quality control of aluminium laser-welded assemblies qcoala powerpoint... · • integrated...

Copyright © TWI Ltd 2010Technology Engineering 1

QCOALAQuality Control Of

Aluminium Laser-welded Assemblies

A collaboration between: LASAG, Precitec, CIT and SAFEL,

Flisom, SolarPro and VW, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Fraunhofer ILT and TWI

An idea from


QCOALAIntroduction to the project


Background to the proposal• Rapid advances in laser technology, for both macro-

and micro-scale materials processing• Welding interconnections, aluminium & copper• EV and HEV markets expanding rapidly

demand for lithium-ion and super-capacitor batteriescurrent manufacturing (RSW, TIG) slow, expensive and inconsistent weld quality

• Flexible thin-film PV market growing rapidlytechnical challenges remain, eg shinglingcurrent manufacturing (US, adhesives) too slow, expensive and sometimes unreliableneed for accurate, local, low heat-input process


QCOALA call & consortium• FoF.ICT.2010-10-1 Smart Factories:

ICT for agile and environmentally friendly manufacturing

• 10 participants from 5 countries• 40% SME

laser manufacture, process monitoring, NDT, end-user• 30% RTD• 30% LE

solar energy, automotive


QCOALA overall objective

To develop a new laser processing systemfor the welding of thin-gauge aluminium and copper, 0.1mm to 1.0mm in thickness, with integrated process monitoring and in-line

non-destructive inspection, and

to establish its capability to provide a reliable, high-speed, low-cost and high-quality joining solution for electric car battery and thin-film

photovoltaic (PV) cell interconnections.


QCOALA key features• Quality:

– QA through real-time process monitoring and NDT inspection– Weld fingerprint: measure compare action– Integrated ICT and SPC: 100% non-destructive inspection to

reduce scrap to <1% and pseudo-errors<1%

• Productivity:– Tailored energy strategies for aluminium and copper (⇩>20%)– Optimum weld quality reliability / durality productivity (⇧

50-100%)

• Autonomous operation:– Integrated ICT and SPC– 100% non-destructive inspection immediate remedial action


QCOALA key features• 0.1-1.0mm aluminium and copper welding• New laser processing system

– pulsed platform – Near-IR and green wavelength capable– Real temporal pulse control (closed-loop control)

• Integrated process monitoring– plasma, back-reflection, temperature

• Integrated non-destructive testing– Eddy-current– Digital radiography


Industry focusSolar energy - Automotive


QCOALA technologies


QCOALA technologies• Laser System Development

– Review of commercial sources and delivery options suitable for welding 0.1-1.0mm Al and Cu

– Development of green (532nm λ) laser test platform by M12. Effect of λ on welding performance*.

– Development of on-line temporal pulse control (closed-loop control of the monitored process).

– Development of a dual-wavelength scanning system, capable of emitting both the 532nm and the 1064nm. To be integrated into QCOALA laser demonstration platform by M24.

* Welding performance = absorption, welding speed and weld quality


QCOALA technologies• Intelligent Laser Welding

– Empirical evaluation of the effect of spot size, beam quality. pulse length, average and peak power, and repetition rate, on welding performance* of 0.1-1.0mm Al and Cu for 1064nm λ.

– Empirical evaluation of the effect of the 532nm λ on welding performance*

– Develop tailored energy strategies to control HI and keyhole/weld pools stability

* Welding performance = absorption, welding speed and weld quality


QCOALA technologies• Integrated Process Monitoring

– Development of a CMOS camera-based WMS that can handle both 532nm and 1064nm, capable of assessing weld pool stability and identifying likelihood of imperfections occurring, through fast-rate image acquisition (>1000fps). The imperfection-recognition software will comprise image processing algorithms.

– Development of an interactive WMS graphical user-interface

– Integration of the WMS into the QCOALA laser demonstration platform


QCOALA technologies• In-line Weld Inspection

– Development of Eddy Current (EC) weld inspection probes with very small sensing area (estimated <0.5mm) and very high frequency (estimated >1MHz), with suitable instrumentation. Modelling and experimental validation

– Development of digital radiography (DR) weld inspection system with contrast sensitivity <2% and spatial resolution better than 10µm will be developed, with incorporated Automatic Defect Recognition (ADR)


Summary of deliverables• New laser processing system with pulsing capabilities

(µs to ms pulse duration, up to 30J pulse energy) • Dual-wavelength beam scanner• Real-time temporal pulse control allowing thermal

management and closed-loop control of the process• Weld quality improvement strategies (wavelength, spot

size, beam quality, pulse length, average and peak power, and repetition rate)

• A weld monitoring system comprising fast-rate image acquisition and processing algorithms for imperfection recognition.

