Process simulation and automatic path planning of adhesive joining

Adhesive joining is frequently used in the automotive industry. In the pursuit of reducing weight, adhesive joining is important due to the possibility of joining different types of materials. The process is often automatised in order to reduce cycle time. In this paper we aim to present a novel framework that includes detailed process simulation and automatic generation of collision free robot paths and in this way improve the quality of the joint and reduce both cycle time and processing time. To verify the simulations, the properties of the adhesive bead have been compared to experiments with good agreement.