Revolutionizing EV Manufacturing with 3D Robotic Laser Cutting Machine

With the development of new energy vehicles and intelligent manufacturing, the market of electric two-wheeled, three-wheeled and four-wheeled vehicles is expanding rapidly, which puts forward higher requirements on the precision, efficiency and flexibility of body structure parts processing. SintecOptronics has many typical cases and breakthroughs in this field, we will make a deep discussion starting from the technical characteristics of robotic 3D laser cutting machine in its application value and practical achievements in the manufacturing of electric transportation vehicles , and analyze its outstanding advantages in improving the processing quality, production efficiency and the level of intelligent manufacturing of enterprises.

Electric two-wheeled, three-wheeled and four-wheeled vehicles, as green travel tools, have been developing rapidly worldwide in recent years, especially in China, Southeast Asia and Europe, where the market penetration rate of light electric vehicles has been increasing as the dual requirements of environmental protection and convenience in urban transportation are raised.At the same time, the accuracy, efficiency and flexibility of the body structure parts processing has put forward higher requirements, vehicle manufacturers are also constantly looking for automation, intelligent, high-precision manufacturing solutions to cope with the increasingly fierce market competition and technological upgrading needs. In this context, the 3D robotic laser cutting machine gradually become an important process equipment for cutting the skeleton structure of electric vehicles with its high flexibility, high precision, high degree of automation. China's local laser equipment brands continue to achieve breakthroughs in key technologies, and accelerate the process of localization and substitution with the in-depth promotion of the strategy of manufacturing a strong country. As a leading intelligent laser equipment manufacturer in China, Sintec has taken the lead in laying out the 3D laser processing field, and its various robotic 3D laser cutting machines have been widely used in electric two-wheeled, three-wheeled and four-wheeled vehicle factories and parts processing enterprises, which provides strong support for the upgrading of China's electric vehicle manufacturing industry.

Brief introduction of robotic 3D laser cutting machine    

Sintec’s 3D 6-axis robotic fiber laser cutting machines are available with a variety of automation devices, including gantry and double-sided gantry systems. The fixtures and automation units offer advantages such as excellent dynamic response and low weight. Our 3D robotic cutting systems feature world-class robots from Fanuc or YASKAWA, integrated fiber laser sources and optimally designed lightweight, collision-resistant cutting heads for high accuracy, high efficiency, and low noise when operating at full capacity. Our robotic 3D laser cutting machines are used to precisely cut 3D parts with complex surfaces. It is particularly suitable for cutting shaped fittings, such as edge and hole cuts, for coverings, chassis structural parts and exhaust systems for the automotive and aerospace industries. It can replace conventional trimming and punching dies. It enables high-quality, high-precision and high-efficiency cutting of 3D parts without secondary processing. Compared with the traditional 2D laser cutting machine, the robotic 3D laser cutting machine can accurately cut or punch in any direction in 3D space on the shaped, curved, closed structure, especially suitable for automobiles, electric vehicles, construction machinery and other industries in the processing of complex structural parts.

Advantages of robotic 3D laser cutting 

• 6-axis linkage, high degree of freedom processing: multi-axis robotic arm with high flexibility, can realize any trajectory cutting in XYZ 3D space, especially suitable for irregular shaped parts, round pipes, bent pipes, welded structural parts and other complex components.

• Highly flexible processing: no need to customize molds, CAD drawings can be modified to switch products; especially suitable for small batch, multi-species orders.

• Laser non-contact processing, low thermal impact: small kerf, no mechanical stress, neat cutting edges, not easy to make deformation or burr after processing, no need for secondary processing.

• Intelligent software, programmable path: standard manual teach pendant can directly generate, edit and transmit machining procedures without programming; optional 3D offline simulation system, directly import the digital model , one-click generation of cutting paths, significantly reducing manual intervention and improving production efficiency.

• Integrated safety protection design: the equipment integrates laser shield, optical path protection system and temperature control alarm to guarantee operation safety.

