METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATIC ARC WELDING IN A VERTICAL POSITION

• US 3,742,184 A
• Filed: 12/24/1970
• Issued: 06/26/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Akihiko Ihochi, Atsushi Ohi, Kenichiro Hashimoto, Masayasu Arikawa
• Original Assignee: Akihiko Ihochi, Atsushi Ohi, Kenichiro Hashimoto, Masayasu Arikawa
• Inventors: Arikawa, Masayasu, Ohi, Atsushi, Ihochi, Akihiko, Hashimoto, Kenichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Truhe, J. V.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Peterson, Gale R.
• Application Number:
  US05/101,244
• Time in Patent Office: 915 Days
• Field of Search: 219/126,124,125,73,130,76,137
• US Class Current: 219/126
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/0026 specially adapted for particular articles or work
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/0209 of non-horizontal seams in assembling non-horizontal plates
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/0216 Seam profiling, e.g. weaving, multilayer
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/091 characterised by the circuits

Abstract

A method of arc welding in a vertical direction and an arcwelding machine for automatically performing the steps of the same are provided. According to the arc welding method of the invention, the advancement of a consumable electrode wire is accelerated and the welding voltage of the welding torch is increased as the torch crosses the centerline of a generally vertically extending weaving pattern it is caused to follow during a welding operation. After passing the centerline, the voltage is decreased to its original level, as it is on the return stroke also. This method is further improved by increasing the welding current of the torch slightly after increasing the welding voltage and further by decelerating or stopping the weaving motion at both sides and at the center of the weaving path of the wire. The apparatus for automatically carrying out this arc welding method comprises, in conjunction with an advancing consumable electrode wire and a welding torch adapted to follow a weaving path in a generally vertical direction, means for changing certain of the welding conditions, such as the advancing speed of the metal wire, the welding voltage and current, the weaving speed, and means for aligning the centerline of the weaving path or width to the welding centerline of a base metal.

Claims

1. Apparatus for automatic arc welding in a vertical direction with a welding torch and a consumable electrode wire comprising:

a support structure;

a vertical guide suspended from said support structure;

means moveably disposed on said vertical guide for supporting said torch and for moving said torch substantially horizontally across a vertical welding line while simultaneously moving the torch upward along said welding line such that the weaving path formed by the horizontal movement of the welding wire is continuously to the right and left across the vertical welding line when viewed from the torch side of the welding line;

means for decelerating the weaving motion of said welding torch for an infinitesimal period of time near the center line of said weaving path;

a welding current source connected to the electrode wire for supplying welding current thereto;

means for selectively increasing said welding current near the center line only of said weaving path;

wire advancing mechanism on said support structure for feeding the electrode wire to the welding torch;

means for increasing the feeding speed of said wire advancing mechanism near said center line of said weaving path; and

a control circuit including said welding torch decelerating means, said welding current increasing means and said wire feeding speed increasing means for electrically controlling said decelerating means, said current increasing means and said feeding speed increasing means synchronously with preselected positions of the welding torch within the weaving path thereof.

2. A method of automatic arc welding in a vertical direction with a welding torch and a consumable electrode wire, comprising the steps of:

welding along said vertical direction by weaving said welding torch substantially horizontally across a vertical welding line, such that the principle motion of the torch when viewed from the torch side of the vertical welding line is continuously to the right and left in a horizontal plane across the welding line, while simultaneously moving the torch upward along the welding line;

increasing the feeding speed of said welding wire near the center line only of the weaving patH of said torch;

simultaneously increasing the welding current near the center line only of said weaving path of said torch; and

decelerating the weaving motion of said welding torch near the center line of the weaving path for an infinitesimal period of time.

3. A method of automatic arc welding in a vertical direction with a welding torch and a consumable electrode wire, comprising the steps of:

welding along said vertical direction by weaving said welding torch substantially horizontally across a vertical welding line, such that the principle motion of the torch when viewed from the torch side of the vertical welding line is continuously to the right and left in a horizontal plane across the welding line, while simultaneously moving the torch upward along the welding line;

increasing the feeding speed of said welding wire near the center line only of the weaving path of said torch;

simultaneously increasing the welding current near the center line only of said weaving path of said torch; and

decelerating the weaving motion of said welding torch near the sides of the weaving path for an infinitesimal period of time.