A method and system for estimating a welding deformation amount of a vehicle body

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of estimating method and system of vehicle welding deformation quantity, comprising: using modeling unit to obtain the welding point information of welding piece, the welding point information includes welding point name, welding point coordinate, welding point corresponding plate number;Using coupling unit to format conversion is carried out to the welding point information obtained;Using simulation unit receives the welding point information after format conversion, and determines welding deformation simulation data in combination with the material information, fixture information and welding information of the welding piece;According to welding deformation simulation data, the model of the welding piece is made, and the actual deformation data in the model welding process is measured;Using computing unit, the welding deformation curve of the model is fitted according to the actual deformation data of the model;According to the welding deformation curve of the model, the welding deformation quantity of the welding piece is determined.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of vehicle body welding deformation assessment technology, specifically to a method and system for estimating the amount of vehicle body welding deformation. Background Technology

[0002] Current methods for evaluating the pre-deformation of hot-formed parts in vehicle bodies are not applicable to existing vehicle manufacturing processes. Furthermore, there is no effective method to measure the deformation caused by welding. Inaccurate predictions of the pre-deformation of hot-formed parts can lead to significant mold modification costs and impact project schedules. On the other hand, determining the pre-deformation typically involves selecting data points from modeling units to determine weld point information, resulting in low efficiency in the welding simulation modeling and solving process.

[0003] Invention Patent Content

[0004] To address at least one aspect of the aforementioned problems, the present invention provides a method for estimating the welding deformation of a vehicle, comprising: acquiring weld point information of the welded component using a modeling unit, the weld point information including weld point name, weld point coordinates, and the plate number corresponding to the weld point; converting the acquired weld point information into a specific format using a coupling unit; receiving the converted weld point information using a simulation unit, and determining welding deformation simulation data by combining the material information, fixture information, and welding information of the welded component, wherein the material information includes Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio, yield strength, density, coefficient of thermal expansion, and melting point; the fixture information includes locating pins, support blocks, clamping blocks, and clamping force; and the welding information includes weld point sequence, weld point coordinates, and weld nugget area; creating a model of the welded component based on the welding deformation simulation data, and measuring the actual deformation data of the model during the welding process; fitting a welding deformation curve of the model using a calculation unit based on the actual deformation data of the model; and determining the welding deformation amount of the welded component based on the welding deformation curve of the model.

[0005] Preferably, the steps of creating a model of the welded component based on welding deformation simulation data and measuring the actual deformation data of the model during the welding process include: correcting the structural parameters of the welded component using the inverse deformation method based on the welding deformation simulation data of the welded component, and creating a model of the welded component based on the corrected structural parameters; selecting multiple measurement points on the model at preset intervals; measuring the welding deformation of the measurement points of the model after welding, and obtaining the welding deformation corresponding one-to-one with the coordinates of the measurement points of the model, i.e., the actual deformation data of the model.

[0006] Preferably, the step of fitting the welding deformation curve of the model using the calculation unit based on the actual deformation data of the model further includes: step S1, using a polynomial to fit the initial welding deformation curve of the model based on the actual deformation data of the model; step S2, determining the estimated welding deformation of the model measurement points based on the initial welding deformation curve of the model; step S3, setting a threshold for the difference between the welding deformation amount and the estimated welding deformation of the model measurement points, and deleting measurement points greater than the set threshold; step S4, using a polynomial to fit the corrected welding deformation curve of the model based on the actual deformation data of the model after deleting measurement points; step S5, based on... The corrected welding deformation curve of the model determines the estimated welding deformation at the upper and lower reference points. The average of the estimated welding deformation at the upper and lower reference points is the correction value. Step S6: The actual deformation data of the model is corrected using the correction value. Step S7: The model is welded and measured multiple times to obtain multiple sets of actual deformation data. Steps S1-S6 are repeated on the multiple sets of actual deformation data of the model to obtain multiple sets of corrected actual deformation data of the model. Step S8: Polynomial fitting is performed based on the multiple sets of corrected actual deformation data of the model to determine the welding deformation curve of the model.

