Welding Gun for Lightweight Construction

Materials Testing Institute: Welding gun for lightweight construction

Joining technology for e-mobility: At the Hannover Messe, the Materials Testing Institute (MPA) at the University of Stuttgart exhibited a robot-guided welding gun developed in-house for friction stir welding, which joins components for the automotive industry. The welding gun meets the requirements for a wide range of applications in car body construction. Various application scenarios for the new joining gun was demonstrated in Hannover on the rear section of a Mercedes EQS body. Friction stir welding has particular advantages when joining high-strength aluminum alloys, for multi-sheet joints and when joining aluminum and steel sheets.

The MPA, the Institute for Entrepreneurship (ENI) and the Institute for Control Engineering of Machine Tools and Manufacturing Units (ISW) are working together in a VIP+ project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) to further develop the welding gun with regard to industrial requirements such as cycle times, accessibility and join strength. The goal is to increase the technology readiness level (TRL) to such an extent that it can potentially be used in car body construction. The planned validation of the robot-guided welding gun will also benefit from a comprehensive project support committee comprising original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), suppliers, and automation experts.

(Source: Stuttgart University Press Release)