Ultrasonic Welding Subcomponent-level Options

The following setup options can be applied to individual Subcomponent GCDs:

• Material Type—Vibrating Part

• Ultrasonic Welding Type

• Material Type—Fixtured Part

• Length of Ultrasonic Weld

• Number of Horns

• Horn Travel Time

• Horn Ultrasonic Time

• Ultrasonic Hold Time

• Horn Volume

• Horn Material

• Number of Stakes

Material Type—Vibrating Part

The setup option Material Type—Vibrating Part specifies the material type for the Subcomponent to which the current operation is assigned. This is assumed to be the vibrating part (as opposed to the fixtured part to which it is welded). See also Material Type—Fixtured Part.

By default, for a Subcomponent that is a part that has been initialized by the user, the Material Type—Vibrating Part is the type of the part’s material. For a Subcomponent that is a subassembly, the default material type is the material type of some initialized descendant part of the subassembly.

With the setup option Material Type—Vibrating Part, users can specify the material type of a different initialized descendant part of the subassembly.

Material Type—Vibrating Part can affect the Subcomponent’s Ultrasonic Welding Type.

Ultrasonic Welding Type

By default, each welded Subcomponent is assigned one of the following weld types:

• Insertion: metal insert driven into a plastic boss (or alternatively, plastic driven over a metal insert).

By default, the weld type for an assembled Subcomponent is Insert if it is not part of a subassembly, metallic (cut code is not 34, 41, 51, 52, or 60), its material is compatible with the fixture part material (see Material Type—Fixtured Part), and its width is less than or equal to the largest Insert Diameter in the lookup table tblUltrasonicWeldingPowerLength.

• Welding: face-to-face joint. The surfaces of each part mate, and then melt and form molecular bonds.

By default, the weld type of an assembled Subcomponent is Welding if it does not qualify as weld type Insert (see above) and the Material Type—Vibrating Part is compatible with the Material Type—Fixtured Part. Compatible materials are listed in the lookup table tblUltrasonicWeldingCompatibility.

• Staking: used when joining materials that are not compatible and cannot be bonded together at the joining faces. The weld is formed by melting and deforming the tab of the weldable plastic to form a rivet-like joint over the other part/material.

By default, the weld type of an assembled Subcomponent is Staking if it qualifies as neither weld type Insert nor weld type Welding (see above).

With the setup option Ultrasonic Welding Type, users can override the default and specify the weld type for a welded Subcomponent.

Weld type drives cycle time.

Weld type can also affect machine selection and operation feasibility:

• An Ultrasonic Welding machine is feasible only if both the following hold:

  • Machine property Transducer Power is no less than the power required for the longest weld whose weld type is Welding, as listed in the lookup table tblUltrasonicWeldingPowerLength. (See also Length of Ultrasonic Weld.)

  • Machine property Transducer Power is no less than the power required for the widest weld whose weld type is Insertion, as listed in the lookup table tblUltrasonicWeldingPowerLength.

• For a Subcomponent with weld type Welding, Ultrasonic Welding is feasible only if the weld length is no greater than the value of the cost model variable maxUltrasonicAllowableLength (300mm in starting point Digital Factories). (See also Length of Ultrasonic Weld.)

Material Type—Fixtured Part

For a given Subcomponent that is assigned the Ultrasonic Welding operation, the Material Type—Fixtured Part is the material type of the part to which the given Subcomponent is welded. The given Subcomponent is assumed to be the vibrating part, and the part to which it welded is assumed to be the fixture part. See also Material Type—Vibrating Part.

By default, fixtured part material type is the material of the Subcomponent(s) in the latest Stage whose material is compatible with the material of the vibrating part. Compatible materials are listed in the lookup table tblUltrasonicWeldingCompatibility.

With the setup option Material Type—Fixtured Part, users can direct aPriori to assume that a given Subcomponent is welded to a fixtured part with a specified material type. If the specified material is compatible with the given Subcomponent’s material, the given Subcomponent is assigned weld type Welding when it does not qualify as weld type Insert (see Ultrasonic Welding Type).

Length of Ultrasonic Weld

By default, the length of the weld for a given welded Subcomponent is assumed to be the Subcomponent’s length or width, whichever is greater.

