Design World

  • Home
  • Technologies
    • ELECTRONICS • ELECTRICAL
    • Fastening • joining
    • FLUID POWER
    • LINEAR MOTION
    • MOTION CONTROL
    • SENSORS
    • TEST & MEASUREMENT
    • Factory automation
    • Warehouse automation
    • DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
  • Learn
    • Tech Toolboxes
    • Learning center
    • eBooks • Tech Tips
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars • general engineering
    • Webinars • Automated warehousing
    • Voices
  • LEAP Awards
  • 2025 Leadership
    • 2024 Winners
    • 2023 Winners
    • 2022 Winners
    • 2021 Winners
  • Design Guides
  • Resources
    • Subscribe
    • 3D Cad Models
      • PARTsolutions
      • TraceParts
    • Digital Issues
      • Design World
      • EE World
    • Engineering diversity
    • Trends
  • Supplier Listings
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe

World’s Largest Friction Welding Machine

By Design World Staff | March 11, 2010

At least, that’s the claim by Moog and Thompson Friction Welding. The Linear Friction Welding (LFW) machine, designated the E100, could transform how jet engines are manufactured by cutting production cycle-times and reducing waste of expensive materials such as titanium. It is capable of welding a surface area of 10,000 mm2 (15 in.2), nearly twice as much as previously achieved, and breaks the record of weld forge load at 100 tons. Now, LFW becomes a viable tool for use in the automotive and aerospace industries to produce components such as vehicle flooring and secure the blades on jet engines.


Friction welding technology has not been used before over such a wide operating envelope. Its automatic handling systems and rapid machine open/close features cut production cycle times when compared with traditional manual operations, while recharging of the accumulators takes only around 30 seconds for the largest and longest welds. The machine opens up new possibilities for welded fabrication of parts that previously needed to be machined from solid metal, a process that can result in up to 80% material waste.

Thompson manufactured the E100 at their facility in the United Kingdom. A partnership with Moog garnered the requisite expertise in hydraulics, servo system design, control engineering, and manufacturing.

The challenge was to develop a hydraulic motion control system to drive the machine. The machine weighs 100 tons, is 2.5 m (100 in.) tall, and has a capacity of 100 tons in terms of the amount of force that it can apply to a welded joint. This demanded a suitable hydraulic servo system, which was designed and built by Moog.

Moog’s hydraulic servo system and support for the machine included:

-A closed-loop control system delivering fast response at high amplitude with advanced digital control over the weld process. Normal servo and proportional valves have a limitation of spool speed and acceleration that prevents the simultaneous delivery of high amplitude and frequency. For the E100, Moog valve spools were made to perform three or four times faster than normal. Special precautions were necessary to ensure valve integrity over a large number of welds.

-Multiple digitally controlled servo valves, which together operate at peak flow rates of up to 4,500 lpm (1,200 gpm) and possess a high frequency range of 75 to 100 Hz for large scale welding. Multiple valves also improve accuracy when the machine is turned down for smaller, lower force welds.

-Hydraulic power plant delivering over 2 MW of instantaneous power to drive the system.

-Seven 400 l (105 gal) gas volume accumulators, each producing massive accumulation to provide the high peak oil flow rate ((4,500 lpm) (1,200 gpm)) required for the weld.

This machine is a significant development in light of the unique aspects of LFW. LFW requires more complex machine architecture and control than rotary techniques, but has the advantage that preformed parts of any shape can be joined. Compared to rotary welding, a moving chuck oscillates laterally instead of spinning and the two surfaces are in contact at much higher velocity. This means the two components being welded need to be kept under high pressure at all times.

The benefits of pre-form manufacturing by linear friction welding are numerous. The process, sometimes known as solid-base additive manufacture, allows complex shapes to be manufactured without the wastage of excess material normally associated with machining from solid block, casting or forging, saving both manufacturing time and raw material costs. Manufactured parts are close to the final shape so that very little final machining is required to produce a fully functional component.

Moog Inc.
www.moog.com/industrial

::Design World::

You Might Also Like


Filed Under: Aerospace + defense, LINEAR MOTION, MECHANICAL POWER TRANSMISSION, Motion control • motor controls

 

LEARNING CENTER

Design World Learning Center
“dw
EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND STAY CONNECTED
Get the latest info on technologies, tools and strategies for Design Engineering Professionals.
Motor University

Design World Digital Edition

cover

Browse the most current issue of Design World and back issues in an easy to use high quality format. Clip, share and download with the leading design engineering magazine today.

EDABoard the Forum for Electronics

Top global problem solving EE forum covering Microcontrollers, DSP, Networking, Analog and Digital Design, RF, Power Electronics, PCB Routing and much more

EDABoard: Forum for electronics

Sponsored Content

  • Sustainability, Innovation and Safety, Central to Our Approach
  • Why off-highway is the sweet spot for AC electrification technology
  • Looking to 2025: Past Success Guides Future Achievements
  • North American Companies Seek Stronger Ties with Italian OEMs
  • Adapt and Evolve
  • Sustainable Practices for a Sustainable World
View More >>
Engineering Exchange

The Engineering Exchange is a global educational networking community for engineers.

Connect, share, and learn today »

Design World
  • About us
  • Contact
  • Manage your Design World Subscription
  • Subscribe
  • Design World Digital Network
  • Control Engineering
  • Consulting-Specifying Engineer
  • Plant Engineering
  • Engineering White Papers
  • Leap Awards

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search Design World

  • Home
  • Technologies
    • ELECTRONICS • ELECTRICAL
    • Fastening • joining
    • FLUID POWER
    • LINEAR MOTION
    • MOTION CONTROL
    • SENSORS
    • TEST & MEASUREMENT
    • Factory automation
    • Warehouse automation
    • DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
  • Learn
    • Tech Toolboxes
    • Learning center
    • eBooks • Tech Tips
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars • general engineering
    • Webinars • Automated warehousing
    • Voices
  • LEAP Awards
  • 2025 Leadership
    • 2024 Winners
    • 2023 Winners
    • 2022 Winners
    • 2021 Winners
  • Design Guides
  • Resources
    • Subscribe
    • 3D Cad Models
      • PARTsolutions
      • TraceParts
    • Digital Issues
      • Design World
      • EE World
    • Engineering diversity
    • Trends
  • Supplier Listings
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
We use cookies to personalize content and ads, to provide social media features, and to analyze our traffic. We share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising, and analytics partners who may combine it with other information you’ve provided to them or that they’ve collected from your use of their services. You consent to our cookies if you continue to use this website.OkNoRead more