The Hitachi A-train is a family of rail rolling stock built and designed by Hitachi Rail using a common base and construction techniques. The stock is designed to facilitate a number of product life-cycle improvements including ease of manufacture, increased energy efficiency, and recyclability.
JR Kyushu 885 series White Sonic EMU
TEMU1000 at Hualien station, Taiwan, May 2008
The SRT Dark Red Line at Krung Thep Aphiwat Station
The Sentosa Express monorail in Singapore uses A-Train derived monorail cars
Friction stir welding (FSW) is a solid-state joining process that uses a non-consumable tool to join two facing workpieces without melting the workpiece material. Heat is generated by friction between the rotating tool and the workpiece material, which leads to a softened region near the FSW tool. While the tool is traversed along the joint line, it mechanically intermixes the two pieces of metal, and forges the hot and softened metal by the mechanical pressure, which is applied by the tool, much like joining clay, or dough. It is primarily used on wrought or extruded aluminium and particularly for structures which need very high weld strength. FSW is capable of joining aluminium alloys, copper alloys, titanium alloys, mild steel, stainless steel and magnesium alloys. More recently, it was successfully used in welding of polymers. In addition, joining of dissimilar metals, such as aluminium to magnesium alloys, has been recently achieved by FSW. Application of FSW can be found in modern shipbuilding, trains, and aerospace applications.
Close-up view of a friction stir weld tack tool.
The bulkhead and nosecone of the Orion spacecraft are joined using friction stir welding.
FSW tool by TRA-C industrie
Two discrete metal workpieces butted together, along with the tool (with a probe)