The fixture plays a very important role in the success of the ultrasonic application. Providing the necessary support at the right location(s) on the plastic part and using the correct support materials, facilitates the transfer of the ultrasonic energy and is crucial to achieving good results. The plastic material, the geometry of the plastic part and the plastic wall thickness must be considered when designing and building a quality ultrasonic fixture. The fixtured plastic part should be supported, so that the part and the weld area remain stationary during the ultrasonic process to allow the vibrating ultrasonic horn to do its work. The fixture should be precisely manufactured to make sure correct alignment is provided between the ultrasonic horn and the fixture. We recommend that you purchase the horn and fixture as a set to help insure that proper alignment is achieved. Too many times we’ve seen the final results improved dramatically when a well-designed and well-made fixture is used for ultrasonic assembly.

Our fixtures begin with a ¾'' anodized aluminum base plate of different sizes depending upon the application. The fixture base plate includes mounting details or slots to locate the fixture on the ultrasonic welder base or other machine base. In addition to the fixture base plate, a specifically designed fixture nest is included.

At PATSONICS, we build fixture nests from simple drop pocket to complex contoured shapes. Sometimes cylinders, slides and clamps are added to improve support or to open and move components of the fixture. Shuttles and semi-automated fixtures with automatic part removal are also available. Sensors can also be added to the ultrasonic fixture to assist with proper part placement prior to initiating the ultrasonic welder cycle. Quick tool change designs are available to make it fast and easy to change fixtures for multiple applications.

Many standard fixture components like locator pins, detent pins, rest buttons, spring and ball plungers, pneumatic and manual clamps, cylinders, fasteners, leveling screws, dowel pins and bushings are incorporated to produce quality fixtures designed for your ultrasonic assembly application(s).

PATSONICS manufactures a wide range of fixtures that are designed to work with our horns for your ultrasonic application, including:  Poured Urethane Fixtures  Rigid Metal Fixtures  Contour Machined Fixtures  Clamping Fixtures  Sliding Fixtures  Automatic Fixtures  Part Ejecting Fixtures  Quick Tool Change Fixtures

The fixture nest is typically made from aluminum, plastic, poured urethane or steel. It is not uncommon to find an assortment of different materials used in a single fixture, due to varying support requirements needed to secure the part in the fixture nest. The materials used for building the manufactured nest components are based upon the application and the requirements of the job. The fixture material will impact the energy transfer and should be selected according to the plastic resin being used and the specific application being performed by the ultrasonic process. For many plastic applications, the fixture nest will typically be machined aluminum or urethane as the support. One benefit of using poured urethane material is this material is very effective in minimizing part marking. Urethane nesting can totally eliminate part marking on highly contoured parts and has even been successful in eliminating part marking on painted plastic parts. Aluminum material used in fixtures can be coated to reduce part marking, but the use of a rigid nest on a highly contoured surface can often result in slight part marking. We make many aluminum and thin poured urethane fixtures for ultrasonic welding, ultrasonic staking, ultrasonic swaging and ultrasonic insertion applications. We help you select the best fixture nest material based upon our broad experience.

PATSONICS uses CAD/CAM software to design ultrasonic fixtures. Our CAD/CAM software accepts most native formats and we have additional software for converting other native formats to a format required for our use. Once designed, we use 3-Axis CNC machining centers and lathes to produce high quality fixturing. PATSONICS welcomes the opportunity to provide you a quote for an ultrasonic horn and fixture using your CAD data files.

Plastic Assembly Technologies, Inc. (PATSONICS) designs and builds custom ultrasonic fixtures for use with all brands of ultrasonic welders. For additional information, please Contact Us or read more on our blog HERE.