AUTOMOTIVE g
0.6-0.8mm thick, while aluminium body panels generally have a thickness of 0.8-1.8mm. Laser welding has been
used in BIW manufacturing for decades, with Volvo being the first European car manufacturer to introduce it to the main line of its body shop in 1991. BMW also adopted the technology around the same time, using it for joining roof parts on its sub- assembly line. Lasers can also be used to
braze BIW components (the difference being that welding involves melting the base material of two joining parts as they are held together, while brazing involves a filler metal being melted as it flows between the joining parts to create a bond). Laser brazing is often used for joints at the doors and rooflines of vehicles, creating a seamless, high-strength bond that can be readily painted over. The majority of laser
welding/brazing tasks in BIW manufacturing can be carried out by fibre lasers – favoured for their low operational costs. They can be used to create high-quality welds between both similar and dissimilar materials – e.g. steel to aluminium – while avoiding cold cracking, pores and spatter. In addition, fibre lasers can easily be integrated into the robotics of automotive production lines due to their beam being transportable via a flexible optical fibre down a robotic arm to a processing head. Laser cutting, trimming and
piercing has also long been a part of BIW manufacturing – Austin Rover installed a five-axis
system to trim pre-production body panels all the way back in 1983. Pillars, frames, antenna holes, bushings and holes for fixing exterior parts can all be cut or pierced with lasers. Fibre lasers are also generally the favoured tool for such applications.
Sub-assemblies and vehicle interiors Lasers are equally used for the production of various sub-assembly and interior components in vehicle manufacturing. For example, laser welding can be used in the production of metal components such as gears, engine valves, brake calipers, tyre rims, seat frames, alternators, fuel injectors, filters, hasps, exhaust pipes, mufflers, bourdon tubes, airbag initiators, motor coil windings and various additional engine parts. Again, these would all typically be welded using fibre lasers. While most of these parts would be made from some form of steel or aluminium, in the sport and luxury car markets titanium is sometimes favoured due to its advantages of low density, high strength, and good corrosion/ heat resistance. Fibre lasers
“Lasers have long played a major role in optimising automotive
Lasers have become a crucial tool for numerous applications on automotive production lines
can also be used to process parts made from carbon- fibre-reinforced polyether ether ketone (CFR-PEEK), which is commonly used in the manufacture of braking systems, engine and climate management systems, clutches, sensors, and running gears. In the cutting of fabrics for
vehicle interiors, fibre lasers are outshone by their more traditional CO2
laser counterpart.
This is because the larger wavelength (around 10µm) of CO2
lasers is better absorbed
manufacturing and thereby facilitating growth within the sector”
by non-metallic materials such as textiles, plastics, leathers and acrylics. They are used, for example, to trim excess material from fabric-covered dashboards and interior pillars. Other textile- based laser applications include the cutting of webbing for seat belts and fabric for airbags, as well as cutting and texturing real
and synthetic leather for seats and trim, and carpet and mat cutting. In the case of airbags, the material they are made from is generally coated in silicone to help it retain the air when inflated, and this material can be laser cut before being stitched together. Since laser cutting is a non-contact process, there is only minimal handling of the fabric. This reduces the chances of any damage to the coating, which could adversely affect airbag performance. CO2
lasers can also be used
in automotive manufacturing for cutting and trimming plastic parts, such as interior and dashboard panels, pillars, bumpers, number plates, trims and electronic/light housings. Such parts are made from plastics including ABS, acrylic, HDPE, polycarbonate and polypropylene. For example,
Nuburu’s blue lasers have emerged in recent years as a solution for welding many of the copper components used in electric vehicles
14 LASER SYSTEMS EUROPE THE 2023 GUIDE TO LASER SYSTEMS
Lasers are now widely used for welding hairpins in the production of electric motors, as shown here by Scansonic
@LASERSYSTEMSMAG |
WWW.LASERSYSTEMSEUROPE.COM
Nuburu
Scansonic
Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock
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