[0007] Preferably, the step of measuring the welding deformation of the model measurement points after welding and obtaining the welding deformation corresponding one-to-one with the measurement point coordinates of the model further includes: selecting a first reference point and a second reference point according to a preset distance based on the measurement point coordinates of the model; measuring the welding deformation of the first reference point and the second reference point respectively, and the average value of the welding deformation of the first reference point and the welding deformation of the second reference point is the welding deformation corresponding to the measurement point coordinates of the model.

[0008] Preferably, the modeling unit uses CATIA modeling software.

[0009] Preferably, the simulation unit uses assembly simulation software.

[0010] Preferably, the coupling unit converts the exported data from the CATIA modeling software into a format recognizable by the assembly simulation software through the XLS editing interface.

[0011] On the other hand, a system is provided for implementing the method as described in any of the preceding claims, comprising: a modeling unit for generating weld point information of a welded part; a coupling unit for converting the data format of the weld point information; a simulation unit for receiving the format-converted weld point information through the coupling unit and determining welding deformation simulation data by combining the material information, fixture information, and welding information of the welded part; a welded part model for performing welding based on the weld point information, material information, fixture information, and welding information from the simulation unit, and determining actual deformation data; and a calculation unit for receiving the actual deformation data of the model, fitting the welding deformation curve of the model, and determining the welding deformation amount of the welded part based on the welding deformation curve of the model.

[0012] The method and system for estimating vehicle welding deformation according to an embodiment of the present invention have the following beneficial effects:

[0013] (1) By combining the material information, fixture information and welding information of the welded parts in the simulation unit, the deformation caused by the self-weight of the welded parts is fully considered; at the same time, the model of the welded parts is made by the inverse deformation method based on the simulation unit to reduce the error caused by the difference between the simulation model and the actual situation on site, and improve the estimation accuracy of the welding deformation.

[0014] (2) By measuring the actual deformation data of the welded part model and combining it with the calculation unit, the measurement errors caused by the overall deviation of the car body, the influence of the weld point, the measurement position, etc. are eliminated, thereby improving the accuracy of the prediction of the deformation caused by the welding of the car body. Attached Figure Description

[0015] To better understand the above and other objects, features, advantages, and functions of the present invention, reference can be made to the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals in the drawings refer to the same parts. Those skilled in the art should understand that the drawings are intended to schematically illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention and do not limit the scope of the invention in any way; the parts in the drawings are not drawn to scale.

[0016] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an example welded component structure is shown, illustrating a method for estimating vehicle welding deformation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of measurement points for an example welded component is shown, illustrating a method for estimating vehicle welding deformation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the measurement points, first and second reference points, of an example welded component is shown in the method for estimating vehicle welding deformation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 4 An example initial welding deformation curve is shown for a method of estimating vehicle welding deformation according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 5 An example corrected welding deformation curve is shown, illustrating a method for estimating vehicle welding deformation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] Figure 6 An example welding deformation curve is shown as a method for estimating vehicle welding deformation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0023] 1. Inner panel; 2. Outer panel; 10. B-pillar; 101. Measurement point. Detailed Implementation

[0024] The exemplary embodiments of this disclosure are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, including various details of the embodiments to aid understanding, and should be considered merely exemplary. Therefore, those skilled in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications can be made to the embodiments described herein without departing from the scope and spirit of this disclosure. Similarly, for clarity and brevity, descriptions of well-known functions and structures are omitted in the following description.

[0025] The term "comprising" and its variations as used herein signify open inclusion, i.e., "including but not limited to". Unless otherwise stated, the term "or" means "and / or". The term "based on" means "at least partially based on". The terms "one example embodiment" and "one embodiment" mean "at least one example embodiment". The term "another embodiment" means "at least one additional embodiment". The terms "first", "second", etc., may refer to different or the same objects. Other explicit and implicit definitions may also be included below.

