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Method and device for connecting the ends of steel tubes by means of orbital welding using a hybrid technique

  • US 10,124,433 B2
  • Filed: 03/31/2010
  • Issued: 11/13/2018
  • Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2009
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A method for connecting ends of steel tubes by means of orbital welding using hybrid laser arc technique, comprising:

  • providing said steel tubes displaying a wall thickness of at least more than 12 mm and diameters of at least more than 150 mm and being round or hollow tubes with varying cross sections;

    providing a first trolley on a guide ring, said guide ring securely arranged in a region of a weld site about a circumference of at least one of the ends of the steel tubes, said first trolley carrying a laser welding head;

    providing a second trolley on the guide ring separate from the first trolley, said second trolley carrying an arc welding head, said first and second trolley each having a respective motor for moving the first and second trolleys on the guide ring and thereby moving on the same guide ring at least two welding heads carrying out a hybrid welding process with at least two different welding processes including the laser welding head and the arc welding head, said respective motors being adjustable independent of each other so that with respect to the circumference of the at least one end of the steel tube an angular distance between a root of a laser beam of the laser head and an arc root of an electric arc generated by the arc welding head is variable during the orbital welding, said laser head having an angular optical fiber causing a 90°

    deflection via a focusing mirror;

    connecting the ends of the steel tubes with one or more welding passes by moving the first and second trolleys independent of each other about the circumference, said first and second trolleys guided by the guide ring during said moving; and

    moving on the same guide ring a third trolley carrying a further arc welding head for producing filler layers.

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