Robotic Friction Stir Welding of complex geometry and mixed materials

Abstract:
Friction stir welding (FSW) is a solid state process for joining materials which has demonstrated advantages compares with other methods which include joining of mixed materials, hard to weld alloys and consistent and high quality. This paper presents a study of robotic FSW initiated by Volvo Skövde plant to join an insert workpiece of extruded aluminium with a cylinder block of aluminium casting. A three-stage procedure was decided to determine the feasibility to apply robotic FSW. The stages included study of welding the mixed materials, weld along the complex joint line with holes and channels close to the joint, and finally welding the cylinder block. The results based on preliminary analysis indicate that the final tests were successful and the process is feasible for the challenging case study. However, further studies are recommended in order to identify the operating parameters window, tool design, and control of the process in order to optimize productivity and quality.