[0026] To at least partially address one or more of the aforementioned problems and other potential issues, one embodiment of this disclosure proposes a method for estimating the welding deformation of a vehicle, comprising: acquiring weld point information of the welded part using a modeling unit, the weld point information including weld point name, weld point coordinates, and the plate number corresponding to the weld point; converting the acquired weld point information into a format using a coupling unit; receiving the format-converted weld point information using a simulation unit, and determining welding deformation simulation data by combining the material information, fixture information, and welding information of the welded part, the material information including Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio, yield strength, density, coefficient of thermal expansion, and melting point, the fixture information including locating pins, support blocks, clamping blocks, and clamping force, and the welding information including weld point sequence, weld point coordinates, and weld nugget area; creating a model of the welded part based on the welding deformation simulation data, and measuring the actual deformation data of the model during the welding process; fitting the welding deformation curve of the model using a calculation unit based on the actual deformation data of the model; and determining the welding deformation of the welded part based on the welding deformation curve of the model.

[0027] Specifically, the method for estimating the welding deformation of a vehicle according to the present invention will be explained using the B-pillar 10 of a vehicle as an example. Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, column B 10 includes an inner panel 1 and an outer panel 2. First, a modeling unit is used to model column B 10 according to its structural parameters. At the same time, the modeling unit generates a weld point information file for column B 10. The weld point information file includes the names of the weld points on column B 10, which are numbered. The coordinates of the weld points are determined according to the coordinate system of column B 10. The plate number to which the weld point acts is also determined. For example, it includes inner panel 1 and outer panel 2. That is, the weld point is used to fix and connect inner panel 1 and outer panel 2. Those skilled in the art will understand that the plate number corresponding to the weld point may also include inner panel 1, outer panel 2, and filler layer.

[0028] In this embodiment, the modeling unit uses CATIA modeling software to generate a file including weld point names, weld point coordinates, corresponding sheet metal names, and the quantity of corresponding sheet metal. The coupling unit connects the modeling unit and the simulation unit. The simulation unit uses Visual Assembly simulation software, and the coupling unit converts the data exported from the CATIA modeling software into a format recognizable by the assembly simulation software via an XLS editing interface. This allows the simulation unit to directly use the weld point information file generated by the CATIA modeling software, containing information about column B 10, through the coupling unit. This replaces the existing method of obtaining weld point information by point selection, thereby improving the accuracy of the simulation results. The simulation unit simulates the welding process of column B 10 by combining the welding sequence in the actual welding process, the material characteristics of inner plate 1 and outer plate 2, and the information of the auxiliary welding fixtures, and outputs the welding deformation simulation data of column B 10.

[0029] The structural parameters of column B10 used in the modeling unit were corrected using welding deformation simulation data. Based on the corrected structural parameters, a model of column B10 was fabricated. Then, following the actual production process, welding operations were performed on the fabricated column B10 model, and the actual welding deformation data during the welding process was measured. This resulted in a data set where the actual welding deformation amount corresponds one-to-one with the weld point coordinates. Based on the actual welding deformation data, a welding deformation curve for the column B10 model was fitted with the weld point coordinates as the x-axis and the actual welding deformation amount as the y-axis. The welding deformation amount determined based on the welding deformation curve of column B10 model, i.e., the estimated welding deformation amount of column B10, was used as a reference to correct the structural parameters of the column B10 in mass production, thereby reducing or avoiding the impact of welding deformation on the actual production quality.

[0030] In some embodiments, the steps of creating a model of the welded part based on welding deformation simulation data and measuring the actual deformation data of the model during the welding process include: correcting the structural parameters of the welded part based on the welding deformation simulation data of the welded part using the inverse deformation method, and creating a model of the welded part based on the corrected structural parameters; selecting multiple measurement points on the model at preset intervals; measuring the welding deformation of the measurement points of the model after welding, and obtaining the welding deformation corresponding one-to-one with the coordinates of the measurement points of the model, i.e., the actual deformation data of the model.

