When welding aluminium sheets the application of conventional resistance spot welding is limited because of the high wear of electrodes, flying sparks and weld spatter which contaminate components and welding cells. In the present article a variation of resistance spot welding, called DeltaSpot, is introduced which uses moving process tapes with constantly changing contact surfaces instead of fixed electrodes with identical contact surface. The process tapes are multifunctional. They make the direct contact between the electrode and the workpiece and protect the electrodes from contamination caused by the workpiece surface. This stabilizes the welding process and significantly increases electrode durability. They also influence the heat balance in the workpiece. The ability to control the heat is especially relevant for practical applications. It enables the operator to create optimal conditions for joining different materials, especially thin sheets and aluminium. DeltaSpot has already proven its practical feasibility in large-scale production systems of the automotive industry and in rail vehicle manufacturing applications.
Resistance spot welding using continuous tape
Welding Journal, New York ; 88 , 12 ; 20-22
2009
3 Seiten, 5 Bilder
Article (Journal)
English
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