The Welding Institute

Alcoa Inc.

The Lead Sheet Association

Wayne M Thomas

Edward D Nicholas

Christopher J Dawes

Peter Temple-Smith

Stephen B Jones

Israel Stol

James C Needham

Michael G Murch

Roger H Lilley

Philip L Threadgill

Terence Boon

Richard E Dolby

A method of joining a pair of metal components with a rivet having a hardness that is substantially similar to at least one of the metal components. The metal components are stack upon each other and the rivet is rotated and simultaneously plunged in the metal components under pressure to friction weld and metallurgically bond the rivet to the metal components.

Friction plunge riveting

A mobile friction welding machine is provided for creating friction weld joints in workpieces such as metal sheets, especially lead sheets is described. The machine has a track assembly to guide it across work pieces, including a caterpillar track system on the machine. The friction welding is achieved by rotating a probe and applying a downward load on the probe to urge it into the work process. The probe is preferably a pair of spaced apart probes having a crescent-shaped cross-section.

Friction welding apparatus and method

Friction forming

Friction welding

A method of forming or reforming a composite material comprises relatively rotating a pair of members (2,3) while urging them together under pressure so as to mix or remix together the materials (1) making up the composite. The urging direction is substantially parallel with the axis of relative rotation. The composite is then extruded (7).

Forming metallic composite materials by urging base materials together

A method of providing a material, typically a metal, surface on a substrate (1), comprises applying a consumable member (4) to the substrate (1) under pressure. The member (4) and substrate (1) are moved relative to one another along an arcuate path. Heat is generated at the interface between the member and the substrate so that material is laid down on the substrate along the path. The movement of the metal member (4) typically includes one or more cyclic components.

Surfacing method

Growing community of inventors

Suffolk, United Kingdom

Wayne M Thomas