With the setup option Length of Ultrasonic Weld, users can override the default for a given welded Subcomponent.

Weld length affects cycle time.

Weld length can also affect machine selection and operation feasibility:

• An Ultrasonic Welding machine is feasible only if the machine property Transducer Power is no less than the power required for the longest weld whose weld type is Welding, as listed in the lookup table tblUltrasonicWeldingPowerLength. (See also Length of Ultrasonic Weld.)

• For a Subcomponent with weld type Welding, Ultrasonic Welding is feasible only if the weld length is no greater than the value of the cost model variable maxUltrasonicAllowableLength (300mm in starting point Digital Factories). (See also Length of Ultrasonic Weld.)

Number of Horns

By default, a single horn is assumed for the welding of a Subcomponent with weld type Welding or Insert. For a Subcomponent with weld type Staking, the number of horns is assumed to be the Number of Stakes.

With the setup option Number of Horns, users can override the default for a given welded Subcomponent.

Number of horns drives hard tooling cost.

Horn Travel Time

By default, horn travel time is specified by the cost model variable defaultHornTravelTime (3 seconds in starting point Digital Factories).

With the setup option Horn Travel Time, users can override the default for a given welded Subcomponent.

Welding operation cycle time is the sum of horn travel time, Horn Ultrasonic Time, and Ultrasonic Hold Time.

Horn Ultrasonic Time

By default, horn ultrasonic time is specified by one of the following cost model variables (depending on weld type):

• defaultUltrsonicWeldTime (2 seconds in starting point Digital Factories), for weld type Welding.

• defaultUltrasonicInsertionTime (1.5 seconds in starting point Digital Factories), for weld type Insertion.

• defaultUltrasonicStakeTime (2 seconds in starting point Digital Factories), for weld type Staking.

With the setup option Horn Ultrasonic Time, users can override the default for a given welded Subcomponent.

Welding operation cycle time is the sum of Horn Travel Time, Horn Ultrasonic Time, and Ultrasonic Hold Time.

Ultrasonic Hold Time

By default, ultrasonic hold time is one of the following (depending on weld type):

• Half the value of the cost model variable defaultUltrsonicWeldTime, for weld type Welding.

• 0, for weld type Insertion.

• Half the value of the cost model variable defaultUltrasonicStakeTime, for weld type Staking.

With the setup option Ultrasonic Hold Time, users can override the default for a given welded Subcomponent.

Welding operation cycle time is the sum of Horn Travel Time, Horn Ultrasonic Time, and ultrasonic hold time.

Horn Volume

By default, horn volume for a given welded Subcomponent is calculated based on the following values:

• Subcomponent length and width

• One of the following cost model variables:

  • hornOverhangWeldFactor (1.05 in starting point Digital Factories), for weld type Welding

  • hornOverhangInsertionFactor (3 in starting point Digital Factories), for weld type Insertion

  • hornOverhangStakingFactor (2.5 in starting point Digital Factories), for weld type Staking

• Cost model variable defaultStakeCrossSectionArea (100mm2 in starting point Digital Factories), for weld type Insertion.

• Tool shop material property Acoustic Velocity for the Horn Material.

• Cost model variable hornWavelength (0.5 in starting point Digital Factories)

• Machine property Transducer Frequency

With the setup option Horn Volume, users can override the default for a given welded Subcomponent.

Horn volume drives hard tooling cost.

Horn Material

By default, horn material is specified by the cost model variable defaultHornMaterial if it is defined (it is undefined in starting point Digital Factories), and it is specified by the tool shop variable Default Tool Material Name otherwise.

With the setup option Horn Material, users can override the default for a given welded Subcomponent.

Horn material drives hard tooling cost.

Number of Stakes

By default, for a Subcomponent of weld type Staking, the number of stakes is the result of rounding up the quotient of the following:

• Subcomponent bounding rectangle perimeter (twice the length plus twice the width)

• Value of the cost mode variable ultrasonicStakePitch (75mm in starting point Digital Factories)

By default, for a Subcomponent of weld type Welding or Insert, the number of stakes is 0.

With the setup option Number of Stakes, users can override the default for a given welded Subcomponent.

Number of stakes drives hard tooling cost. See also Number of Horns.