Ultrasonic Welded Casing

Ultrasonic Welded Casing – ultrasonically sealed housing, seamless sensor casing, permanent waterproof seal

A compact, procurement-focused guide for municipal parking engineers and IoT integrators: this article explains why an ultrasonically welded, gasketless enclosure is often the best choice for road-surface and on-surface parking sensors, what test evidence to demand in tenders, how the welding process is validated in production, and real-world project references from Fleximodo deployments.

Why Ultrasonic Welded Casing Matters in Smart Parking

For city-scale parking programs, the enclosure (housing) is the single biggest driver of field reliability and predictable maintenance cost. A properly executed ultrasonic weld eliminates mechanical fasteners and elastomer gaskets to deliver a maintenance-free sealed design and a permanent waterproof seal — preserving detection performance, battery life and warranty integrity. Fleximodo datasheets explicitly list ultrasonically welded, one-piece casings with IP68 ingress protection and AOI/RTG inspection as standard production controls.

Key procurement advantages:

Reduced ingress failures (zero water ingress) compared with multi-component enclosures; demand an IP68 test report for the assembled sensor. IP68 ingress protection (huyuelectric.com).
Lower lifecycle maintenance: no screws / no gaskets designs avoid periodic gasket replacement or re-sealing issues — a true maintenance-free sealed design.
Improved vandal and tamper resistance thanks to a continuous, seam-welded body that denies simple pry points — specify an IK10 impact rating where vandalism risk is material.
Predictable qualification & traceability: ultrasonic welding allows energy-based termination logs and automated AOI/RTG inspection for batch traceability and acceptance. See the production QC checklist below and ask vendors for AOI/RTG evidence. AOI/RTG inspection.

Practical note: Fleximodo datasheets and test packs show ultrasonically welded housings and list IP68 and IK10 among the delivered evidence for standard sensor families; include these documents in your tender annex.

Standards and Regulatory Context

Public procurement requires certified test evidence. Below is a compact reference table you can paste into tender annexes; the third column lists the typical deliverable buyers should request.

Standard / Test	Scope	Typical acceptance / evidence
IP Code (IEC 60529) / IP68	Ingress protection (immersion) — verifies hermetic sealing of the assembled device	IP68 report showing test depth/time and test lab name; soak/immersion logs for the final assembled sensor. IP68 ingress protection. (huyuelectric.com)
EN 62368-1 (product safety)	Electrical / product safety validation across operating conditions	EN 62368-1 test report (NOTIFIED body or accredited lab). Fleximodo safety report confirms EN 62368-1 testing on its standard sensor type.
ETSI EN 300 220 (SRD RF)	RF emissions & immunity for short-range devices (LoRa, etc.)	EMC / RF test report and the ETSI application form; Fleximodo RF test documentation is available per-sku (example: EN 300 220 test files). (shop.standards.ie)
IK / Impact tests (IEC 62262)	Mechanical impact resistance (stones, vandal blows)	IK rating evidence (e.g., IK10) in datasheets and test photos/reports. IK10 impact resistance.
Thermal & mechanical ageing	Thermal cycling, salt spray, vibration (quantified equivalence years)	Thermal cycling equivalence data (e.g., 6–8y chamber equivalence) and vibration reports demonstrating long-term sealing reliability (request raw logs). Fleximodo datasheets reference 6–8 years of equivalent chamber testing on some families.

Procurement checklist (minimum deliverables):

Copy of the IP test report for the final assembled unit (immersion/pressure test) and AOI/RTG inspection evidence. IP68 ingress protection AOI/RTG inspection.
Weld-process logs or energy-based termination data for batch traceability. Ultrasonic welding.
Thermal cycling and vibration test reports for the selected material family. thermal cycling vibration testing.
RF & safety certificates (e.g., ETSI EN 300 220, EN 62368-1).
Installation template and torque guidance for field crews. installation guide.

Types of Ultrasonic Welded Casing

Not all welded enclosures are identical; pick the topology that matches your durability and serviceability needs.

Spot / seam welded two‑piece housings — two injection-moulded halves joined along a continuous seam to form a one-piece sensor casing. Ultrasonic welding.
Far-field (through‑thickness) welds for transparent/high‑gloss areas (polycarbonate ultrasonic weld) — used where radar/lens windows must be cosmetic and low-flash. polycarbonate ultrasonic weld.
Ultrasonic weld + overmold hybrid — weld the internal electronics pocket, then overmold the exterior for stone‑chip resistance. overmolding.
Integrated machined housings (metal or high‑performance polymer) for automotive-grade applications — higher cost, maximum impact resistance. impact resistant welded housing.

