Innovative force in automotive manufacturing: FSPR Technology leads the new trend of body strength and lightweight
With the increasing global emphasis on energy saving and environmental protection, the market for new energy vehicles is expanding. This trend is leading to increased demands for lightweight automobile body materials and more efficient manufacturing processes.
Traditional welding and riveting processes frequently encounter issues such as cracking and insufficient connection strength when joining dissimilar materials like steel and aluminum, which significantly impede the progress of automobile manufacturing. It is within this context that the FSPR self-pierce riveting process emerges as a standout solution, offering unique advantages and becoming the favored choice in the automobile manufacturing industry.
I. FSPR Self-pierce Riveting Technology
FSPR Self-pierce riveting is a mechanical joining technique that automatically feeding special rivets into the punch by means of special riveting equipment. During the stamping process, the parent material to be connected is punched and sheared and discharged through the rivets, and then extruded in the periphery of the rivets by means of the die to form a reliable connection.
FSPR can join a variety of materials(i.e. high-strength aluminum alloy, hot stamping steel, carbon fiber), and achieve multi-layer riveting, the maximum thickness can reach 9.1mm.
1. FSPR Process Characteristics
(1) Safety: no odor, no sparks, no splashing.
(2) Long life: strong anti-rust ability, longest salt spray test lasts up to 720 hours, special rivets can be extended according to actual needs of anti-rust ability.
(3) Reliable: Forms joints by extrusion, allows joining of materials with long elongation of 5%, stable shear, tension and riveting appearance.
(4) Efficient: Punching and riveting can be completed in a simple punch and die process, without pre-punching riveting holes; Can realize automatic rivet feeding, with high cycle time and productive efficiency.
(5) Intelligent: Adopt advanced human-machine interface and HRC-670 real-time quality monitor.
(6) Beautiful appearance: the appearance of the material after riveting is neat and beautiful, without the need for secondary polishing treatment.
2. FSPR Market Application
As the promoter of FSPR technology, Heron actively applies this innovative technology to actual production and develops the FSPR robot system.
Since its launch on the market, the FSPR robot system has been widely praised by customers. Its main features are:
(1) Efficiently solve the problem of joining dissimilar materials
The development of new energy vehicles has presented challenges to the automotive market of lightweight bodies. Numerous automakers have developed and designed new roof components made of a combination of special-shaped multi-layer materials (steel-aluminum-steel). However, the traditional SPR riveting joining technology often leads to cracks in the cast aluminum workpiece at the joining point, and it is difficult to align the holes in the multi-layer plate. This joining process is costly and inefficient. FSPR, with its rivets of self-pierce riveting process, offers the perfect solution to this problem. It can effectively join two or more layers of materials such as steel, aluminum, cast aluminum, high-strength steel, aluminum alloy, and carbon fiber, ensuring strong and sealed connections, and greatly enhancing the overall performance of the car body. Additionally, FSPR effectively reduces the weight of the car body, improves the range of new energy vehicles, reduces the consumption of chemical energy, and aligns with the global trend of green development.
(2) Intelligent monitoring and quality traceability
In order to enhance product quality control, the FSPR robot system is also equipped with a newly developed riveting quality monitoring system (HRC670). This monitoring system has the capability to monitor the riveting guns in real time and convert the collected data into a visual curve, making it convenient for the operator to monitor and make adjustments as needed. In the event of a quality issue, the cause can be quickly identified through data backtracking, thus achieving intelligent and precise quality control.
(3) Improve efficiency and reduce costs
Compared with traditional welding processes, the FSPR robot system offers increased production efficiency and reduced costs. It eliminates the need for pre-drilling, thereby reducing production preparation time and material waste. Additionally, the FSPR robot system utilizes a servo electric cylinder (8 tons) as an actuator, enabling it to generate a substantial riveting force while maintaining precise control over the riveting process. This high-precision and high-reliability control ensures the quality consistency of each riveting point, reduces the defective product rate and improves the production efficiency.