The laser machining equipment for etching grooves in a wall of a mechanical part, in particular of a connecting rod for a spark ignition engine, is provided with a fibre optic laser device and arranged to supply laser pulses. The fibre optic laser device is controlled so that said laser pulses have a peak power of more than 400 W and at least two times greater than the maximum mean power of said laser device and in that the duration of said laser pulses is below or within the nanosecond range (1 ns to 1000 ns). According to a first embodiment, the fibre optic laser device is controlled in a quasi continuous wave (QCW) mode. According to a second preferred embodiment, the fibre optic laser device is controlled in a Q-switch mode. The selected operating modes increase machining efficiency and produce a groove with an optimum transverse profile, particularly with a small mean radius of curvature at the bottom of the groove which then allows precise subsequent fracturing of the mechanical part with less force.

The present invention provides a press-fit joining apparatus 100 where two collet-chuck-type electrodes (first collet-chuck-type electrode 160 and second collet-chuck-type electrode 170) are held using a die set structural body 130 and a sub platen structural body 140. According to the press-fit joining apparatus 100 of the present invention, it is possible to manufacture a product which is required to have higher coaxiality and higher joining strength than conventional products (for example, products such as a drive force transmitting part, the manufacture of which requires the supply of a large and uniform electric current to a joining portion).

A method for forming a propshaft assembly includes: providing a tube having an annular wall member and an axial end face; providing a yoke having body and a pair of arms that extend from the body, the body defining an annular groove having sidewalls and an end face, the sidewalls being spaced apart to receive the annular wall member; spinning at least one of the tube and the yoke while engaging the axial end face to the end face of the annular groove to plasticize a portion of the yoke and a portion of the tube; and driving the yoke and the tube together to fuse the plasticized portion of the yoke and the plasticized portion of the tube together and thereby form a friction weld; wherein the tube is fused to the yoke over portions of the yoke that correspond to the sidewalls and the end face.

A method for producing a camshaft may include: providing at least two metallic components; and welding the at least two components to one another via a combined induction/friction welding method. According to an implementation, one of the at least two components is a camshaft tube and the other of the at least two components is a drive element.

A composite camshaft is made by simultaneous through transmissive laser welding cams, bearing assemblies and load introduction parts to a fiber composite support tube.

A device for positioning a number of function elements, each having a recess for a shaft, in a predetermined angle position on the shaft, may include a plurality of support balconies arranged one above the other, each being destined for a function element. A movable guide carriage may be configured to enable the shaft to be push the shaft from above through the recesses of the function elements. The support balconies may each include at least one gripper respectively fixing one function element. The at least one gripper may be arranged on an associated gripper carriage and may be adjustable in an x-direction and a y-direction relative to the associated gripper carriage and the support balcony. The associated gripper carriage may be mounted on the support balcony so as to be rotatable about a z-axis.

A method of laser hardening a surface area of a workpiece, such as a surface of a journal of a crankshaft, includes the step of: generating a relative movement between the surface of the workpiece and a laser source to allow a laser spot to subsequently be projected onto different portions of said surface area. The method also includes the step of repetitively scanning the laser beam so as to produce a two-dimensional equivalent effective laser spot on said surface area, during the relative movement.

The scanning pattern can include at least three substantially parallel lines which the laser spot follows in a certain order.

When the workpiece includes several journals having different widths, two laser sources may be used to harden the surface area of the wider journals.

A gear box having a carburized shaft and steel bearing assembly. The bearing includes an inner-race and an outer-race. The shaft includes a distal end surface extending perpendicularly from a shaft faying surface and a shaft annular beveled edge. The shaft faying surface is in intimate contact with the inner-race. The inner-race second annular face is coplanar with the distal end surface. The shaft annular beveled edge cooperates with the inner-race faying surface to define a half-V shaped groove. An annular weld joint is formed in the half-V shaped groove thereby joining the shaft to the inner-race. The outer-race includes a first width (W1) and the inner-race includes a second width (W2). W2 is wider than W1 by greater than 0 millimeters (mm) to about 10 mm.