22/4/2019 Advanced Steel Processing Technologies | AHSS Insights

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Advanced Steel Processing Technologies

by Kathy Hickey | Mar 13, 2019 | News | 4 comments

Advanced Steel Processing Technologies For

Reduced Cost, Reduced Mass and Improved Functional Performance

Laser (Tailor) Welded Blanks

A laser welded blank is two or more sheets of steel seam-welded together into a single blank which
is then stamped into a part. Laser welded blank technology allows for the placement of various
steel grades and thicknesses within a speci c part, placing steel’s attributes where they are most
needed for part function, and removing weight that does not contribute to part performance. For
example, Figure 1 shows a laser welded body side aperture (outer) with multiple grades and
thicknesses. This technology allows for a reduction in panel thickness in non-critical areas, thus
contributing to an overall mass reduction of the part.

Figure 1: Body-side outer with exposed laser welds

and multi-piece construction.

There are several advantages to a laser welded blank, compared with conventional blanks made 2
from a single grade and part thickness. They include:

Superior vehicle strength and rigidity

Consolidation of parts, where one blank can replace several di erent parts

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Lower vehicle and part weight

Reduced steel usage
Improved safety
Elimination of reinforcement parts
Elimination of assembly processes
Reduction in capital spending for stamping and spot-welding equipment
Reduced inventory costs
Improved dimensional integrity ( t and nish)
Achievement of high-performance objectives with lower total costs
Reduction in Noise, Vibration, and Harshness (NVH)
Elevated customer-perceived quality

Laser-Welded Coils
A laser-welded coil (Figure 2) is a continuous coil of steel comprised of individual, separate coils of
steel with varying thickness and grades. The basic process takes separate coils, prepares their
edges for contiguous joining, and laser welds these together into one master coil. The new strip is
then readied for blanking, or to be used as a continuous feed into a transfer press line.

As in laser-welded blanks, the laser-welded coil allows for similar advantages – targeted strength or
sti ness where required, while allowing for overall part weight reduction by incorporate thinner
materials where possible.

Figure 2: Laser-welded coil process

Potential use of a laser welded coil in an automotive application, using a pro-die-stamping process,
includes the following:

1. Roof frames
2. Roof bows
3. Side members
4. Reinforcements
5. Seat cross members
6. Exhaust systems
2
Tailor-Rolled Coil
This is a manufacturing process of exible cold strip rolling by varying the gap between two rolls,
allowing for di erent strip thicknesses in the direction of rolling. Figure 3 illustrates the
manufacturing principles. The accurate measuring and controlling technology ensure that strip

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thickness tolerances are maintained. A tailor-rolled coil can be either used for blanking operations
(for stamping or tubular blanks) or can be directly fed into a roll-forming line.

Figure 3: The principle of producing a Tailor Rolled Coil.

Laser Blanking
A comparison of various mechanical sheared edges with water jet, laser and milled edges showed
that laser-cut edges achieved elongations that approached that of the ideal milled edge. As a
response to increasing AHSS volumes and strength levels, multiple companies have developed laser
blanking lines, where a coil is blanked via a laser or series of lasers. These new lines are capable of
cutting blanks on a high-volume basis.

There are several advantages to this approach when processing AHSS. Improved edge conditions
are less susceptible to edge fracture, and thus is signi cant. Additional savings can be achieved
through the elimination of expensive blank die construction and tooling maintenance costs (no
blank die is needed) and thus no expensive trim steels are required (AHSS usually requires more
durable and more expensive tool steels). Less oor space is needed because there are no blank
dies to store. With no blank dies to remove and replace, faster line transitions occur, which means
greater uptime and increased productivity. There is also the opportunity to optimize material
utilization through either blank nesting optimization or blanking two or more di erent blanks out of
the same steel strip.

Figure 4 shows an example of optimized laser blank nesting of three di erent blanks from the
same coil. Blank contours can easily be modi ed after production launch as well. As many AHSS
grades are rolling-direction sensitive with respect to edge and shear fracture, alternative nesting
can potentially optimize the blank orientation to minimize these types of local formability failures.

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Figure 4: Schematic of 3 di erent blanks to be

laser blanked from the same coil to minimize

engineered scrap. Not only is engineered scrap

minimized, but the superior edge condition

signi cantly reduces the potential for edge

fracture.

The decision for laser blanking should be made during development, in order maximize overall
process e ciency and avoid building a blank die or other non-essential tooling. Figure 5 shows a
typical laser blanking line speci cally designed to process AHSS.

Figure 5: Laser blanking line speci cally designed to process AHSS. Note the cartridge-based

straightener (far left), speci cally designed to ensure blanks are at after processing.

4 Comments
Mike Austin on April 8, 2019 at 2:51 am

Laser blanking from coil is becoming more popular. The majority of shaped contour
blanking remains done by conventional blanking dies due to blanking presses having
signi cantly higher production rates. Laser blanking from coil is mainly used in lower
volume work where the blank die cost amortization is a greater factor, but does help
reduce edge crack for AHSS.

Reply

2
Peter Mooney on April 2, 2019 at 9:23 pm

I was at a Skoda plant in the Czeck Republic outside Prague in October 2013 and saw
them laser welding a 2 piece decklid outer. The laser line ran horizontally along the
waterfall just below the 90 degree bend. The sedan also had a laser line where the roof

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mated with the rear quarter panel on the BSO on the c-pillar. No plastic decorative
molding covered the joint. I then saw a nished vehicle at the airport in Prague on the
way back and they looked pretty good to me.

Reply

Alan Pearson on April 4, 2019 at 2:11 pm

Yes laser welds on nished vehicles are used often now, roof ditches are good
examples. The di erence is this is laser welding blanks before forming, hard to
make a thinned out strained area next to a thick piece look good.

Reply

Alan Pearson on March 13, 2019 at 9:04 pm

Not sure where info on exposed laser welds on class A outer body panels originated,
but I do not “see” them on any vehicles currently produced. Lot of AHSS usage on
bodyside inner panels, some using PHS, but I need to see a real example on a BSO with
class A quality being met.

Reply

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