JP6191646B2 - Welding method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a welding method, and more particularly to a welding method using a high energy beam such as a laser beam, an electron beam, or an ion beam.

  As one of the welding methods for joining a plurality of stacked metal plates, laser welding is widely used because of its advantages such as low processing distortion, high-speed welding, and low residual heat affected zone. Yes.

  In the welding method disclosed in Patent Document 1, the welded metal material is spot welded along a predetermined joining line, and then a continuous welded portion is formed by laser welding along the spot welded portion. Patent Document 1 describes that spot welding eliminates the need for jigs and temporary fixing for gap management during laser welding. That is, spot welding also plays a role as temporary welding for suppressing deformation of an object to be welded during laser welding.

JP 2009-241116 A

  In Patent Document 1, a spot welded portion corresponding to a temporary welded portion protrudes from a continuous welded portion by laser welding corresponding to a main welded portion. Here, for example, in the case of an aluminum alloy plate having high conductivity, the temporarily welded portion has a lower strength than the main welded portion. Therefore, as in Patent Document 1, if the temporarily welded part protrudes from the main welded part, the weakly temporarily attached welded part may be peeled off after the main welding due to some factor. There is no problem in strength even if the temporarily welded part is peeled off, but abnormal noise is generated when it is peeled off.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the above, Comprising: Peeling of the temporary fixing weld part after this welding is suppressed.

The welding method according to the present invention includes:
A welding method of irradiating and welding a workpiece made of a plurality of stacked metal plates with a high energy beam,
A step of forming a temporary welding nugget by spot welding at the weld location of the workpiece;
Forming a plurality of main welding nuggets by irradiation with a high-energy beam along a virtual closed curve containing the temporary welding weld nugget while leaving the temporary welding nugget at the welding location. It is.

In the welding method according to the present invention, a plurality of main welding nuggets are irradiated with a high-energy beam along a virtual closed curve containing the temporary fixing weld nugget while leaving the temporary fixing weld nugget by spot welding at the welding location. The main welding nugget is formed to have higher strength than the temporary welding nugget . Therefore, the temporarily welded nugget is surrounded by the main welded nugget, and the temporary welded nugget can be prevented from peeling off after the actual welding.

  In the welding method according to the present invention, it is preferable that a diameter of the temporary welding nugget is smaller than a diameter of the plurality of main welding nuggets. The thermal strain at the time of forming the temporary welding nugget can be reduced.

  Furthermore, in the welding method according to the present invention, it is preferable that the temporary welding nugget and the plurality of main welding nuggets are formed apart from each other. Deformation of the workpieces during the main welding can be further effectively suppressed.

  In the welding method according to the present invention, it is preferable to use a laser beam as the high energy beam.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress peeling of the temporarily welded portion after the main welding.

It is a side view which shows an example of the laser welding apparatus for enforcing the welding method which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a top view for demonstrating the fundamental operation | movement of a laser welding apparatus. It is a figure for demonstrating the welding method which concerns on 1st Embodiment. FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of a welding location 41. It is VV sectional drawing of FIG. It is a top view of the to-be-welded object 100 which concerns on an Example. It is a top view of the to-be-welded object 110 which concerns on a comparative example.

  Hereinafter, specific embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. In addition, for clarity of explanation, the following description and drawings are simplified as appropriate.

(First embodiment)
First, a laser welding apparatus for performing the welding method according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a side view showing an example of a laser welding apparatus for carrying out the welding method according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view for explaining the basic operation of the laser welding apparatus.

  Note that the right-handed xyz coordinates shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and other drawings are for convenience in explaining the positional relationship of the components, but correspond to each other in the drawings. Usually, the xy plane constitutes a horizontal plane, and the z-axis plus direction is vertically upward.

As shown in FIG. 1, the laser welding apparatus 1 includes a laser oscillator 10, a scanning unit 11, and a drive source 12.
The laser oscillator 10 generates a laser beam. The generated laser beam is guided to the scanning means 11 using the optical fiber cable 13. As the laser beam, for example, a carbon dioxide laser, a YAG laser, a fiber laser, or the like can be used.

  The scanning means 11 scans the laser beam 16 guided from the laser oscillator 10 through the optical fiber cable 13 and sequentially irradiates the four welding locations 41 to 44 in the metal plate 31 that is the workpiece. Thereby, the main welding nugget which straddles the two metal plates 31 and 32 which overlap | superposed is formed. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, temporary welded nuggets 41 a to 44 a by spot welding are formed in advance at the welding locations 41 to 44, respectively. FIG. 1 shows a state in which a laser beam 16 is irradiated to the welding spot 41 where the temporarily welded nugget 41a is formed to form the main welding nugget 41b. In addition, the position and number of welding locations are not particularly limited, and may be determined as appropriate.