• Modular integration and strong compatibility: the fixture and station can be flexibly adjusted according to the shape of the workpiece to realize multi-purpose or multi-task cooperation.

Sintec's robotic 3D laser cutting machine solution is widely integrated with the above technologies, and has the advantages of independent intellectual property rights, open interface and flexible deployment. Based on years of industry accumulation, Sintec provides a complete set of customized equipments for the field of electric vehicles, including the 3D cutting of body covering parts, frame structure, chassis components, connecting bracket,  shaped pipe fittings and other parts.

Brand Power: Practical Cases of Robotic 3D Laser Cutting Machine of Sintec

As a leading manufacturer of intelligent laser equipments in China, Wuhan SintecOptronics has launched a series of robotic 3D laser cutting machines adapted to the manufacturing of electric vehicles, which fully demonstrates the competitiveness of domestic equipments in terms of high performance and reliability, and promotes the process of localized substitution of China's electric vehicle manufacturing as well. The following are its typical applications:

1. Body covering parts, body sheet metal parts: front windshield, roof, hood (or motor cover), cargo side panels, door panels, protective panels and shells (engine guards, body guards, which may involve heat insulation and need to be processed with impact-resistant materials).

Vehicle body covering parts directly affect the appearance and safety of the vehicle, these parts are characterized by large size, complex shape, 3D laser cutting machine can efficiently and flexibly cut curved surfaces, deep cavities, narrow slits and other complex structures according to the characteristics of the workpiece , to solve the high hardness, surface complexity of the problem of realizing the curved edges, ventilation holes and other personalized design, to ensure that the covering parts of the size accuracy and surface quality to adapt to the multi-species small batch production, to replace the traditional die stamping to reduce costs by 30%.  For example, the windshield of electric tricycle, as a key component to protect the driver, it can realize personalized design (such as curved edges and ventilation holes)by using laser cut , it can be adapted to the installation requirements of door hinges and locks, etc., and can ensure the strength and impact resistance of the windshield at the same time.

2. Frame structural parts, structural reinforcement parts, chassis components: chassis support beams, roof racks, crash beams (bumpers), seats and interior brackets; motor and drive system housings (motor housings, gearbox housings).

Precise cutting and trimming of high-strength steel (e.g. 1500MPa hot-forming steel) solves the problem of traditional processing that tends to wear out molds and ensures the strength of safety parts, and the dynamic focusing technology adapts to different thicknesses of materials. For seats, interior brackets, shock absorbing brackets and chassis frames (e.g. beach car chassis), integrated cutting and punching improves the torsional performance of the chassis, enhances the assembly precision, and avoids installation problems caused by errors.

Motor is the “power heart” of the vehicle, and its shell needs to meet the requirements of insulation, heat dissipation and protection. 3D laser cutting machine can cut aluminum alloy, engineering plastics and other materials with high precision, complete the processing of heat dissipation holes, mounting holes, sealing grooves and other processing of the outer shell, adapted to the connection between the motor and the frame, for the drive system shell (such as the gearbox shell): can achieve the complex inner cavity structure of the shell by use laser cutting , to enhance the sealing and durability of the drive system.

Battery box as the core component of electric vehicles, it use 3D laser cutting technology on cutting, trimming, punching and other processes as well . For example, for the battery compartment case, complex internal and external contours and mounting holes are cut to fit different battery pack sizes, improving sealing and assembly efficiency; for the battery tray (chassis integrated component), multiple processes are completed in a single clamping by the 3D laser cutting machine, and realizing accurate docking between the tray and the frame, improving the stability of the battery pack installation.

