Design Fatigue Data for Joining Steel Sheets in the Automotive Industry

A simple model recently proposed to estimate the fatigue strength of resistance-welded lap joints has been verified by numerical analysis and fatigue tests. The model has been extended to include laser welding.

The obtained design data should allow a fast estimate, at the design stage, of the consequences of a change in the welding technology or in the geometrical parameters of the joint on its fatigue life.