Use of welding lasers in the automotive industry
Support for innovation
- Solving problems in electric vehicle manufacturing with cutting-edge laser technologies that increase performance and reliability, as well as reduce costs.
Battery production for electric vehicles
Battery manufacturing from start to finish
- Choose from the widest range of laser welding systems available and get the optimal solution for every application.
Stay cool
- Weld with minimal overall heat input to avoid damaging delicate parts.
- Reduce your total investment costs with higher productivity laser systems.
Gain flexibility
- Adapt to changes in welding parameters with flexible laser processing.
Save money
Laser bonding offers quality and cost advantages over other methods and can be used at every stage of battery production - from component and cell manufacturing to module assembly and packaging to final integration into the vehicle. However, specialized knowledge is required to determine and implement the best laser solution for each application. Coherent is your partner on this journey - offering application development expertise, better lasers and ongoing support - to get your battery production up and running.
Body-in-White
Weld "challenging" materials such as galvanized steel, aluminum and HSS using advanced fiber laser technology.
Reduce post-processing
- Perform zero-gap welding on galvanized steel with no spatter or pores in the weld.
Eliminate additive materials
- Avoid cracks when welding 6000 aluminum alloys - no additional wire.
Prevent cracks
- Weld high-strength steels by rapid feed without subsequent cold cracking.
Lighten the load
A revolution in BIW has resulted from the use of new materials that have similar stiffness and strength to traditional steel alloys, but are much lighter. However, welding these materials - such as aluminium, high-strength low-alloy steel (HSLA) and advanced high-strength steel (AHSS) - often presents a problem. Coherent has developed Adjustable Ring Mode (ARM) fiber laser technology that provides the precise control over material heating and cooling needed to successfully weld these materials in mass production.
- Article: How to get a head start in automotive welding
- Article: Fiber lasers: why is it better to tackle welding for e-mobility with finesse, not brute force?
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Electric Motor Manufacturing
Weld metals and heat treat thermoplastic composites with high efficiency, performance and lower costs.
Increase consistency
- Reduce the sensitivity of the welding process to variations in the surface finish of individual parts.
Eliminate defects
- Weld with reduced defects, spatter and porosity and eliminate part deformation.
TPC processing
- Perform efficient and controlled melting of thermoplastic composites.
Material differentiation
Manufacturing electric motors involves working with many different types of materials - metals, polymers, CFRP and more. With the widest range of laser technologies available anywhere, Coherent is uniquely positioned to provide the ideal processing solution for almost any application. With Coherent, you get the technology that best fits your requirements, not just the one we happen to manufacture.
Fuel cell manufacturing
Increase cell efficiency by using the advanced bipolar plate geometry made possible by laser welding with ARM fiber lasers.
High speed
- Weld bipolar plates at high speed without loss of quality.
Dense welds
- Improve weld density with the precise control enabled by ARM technology.
Increased conductivity
- Get higher conductivity welds for better battery performance.
Welding in production
Welding membrane electrodes (MEAs) between bipolar plates is a key step in fuel cell manufacturing. Due to the large number of MEAs used in each fuel cell, this welding must be performed at high speed to make the assembly process economically viable. However, traditional fiber lasers did not provide the necessary weld quality and tended to create "bumps" in the weld seams. Coherent HighLight FL-ARM lasers solve this problem and enable cost-effective bipolar plate welding.
Interiors
Increase productivity and quality in the fabrication of automotive interiors and components with efficient lasers and laser systems.
Flexible production
- Easily implement mass customization with software-controlled laser processing.
Attractive cosmetics
- Make marks, cuts and welds on visible surfaces that are cosmetically attractive.
Cutting precision
- Achieve higher cut accuracy and higher material yield with stable, wear-free laser tooling.
Quality inside
The machining of many parts of the interior of a car must be done to a high aesthetic quality, as these parts are often of interest to consumers. In addition, a wide variety of materials are used in interiors - metals, polymers, films, organics, glass and more - and often need to be customized on the fly. There is a demand for production tools that offer operational flexibility and superior results. Coherent lasers are the solution.
Powertrain
Weld and harden with lasers that deliver better results and can be easily automated and integrated into production.
Eliminate deformations
- Use laser energy in a highly spatially selective manner to prevent part deformation.
Improve results
- Get better welding results by reducing spatter by up to 80%.
Increase performance
- Speed up laser processing and eliminate post-processing steps as well.
No spatter
Fiber lasers offer practical advantages for welding powertrain components, but traditionally produce unacceptable amounts of spatter. Coherent HighLight FL-ARM (adjustable circular mode) lasers allow precise control of how energy is delivered to the part, solving the spatter problem and enabling efficient, high-speed welding of drivetrain parts. They also limit heat transfer to the part to prevent deformation.
Source: coherent.com
