US 12,168,264 B2
Method for laser joining two blanks made of aluminum material
Weijie Zhang, Auburn Hills, MI (US); and Michel Raphael Garcia, Auburn Hills, MI (US)
Assigned to AUTOTECH ENGINEERING R&D USA INC., Auburn Hills, MI (US)
Appl. No. 17/435,361
Filed by AUTOTECH ENGINEERING S.L., Bizkaia (ES)
PCT Filed Mar. 3, 2020, PCT No. PCT/US2020/020804
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Aug. 31, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/180871, PCT Pub. Date Sep. 10, 2020.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/814,199, filed on Mar. 5, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0152735 A1, May 19, 2022
Int. Cl. B23K 26/244 (2014.01); B23K 26/0622 (2014.01); B23K 26/073 (2006.01); B23K 26/08 (2014.01); B23K 26/32 (2014.01); B23K 103/10 (2006.01)
CPC B23K 26/244 (2015.10) [B23K 26/0622 (2015.10); B23K 26/0734 (2013.01); B23K 26/0876 (2013.01); B23K 26/32 (2013.01); B23K 2103/10 (2018.08)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for joining a first blank and a second blank, wherein both the first and the second blanks are made of an aluminum material, the method comprises:
placing the first and second blanks for welding, the second blank being placed on top of the first blank and partially overlapping the first blank;
laser welding, by a laser, the first and second blanks following a welding path wherein,
the welding path combines a movement along a welding direction and oscillating movements substantially transverse to the welding direction, wherein the oscillating movement has a frequency between 50 Hz and 1500 Hz and an amplitude ranging from 0.3 mm and 3.0 mm, and wherein
a laser power is varied along the welding path, wherein the laser power is varied such that a product of the laser power and a speed of the laser divided by a local thickness is substantially constant along the welding path, such that accumulated heat in points along the welding path is substantially constant.