Method and apparatus for welding with battery power

• US 20070181547A1
• Filed: 02/09/2006
• Published: 08/09/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
• Original Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
• Inventors: Beeson, Richard, Vogel, Bernard
• Granted Patent: US 10,099,308 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 219/130.100
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/1081 Arc welding by means of accumulated energy

Abstract

A method and apparatus provides welding-type power and preferably includes a removable battery or other energy storage device, a converter connected to the battery, and a controller. The controller may have a CV and/or a CSC and/or an AC weld control module, and/or an ac auxiliary control module. The converter is a boost converter, a buck converter, a cuk converter, a forward converter, an inverter, a bridge converter, and/or a resonant converter. The controller may include a battery charging control module, and may have one or more charging schedules, and/or data for stored charge, thermal information, expected life of the battery, maximum amp-hour charge for the battery, maximum charging current and/or feedback. The battery charging schedules may include at least 3 phases, such as a phase of increasing voltage and a phase of decreasing current, a substantially constant power phase. The controller can wirelessly provide data to a display or pda. A generator may provide power to the battery, charger, and/or the weld. It can include a vehicle and use its dc power system.

Claims

1. A welding-type power supply, comprising:

a battery;

a converter, having an input in electrical communication with the battery, and having a control input, and having a welding-type power output; and

a controller, having a control output in electrical communication with the control input, and having at least one of a CV control module, a CSC control module and an AC weld control module in electrical communication with the control output.

2. The welding-type power supply of claim 1 wherein the controller has both of a CV control module and an AC weld control module in electrical communication with the control output.

3. The welding-type power supply of claim 2 wherein the controller has a CC control module in electrical communication with the control output.

4. The welding-type power supply of claim 1 wherein the controller has a plasma control module in electrical communication with the control output.

5. The welding-type power supply of claim 1 wherein the converter has an ac auxiliary output and the controller has an ac auxiliary control module in electrical communication with the control output.

6. The welding-type power supply of claim 5 wherein the converter is a boost converter.

7. The welding-type power supply of claim 1 wherein the converter is a buck converter.

8. The welding-type power supply of claim 1, wherein the battery is removable.

9. The welding-type power supply of claim 1, wherein the battery is a lead acid battery.

10. The welding-type power supply of claim 9, wherein the battery is comprised of a plurality of batteries in at least one of series and parallel.

11. The welding-type power supply of claim 1, further comprising a welding gun, in electrical communication with the welding-type power and a source of gas, disposed to provide gas to the welding gun.

12. The welding-type power supply of claim 1, further comprising a generator, having a generator output in electrical communication with the battery.

13. The welding-type power supply of claim 1, further comprising a second converter, having a second input in electrical communication with the battery, and having a second control input, and having an ac auxiliary output, and wherein the controller, has an ac auxiliary control module with a second control output in electrical communication with the second control input.

14. A welding-type power supply, comprising:

a battery;

a converter, having an input in electrical communication with the battery, and having a control input, and having a welding-type power output and an ac auxiliary output; and

a controller, having a control output in electrical communication with the control input, and an ac auxiliary control module in electrical communication with the control output.

15. The welding-type power supply of claim 14 wherein the controller has at least one of a CV weld control module, a CSC weld control module, and an AC weld control module in electrical communication with the control output.

16. The welding-type power supply of claim 15 wherein the converter has an ac auxiliary output and the controller has an ac auxiliary control module in electrical communication with the control output.

17. A method of providing welding-type power comprising:

receiving battery power;

converting the battery power to welding-type power; and

converting the battery power to ac auxiliary power.

18. The welding-type power supply of claim 17 wherein the controller has at least one of a CV weld control module, a CSC weld control module, and an AC weld control module in electrical communication with the control output.

19. The welding-type power supply of claim 18, further comprising removing and reinserting the battery, wherein the battery is removable.

20. A welding-type power supply, comprising:

means for converting battery power to welding-type power; and

means, in electrical communication with the means for converting, for controlling the converting such that the welding-type power is at least one of a CV power, a CSC power and an AC weld power.

21. The welding-type power supply of claim 20, further comprising a removable battery in electrical communication with the means for converting.

22. A welding-type power supply, comprising:

an energy storage device capable of storing energy sufficient to weld at least one stick electrode;

a converter, having an input in electrical communication with the energy storage device, and having a control input, and having a welding-type power output; and

a controller, having a control output in electrical communication with the control input, and having at least one of a CV control module, a CSC control module and an AC weld control module in electrical communication with the control output.

