Development of high speed friction stir welding machine

Currently the industry is researching low speed Friction Stir Welding (FSW) and determining all FSW parameters. Even though existing milling machines are capable of operating at higher speeds, High Speed Friction Stir Welding (HS-FSW) is not performed using these machines because the process is not well understood. Till today we have performed Friction Stir Welding on a conventional milling machine with some modification to the spindle system. One of the major limitations of this process is reaction of the high loads FSW imposes with reactive tooling. HS-FSW promises to significantly reduce these loads thus reducing the dependency on reactive tooling, while at the same time increasing productivity. The utilization of welding, specifically HS-FSW, will have a substantial direct impact on productivity. It was found that the high speed friction stir welding process is machine dependable. With same parametric conditions different machines give different weld quality. This is mainly due to different vibration level each of these machines has. This new approach to design a new HS-FSW machine should solve problems related to portability by reducing operational forces. All the findings were integrated to develop this new portable high speed friction stir welding machine. Hope the outcome of this comprehensive research will provide the needed knowledge in order for all United States' manufacturers to fully utilize high-speed friction stir welding.