[0031] Specifically, the structural parameters of column B10 are corrected using the inverse deformation method. For example, when welding deformation simulation data shows that column B bends inward during welding, the inward radius of curvature of the column B model is increased. Figure 2 As shown, multiple sets of measurement points 101 are selected at preset intervals of 5cm on the front and rear flange edges of the B-pillar model. During each stage of welding of the B-pillar model, the welding deformation at the measurement points is measured. The actual deformation data of the model is determined by the Z-axis coordinate of the model measurement point in the spatial coordinate system and its corresponding welding deformation. Those skilled in the art will understand that in other embodiments, the coordinates of the measurement points in the actual deformation data can also be the X-axis coordinate or Y-axis coordinate of the spatial coordinate system where the welded part is located. Alternatively, in another embodiment, the coordinates of the measurement points can be any one or a combination of the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis coordinates of the spatial coordinate system where the welded part is located, with the selection of coordinates based on the trend of welding deformation.

[0032] In some embodiments, the step of measuring the welding deformation of the model measurement points after welding and obtaining the welding deformation corresponding one-to-one with the measurement point coordinates of the model further includes: selecting a first reference point and a second reference point according to a preset distance based on the measurement point coordinates of the model; measuring the welding deformation of the first reference point and the second reference point respectively, and the average value of the welding deformation of the first reference point and the welding deformation of the second reference point is the welding deformation corresponding to the measurement point coordinates of the model.

[0033] Specifically, such as Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, taking the AA-direction view of the B-pillar model as an example, the determination of the welding deformation measurement data of measurement point 101 is explained. Two reference points are selected for each measurement point, and the distances d between the two reference points and the two sides of the flange edge are set to be equal. The first reference point B is 3mm from the flange edge, and the second reference point C is 3mm from the flange corner. The welding deformation of the first reference point B is the difference between the Y-axis coordinate of this reference point before and after welding in the spatial coordinate system of the B-pillar model. The welding deformation of the measured point is the average of the welding deformation of the first reference point B and the second reference point C. The actual deformation data of the B-pillar model is the set including the Z-axis coordinates of the measurement points of the B-pillar model and their corresponding welding deformations.

[0034] In some embodiments, the step of fitting the welding deformation curve of the model using a computing unit based on the actual deformation data of the model further includes:

[0035] Step S1: Based on the actual deformation data of the model, use a polynomial to fit the initial welding deformation curve of the model.

[0036] Specifically, such as Figure 4 As shown in Table 1, a polynomial fitting was performed with the Z-axis coordinate of the measurement point of the B-pillar model as the independent variable and the welding deformation of the measurement point as the dependent variable to obtain the initial welding deformation curve of the B-pillar model.

[0037] y = -1.5645315076 × 10 -11 x 4 +3.6760895466×10 -8 x 3 -2.9028901012×10 -5 x 2 +0.0101608046x - 1.0696164718

[0038] Step S2: Determine the estimated welding deformation at the model measurement points based on the initial welding deformation curve of the model.

[0039] Specifically, based on the coordinates of the measurement points of the B-pillar model, the estimated welding deformation of the measurement points of the B-pillar model is determined according to the initial welding deformation curve.

[0040] Step S3, set the welding deformation amount Y at the model measurement point. 测 With welding deformation estimate Y 拟 The threshold for the difference ΔY is used to delete measurement points that are greater than the set threshold.

[0041] As shown in Table 1, the actual deformation data of the B-pillar model are filtered by setting a threshold to determine the welding deformation Y at the measurement point. 测 With welding deformation estimate Y 拟 If the difference ΔY is greater than a set threshold (e.g., the set threshold is 0.3), the measurement point is an invalid measurement point. In this case, the invalid measurement point is deleted from the actual deformation data. For example, measurement point D with Z-axis coordinate of 744 is deleted to reduce the impact of measurement error on the estimation accuracy.

[0042] Table 1. Actual measurement data of the B-pillar model

[0043]

[0044]

[0045] Step S4: Use a polynomial fitting method to obtain the corrected welding deformation curve of the model based on the actual deformation data of the model after deleting the measurement points.

