Overview
EN ISO 14323:2015 specifies specimen dimensions and destructive testing procedures for assessing resistance spot welds and embossed projection welds in overlapping metallic sheets (thickness range 0.5 mm to 4 mm). The standard defines how to prepare impact tensile shear and cross‑tension specimens, how to mount and test them using impact equipment, and how to record and report results for consistent evaluation of weld performance.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Scope and specimen geometry: Defines specimen forms for impact tensile shear and cross‑tension tests and gives positional accuracy requirements for the weld on the specimen (±1 mm or less). Table 1 in the standard provides recommended specimen dimensions for different sheet thickness ranges.
- Minimum sample size: At least five specimens shall be tested.
- Test equipment:
- Modified pendulum machine (commonly for 0.5–3 mm thickness): uses a U‑shaped hammer attached to a pendulum; pendulum impact velocity is specified (≈ 5.5 m/s). Force measurement via strain gauges or load cells; failure energy determined as a function of time.
- Drop‑weight machine (commonly for 1–4 mm thickness): variable mass dropped from controlled heights; striker velocities in the range 5 m/s to 15 m/s. Instrumentation must monitor displacement/velocity and force during impact.
- Energy and force measurement: Force/time and energy-to-failure are recorded. The standard requires impact energy for testing to be sufficiently high (recommendation: impact energy > 10× failure energy to ensure complete fracture).
- Signal integrity: Time to fracture should be at least 1.5×, and preferably > 10×, the response time of any electronic filtering to avoid attenuation of the force/time signal.
- Test records and report: Specifies the data and reporting format to ensure repeatability and traceability of weld evaluation.
Applications and users
Who uses EN ISO 14323:2015:
- Welding and quality engineers performing destructive weld testing
- Third‑party and in‑house metallurgical and materials testing laboratories
- Automotive, aerospace and appliance manufacturers validating spot‑weld and projection‑weld integrity
- R&D and process development teams for weld qualification, process optimization, and failure analysis
Practical uses include weld quality assurance, production process validation, material and joint design comparison, and compliance testing.
Related standards
- ISO 14272 - specimen dimensions and procedure for cross‑tension testing
- ISO 17677‑1 - resistance welding vocabulary (spot, projection and seam welding)
EN ISO 14323:2015 supersedes the 2006 edition and aligns terminology and procedures with ISO 17677‑1.
Keywords: resistance welding, destructive testing, impact tensile shear, cross‑tension testing, resistance spot welds, embossed projection welds, specimen dimensions, pendulum machine, drop‑weight machine, weld testing.
