Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Mechanical properties of an innovative shear-clinching technology for ultra-high-strength steel and aluminium in lightweight car body structures

  • Research Paper
  • Published:
Welding in the World Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Comfort- and safety-related requirements lead to weight increase of automotive structures. Modern constructions in automotive body in white (BIW) production confront this upward weight spiral with multi-material design. This restricts conventional thermal joining technologies. The basic idea of mechanical joining technologies is a force- and form-fitting joint. Clinching technologies create a joint only by plastic deformation. The formability of the joining partners limits this technology, especially when joining ultra-high-strength steels (UHSS) in multi-material design. State of the art to realise this is multi-stage clinching with pre-hole. Industrial applications in BIW are, e.g. the brackets for mouldings in the upper windscreen frame of Daimler’s S-class and the battery holder of Daimler’s M-class. Innovative shear-clinching enables joining by forming hot formed UHSS and ductile aluminium in a single-stage process. The spherical punch-sided tool set prevents any harm of the punch-sided ductile material. The cutting die initialises a crack in the die-sided material with limited formability. This paper presents detailed studies on the mechanical behaviour of state of the art multi-stage clinching with cylindrical and tapered pre-hole under quasistatic and fatigue testing methods to evaluate the influence of the interlock. These results were compared to the single-stage shear-clinching technology to derive further recommendations.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Varis J (2006) Economics of clinched joint compared to riveted joint and example of applying calculations to a volume product, J Mater Proc Technol 172(1):130–138

  2. Busse S, Merklein M, Roll K (2010) Development of a mechanical joining process for automotive body-in-white production. Int J Mater Form 3:1059–1062

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. DVS/EFB-Merkblatt 3420 (2012) Clinchen-Überblick-Clinching-basics, (in German)

  4. Thies L (1897) Blechverbindung - Joining of sheet metal, German Reichspatent DRP-Nr. 98517, (in German)

  5. Hahn O, Klemens U (1996) Fügen durch Umformen - Nieten und Durchsetzfügen - Innovative Verbindungsverfahren für die Praxis. Dokumentation 707 - Joining by Forming Riveting and Clinch Joints — Innovative Joining Procedures for the Practice, Documentation 707, Verlag und Vertriebsgesellschaft, ISBN 3-930621-56-8 (in German)

  6. Lee C-J (2010) Parametric study on mechanical clinching process for joining aluminum alloy and high-strength steel sheets. J Mech Sci Technol 24:123–126

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Abe Y, Matsuda A, Kato T, Mori K (2008) Plastic joining of aluminium alloy and high strength steel sheets by mechanical clinching. Steel Res Int Spec Ed 79(1):649–657

    Google Scholar 

  8. Lai M, Brun R (2007) Latest developments in sheet metal forming technology and materials for automotive application: the use of ultra high strength steels at fiat to reach weight reduction at sustainable costs. Key Eng Mater 344:1–8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Abe Y, Mori K, Kato T (2012) Joining of high strength steel and aluminium alloy sheets by mechanical clinching with dies for control of metal flow. J Mater Proc Technol 212(4):884–889. doi:10.1016/j.jmatprotec.2011.11.015

  10. Müller M, Hörhold R, Merklein M, Meschut G (2014) Analysis of material behaviour in experimental and simulative setup of joining by forming of aluminium alloy and high strength steel with shear-clinching technology. Adv Mater Res 966–967:549–556

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Busse S, Merklein M, Roll K, Zürn M, Schubert H (2011) Numerical and Experimental Investigations of an Innovative Clinching Process, Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Technology of Plasticity (ICTP), Düsseldorf, pp. 736–741 ISBN: 978-3-514-00784-0

  12. ArcelorMittal (2014) Steels for hot Stamping -Usibor® Automotive, Extract from the product catalogue – European edition. http://automotive.arcelormittal.com/saturnus/sheets/E_EN.pdf

  13. DVS/EFB 3480-1 (2007) Prüfung von Verbindungseigenschaften - Prüfung der mechanisch kombiniert mittels Kleben gefertigter Verbindungen - Testing of properties of joints - Testing of properties of mechanical and hybrid (mechanical/bonded) joints, (in German)

  14. Lee C-J, Kim J-Y, Lee S-K, Ko D-C, Kim B-M (2010) Parametric study on mechanical clinching process for joining aluminum alloy and high-strength steel sheets. J Mech Sci Technol 24:123–126

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

In this paper, selected results of the funded DFG research projects ME 1840/3-1;2 and ME 2043/37-1;2 were presented. The authors gratefully thank the German Research Foundation (DFG) for funding the current research project ME 1840/3-2 and ME 2043/37-2 within the SPP 1640 with the title “Mechanical joining of dissimilar materials by shear-clinching processes without pre-punching (shear-clinching)”.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory for Material and Joining Technology, University of Paderborn, Paderborn, Germany

    Réjane Hörhold & Gerson Meschut

  2. Institute of Manufacturing Processes, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Nürnberg, Germany

    Martin Müller & Marion Merklein

Authors
  1. Réjane Hörhold
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Martin Müller
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Marion Merklein
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Gerson Meschut
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Réjane Hörhold.

Additional information

Recommended for publication by Select Committee AUTO - Automotive and Road Transport

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Hörhold, R., Müller, M., Merklein, M. et al. Mechanical properties of an innovative shear-clinching technology for ultra-high-strength steel and aluminium in lightweight car body structures. Weld World 60, 613–620 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40194-016-0313-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40194-016-0313-0

Keywords (IIW Thesaurus)

Search

Navigation