The invention relates to an apparatus and a method for the low-resistance welding of metal sheets with a high cycle rate.

An apparatus includes a housing, a pin, a mechanism and a sensor. The housing is configured to receive a weld head. The pin is configured to move linearly relative to said housing. The mechanism is configured to convert a position of said pin into a displacement. The sensor is configured to generate a value representative of said position of said pin based on said displacement.

A fastener welding apparatus having a frame assembly, a welding assembly, a coupling assembly and a locating assembly. The welding assembly has a welder frame and a welding electrode assembly coupled thereto. The coupling assembly has a suspension frame, a frame axle and a welding axle. The frame axle is fixedly engaged to the frame assembly and the welding axle is fixedly engaged to the welding assembly. The suspension frame is pivotably coupled to each of the frame axle and the welding axle. The locating assembly is structurally configured to selectively allow the suspension frame to pivot relative to the frame axle and the welding axle.

An electronically-controlled electric resistance welding head and method having a support structure and the electrodes located on the same side. The welding head including a ground electrode having an elastic device and a detecting device for detecting a force load on the elastic device on contact with a component to be welded. A welding electrode is movable relative to the ground electrode and the support structure to contact the component to be welded. An electronic control unit is operable to selectively increase the force applied by each electrode when in contact with the component to be welded until respective threshold values are achieved. Current is generated by a transformer for passage to the electrodes.

A series of many electrical resistance spot welds is to be formed in members of an assembled, but un-joined, body that presents workpiece stack-ups of various combinations of metal workpieces including all aluminum workpieces, all steel workpieces, and a combination of aluminum and steel workpieces. A pair of spot welding electrodes, each with a specified weld face that includes oxide-disrupting features, is used to form the required numbers of aluminum-to-aluminum spot welds, aluminum-to-steel spot welds, and steel-to-steel spot welds. A predetermined sequence of forming the various spot welds may be specified for extending the number of spot welds that can be made before the weld faces must be restored. And, during at least one of the aluminum-to-steel spot welds, a cover is inserted between the weld face of one of the welding electrodes and a side of a workpiece stack-up that includes the adjacent aluminum and steel workpieces.

A collet assembly including an actuator and a collet connected to the actuator. The collet assembly is adapted to be installed on a welding electrode holder having an electrode. The collet is moveable by the actuator from an advanced position, in which the collet is adapted to grip a fastener such as a welding rivet, and a retracted position, in which at least a portion of the collet is retracted into the actuator to enable the electrode to engage the fastener for welding to a work piece, and the collet is adapted to release the fastener.

A method of resistance spot welding workpiece stack-ups of different combinations of metal workpieces with a single weld gun using the same set of welding electrodes is disclosed. In this method, a set of opposed welding electrodes that include an original shape and oxide-disrupting structural features are used to resistance spot weld at least two of the following types of workpiece stack-ups in a particular sequence: (1) a workpiece stack-up of two or more aluminum workpieces; (2) a workpiece stack-up that includes an aluminum workpiece and an adjacent steel workpiece; and (3) a workpiece stack-up of two or more steel workpieces. The spot welding sequence calls for completing all of the aluminum-to-aluminum spot welds and/or all of the steel-to-steel spot welds last.

A device and method for monitoring and correcting the position and orientation of an operating device (2) with respect to a piece (P). A measuring device (5) including a plurality of sensors (505) connected to the operating device is used to measure through contactless technology the distances of the sensors from a surface () of the piece along respective directions (l, r, s) having given orientations. The sensor measurements are compared to predetermined desired values and the position of the operating device (2) is selectively changed to maintain a desired positional relationship between a main operative axis (X1) of the operative device and operation axis (X2) defined by the surface of the piece.

A welding device includes a lower tip and an upper tip, as welding tips, and pressuring members. The pressuring members are supported by a support member disposed in the upper tip. The pressuring members are displaced by the action of pressuring member displacement mechanisms and, together with the upper tip, come into contact with a metal plate arranged on the outermost part of a laminated body.

An apparatus includes a housing, a mechanism and a sensor. The housing may be configured to receive a weld head. The mechanism may be attached to the housing and configured to convert a position of a location pin relative to the housing into an angular rotation. The sensor may be coupled to the mechanism and configured to generate a value representative of the position of the location pin based on the angular rotation.