  The scanning unit 11 includes mirrors 14 and 15 that can rotate around one rotation axis. For example, the mirror 14 scans the laser beam 16 in the x-axis direction, and the mirror 15 scans the laser beam 16 in the y-axis direction. The mirrors 14 and 15 can be configured using, for example, galvanometer mirrors. That is, the scanning unit 11 can scan the laser beam 16 in a predetermined scanning range on the surface of the metal plate 31.

The scanning unit 11 can be moved in any direction (x-axis direction, y-axis direction, and z-axis direction) by a drive source 12 such as a robot. In the example shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the scanning unit 11 simply moves in the positive direction of the x axis. The scanning range of the laser beam 16 by the scanning unit 11 moves as the scanning unit 11 moves.
In FIG. 1, the scanning unit 11 is configured by the two mirrors 14 and 15, but the scanning unit 11 may be configured by a single mirror that is rotatable in the biaxial direction.

  Next, basic operations of the laser welding apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. In the example of the figure, a case where two metal plates 31 and 32 are welded and joined as an object to be welded is illustrated. Although FIG. 1 shows a case where the two metal plates 31 and 32 that are the workpieces are arranged so as to be slightly separated from each other, the two metal plates 31 and 32 are arranged so as to be in contact with each other. Also good.

  As described above, temporary welded nuggets 41a to 44a by spot welding are previously formed at the welding locations 41 to 44, respectively. Here, in the case of an aluminum alloy plate or the like having high conductivity, it is difficult to obtain sufficient joint strength by spot welding, and a special device is required to obtain sufficient joint strength. On the other hand, if it is temporary fixing welding, a large joint strength is not required. Therefore, a general-purpose spot welding apparatus (for example, for a steel plate) can be used as it is for temporary fixing welding of an aluminum alloy plate or the like having high conductivity. By using spot welding, temporary fixing welding can be performed at a higher speed than in the case of laser welding, and productivity is improved.

  As shown in the plan view of FIG. 2, when welding the metal plates 31, 32, the scanning means 11 is moved in the welding direction indicated by the arrow. Here, the welding direction is a direction in which the metal plates 31 and 32 are welded. In other words, the welding direction is a direction in which the welding locations 41 to 44 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 are formed, and is the x-axis plus direction in the illustrated example. The scanning unit 11 may move at a constant speed (that is, continuously) in the welding direction, or may move stepwise (that is, discontinuously).

  As shown in FIG. 1, when welding the metal plates 31 and 32, first, the scanning unit 11 irradiates the laser beam 16 to the welded portion 41 where the temporary fixing weld nugget 41 a is formed. As a result, a main welding nugget 41 b is formed at the welding location 41. Thereafter, the scanning means 11 irradiates the next welding spot 42 with the laser beam 16 while moving. As a result, a main weld nugget (not shown) is formed at the weld location 42. Similarly, main welding nuggets are sequentially formed at the welding locations 43 and 44 as well.

  As described above, the laser welding apparatus 1 can weld the predetermined portions of the metal plates 31 and 32 by scanning the laser beam 16 with the scanning unit 11 while moving the scanning unit 11 with the drive source 12. When the above welding method is used, the welding locations 41 to 44 are discrete. As a matter of course, the number of the plurality of metal plates that are the workpieces may be three or more.

Next, the welding method according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a view for explaining the welding method according to the first embodiment, and shows a plan view of the welded portion 41.
In the welding method according to the present embodiment, the laser beam 16 scanned by the scanning unit 11 is moved while the scanning unit 11 that scans the laser beam 16 guided from the laser oscillator 10 is moved. This is a laser welding method in which a plurality of metal plates 31 and 32 are welded by irradiating 31 and 32.

