Method for 3D measurement and evaluation of joint geometries for adaptive robotic arc welding in the automotive industry

Arc welding is one of the main manufacturing processes in the production of body in white structures in the automotive industry. Typically, robots are used to perform the welding process automatically, as shown in Figure 1. However, a main drawback still is the need for precise fixturing of workpieces to enable a correct process execution with the once generated robot program [1]. Moreover, there might be geometric deviations between the manufactured parts to be welded due to changing conditions at the suppliers productions or the usage of different production technologies like casting or pultrusion. Therefore, the single parts of a welding assembly in the body in white production have to be manufactured with tight tolerances to enable reproducible joint geometries and constant welding process results.