Analysis of Machine-Sided Influences during Clinching

Mechanical joining techniques like clinching are standard joining techniques for processing aluminum and steel alloys in the automotive car body manufacturing. When using conventional methods, joints will have a high quality after a final tool check on a specific joining press system. However, if the press system during manufacturing will changed, it can occur that joints get other quality values e.g. smaller interlock. The reason for that has multiple influences, this paper considers especially the press-sided ones. With optical measurements of press deformation and punch speed during real joining processes, new 3D-halfsymmetric simulation models were built up, which consider of press-side behavior such as joining velocity and angular as well as lateral misalignment of the joining tools during clinching process. Sensitivity analyses identifies significant influencing variables. On the base of this, equations of quality changes can be determined. Finally, this allows better prediction of the modification about joint quality after a press change from system A to B or C during manufacturing.