who cannot clot, and it conserves blood based on a lowered requirement for transfusions. The new method is capable of repairing without burning, thus salvaging organs and tissues. It shortens required operating times and the reduced trauma to tissue speeds healing and reduces required hospital stays. This technique simplifies split liver transplants, thereby doubling the liver transplantation pool. The technique is minimally invasive because it is fiber-optically delivered. [22]

Visotek is a second stage start-up company and was nominated by the readers of Corp! Magazine as one of the best companies in Michigan (January/February 2010 print issue of Corp! Magazine and online). [23]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laser</span> Device which emits light via optical amplification

A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word laser is an anacronym that originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. The first laser was built in 1960 by Theodore Maiman at Hughes Research Laboratories, based on theoretical work by Charles H. Townes and Arthur Leonard Schawlow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laser diode</span> Semiconductor laser

A laser diode is a semiconductor device similar to a light-emitting diode in which a diode pumped directly with electrical current can create lasing conditions at the diode's junction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Photonics</span> Technical applications of optics

Photonics is a branch of optics that involves the application of generation, detection, and manipulation of light in form of photons through emission, transmission, modulation, signal processing, switching, amplification, and sensing. Photonics is closely related to quantum electronics, where quantum electronics deals with the theoretical part of it while photonics deal with its engineering applications. Though covering all light's technical applications over the whole spectrum, most photonic applications are in the range of visible and near-infrared light. The term photonics developed as an outgrowth of the first practical semiconductor light emitters invented in the early 1960s and optical fibers developed in the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brazing</span> Metal-joining technique

Brazing is a metal-joining process in which two or more metal items are joined together by melting and flowing a filler metal into the joint, with the filler metal having a lower melting point than the adjoining metal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opto-isolator</span> Insulates two circuits from one another while allowing signals to pass through in one direction

An opto-isolator is an electronic component that transfers electrical signals between two isolated circuits by using light. Opto-isolators prevent high voltages from affecting the system receiving the signal. Commercially available opto-isolators withstand input-to-output voltages up to 10 kV and voltage transients with speeds up to 25 kV/μs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gallium nitride</span> Chemical compound

Gallium nitride is a binary III/V direct bandgap semiconductor commonly used in blue light-emitting diodes since the 1990s. The compound is a very hard material that has a Wurtzite crystal structure. Its wide band gap of 3.4 eV affords it special properties for applications in optoelectronic, high-power and high-frequency devices. For example, GaN is the substrate which makes violet (405 nm) laser diodes possible, without requiring nonlinear optical frequency-doubling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blue laser</span> Laser which emits light with blue wavelengths

A blue laser emits electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength between 400 and 500 nanometers, which the human eye sees in the visible spectrum as blue or violet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solid-state laser</span> Laser which uses a solid gain medium

A solid-state laser is a laser that uses a gain medium that is a solid, rather than a liquid as in dye lasers or a gas as in gas lasers. Semiconductor-based lasers are also in the solid state, but are generally considered as a separate class from solid-state lasers, called laser diodes.

The role of the substrate in power electronics is to provide the interconnections to form an electric circuit, and to cool the components. Compared to materials and techniques used in lower power microelectronics, these substrates must carry higher currents and provide a higher voltage isolation. They also must operate over a wide temperature range.

A photonic integrated circuit (PIC) or integrated optical circuit is a microchip containing two or more photonic components which form a functioning circuit. This technology detects, generates, transports, and processes light. Photonic integrated circuits utilize photons as opposed to electrons that are utilized by electronic integrated circuits. The major difference between the two is that a photonic integrated circuit provides functions for information signals imposed on optical wavelengths typically in the visible spectrum or near infrared (850–1650 nm).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IPG Photonics</span> U.S. fiber laser company

IPG Photonics is an American manufacturer of fiber lasers. IPG Photonics developed and commercialized optical fiber lasers, which are used in a variety of applications including materials processing, medical applications and telecommunications. IPG has manufacturing facilities in the United States, Germany, Russia and Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH</span>

Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH of Regensburg, Germany, was a wholly owned subsidiary of Osram GmbH, which was the world's second largest manufacturer of optoelectronic semiconductors after Nichia and followed in third place by Cree Inc. The company was founded in 1999 as a joint venture between Osram and Infineon Technologies. In 2021 Osram Opto Semiconductors was integrated to AMS-Osram International GmbH and is now part of the AMS Osram Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berthold Leibinger Innovationspreis</span>

The Berthold Leibinger Innovationspreis is an award for given to those who have created applied laser technology and innovations on the application or generation of laser light. It is open to participants worldwide. It is biennially awarded by the German non-profit foundation Berthold Leibinger Stiftung. Three prizes are awarded worth 100,000 euros. The prize winners are selected from eight finalists that present their work person in a jury session. The jury is composed of international experts from different fields.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Semikron</span>

Semikron is a German-based independent manufacturer of power semiconductor components. The company was founded in 1951 by Dr. Friedrich Josef Martin in Nuremberg. In 2019, the company has a staff of more than 3,000 people in 24 subsidiaries (world-wide) with production sites in Germany, Brazil, China, France, India, Italy, Slovakia and the USA.

