Electromagnetic steel cutting technique could revolutionise car manufacturing

A new method of cutting steel could shake up the car manufacturing industry. Traditional methods of using lasers and cutting tools could be replaced by the new method, which uses electromagnetic pulses to punch holes in steel in a fraction of a second.

The technique was developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Technology (IWU) in Chemnitz, Germany, with cooperation from a number of partners including Volkswagen. The electromagnetic pulse technology (EMPT) uses a pulse generator to fire a high-pulsed current into the steel, impacting huge amounts of pressure on the metal and punching a hole through it. The generators are comprised of a coil, capacitor battery, charging device and high-current switches. Closing the switch discharges the coil, which produces the focused current needed to produce the hole in the steel. In fact, the pulse is so strong that it hits the steel at around 3,500 bars – equivalent to the weight of three small cars on a single fingernail.

The technology is an exciting development in manufacturing, as other methods tend to leave unwanted material (a burr) around the edge of holes cut into metal. The new EMPT produces no burr, meaning that costly finishing processes can be done away with. The EMPT method also means that time-consuming and costly lasers can be removed from the manufacturing process.

For more information on the research, contact Verena Kraeusel at verena.krauesel@iwu.fraunhofer.de

Published: Thursday, 10th December 2009 by Tom Freeman

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