Here, prior to the main welding by laser welding, the metal plates 31 and 32 are temporarily welded by spot welding.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3A, a temporary fixing weld nugget 41a is formed by spot welding at a welding point 41. Here, the temporary fixing welding is temporary welding for suppressing deformation of the metal plates 31 and 32 due to thermal strain, residual stress, or the like during the main welding, and has a lower joint strength than the main welding. It is.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, the main welding is performed by irradiating the laser beam 16 at the welding location 41 while leaving the temporarily welded nugget 41a. Specifically, a plurality of main welding nuggets 41b are formed along a virtual closed curve including the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a. In the example of the figure, three main welding nuggets 41b are formed along a virtual closed curve (a two-dot chain line indicating the welding location 41) including the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a. Here, the main welding is welding for firmly joining the metal plates 31 and 32 to each other.
The order of forming the plurality of main welding nuggets 41b may be any order.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 4, FIG. 5, the detailed structure of the welding location 41 which consists of the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a and the some main welding nugget 41b is demonstrated. FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of the welding point 41. FIG. 5 is a VV cross-sectional view of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the welding method according to the present embodiment, a temporarily closed weld nugget 41 a by spot welding is left, and a virtual closed curve (a two-dot chain line indicating the welding spot 41) that includes the temporary welded nugget 41 a is left. A plurality of main welding nuggets 41b are formed by laser welding. Therefore, the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a is surrounded by the main welding nugget 41b, and peeling of the temporary fixing welding nugget 41a after the main welding can be suppressed. Further, since the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a is left, the deformation suppressing effect of the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a can be maintained even during the main welding.

  In the example of FIG. 4, one circular temporary fixing weld nugget 41 a having a diameter Da is formed at the center of a circular virtual curve having a diameter D (a two-dot chain line indicating the welding spot 41). Three circular main welding nuggets 41b having a diameter Db that are inscribed in a virtual curve (a two-dot chain line indicating the welding location 41) are formed at equal intervals so as to surround the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a.

  From the viewpoint of the effect of suppressing deformation during main welding, as shown in FIG. 4, it is preferable that the temporary welding nugget 41a is formed apart from the main welding nugget 41b. However, a part of the temporary welding nugget 41a and a part of the main welding nugget 41b may overlap each other.

  Further, the number of the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a and the main welding nugget 41b is arbitrary. Further, the shapes of the temporary welding nugget 41a and the main welding nugget 41b are not limited to a circular shape, and may be, for example, an elliptical shape or a polygonal shape. Further, the virtual closed curve including the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a is not limited to a circle, and may be an ellipse, an arbitrary curve, or a polygon. In the example of FIG. 4, the virtual closed curve including the temporary welding nugget 41a circumscribes the main welding nugget 41b, but may pass through the center of the main welding nugget 41b or the main welding nugget, for example. 41b may be inscribed.

  As shown in FIG. 4, it is preferable that the diameter (for example, diameter) Da of the temporary welding nugget 41a is smaller than the diameter (for example, diameter) Db of the main welding nugget 41b. The thermal strain at the time of forming the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a can be reduced. Further, the smaller the diameter Da of the temporary fixing weld nugget 41a, the shorter the temporary fixing welding time is, and the production efficiency and energy efficiency are improved. However, the effect of suppressing deformation during main welding is reduced.

  In view of strength characteristics such as peel strength, it is preferable that the distance Db between the main welding nuggets 41b adjacent to each other, that is, the diameter Db of the main welding nugget 41b with respect to the pitch p satisfies 1/2 <Db / p ≦ 1. . The diameter Db of the main welding nugget 41b is a diameter when the main welding nugget 41b is circular. On the other hand, when the main welding nugget 41b has an elliptical shape, the major axis length may be used, for example, or an average value of the major axis length and the minor axis length may be used.

  In the case of Db / p ≦ 1/2, the diameter Db of the main welding nugget 41b is small with respect to the pitch p, and the main welding nuggets 41b are separated. Therefore, the plurality of main welding nuggets 41b do not affect each other in terms of strength characteristics, and when a load exceeding the single strength of each main welding nugget 41b is applied, each main welding nugget 41b breaks individually. Therefore, the strength characteristics are inferior to those of one nugget surrounded by a virtual curve (welded portion 41) having a diameter D.

  When 1 <Db / p, the diameter Db of the main welding nugget 41b is too large with respect to the pitch p, and the diameters Db of the adjacent main welding nuggets 41b overlap each other. Therefore, the plurality of main welding nuggets 41b are integrated and break at a time along the boundary between the melted portion and the base material. That is, the strength characteristic is equivalent to that of one nugget surrounded by a virtual curve having a diameter D (welded portion 41).

