Numerical simulation and control of robot welding deformation of five-port connector

Abstract

The unfitness of weld and gap variation are salient using traditional TIG procedure for the five-port connector flange. Insufficient reliability and the instability of the weld are catastrophe, which cannot accommodate to new generation type production's requirement. In this study, a finite element model of the five-port connector was built and the distribution of temperature field and deformation were studied. The result shows that welding thermal cycle is greatly different from the ordinary butt weld during welding of the flange and spherical shell. The welding deformation is complex from the direction of UX and UZ. Especially maximum deformation from the direction of UZ is about 4.96mm .According to the result, the optimum welding fixture is designed on the view of the smallest deformation, to critically control the deformation of the both sides of the welding line, finally to accomplish the robotic flexible welding. © 2007 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.