Quick procurement comparison (procurement view):

Type	Typical materials	Pros	Cons
Circumferential seam weld	PP, ABS, PC blends	Fast cycle, good hermetic seal for no-screws/no-gaskets sensors	Joint flash may need finishing
Far-field weld	Polycarbonate	Excellent cosmetic finish for radar windows	Higher equipment/tooling cost
Weld + overmold	PP + TPE	Best abrasion & stone-chip resistance	More process steps; higher tooling cost
Automotive-grade welded housing	High-performance polymers / metals	Best vibration & tamper resistance	Higher cost; limited field serviceability

System Components to Verify in the Technical Annex

When specifying a welded product, require confirmation of these mechanical and production elements:

Designed weld ribs / flash channels and tooling nests — ensures seam consistency. Ultrasonic welding.
Ultrasonic horn & nest tooling design and energy‑monitoring (energy-based termination). ultrasonic tooling.
Battery compartment design (sealed non-serviceable vs serviceable) — a fully welded body often implies a sealed battery; if you want field-replaceable batteries, specify that explicitly. battery life calculator.
PCB potting / localized encapsulation to protect interconnects during welding. potting.
On‑line QC: automated AOI, RTG inspection, and stored weld energy logs for batch traceability.
Lens / radar window compatibility with ultrasonic processes (material choice, acoustic matching) — critical for nanoradar technology.

How Ultrasonic Welded Casing is Installed / Measured / Implemented: Step-by-Step

This section is implementation-focused and mirrors the production + field procedure you should expect from a vendor.

Define requirements: IP target (IP68), IK rating (e.g., IK10), operating temperatures, and service policy (sealed vs serviceable battery). IP68 ingress protection.
Select material and joint geometry: pick polymer blends compatible with ultrasonic welding and the required cosmetic finish. polymers & PC.
Prototype tooling: design weld ribs and horn contact features, produce first-off samples for process tuning and fit checks. ultrasonic tooling.
Parameter development: tune amplitude/force/hold time/energy and log energy-based termination values per weld for production traceability.
Validation: run immersion and pressure tests, helium leak tests (if required), and thermal cycling to quantify long-term sealing reliability. thermal cycling.
Mechanical testing: IK impact and vibration testing to confirm road-surface suitability. IK10.
RF & safety certification: complete EN 300 220 and EN 62368-1 (or country-specific equivalents) with the welded housing assembled.
Production controls: enable AOI/RTG inspection and store weld energy logs for each lot; include factory test packs with each shipment. AOI/RTG inspection.
Field installation guidance: vendor provides drilling template, torque notes (hand torque only) and commissioning steps; follow the official installation guide.

Maintenance and Performance Considerations

"Maintenance-free" is the objective — however, procurement must accept the trade-off that a fully welded, hermetic sensor often uses a sealed battery. Plan battery-replacement cycles and end-of-life swap programs in the contract. battery life.
Verify long-term sealing reliability via accelerated thermal cycling: Fleximodo documentation lists 6–8 years equivalent thermal-chamber results for some families — ask for raw chamber logs.
Field failure modes to track: incorrect weld parameters (excess flash or cold weld), mechanical shock, and sensor masking from organic cover (snow/ice). Specify remote health telemetry and alerting via your vendor's DOTA/FOTA backend. DOTA monitoring OTA firmware update.
Vandalism & tamper: welded housings lower casual theft vectors, but require IK testing and an enforcement / theft-detection policy. vandal-resistant parking sensor.

Practical vendor requirements for tenders

"Factory test pack" per shipment: weld energy logs, IP test report (assembled unit), IK test, AOI/RTG acceptance evidence, and RF & safety certificates (EN 300 220, EN 62368-1).
Require production batch traceability: per-lot weld-energy logs and process control limits.
Require remote health telemetry (FOTA / DOTA) and sats-based or private APN security options for connectivity (LoRaWAN, NB-IoT as required). LoRaWAN connectivity NB-IoT connectivity.

Current Trends and Advancements

Manufacturers pair ultrasonic welding with automated post‑weld inspection and energy‑based traceability to meet city-scale SLAs.
Far-field welds for polycarbonate lenses reduce visible flash on radar windows while keeping hermeticity. polymers & PC.
Connectivity & scale: LoRaWAN and cellular LPWAN are still the dominant low-power choices for parking sensors; the LoRa Alliance published its 2024/2025 reports and continues to evolve regional parameters that improve device efficiency and capacity — this matters if you plan huge LoRa rollouts. (resources.lora-alliance.org)
Smart city strategy: the European Commission’s "State of European Smart Cities" (2024) highlights replicable mobility and ICT pilots — when you combine robust hardware (sealed sensors) with cloud device management and city policy, projects scale more reliably. (cinea.ec.europa.eu)

Summary

An Ultrasonic Welded Casing is the pragmatic choice for municipal and city-scale parking sensors where hermeticity, vandal resistance and low field maintenance are procurement priorities. Require one-piece construction, per-lot weld logs, AOI/RTG acceptance, and thermal cycling + IK evidence in your tender to reduce operational risk.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Ultrasonic Welded Casing?

