Hitachi, Ltd.

Shinichi Hasshuu

Kinya Aota

Hisanori Okamura

Yasuhisa Aono

Satoshi Hirano

Kazutaka Okamoto

Tomio Odakura

Friction stir welding method and apparatus, and welded structure

A friction stir welding system capable of maintaining a rotating tool and workpieces at a substantially constant geometrical relation for arbitrary curved surfaces having a three-dimensional shape, as well as a welded structure obtained thereby. A method comprises joining workpieces while setting rotational angles of two rotational axes of a rotating tool which the two rotational axes are rotatable in intersecting directions or perpendicularly intersecting directions independently of rotation of the rotating tool, detecting a normal line direction with respect to joint surfaces of the workpieces and a tangential direction of a joint line, and joining the workpieces in three-dimensional directions while setting, on the basis of the detected normal line direction and tangential direction, an angle relative to a normal line direction, as well as a tangential direction, at a tip end of the rotating tool, and also resides in a friction stir welding apparatus using the method.

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Suifu, Japan

Shinichi Hasshuu