[0046] Specifically, such as Figure 5 As shown, the welding deformation curve is corrected by polynomial fitting based on the actual deformation data of the B-column model after deleting invalid measurement point D.

[0047] y = -1.4073424173 × 10 -11 x 4 +3.2276844722×10 -8 x 3 -2.4884578054×10 -5 x 2 +0.0088206941017x-0.94804751604

[0048] Step S5: Determine the estimated welding deformation of the upper and lower reference points based on the corrected welding deformation curve of the model. The average of the estimated welding deformation of the upper and lower reference points is the correction value.

[0049] Specifically, assembly welding may cause overall changes in the vehicle body dimensions, thus affecting the calculated thermal deformation. The theoretical thermal deformation values ​​for the upper and lower reference points of the B-pillar model are set to zero. In this embodiment, the estimated welding deformation values ​​for the upper and lower reference points are calculated to be 0.0520 and -0.0735 respectively by correcting the welding deformation curve, and the correction value is further determined to be -0.01085.

[0050] Step S6: Correct the actual deformation data of the model using the correction values. Specifically, as shown in Table 2, the actual deformation data of the B-column model after deleting invalid measurement points is further corrected based on the correction values, i.e., using Y... 测 The correction value is obtained by subtracting Y 校 .

[0051] Table 2. Correction Table for Actual Deformation Data

[0052] Z <![CDATA[Y 测 ]]> <![CDATA[Y 校 ]]> 1254.05 -0.105 -0.094 1249.42 -0.04 -0.029 1175 0.51 0.521 1097 0.9 0.911 1044 1.295 1.306 995 1.365 1.376 894 1.23 1.241 844 0.75 0.761 795 0.8 0.811 646 0.61 0.621 547 0.68 0.691 499 0.51 0.521 444 0.36 0.371 395 0.335 0.346 344 0.24 0.251 294 0.195 0.206 212 0.025 0.036 180 0.06 0.071 127 -0.255 -0.244

[0053] Step S7: Perform multiple welding and measurements on the model to obtain multiple sets of actual deformation data. Repeat steps S1-S6 on the multiple sets of actual deformation data of the model to obtain multiple sets of corrected actual deformation data of the model.

[0054] Specifically, measurements are taken during the welding process of the B-pillar model on multiple vehicle models to obtain multiple sets of actual deformation data. Alternatively, in another embodiment, multiple identical B-pillar models are manufactured and the same welding process is performed to obtain multiple sets of actual deformation data. The data processing steps S1-S6 are repeated on the multiple sets of actual deformation data of the obtained B-pillar models, and the corrected actual deformation data of each set is retained.

[0055] Step S8: Perform polynomial fitting based on multiple sets of corrected actual deformation data of the model to determine the welding deformation curve of the model.

[0056] like Figure 6 As shown, the welding deformation curve of the B-pillar model is obtained by polynomial fitting based on multiple sets of corrected actual deformation data. Substituting the weld point coordinates of the B-pillar model into the finally determined welding deformation curve yields the welding deformation amount, which is the welding deformation amount of the B-pillar determined according to this estimation method.

[0057] On the other hand, a system is provided for implementing the method described above, comprising: a modeling unit for generating weld point information of the welded part; a coupling unit for converting the data format of the weld point information; a simulation unit for receiving the format-converted weld point information through the coupling unit and determining welding deformation simulation data by combining the material information, fixture information, and welding information of the welded part; a welded part model for performing welding based on the weld point information, material information, fixture information, and welding information of the simulation unit, and determining the actual deformation data; and a calculation unit for receiving the actual deformation data of the model and fitting the welding deformation curve of the model, and determining the welding deformation amount of the welded part based on the welding deformation curve of the model.

[0058] Specifically, the modeling unit, coupling unit, simulation unit, and calculation unit are computer-recognizable media with program instructions to execute the above methods, and the welded part model is a body component model manufactured based on the simulation data determined by the body structure data, modeling unit, and simulation unit.

