Energy balanced weld controller

• US 20050218120A1
• Filed: 03/24/2005
• Published: 10/06/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kelvin Shih
• Original Assignee: Kelvin Shih
• Inventors: Shih, Kelvin
• Application Number:
  US11/089,095
• Publication Number:
  US 20050218120A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 219/110
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 11/257 the measured parameter being an electrical current
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 11/258 the measured parameter being a voltage

Abstract

An energy balanced weld controller includes a mid frequency direct current power supply and a weld switch that turns the current to weld caps on or off. The weld caps are used to produce a weld on workpieces. The tip voltage and the weld current are multiplied to generate a voltage which is converted to a frequency. The output represents the amount of energy provided to the weld and is provided to a frequency counter that counts the amount of energy delivered to the weld. A magnitude comparator compares the energy delivered to the weld to a target energy. When the energy delivered to the weld equals the target energy, the magnitude comparator sends a high signal to the weld switch to terminate the weld.

Claims

1. An energy balanced weld controller comprising:

a power supply to supply a current to a weld; and

a magnitude comparator that compares an amount of energy provided to the weld to a target energy and sends a signal to stop the current from being supplied to the weld supply when the amount of energy provided to the weld equals the target energy.

2. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 1 wherein the power supply is a mid frequency direct current power supply.

3. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 1 further including a weld switch that controls the current to the weld, and the magnitude comparator sends the signal to the weld switch to stop the current from being supplied to the weld.

4. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 1 further including a current sensor that senses the current supplied to the weld and a voltage sensor that senses voltage of the weld.

5. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 4 wherein the current sensor is a Rogowski coil.

6. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 4 wherein the voltage sensor is a tip wire connected to a weld cap.

7. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 4 further including a low pass filter that filters the voltage sensed by the voltage sensor.

8. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 4 further including a multiplier that multiplies the current sensed by the current sensor and the voltage sensed by the voltage sensor to provide a power.

9. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 8 further including a voltage to frequency converts that converts the power to a frequency that represents the amount of energy provided to the weld.

10. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 1 further including an energy counter that counts the amount of energy provided to the weld.

11. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 1 further including an energy display that displays the amount of energy provided to the weld.

12. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 1 further including a target energy display that displays the target energy.

13. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 1 further including a weld time counter that counts weld time.

14. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 13 further including a display that displays the weld time.

16. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 1 further including:

a maximum time controller, and a maximum weld time is programmed into the maximum time controller that is higher than an average weld time; and

a weld switch that controls the current to the weld, wherein the maximum time controller sends a signal to the weld switch to stop the current from being supplied to the weld when a weld time equals the maximum weld time.

15. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in 13 wherein the power supply increases the current provided to the weld to a predetermined amount when the weld time counter counts that that the weld time exceeds a threshold time.

17. An energy balanced weld controller comprising:

a power supply to supply current to a weld;

a weld switch that controls the current to the weld;

a current sensor that senses the current supplied to the weld;

a voltage sensor that senses voltage of the weld;

a multiplier that multiplies the current sensed by the current sensor and the voltage sensed by the voltage sensor to provide a power;

a voltage to frequency converter that converts the power to a frequency that represents the amount of energy provided to the weld; and

a magnitude comparator that compares the amount of energy provided to the weld to the target energy and sends a signal to the weld switch to stop the current from being supplied to the weld when the amount of energy provided to the weld equals the target energy.

18. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 wherein the power supply is a mid frequency direct current power supply.

19. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 wherein the current sensor is a Rogowski coil.

20. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 wherein the voltage sensor is a tip wire connected to a weld cap.

21. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 further including a low pass filter that filters the voltage sensed by the voltage sensor.

22. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 further including an energy counter that counts the amount of energy provided to the weld.

23. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 further including an energy display that displays the amount of energy provided to the weld.

24. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 further including a target energy display that displays the target energy.

25. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 further including weld a time counter that counts weld time.

26. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 25 further including a display that displays the weld time.

28. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in claim 17 further including a maximum time controller, and a maximum weld time is programmed into the maximum time controller that is higher than an average weld time, wherein the maximum time switch sends a signal to the weld controller to stop the current from being supplied to the weld when a weld time equals the maximum weld time.

27. The energy balanced weld controller as recited in 25 wherein the power supply increases the current provided to the weld to a predetermined amount when the weld time counter counts that that the weld time exceeds a threshold time.

29. A method of welding comprising the steps of:

detecting an amount of energy provided to a weld; and

stopping a current flow to the weld when the amount of energy provided to the weld equals a target energy.