23. A welding-type power supply, comprising:

a battery;

a battery charger, in electrical communication with the battery;

a weld converter, having an input in electrical communication with the battery, and having a control input, and having a welding-type power output; and

a controller, having a control output in electrical communication with the control input, and having a weld power control module.

24. The welding-type power supply of claim 23, further comprising a preregulator including a first converter and a bus, wherein the first converter is in electrical communication with the battery, and in electrical communication with the dc bus, and wherein the bus is connected as an input to the weld converter.

25. The welding-type power supply of claim 24, wherein the first converter has an ac auxiliary output and a first control input, and the controller has an ac auxiliary control module in electrical communication with the first control input.

26. The welding-type power supply of claim 24, further comprising a second converter that has an ac auxiliary output and a second control input, and the controller has an ac auxiliary control module in electrical communication with the second first control input.

27. The welding-type power supply of claim 23, wherein the battery charger includes a charger control input, the controller includes a charger control output in electrical communication with the charger control input, and the controller further includes a charging schedule control module.

28. The welding-type power supply of claim 27, wherein the battery charger is removable.

29. The welding-type power supply of claim 27, wherein the battery charging control module includes a data storage control module in which charge data is stored.

30. The welding-type power supply of claim 29, wherein the battery charging control module include a data port in electrical communication with the data storage control module.

31. The welding-type power supply of claim 30, wherein the battery charging control module includes data relating to at least one of the expected life of the battery, and thermal data, and a maximum desired amp-hour charge for the battery.

32. The welding-type power supply of claim 27 wherein the charging schedule control module includes a battery charging schedule that includes at least 3 phases.

33. The welding-type power supply of claim 32, wherein the battery charging schedule includes a constant power phase.

34. The welding-type power supply of claim 27, wherein the battery charging control module includes a plurality of charging schedules.

35. The welding-type power supply of claim 23, further comprising a generator, having a generator output in electrical communication with at least one of the battery and the charger.

36. The welding-type power supply of claim 35, further comprising a second converter, having an input in electrical communication with the battery, and having a second control input, and having an ac auxiliary output, and wherein the controller, has an ac auxiliary control module with a second control output in electrical communication with the second control input.

37. The welding-type power supply of claim 35, wherein the weld converter further has an ac auxiliary output and the controller further has an ac auxiliary control module in electrical communication with the control output.

38. The welding-type power supply of claim 23, further comprising a weld power circuit in electrical communication with the generator, and having a second welding-type power output, wherein the welding-type power output and the second welding-type power output is combined.

39. The welding-type power supply of claim 38, wherein the weld power circuit includes a second converter with a second control input, and the controller has a second control output in electrical communication with the second control input.

40. A welding-type power supply, comprising:

an input circuit disposed to be connected to a battery capable of storing energy sufficient to weld at least one stick electrode;

a first converter having an input connected to the input circuit, and having a control input, and having a dc bus output;

a second converter, connected to the dc bus and having a welding-type power output, and having a second control input; and

a controller, having a boost control output in electrical communication with the control input, and having a current control output connected to the second control input.

41. The welding-type power supply of claim 40, wherein the first converter is a boost converter, and the second converter is a buck converter, and wherein the controller further includes a battery protection module, having as an input a signal related to battery voltage, and providing an output to the control input.

42. The welding-type power supply of claim 41, wherein the controller includes a battery voltage sensing module that is active at start up, and wherein the battery protection module receives a signal from the battery voltage sensing module.

43. The welding-type power supply of claim 40, further comprising a battery protection module receiving as an input at least one of data relating to amp-hours provided by the battery, battery voltage, amp-hours provided by the welding-type power supply, and thermal data.

44. A vehicle and welding power supply, comprising:

a vehicle dc power system, including an energy storage device capable of storing energy sufficient to weld at least one stick electrode;

a boost converter having an input connected to the dc power system, and having a control input, and having a dc bus output;

a buck converter, connected to the dc bus and having a welding-type power output, and having a buck control input; and

a controller, having a boost control output in electrical communication with the control input, and having a current control output connected to the buck control input.

45. The vehicle and welding-type power supply of claim 44, wherein vehicle is a lift system.

46. The welding-type power supply of claim 45, wherein the controller further includes:

a battery voltage sensing module that is active at start up, and having an initial battery voltage output;

a battery protection module, having as inputs a signal related to battery voltage and th initial battery voltage output, and providing an output to the boost converter.