Welding control arrangement with orbital torch-mounted transducing assembly

• US 3,924,094 A
• Filed: 11/15/1973
• Issued: 12/02/1975
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/1973
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Caterpillar Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Deceased Fulton, Heir Fulton, Heir Mccann, Howard A. Hansen
• Inventors: Hansen, Howard A., Fulton, deceased, Fulton, heir, McCann, heir
• Primary Examiner(s): Truhe, J. V.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shaw, Clifford C.
• Application Number:
  US05/415,939
• Time in Patent Office: 747 Days
• Field of Search: 219/124,125R,125PL,131F 318/576,578
• US Class Current: 219/124.34
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 33/004 Filling of continuous seams
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/1274 Using non-contact, optical means, e.g. laser means
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/133 Means for feeding electrodes, e.g. drums, rolls, motors

Abstract

An apparatus for controlling deposition of metal from a consumable electrode in a weld groove employs electromechanical sensors which provide information to the apparatus controls. This information includes vertical height of the weld torch above the workpiece, direction in which the weld groove extends, and the cross-sectional area of the weld groove. Such signals are effective to condition the welder controls to position the welding torch accurately in the X, Y and Z directions, and further, to regulate torch travel speed and/or electrode feed rate. This permits accurate deposition of weld material in a groove which may change direction horizontally and/or vertically, and further assures proper fill height in a groove that may vary considerably in cross-section.

Claims

1. Apparatus for welding fixed workpiece means along a groove defined thereby comprising:

a mounting body movable along any variable path;

welding means connected to the mounting body and generally movable therewith;

sensing means associated with the mounting body and generally movable therewith;

the sensing means having a portion which may extend into and contact a portion of the groove;

the welding means being positioned adjacent the sensing means and positionable adjacent the groove;

means for providing movement of the mounting body in any direction to enable the mounting body to be moved thereby along any variable path;

the sensing means, upon actuation of the means for providing movement of the mounting body, being movable generally along the groove; and

means operatively connecting the sensing means and means for providing movement of the mounting body so that the welding means are movable generally along the groove in response to movement of the sensing means along the groove, so that weld material may be deposited in said groove in a continuous manner, and further comprising means associated with the sensing means for sensing the width of the groove as said sensing means follows the groove, and means operatively connecting the means associated with the sensing means and the welding means for increasing and decreasing the amount of weld material deposited in said groove, in proportion to the sensed increase and decrease in width of said groove, wherein the sensing means comprise a first sensing member having an extended portion thereof which may extend into and contact a portion of the groove, and a second sensing means positioned adjacent the first sensing member and having an extended portion thereof, which may contact the workpiece means adjacent said groove, wherein the welding means comprise an elongated welding electrode, and further comprising a support member pivotally associated with the mounting body so as to be pivotable relative thereto about the longitudinal axis of the welding electrode, and first and second lever arms pivotally fixed to the support member so as to be pivotable about a common axis transverse of the pivoting axis of the support member, the first and second sensing members being fixed to the first and second lever arms respectively.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the means associated with the sensing means for sensing the width of the groove comprise the extended portion of said first sensing member, said extended portion being inwardly tapered in the direction of the groove and having tapered surfaces in which may continuously contact the side edges of the groove, means for detecting differences in the movement of the first and second sensing members, the movement of the first sensing member being determined by the edge width of the groove, the movement of the second sensing member being determined by the configuration of the surface of the workpiece means adjacent said groove.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the means operatively connecting the means associated with the sensing means and the welding means for increasing and decreasing the amount of welded material deposited in said groove in proportion to the sensed increase and decrease in edge width of said groove, comprise means for increasing the feed of welding electrode to the groove in response to an increase in edge width thereof, and decreasing the feed of welding electrode to the groove in response to a decrease in edge width thereof.

4. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the means operatively connecting the means associated with the sensing means and the welding means for increasing and decreasing the amount of welded material deposited in said groove in proportion to the sensed increase and decrease in edge width of said groove, comprise means for decreasing the speed of travel of the welding electrode along the path of the groove in response to an increase in edge width thereof, and increasing the speed of travel of the welding electrode along the path of the groove in response to a decrease in the edge width thereof.

5. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein each of the first and second sensing members comprise a tungsten carbide body and a titanium nitride coating thereon.

6. Apparatus for welding fixed workpiece means along a groove defined thereby comprising:

a mounting body movable along any variable path;

welding means connected to the mounting body and generally movable therewith;

sensing means associated with the mounting body and generally movable therewith;

the sensing means having a portion which may extend into and contact a portion of the groove;

the welding means being positioned adjacent the sensing means and positionable adjacent the groove;

means for providing movement of the mounting body in any direction to enable the mounting body to be moved thereby along any variable path;

the sensing means, upon actuation of the means for providing movement of the mounting body, being movable generally along the groove; and

means operatively connecting the sensing means and means for providing movement of the mounting body so that the welding means are movable generally along the groove in response to the movement of the sensing means along the groove, so that weld material may be deposited in said groove in a continuous manner, and further comprising means associated with the sensing means for sensing the width of the groove as said sensing means follows the groove, and means operatively connecting the means associated with the sensing means and the welding means for increasing and decreasing the amount of weld material deposited in said groove, in proportion to the sensed increase and decrease in width of said groove, wherein the sensing means comprise a first sensing member having an extended portion thereof which may extend into and contact a portion of the groove, and a second sensing means positioned adjacent the first sensing member and having an extended portion thereof, which may contact the workpiece means adjacent said groove, wherein each of the first and second sensing members comprise a tungsten-carbide body and a titanium-nitride coating thereon.

7. Apparatus for welding a groove defined by a workpiece means, said apparatus having welding means and a sensing member adjacent said welding means for movement along said groove, the movement and positioning of the welding means being responsive to movement of the sensing member along the groove, wherein the sensing member is provided as having a tungsten carbide body and a titanium nitride coating thereon.