• A digital radiography and eddy current weld inspection system with Automatic Defect Recognition (ADR)


QCOALAProject Management and Structure


Management structure


Project Steering Committee (PSC)• Project Coordinator• Exploitation Manager• One (senior) representative from each Beneficiary• Six-monthly meetings, chaired by Project Coordinator• Responsible for the overall project control and delivery

– Monitoring of project progress: proper integration of activities, link between Work Packages (WPs) and clear consideration of exploitation

– Approval of changes to technical work programme, project finances and exploitation of results

– Timely submission of deliverables (incl. progress reports and cost statements)


Project Coordinator• Paola De Bono (TWI Ltd)• Liaison between the Consortium and the EC• Overall management, coordination and delivery of the

project– Consolidation of planning, progress reports, delivery reports,

cost statements– Coordinate technical progress through Project Steering

Committee and Work Package Leaders– Effective communication to and between Beneficiaries

• Assisted by TWI Administrator and Contracts Officer• Assisted by Exploitation Manager


Exploitation Manager• Markus Kogel-Hollacher (Precitec KG)• Responsible for the development and management

of an overall Exploitation Plan– Arrangements between Beneficiaries– Dissemination of project results outside consortium

• Through the PSC and liaison with each Beneficiary individually

• Cost-benefit analysis demonstrating the impact of the project deliverables on current and future market position


QCOALA structure


Work PackagesWP 1 – QCOALA system specification (TWI)• To finalise the specification of the QCOALA system to be

developed. • To finalise the methodology to be followed for the development

of the QCOALA technologies

WP 2 – Laser system development (LAS)• To carry out a laser system technology assessment• To demonstrate the efficient generation of the 532nm (green)

wavelength with standard pulse shaping capabilities.• To design and manufacture a QCOALA laser demonstration

platform with on-line temporal pulse capability and dual-scanner for welding thin-gauge Al and Cu interconnections.


Work PackagesWP 3 – Intelligent laser welding (TWI)• To assess the effect of spot size, beam quality, laser

wavelength (in particular ~1064nm and ~532nm), pulse duration, pulse repetition rate, average and peak power, on the welding performance of Al and Cu interconnections in terms of absorption efficiency, welding speed and weld quality (process stability).

• To develop a tailored energy strategy to allow the development of on-line temporal pulse capability of the QCOALA laser demonstration platform (WP2).

• To develop the optimum process parameter window and establish welding strategy for high-quality welding of thin-film PV cell interconnections and electric battery Al and Cu interconnections.


Work PackagesWP 4 – Process monitoring and quality assurance (ILT)• To develop and evaluate a Weld (process) Monitoring System

with imperfection-recognition software to assure high quality laser welding of thin-gauge aluminium and copper interconnections.

• To develop an operator-friendly user interface for the WMS.

WP 5 – In-line weld inspection (CIT)• To develop a Digital Radiography (DR) weld inspection system

for high-quality laser welding of aluminium and copper interconnections.

• To develop an Eddy Current (EC) weld inspection system for high-quality laser welding of aluminium and copper interconnections.


Work PackagesWP 6 – System integration and demonstration (RUB)• To integrate the WMS, the DR and the EC inspection systems

into the QCOALA laser demonstration platform• To evaluate the performance of the fully integrated QCOALA

system in a real production environment for the high-quality welding of electric car battery and thin-film PV cell interconnections, and compare with current conventional joining technology.

WP 7 – Project Management (TWI)• To ensure that the QCOALA project is well managed, the

objectives met in the agreed timescales, the results are effectively exploited, the deliverables and milestones are achieved, and the financial and contractual aspects adhered to.


Work PackagesWP 8 – Exploitation & dissemination (PRE)• To generate information and technology from the results of the

project and disseminate these by means of conferences, publications, and other means and to develop and implement exploitation plans (including training) for each project Beneficiary. Special attention will be taken on IPR issues.


WP Leaders• Responsible for the successful performance, delivery

and reporting of individual work packages• Reporting to the Project Coordinator• Technical meetings at discretion of WP leaders

(guideline: 3-monthly)• Assisted by Task Leaders, if needed.


Communication strategy• Responsibility of Project Coordinator• Responsibility of all Beneficiaries

– Formal (and informal) communication encouraged– Please inform the Project Coordinator immediately of any

significant actions, conclusions and/or problems that may affect the outcome of (part of) the project

• Website: restricted and public• E-mail, phone, teleconference


Progress monitoring and reporting• Beneficiary

– Short 6-weekly progress statement per work package involved to WP leader and Project Coordinator

– Reporting on: work completed, problems encountered, solutions suggested, percentage completion, time-to-completion, deliverable / milestone achieved

– Financial reporting (presentation by A Surowiec)

• WP leader– 3-monthly WP progress statement summarised from 6-weekly

Beneficiary statements– Reporting on: as above– Focus on summarising progress, identification of delays (if any)

or variance from project plans, suggestion of corrective actions


Progress monitoring and reporting• Project Coordinator

– 12-month and 24-month periodic review• Activity report and Management report• Technical progress: collectively and individually• Review of finances and exploitation plan• Involving all Beneficiaries and Scientific Officer

– End review at month M36– Report on progress and redefine, if necessary, the

remainder of the project programme • EC reviews against milestones, deliverables and

exploitation to decide on continuation of Grant Agreement

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