Fatigue Life Prediction On Complex Spot Welded Joints

In the present paper it is shown that fatigue life prediction of a complex spot welded joint must take into account for damage evolution of each spot weld, thus considering the load changes in each spot during damage progression. A method which uses a theoretical stress solution (ERS) is presented and its application is reported both on traditional spot welded joints and on a non trivial joint. Through the use of ERS-N curves the fatigue data performed on different joint geometries can be successfully reconciled.