Many manufacturing processes involve as an intermediate step the spot cleaning of small areas of a part which will be subjected to subsequent assembly, coating or adhesive bonding. Pulsed lasers can give the desired degree of cleanliness but a portion of the technology for the controlled delivery of the laser energy to the workpiece has not yet been developed. All experiments will be conducted in the facilities of Laser Technology, Inc. utilizing existing large scale prototype pulsed lasers. The Phase I experimental work will not only identify and specify those materials (lenses, mirrors and windows) which would be required for construction of an industrial prototype cleaning station but also more specifically address the unknowns involved in gas flow requirements in the neighborhood of the final lenses and the workpiece.
