What Are The Differences between Pulsed Welding And Continuous Welding? Which One Is More Suitable for My Product?

Differences

1. Working Principle
• Pulsed Welding: It uses high-energy pulses over a short period to perform welding. The output is in the form of pulses, with each pulse generating a single weld spot. Electrical energy is converted into instantaneous heat energy, which rapidly melts the material in the welding area to form a weld spot.
• Continuous Welding: It uses a continuous laser beam for welding, providing a stable heat source. The laser beam continuously outputs energy, causing the material to melt continuously and form a continuous weld seam.
2. Welding Characteristics
• Heat-Affected Zone (HAZ): Pulsed welding has a smaller HAZ because the welding time is short, and the surrounding material is less affected by heat. Continuous welding has a relatively larger HAZ due to the continuous heat supply, which causes heat to spread over a wider area.
• Weld Appearance: Pulsed welding results in flat, fish-scale-like weld seams or full, single-point weld spots. Continuous welding produces a uniform and smooth continuous weld seam.
3. Applicable Scenarios
• Pulsed Welding: It is suitable for welding high-precision, heat-sensitive materials and components, such as electronic components, medical devices, and precision mechanical parts. It is also commonly used for spot welding and micro-precision element welding.
• Continuous Welding: It is often used in scenarios that require welding thicker materials or long-distance welding tasks, such as automotive manufacturing, heavy machinery, and pipeline welding. It is suitable for seam welding and applications that require long-term stable welding.
4. Equipment Cost and Operational Complexity
• Pulsed Welding: The equipment cost is higher because it requires more advanced laser control technology to precisely control pulse parameters. The operation is relatively complex, as it involves considering multiple parameters such as pulse width, pulse frequency, and single-pulse power.
• Continuous Welding: The equipment cost is relatively lower, and the working principle is simpler. The operation is also simpler, mainly focusing on parameters such as waveform, speed, power, and defocus amount.
5. Selection Criteria
• Material of the Product: If you are welding thin materials or heat-sensitive materials, such as films and fine wires in electronic components, pulsed welding is more appropriate. For welding thicker metal sheets, such as automotive bodies and large mechanical structural components, continuous welding can better leverage its advantages.
• Precision Requirements: For products with extremely high precision requirements and a need to avoid significant thermal deformation, such as precision instruments and medical devices, pulsed welding is more suitable due to its high precision and low HAZ. For products with relatively lower precision requirements but a need for continuous and uniform weld strength, such as pipelines and large metal components, continuous welding can meet the needs.
• Production Efficiency: If you have large-scale, high-efficiency production needs, such as on an automotive production line, the fast welding speed of continuous welding can improve production efficiency. For small-batch, high-precision production where speed is not a priority, pulsed welding can ensure welding quality.
• Weld Seam Requirements: If you need single-point welding or a fish-scale-like weld seam, pulsed welding is the better choice. If you need a continuous and smooth weld seam, continuous welding is more suitable.

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