1. Self-pierce riveting process

1.1 Industrial interest

One of the main objectives of today's automotive industry is to reduce the mass of vehicles, and in particular the "body in white". To achieve this objective, light metals such as aluminum alloys are increasingly used. Resistance spot welding, the most common technique for joining steel sheets, is no longer suitable for aluminum sheets. Indeed, their electrical and thermal characteristics make this operation delicate (high intensities, particular welding cycles, high electrode wear, porosity...). What's more, the mechanical strength of welded joints on aluminum is inferior to that of riveted joints (particularly in terms of fatigue). As a result, there is growing interest in new assembly technologies to replace spot welding in the automotive industry. Self-pierce...