Investigations on the Influences of the Thermomechanical Manufacturing of Aluminium Auxiliary Joining Elements

The demands on joining technology are constantly increasing due to the consistent lightweight construction and the associated increasing material mix. To meet these requirements, the adaptability of the joining processes must be improved to be able to process different material combinations and to react to challenges caused by deviations in the process chain. One example of a highly adaptable process due to the two-step process sequence is thermomechanical joining with Friction Spun Joint Connectors (FSJCs) that can be individually adapted to the joint. In this paper, the potentials of the adaption in the two-stage joining process with aluminium auxiliary joining elements are investigated. To this end, it is first investigated whether a thermomechanical forming process can be used to achieve a uniform and controlled manufacturing regarding the process variable of the temperature as well as the geometry of the FSJC. Based on the successful proof of the high and good repeatability in the FSJC manufacturing, possibilities, and potentials for the targeted influencing of the process and FSJC geometry are shown, based on an extensive variation of the process input variables (delivery condition and thus mechanical properties of the raw parts as well as the process parameters of rotational speed and feed rate). Here it can be shown that above all, the feed rate of the final forming process has the strongest influence on the process and thus also offers the strongest possibilities for influencing it.