  On the other hand, when 1/2 <Db / p ≦ 1, adjacent main welding nuggets 41b are appropriately separated. That is, since the base material (metal plates 31, 32) exists between the adjacent main welding nuggets 41b, the main welding nugget 41b is prevented from being broken integrally. At the same time, the individual weld nugget 41b is also prevented from breaking individually. Therefore, the strength characteristic exceeding the one nugget surrounded by the virtual curve (welded part 41) of the diameter D is acquired.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, after the temporary fixing weld nugget is formed by spot welding at the welding location, the temporary fixing weld nugget remains, and the high energy along the virtual closed curve that includes the temporary fixing weld nugget remains. Irradiate the beam to form a plurality of main welding nuggets. Therefore, the temporary fixing weld nugget remaining after the main welding is surrounded by the main welding nugget. Accordingly, it is possible to suppress peeling of the temporary welding nugget after the main welding.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the workpiece 100 according to the embodiment. FIG. 7 is a plan view of the workpiece 110 according to the comparative example.
The workpiece 100 was welded using the welding method according to the first embodiment. In this example, the work piece 100 was formed by stacking two frame-shaped 6000 series aluminum alloy plates. The thickness of each aluminum alloy plate was 1.2 mm and 0.9 mm.
A copper alloy tip was used for spot welding. The welding conditions were a pressure of 1960 N, a welding current of 14 kA, and an energization time of 8 cycles.
A fiber laser was used for the laser oscillator 10 of the laser welding apparatus 1.

As shown in FIG. 6, the number of welding points 101 in the workpiece 100 according to the example was 20 points. As shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 4, the ten welded portions 101 a shown by hatching have one circular temporary welded nugget by spot welding and three circular main welded nuggets by laser welding. It was formed point by point. Only the main welding nugget was formed at three points without forming the temporary welding nugget at the other ten welding locations 101b.
The diameter Da of the temporarily welded nugget was set to about 1 to 3 mm. Moreover, the diameter Db of this welding nugget was about 4 mm. The diameter D of the circumscribed circle of the main welding nugget was about 11 mm.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, the number of welding points 111 in the workpiece 110 according to the comparative example was also set to 20. In all the welded portions 111, only temporary welding nuggets similar to those of the example were formed three by three without forming the temporary welding nuggets by spot welding. Instead of temporary fixing welding, the workpiece 110 was restrained using ten clamps 112. Of these, the four clamps 112 b can be provided at positions other than the welding spot 111, but the six clamps 112 a need to be provided at the welding spot 111. Therefore, in the comparative example, the workpiece 110 was laser-welded twice along the welding route indicated by an arrow in the drawing. For the first time, 14 welding locations 111 were laser welded. In the second time, six welded spots 111 that were hidden in the clamp 112a in the first time were laser welded.

On the other hand, in Example, since it temporarily fixed by spot welding, the to-be-welded object 100 was able to be welded by one laser welding along a welding route. Therefore, in the example, production efficiency could be improved as compared with the comparative example using the clamp.
In the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, three main welding nuggets 41 b are formed so as to surround one temporary fixing welding nugget at each welding point 101. Therefore, in the Example, it was possible to suppress peeling of the temporary weld nugget after the main welding while suppressing deformation during the main welding.

(Other embodiments)
In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, It is possible to change suitably in the range which does not deviate from the meaning.
For example, the nugget shape of the main welding portion can be an arbitrary shape. For example, the shape may be a C shape, an O shape, a line shape, or the like.
The welding method according to the present invention can be widely applied to welding using a high energy beam such as a laser beam, an electron beam, or an ion beam (for example, laser-arc hybrid welding, electron beam welding).
The welding method according to the present invention is particularly suitable for an aluminum alloy plate that is easily deformed during welding, but can also be applied to steel plates and other metal plates.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Laser welding apparatus 10 Laser oscillator 11 Scanning means 12 Drive source 13 Optical fiber cable 14, 15 Mirror 16 Laser beam 31, 32 Metal plate 41-44 Welding location 41a-44a Welding nugget 41b Main welding nugget 100, 110 Workpiece 101, 101a, 101b, 111 Welded part 112, 112a, 112b Clamp

Claims (4)

It is a welding method for welding an object to be welded consisting of a plurality of stacked metal plates,
A step of forming a temporary welding nugget by spot welding at the weld location of the workpiece;
A plurality of main welding nuggets are irradiated with a high energy beam along a virtual closed curve including the temporary welding nugget while the temporary welding nugget remains at the welding location, and the temporary welding nugget is temporarily fixed. A step of forming the weld nugget to have a higher strength than the weld nugget ,
Welding method. The diameter of the temporary fixing weld nugget is smaller than the diameter of the main weld nugget,
The welding method according to claim 1. The temporary welding nugget and the plurality of main welding nuggets are formed apart from each other,
The welding method according to claim 1 or 2. A laser beam is used as the high energy beam,
The welding method as described in any one of Claims 1-3.

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