3. Shaped fittings: frame fittings, forks, battery compartment, roof rack tubes, hydraulic lines.

The frames of new energy vehicles (especially two-wheeled vehicles and three-wheeled vehicles) are mostly made of tubes (aluminum alloy, titanium alloy, chromium-molybdenum steel), and their connection nodes (such as welding bevels and joints) require high-precision processing. 3D laser cutting machine can realize 3D tube high-precision cutting, complete the tube cut to length, inside and outside the contour of the bevel processing, hole opening, to enhance the assembly efficiency of the tube and the strength of the connection, the stability of the installation and so on. For example,  to achieve the complex geometry of the pipe cutting (such as bends, reducers),  electric bicycle casting parts pipe (frame risers, cross tube) applied the 3D robotic laser cutting technology, the kerf is smooth without grinding, it can also improve the structural strength of the frame and assembly precision. For electric bicycle casting parts (such as connecting nodes), the robot 3D laser cutting machine is used to cut the water mouth, carry out efficient deburring and trimming, reduce the follow-up process and improve production efficiency.

4. Composite non-metallic parts: safety helmets (carbon fiber helmets, fiberglass helmets, aramid helmets), plastic/engineering plastic parts (battery shells, decorative panels such as fenders, tailgates, etc., motor protection covers, frame guards).

With the explosive growth of the market for electric two-wheeled vehicles, three-wheeled vehicles and four-wheeled beach vehicles, manufacturing enterprises are facing unprecedented challenges: on the one hand, consumers are having higher requirements for the aesthetics, comfort and functionality of light transportation; on the other hand, the non-metallic parts of the body are becoming more and more complex, customized and lightweight, which are brittle, and the traditional mechanical cutting is prone to cracking the edges, and it has become difficult to be efficient for the processing.  These parts not only affect the comfort and aesthetics of the vehicle, but also an important carrier for lightweight and functional integration. Robot 3D laser cutting technology quietly into the manufacturing head line, it becomes efficient, high-precision, flexible processing of non-metallic structural parts of an important tool. Robotic 3D laser cutting machine shell on ABS, EVA, carbon fiber and other heat-sensitive materials for integrated high-precision cutting, by using laser cutting machine to cut mounting holes, hot air channels, sealing grooves, the kerf is flat and non-serrated, the appearance of a clean and burr-free, which ensures the assembly fit, significantly improve the sealing and safety, compared with CNC processing, significantly reducing the process and labor costs.

Comparative analysis with conventional cutting process

In the electric vehicle manufacturing industry, the traditional structural parts cutting methods mainly include: stamping die-cutting (customized molds are required), CNC sawing, plasma/flame cutting and manual punching and slotting. Robotic 3D laser cutting stands out with its high flexibility and high precision, and it is becoming the new favorite of vehicle manufacturers and parts manufacturers.

Robotic 3D laser cutting technology is not a wholesale replacement for traditional processes, but an important tool in the wave of flexible manufacturing, it has become the core process of new energy vehicle manufacturing, It is accelerating the promotion of electric two-wheeled, three-wheeled, four-wheeled vehicle industry from the traditional crude manufacturing to efficient, intelligent, green modern manufacturing system.The domestic laser equipment manufacturers represented by Sintec, covering the whole chain of processing from two-wheeled vehicle tubes to complex four-wheeled vehicle coverings, are relying on solid technical accumulation and perfect service system to provide customers with full-process, integrated and highly adaptable intelligent manufacturing solutions. Robotic 3D laser cutting machine's high flexibility (no need for molds, can be adapted to small batch, multi-species production) is especially suitable for the fastly model update of the electric car industry, it has high efficiency, high precision, speed compared with the traditional process to enhance the 3-5 times, reduces the waste of materials, and the heat-affected zone is small, can meet the dual requirements of lightweight and strength, which is the key reason for its widespread use. These advantages solve the problems of low precision, low efficiency and deformation of traditional cutting process, , no needs for  molds to achieve complex shape cutting, greatly reducing the cost of investment in molds; with the automated loading and unloading system, it can achieve 24 hours of continuous production, and the artificial dependence reduced as well ; with the popularization of AI integration and other technologies, under the dual drive of domestic alternative strategy and the rapid expansion of the global electric vehicle , 3D laser cutting machines will play a more critical role in the future, which will further promote the evolution of electric vehicle manufacturing to highly flexible, lightweight, zero-defect and sustainable direction, and promote the intelligent transformation of new energy vehicle manufacturing, and add a more intelligent engine to Made in China. For more futher information, pls click here