The achievement of weight savings in automobiles is becoming increasingly necessary in order to contribute to the preservation of the global environment and the conservation of energy resources, in addition to improving dynamic performance. To respond to this need, aluminum subframes which are 35% lighter than conventional steel subframes are already being employed in some models. The aim of the research described in this paper was to reduce costs by integrating parts. Hot bulbe forming and vacuum die casting were studied as methods of achieving the desired integration of parts, and materials were optimized for these new production processes. The world's first aluminum subframe has been developed which is composed of bulge-formed members and die cast members welded by MIG. The bulging employed a newly developed hot process with superior formability together with an alloy developed for the hot process. The die casting employed a newly developed vacuum die casting process and alloy which has superior weldability. A method of MIG welding was established, after the weldability of these new alloys was researched. These developments have reduced the number of parts by 67%, welding length by 55% and weight by 10% against conventional aluminum subframes. The autors hope that this research will result in the wider application of aluminum subframes and therefore contribute to automotive weight savings.
Development of aluminum subframe using hot bulging and vacuum die casting
Entwicklung eines Aluminium-Hilfsrahmens unter Anwendung von Warmweiten und Vakuumdruckgießen
Review of Automotive Engineering (JSAE) ; 26 , 3 ; 313-318
2005
6 Seiten, 11 Bilder, 2 Tabellen, 6 Quellen
Article (Journal)
English
Anwendung im Fahrzeugbau , Weiten , Vakuumkokillengießen , Pkw (Personenkraftwagen) , Rahmen (Fahrzeug) , Gewichtseinsparung , Aluminium , Leichtbauweise , Werkstofftechnik , Kostensenkung , technische Entwicklung , Produktentwicklung , Werkstoffauswahl , Werkstoffsubstitution , MIG-Schweißen , Warmumformen , Formbarkeit , Schweißbarkeit , Prozessoptimierung , Rationalisierungstechnik
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