EP0504494A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Friction welder having a drive which produces orbital motion
Assignee: Hydroacoustics Inc
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Filing: 1991-12-23
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2011-12-23
Abstract
Abstract An electromagnetically actuated friction welder produces orbital motion at interfaces between parts (usually of thermoplastic material) to bond the parts by fusion generated by friction. This welder can also be operated alternatively to produce reciprocating vibratory forces thereby providing flexibility as to the selection of an orbital or reciprocating mode, depending upon the joint to be welded. The velocity of motion is controllable preferably around the resonant frequency of the driven structure by adjusting the frequency of the AC power which operates the electromagnetic drive motor of the welder. A plate which carries one of the parts to be welded and which is driven is flexurally mounted for movement in an orbital plane or planes containing the interfaces without substantial tilting by an array of stiff members, such as rods, located around the drive motor, attached to the plate at one end and to a tubular structure at the opposite ends thereof. The tubular structure is desirably attached to a massive support carried by the frame of the welder.
Inventors
- 👤 Edward A. Snyder
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-04 06:38
CPC Classifications
H; H02; H02K; H02K33/00; H02K33/12; B; B29; B29C; B29C65/00; B29C65/02; B29C65/06; B29C65/0609; B29C65/0636; B29C66/00; B29C66/01; B29C66/05; B29C66/10; B29C66/13; B29C66/131; B29C66/1312; B29C66/50; B29C66/51; B29C66/54; B29C66/80; B29C66/81; B29C66/816; B29C66/8167; B29C66/82; B29C66/824; B29C66/8242; B29C66/83; B29C66/832; B29C66/8322; B29C66/90; B29C66/95; B29C66/951; B29C66/9512; B29C65/0618
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 15
Claim 1
Independent Claim
81 words
Apparatus for friction welding of parts at an interface therebetween which comprises means for driving one of said parts with orbital motion with respect to another of said parts while said parts are held in contact at said interface, said driving means comprising force generating means which produces orbital forces in an orbital plane, and means for mounting said one of said parts to execute orbital motion in response to said orbital forces when said interface is in said orbital plane.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
81 words
Apparatus for friction welding of parts at an interface therebetween which comprises means for driving one of said parts with orbital motion with respect to another of said parts while said parts are held in contact at said interface, said driving means comprising force generating means which produces orbital forces in an orbital plane, and means for mounting said one of said parts to execute orbital motion in response to said orbital forces when said interface is in said orbital plane.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
82 words
The apparatus according to Claim 1 wherein said orbital motion is defined by the following equations x(t) = xo + A sin", t; y(t) = yo + B cos '" t; z(t) = zo; and A = B. where, x, y and z are position coordinates in the orbital plane, t is time and", is radians per second, x o , y o and z o are position coordinates at rest in said orbital plane, and A and B are amplitude values.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
18 words
The apparatus according to Claim 2 where A and B are not equal and said motion is elliptical.
Claim 5
Independent Claim
17 words
The apparatus according to any of Claims 1-3 wherein said interface is contained in said orbital plane.
Claim 6
Independent Claim
18 words
The apparatus according to any of Claims 1-4 wherein said force generating means is an electromagnetic force generator.
Claim 7
Independent Claim
32 words
The apparatus according to any of Claims 1-5 wherein said mounting means comprises an array of stiff members located around said driving means for constraining said orbital forces to said orbital plane.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
101 words
The method of friction welding parts having thermoplastic material at surfaces thereof to be welded which comprises the steps of holding said parts with said surfaces together in pressurized contacting relationship generating frictional forces to cause said surfaces to fuse by driving at least one of said parts with orbital forces, which parts - at least one - execute orbits about axes perpendicular to said contacting surfaces and which forces are sufficient in amplitude to cause fusion at said surfaces, and terminating said forces and maintaining said parts together after said forces terminate until they fuse together to form a weld.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
101 words
The method of friction welding parts having thermoplastic material at surfaces thereof to be welded which comprises the steps of holding said parts with said surfaces together in pressurized contacting relationship generating frictional forces to cause said surfaces to fuse by driving at least one of said parts with orbital forces, which parts - at least one - execute orbits about axes perpendicular to said contacting surfaces and which forces are sufficient in amplitude to cause fusion at said surfaces, and terminating said forces and maintaining said parts together after said forces terminate until they fuse together to form a weld.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
39 words
The method according to Claim 7 further comprising applying flexural constraining forces to said one part to maintain said surfaces in a plane while said orbital forces are applied, said plane being an orbital plane perpendicular to said axis.
Claim 11
Independent Claim
109 words
The apparatus according to any of Claims 1-8 wherein said electromagnetic force generating means comprises a single body of magnetic material providing an armature having a central axis perpendicular to said orbital plane and a plurality of poles distributed circumferentially by 360 ° /N, where N is the number of said poles, about said axis, N is equal or greater than 3, and a stator disposed around said armature having a plurality of poles each opposed to a different one of said armature poles, said armature being attached to said mounting means to said one part to cause said one part to execute orbital motion in said orbital plane.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
78 words
The apparatus according to any of Claims 1-9 wherein said mounting means comprises a plate to which said armature is connected, flexural means for supporting said plate for orbital motion in a plane together with said armature, and a massive support for fixedly anchoring said stator and for anchoring said flexural means, and wherein said flexural means comprises spring means having the same stiffness in all directions in the plane in which said plate executes its orbital motion.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
109 words
An orbital motor adapted to be driven by N phase electrical power which comprises an armature which produces orbital force which is a single body of magnetic material, a stator surrounding said armature which is a single body of magnetic material having poles circumferentially displaced from each other, each pole having a face, said armature having faces, spaced circumferentially from each other and each opposed to a different stator pole face, coils on said stator magnetically coupled to said stator poles to which different phases of said N phase power are applied, and means connected to said armature which executes orbital motion in a plane transverse to said faces.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
109 words
An orbital motor adapted to be driven by N phase electrical power which comprises an armature which produces orbital force which is a single body of magnetic material, a stator surrounding said armature which is a single body of magnetic material having poles circumferentially displaced from each other, each pole having a face, said armature having faces, spaced circumferentially from each other and each opposed to a different stator pole face, coils on said stator magnetically coupled to said stator poles to which different phases of said N phase power are applied, and means connected to said armature which executes orbital motion in a plane transverse to said faces.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
103 words
The motor according to Claim 11 further comprising means for controlling the velocity of motion in said orbital plane responsive to the current and voltage across one of said coils, and wherein said controlling means comprises means responsive to a first signal related to the magnitude of the current at the third harmonic of the frequency of said AC power and a second signal having a magnitude related to the phase angle between the voltage across said coil at the frequency of said AC power and the current through said coil at said third harmonic for controlling the frequency of said AC power.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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