Monolite piston laser welding spatter control

A method, comprising:

• positioning a piston assembly for welding two components thereof, the two components comprising a piston body and a cooling gallery ring, the piston assembly comprising a cooling gallery circumferentially disposed about a perimeter thereof and formed by at least the two components;
• orienting the piston assembly such that a granular material positioned within the cooling gallery is displaced to a low gravitational portion of the cooling gallery;
• welding the two components together to form a weld joint between the two components, such that weld spatter emitted during welding passes to the granular material.

A system for welding a piston assembly, comprising:

• a welding fixture configured to hold a piston pre-weld assembly that is comprised of a piston body and a cooling gallery ring, wherein the piston body and the cooling gallery ring have mating surfaces that, when mated together form a cooling gallery;
• a welding device positioned to weld the piston body to the cooling gallery ring at a location where the piston body and the cooling gallery ring meet;
• wherein the welding fixture is positioned such that a loose granulated medium positioned within the cooling gallery is located proximate the welding device and proximate the welding location, such that when the piston body is welded to the cooling gallery ring, weld splatter emitted therefrom emits into the loose granulated medium in the cooling gallery.

A pre-weld piston assembly comprising:

• a piston body;
• a cooling gallery ring, wherein the piston body and the cooling gallery ring have mating surfaces that, when mated together form a cooling gallery;
• a loose granulated medium positioned within the cooling gallery and located proximate the mating surfaces, wherein loose granulated medium is positioned such that it is displaced to a low gravitational portion of the cooling gallery.