Seam-tracked Laser Beam Remote Welding

with Automated Gap Bridging

Dr.-Ing. Florian Albert

Scansonic MI GmbH
Application Center
Berlin, Germany

INDUSTRIAL LASER APPLICATIONS Munich, 24.06.2015

Outline

1. Company profile

2. Initial situation and challenges for laser remote welding

3. Solution RLW-A

a) Seam tracking

b) Bridging gaps

4. Conclusion and Acknowledgement

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
1 Company Profile SCANSONIC

Founding of the company: 2000

Market leader in seam tracked laser brazing/welding at bodywork

Prime market: automotive industry and suppliers for automotive engineering

Number of employees: app. 200 (permanent staff) + 20 (interns/students)

2015: > 2.000 laser optics in use worldwide

DIN EN ISO 9001 certified

Own application center with 5 lasers (diode and disk lasers up to 8 kW) and 8 robots

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
1 Company Profile Scansonic Optics in Europe

Volvo
Volvo Ume
Olofstrm
Deutschland: Valmet Automotive Inc.
Audi, Bombardier, BMW, Uusikaupunki
Daimler, KWD, MTU,
Opel, Photon, Porsche,
Viessmann, VW
GM
Ellesmere Port voestalpine Polynorm B.V. Laser Center
Bunschoten Sankt Petersburg

BMW Mini
Oxford GM NTO IRE-Polus
Luton Moskwa
BMW Mini
VW
Swindon GAZ
Pozna
Nischni Nowgorod
Audi
Skoda
Brssel
Mlad Boleslav

Renault
Douai
Skoda
Kvasiny
PSA
Poissy
PSA
Trnava
PSA
Rennes
Audi, VW
Bratislava
PSA
Vigo
Audi
Gyr
VW Autoeuropa
Palmela Daimler
Kecskemt
Daimler
Vitoria Magna Steyr
Renault Albersdorf
Novo Mesto
PSA
Madrid VW
Pamplona Seat, Audi PSA
Martorell PSA Fiat Mulhouse
Sochaux Turin

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
 2 Initial Situation

Door Audi A8 *)
Laser Remote Welding is gaining more and
more attention (e.g. in BIW production)
welding with
Scansonic ALO3 No wire costs

Short cycle time because of a reduced

auxiliary process time

But: component tolerances are a major

challenge for the usage of remote welding

Difference between programmed beam

position and the actual component
location must be compensated by
complex and thus costly design
measures

A changing gap situation makes it

difficult to choose suitable process
parameters to reach a bridged weld
seam

*) Latzl., M.: Die leichte und funktionale Tr des neuen Audi A8. In: Proceedings of Tren und Klappen, 2010

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
2 Challenges

Laser Remote Welding of fillet or sq. butt

welds

with seam tracking

with gap bridging

Gap between the sheets

Stamping
failures
(simulated)
Challenge:
Bridging the gap without
Challenge:
filler wire
Following the edge

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
3 Solution RLW-A

Remote Welding Optic RLW-A

+ No wire costs

+ High efficiency

- How to find the

seam?

- How to bridge
gaps?

Welding with Scansonic RLW-A

new optic for high precision Remote-Welding with optical
seam tracking and beam oscillation

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
3a Seam Tracking

Forerun 10 mm
Process direction
System gets time to react
Robot program strategy must be seam-
considered (Fixture, Shadows, y tracking
Orientation), like tactile head x lines

Advantages of 3 linens (6D):

Cartesian and angular positions are y travel laser

known (how is the head positioned in range spot
reference to the part)

More redundancy and stable seam

recognition (more measurement data)

Important:
for run
Seam tacking lines cover complete y scan
range (16.5 mm)

Seam tracking lines are fixed in position

But special On-The-Fly function still

possible (moving x-scanner)

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
3a Seam Tracking

Deliberately caused edge faults (cutting tool):

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
 3b Bridging Gaps

RLW RLW RLW

Oscillation
Upper Sheet in y or x&y
Melt Pool
Bridged Gap

Oxide Skin

Gap

Lower Sheet

Initial Situation Problem Solution

Gap beetween upper and
lower sheet can not be
bridged with standard
parameter for zero gap
situation
Adjustments of process
parameters are necessary
Oxide skin around the melt Increasing the melt pool
pool leads to high surface by beam oscillation high
tension and joining failures beam intensity + large
melt pool
Increasing of melt pool by
using bigger beam High beam velocity leads
diameters is not sufficient to a good material
due to loss of beam intensity deposition from upper to
instable keyhole lower sheet

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
3b Bridging Gaps

By seam tracking the correct position of

the laser beam and the gap between the
sheets are known

upper sheet A geometrical model and the necessary

S-Value give information about:

Y-Offset of the beam

lower sheet Amplitude of beam oscillation

Laser power

S-Value = 0.7 x t (Frequency of beam oscillation)

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
 3b Bridging Gaps

Gap: 0 mm

Automated seam tracking in Y

Bridging of a varying gap by an

adjustment of laser power, beam offset
Gap: 0.7 0.8 mm and oscillation amplitude in Y

Bridging of a hs = 0 0.8 mm gap

at two t = 0.8 mm zinc coated steel
sheets

S-Value at every position > 0.7 x t

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
 3b Bridging Gaps

Gap to 0.05mm 0.05 mm 0.2 mm 0.4 mm 0.6 mm

height 0.2 mm 0.4 mm 0.6 mm 0.7 mm

Oscillation Non-oscillated Transversal Transversal Transversal Transversal

strategy (Y) (Y) (Y) (Y)

Front and
back side
of steel
sheets

Cross
section
view

[VS 2.5m/min;
H260LAD]

Reproducible, proper welds

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
3b Bridging Gaps

Beam Oscillation in Y-Direction

Material: AW 6082; t=1,5

Gap 0mm Gap 0 mm

Gap 0,6 mm

Backside

No full penetration, uniform heating

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
3b Bridging Gaps

Beam Oscillation in Y-Direction

Material: AW 5182; t=1,5

Gap 0 mm Gap 0,5 mm

Micro Sections

1,5 0,5
0,4 mm
mm
mm

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging
Conclusion and Acknowledgement

At remote welding seam tracking is necessary to realize fillet welds or butt welds at the
correct position

At remote welding gap bridging is possible by a controlled change of parameter

The measurement of the gap allows to control the process parameter

(laser power, beam offset, amplitude and frequency of oscillation)

The necessary S-value leads to correct parameter based on a developed model

Thank you for your attention!

The author would like to thank the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research
(BMBF) for the support of parts of the carried out work within the Brightlas Research
Project.

Scansonic MI GmbH Seam Tracked Laser Remote Welding with Automated Gap Bridging concl.