Crosslight Software Inc. is an international company headquartered in greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Officially spun off from the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) in 1995, it provides Technology Computer Aided Design (TCAD) tools for semiconductor device and process simulations.

Nanoneedles may be conical or tubular needles in the nanometre size range, made from silicon or boron-nitride with a central bore of sufficient size to allow the passage of large molecules, or solid needles useful in Raman spectroscopy, light emitting diodes (LED) and laser diodes.

AMADA WELD TECH, a subsidiary of AMADA WELD TECH CO., LTD, designs and manufactures equipment and systems for resistance welding, laser welding, laser marking, laser cutting, laser micro machining, hermetic sealing, micro tig welding, and hot bar reflow soldering and bonding. Established in 1948, AMADA WELD TECH is headquartered in Monrovia, California, US. The company's equipment is used in numerous industries, chief among which are medical, aerospace, automotive, batteries, and electronic components. AMADA WELD TECH has approximately 200 employees, with 7 sales and manufacturing offices serving about 12,000 customers worldwide. More than 80,000 items are manufactured annually. The company is certified to ISO 9001:2015, China Compulsory Certificate (CCC), European Conformity (CE), and Canadian Standards Association (CSA) quality certifications.

The Fraunhofer Center for High Temperature Materials and Design is a research center of the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research in Würzburg, a research institute of the Fraunhofer Society. It predominantly conducts research in high temperature technologies energy-efficient heating processes and thus contributes to sustainable technological progress. It is headquartered in Bayreuth and has additional locations in Würzburg and Münchberg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin D. Dawson</span> British physicist

Martin D. Dawson FInstP FOSA FIEEE FRSE FRS is a British professor of photonics who is research director of the Institute of Photonics at the University of Strathclyde and is Head of Fraunhofer Centre for Applied Photonics. He has made pioneering contributions in several applied photonics areas.

References

  1. 1 2 Zacharias, Lynne R. (Feb 18, 2010)."Best of Michigan Business Honorees Earn Accolades" Archived 2010-08-08 at the Wayback Machine Corp! Magazine. Retrieved on June 25, 2010
  2. ↑ Fraunhofer Spin-offs
  3. ↑ (Nov 1, 2003) Industrial fiber lasers produced [ permanent dead link ]. OptoIQ. Retrieved on June 25, 2010
  4. ↑ (Jan 21, 2008). Visotek and Bookham team to introduce "Ultra-High Brightness" 350W pump block at Photonics West 2008 [ permanent dead link ] Retrieved on June 25, 2010
  5. ↑ (April, 2008). FIBER-COUPLED LASER, ultrahigh-brightness single-emitter. Photonics.com. Retrieved on June 25, 2010
  6. ↑ Fraunhofer annual report 2004 Archived 2010-06-16 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved on July 8, 2010
  7. ↑ United States Patent. Retrieved on July 8, 2010
  8. ↑ Fraunhofer annual report 2003 Retrieved on July 8, 2010
  9. ↑ Zemke, Jon (MAR 19, 2009 ). Livonia's Visotek aims for 10-15 new hires in next 18 months Metromode. Retrieved on June 25, 2010
  10. ↑ (May 14, 2010).Experimental study on operating temperature in laser-assisted milling of silicon nitride ceramics Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  11. ↑ (October 2009)."Laser Assisted Milling of Silicon Nitride Ceramics" Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  12. ↑ ( October 2009)."Laser Assisted Milling of Silicon Nitride Ceramics". Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering. Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  13. ↑ Patten, John, PhD.(May 2009). Micro-Laser-Assisted Machining, μ-LAM Archived 2011-07-17 at the Wayback Machine . Manufacturing Engineering magazine. May 2009 Vol. 142 No. 5
  14. ↑ (May 2009). Micro-Laser-Assisted Machining Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  15. ↑ Archived 2011-06-15 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  16. ↑ (Nov 1, 2003). "Laser breakthrough in U.S. shipyard - Industrial Laser Solutions" Archived 2011-08-25 at the Wayback Machine , OptoIQ. Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  17. ↑ Feasibility of Laser Welding in a Shipyard Environment, National Shipbuilding Research Program Archived 2011-07-22 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on June 25, 2010
  18. ↑ (2005) Fraunhofer ILT Annual Report, 2005. Retrieved on June 25, 2010
  19. ↑ (2004) PARTNERSHIPS COME IN ALL SHAPES AND SIZES 'Transitions', Winter Edition. Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  20. ↑ (Jun 1, 2005) Going with the FLO, OptoIQ. Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  21. ↑ Laser Tissue Welding Inc
  22. ↑ United States Patent Retrieved on June 28, 2010
  23. ↑ Best of Michigan 2010 Winners Archived 2010-03-28 at the Wayback Machine .Corp! Magazine. Retrieved on June 25, 2010
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