LASERHYBRID: THE ADVANTAGES OF MIG AND LASER-BEAM WELDING COMBINED

OPTIMUM GAP-BRIDGING ABILITY AND EASY WELD-SEAM PREPARATION ALONG WITH LOW HEAT INPUT AND HIGH SPEED

Fronius LaserHybrid welding combines the laser welding process with the MIG welding process. It exploits the advantages of each process to the full to create synergies. The high welding speed and concentrated energy of the laser can be effectively combined with the MIG arc in two ways: either through maximum welding speed when joining light-gauge sheets, or maximum penetration on thicker materials.

HOW LASERHYBRID WELDING WORKS

As soon as the laser beam hits the surface of the workpiece, it heats up this spot to vaporisation temperature, resulting in deep, narrow penetration. In the LaserHybrid process, the use of expensive laser energy is limited almost exclusively to this deep-weld effect, which also permits thicker sheets to be joined. The remaining energy requirement is met by the cheaper MIG/MAG process, which exhibits an improved gap-bridging ability due to the consumable electrode. As both processes focus their energy on the same process zone, the weld depth and speed are significantly increased compared to the individual processes. 

A WIDE RANGE OF DIFFERENT USES

The LaserHybrid process is particularly attractive for sectors in which the investment can be quickly recouped through high volumes. These include the automotive industry and its suppliers, as well as container, pipework and pipeline manufacturers. With this high-performance welding process, these industry players can automate the joining of a variety of aluminium and steel components at a speed of up to eight metres per minute. LaserHybrid proves especially advantageous in aluminium applications, for example where component tolerances are large and preparation costs are high for laser welding. The benefits of the relatively low heat input are particularly evident when joining high-strength materials – hardly any loss of strength and low levels of heat distortion ensure excellent component precision.