[0059] The various embodiments of this disclosure have been described above. These descriptions are exemplary and not exhaustive, nor are they limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein is chosen to best explain the principles, practical application, or technical improvements to the embodiments in the market, or to enable others skilled in the art to understand this document.

Claims

1. A method for estimating the welding deformation of a car body, characterized in that, include: The welding point information of the welded parts is obtained by using the modeling unit. The welding point information includes the welding point name, welding point coordinates, and the plate number corresponding to the welding point. The acquired solder joint information is converted into a new format using a coupling unit. The simulation unit receives the weld point information after format conversion and determines the welding deformation simulation data by combining the material information, fixture information and welding information of the welded part. The material information includes Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio, yield strength, density, coefficient of thermal expansion and melting point. The fixture information includes positioning pin, support block, clamping block and clamping force. The welding information includes weld point sequence, weld point coordinates and weld nugget area. The process involves creating a model of the welded component based on welding deformation simulation data and measuring the actual deformation data of the model during the welding process. This includes: using an inverse deformation method to correct the structural parameters of the welded component based on the welding deformation simulation data, creating a model of the welded component based on the corrected structural parameters, selecting multiple measurement points on the model at preset intervals, measuring the welding deformation of the measurement points of the model after welding, and obtaining the welding deformation corresponding one-to-one with the coordinates of the measurement points of the model, i.e., the actual deformation data of the model. The welding deformation curve of the model is fitted using a computing unit based on the actual deformation data of the model; The welding deformation amount of the welded part is determined based on the welding deformation curve of the model.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of fitting the welding deformation curve of the model using the calculation unit based on the actual deformation data of the model further includes: Step S1: Based on the actual deformation data of the model, use a polynomial to fit the initial welding deformation curve of the model; Step S2: Determine the estimated welding deformation at the model measurement points based on the initial welding deformation curve of the model; Step S3: Set a threshold for the difference between the welding deformation amount and the estimated welding deformation at the model measurement point, and delete measurement points that are greater than the set threshold. Step S4: Use a polynomial to fit the actual deformation data of the model after deleting the measurement points to obtain the corrected welding deformation curve of the model. Step S5: Determine the estimated welding deformation of the upper reference point and the lower reference point based on the corrected welding deformation curve of the model. The average value of the estimated welding deformation of the upper reference point and the estimated welding deformation of the lower reference point is the correction value. Step S6: Correct the actual deformation data of the model using the correction value; Step S7: Perform multiple welding and measurements on the model to obtain multiple sets of actual deformation data. Repeat steps S1-S6 on the multiple sets of actual deformation data of the model to obtain multiple sets of corrected actual deformation data of the model. Step S8: Based on multiple sets of corrected actual deformation data of the model, perform polynomial fitting to determine the welding deformation curve of the model.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of measuring the welding deformation at the model measurement points after welding and obtaining the welding deformation corresponding one-to-one with the coordinates of the measurement points on the model further includes: The first reference point and the second reference point are selected according to the coordinates of the measurement points of the model and a preset distance. The welding deformation at the first reference point and the second reference point are measured respectively. The average value of the welding deformation at the first reference point and the welding deformation at the second reference point is the welding deformation corresponding to the measurement point coordinates of the model.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The modeling unit uses CATIA modeling software.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The simulation unit uses assembly simulation software.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The coupling unit converts the exported data from the CATIA modeling software into a format recognizable by the assembly simulation software through the XLS editing interface.

7. A system for estimating the amount of welding deformation in a vehicle body, said system being used to implement the method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, include: A modeling unit is used to generate weld point information of the welded component; A coupling unit, wherein the coupling unit is used to convert the data format of the solder joint information; The simulation unit receives the format-converted weld point information through the coupling unit, and determines the welding deformation simulation data by combining the material information, fixture information and welding information of the welded part. A welding component model is used to perform welding based on the weld point information, material information of the welding component, fixture information, and welding information of the simulation unit, and to determine the actual deformation data. The calculation unit is used to receive the actual deformation data of the model and fit the welding deformation curve of the model, and determine the welding deformation amount of the welded part based on the welding deformation curve of the model.

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