Method and apparatus for producing wells in the surface of a rotogravure cyclinder with a laser

Method for producing wells in a surface of a rotogravure cylinder comprising the steps of:

• generating a plurality of pulsed laser beams, with the laser beam pulses having the same pulse duty factor but being offset in time relative to one another,
• adjusting the power of the generated laser beam pulses of each laser beam in such a manner that it is sufficient for removing a maximum volume needed for a well,
• deflecting each of said plurality of pulsed laser beams coaxially by means of an associated optoacoustic modulator by diffraction,
• controlling the pulse power of the laser beam pulses of each laser beam by means of the associated modulator in accordance with the volume of the well to be formed,
• feeding the pulsed laser beams deflected by means of said modulators into a single optical waveguide so as to align the pulsed laser beams with an optical axis of an optical lens, and
• directing the pulsed laser beams onto a surface of a rotogravure cylinder via said lens.