An Ultrasonic Welded Casing is an enclosure joined using high-frequency ultrasonic energy that melts and fuses mating polymer surfaces into a continuous, hermetically sealed body. For parking sensors this typically delivers a one-piece sensor casing and fully welded sensor body with IP68 ingress protection.
How is Ultrasonic Welded Casing implemented in smart parking?

Implementation is staged: define IP/IK targets, select polymer and joint geometry, develop ultrasonic parameters (amplitude/force/time/energy), validate with immersion and thermal cycling, certify RF and safety on the final assembly, and install using vendor templates. installation guide.
Is ultrasonic welding better than adhesives for parking sensor housings?

Ultrasonic welding removes adhesive variability, provides a permanent waterproof seal, and is easier to validate in production. Adhesives can be chosen when repairability is a requirement, but adhesives typically complicate long-term validation. ultrasonic welding vs adhesive bonding.
Can a welded sensor casing be repaired in the field (battery replaceable)?

Most fully welded sensor bodies are sealed and non-serviceable to preserve hermeticity — procurement must choose whether to accept sealed battery packs or require a serviceable design that uses alternative sealing methods. battery life.
How does ultrasonic welding affect electronics and testing?

Welding is localized to the polymer joint; best practice includes potting critical wire bonds and verifying electronics by AOI/RTG post‑weld. Demand OEM validation that RF/sensor performance is unchanged after welding and environmental stress testing.
What test evidence should I demand in tenders for welded housings?

Demand: IP68 immersion report (assembled unit), thermal cycling equivalence data (where provided), IK impact test, vibration test, AOI/RTG acceptance, weld energy logs and RF/safety certificates (ETSI EN 300 220, EN 62368-1).

References

Below are relevant Fleximodo project references supplied in the project dataset; these projects are real deployments that help show how welded housings and SPOT family sensors are used at scale. The short summaries highlight sensor type, scale and a procurement-relevant note.

Pardubice 2021 (Carpark ID: 165) — 3,676 sensors (SPOTXL NBIOT). Deployed 2020-09-28; operational lifetime measured in the dataset: 1,904 days (~5.2 years). Large-scale NB‑IoT deployment demonstrating life-cycle monitoring and batch traceability is important for sealed designs. (source: internal references array)
RSM Bus Turistici (Carpark ID: 256) — 606 sensors (SPOTXL NBIOT). Deployed 2021-11-26; shows NB‑IoT use in dense urban environments and fleet parking sites.
CWAY virtual car park no. 5 (ID: 813) — 507 sensors (SPOTXL NBIOT). Deployed 2023-10-19; useful for virtual/centralized parking management projects that rely on robust sealed sensors.
Kiel Virtual Parking 1 (ID: 336) — 326 sensors (mixed: OTHER, SPOTXL LORA, SPOTXL NBIOT). Deployed 2022-08-03; this hybrid tech mix demonstrates how LoRa and NB‑IoT sensors coexist in city rollouts.
Chiesi HQ White (ID: 532) — 297 sensors (SPOT MINI, SPOTXL LORA). Deployed 2024-03-05; indoor / semi-protected underground installations where sealed housings simplify installation.
Skypark 4 Residential Underground Parking (ID: 712) — 221 sensors (SPOT MINI). Deployed 2023-10-03; example of underground deployment where hermetic sealing and IK testing are central.
Henkel underground parking (ID: 488) — 172 sensors (SPOT MINI). Deployed 2023-12-18; internal deployments benefit from compact welded housings and minimized field intervention.
Peristeri debug - flashed sensors (ID: 904) — 200 sensors (SPOTXL NBIOT). Deployed 2025-06-03; short lifetime in dataset likely indicates debug/flashed sensor batch used for testing — highlights the need for batch traceability.

(Full dataset available in project references — include these entries in tender annexes as deployment references and to show life-cycle and connectivity choices.)

Key Takeaway from Pardubice 2021 Pilot

Deployed: 3,676 SPOTXL NBIOT sensors (deployed 2020-09-28) — shows the scalability of sealed SPOTXL NBIOT sensors in a live city environment. Plan for multi-year lifecycle monitoring and batch traceability.

Learn more / Internal glossary links (selection)

Ultrasonic welding • IP68: Ingress protection • Hermetic / maintenance-free design • AOI/RTG inspection • Polymers & PC • Overmolding • IK10 impact resistance • Battery life calculator • LoRaWAN connectivity • NB-IoT connectivity • DOTA monitoring • OTA firmware update • Nano-radar technology • DiSPO app • Installation guide • Vandal-resistant parking sensor

Author Bio

Ing. Peter Kovács — Senior technical writer, Smart‑City infrastructure

Ing. Peter Kovács is a senior technical writer specialising in smart‑city infrastructure and municipal procurement. He writes for parking engineers, city IoT integrators and procurement teams evaluating large tenders. Peter combines field test protocols, procurement best practices and datasheet analysis to produce practical glossary articles and vendor evaluation templates.

(Author bio placed here to support E‑E‑A‑T and to appear immediately before metadata in publication templates.)