A comparative study between conventional fixed and advanced adaptive control system for resistance spot

Abstract: Resistance spot welding is the main welding method used in the automotive industry to weld thin sheet metal. Today adaptive control systems have been developed for RSW, which means it can adjust the parameters in the weld process automatically during welding. The control systems can register the parameters and properties of the weld in real-time and from that calculate with algorithms how to adjust to give optimal weld conditions. This project is performed at Scania CV AB, Oskarshamn. Conducted in the part of body in white, where an adaptive control system called HCC is used in all weld processes. In this project, HCC was compared to the fixed control system CCR and another adaptive control system named Master mode. First step in the comparison was to create a weld schedule for each control system and test them on two different material combinations. The aim was to quantify gains and benefits that adaptive resistance spot welding systems have on the welding process. Benefits are quantified by examining the parameters and factors such as: weld time, expulsion, robustness, electrode wear and parameters in the control system. The tests were performed by welding as many approved spot welds as possible without tip-dressing the electrode. The experiment followed the requirements from international standards and the Scania standard for resistance spot welding.  The results from the experiment showed that HCC was the most robust process and the spot welds never decreased in size, which CCR and Master mode did. It is possible to weld several different material combinations with HCC, it increases flexibility in production and reduces the time needed to develop new weld schedules. The same schedule can handle many combinations with the same thickness. HCC allows the process to use several pulses and each pulse adds in time. Therefore, the weld schedule should be well developed and optimized to avoid waste in terms of long weld times. The results will give Scania knowledge about the processes and how to further optimize the welding processes in production. The result can also be used as foundation for selection of products or future investments.