Importance

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Abstract

Methods are provided for etching, cutting and/or altering, the surface of a flower, plant, cut foliage, or foliage incorporated into consumable products such as cigars (hereinafter referred to as foliage, leaf, or product) with computer controlled laser energy to affect a desired artistic or utility design or marking on the foliage. The laser energy source is operative to provide an optical beam having power and optical wave length characteristics effective to thermally disrupt plant tissue to produce a permanent mark on the foliage surface or, alternatively, cut through the foliage. Additionally, methods are provided for the automatic transfer of leaves stacked in a container into the laser marking/cutting field and for depositing said leaves in a separate container after processing by laser. A method is described that provides for rapid, safe, and accurate manual placement of a leaf into a laser marking/cutting system. A method is provided for efficiently storing multiple designs in a database from which an individual design can be recalled by an operator and implemented by the system. A method for quality control of the process is provided through machine vision inspection of the leaf prior to and after laser processing. A method is included for providing designers with the hardware and software tools needed to develop new product designs and translate these designs into efficient formats for use by production equipment.

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First Claim