System and method providing automated welding information exchange and replacement part order generation

• US 6,486,439 B1
• Filed: 02/28/2001
• Issued: 11/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Lincoln Global Incorporated (Lincoln Electric Holdings Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Lincoln Global Incorporated (Lincoln Electric Holdings Incorporated)
• Inventors: Blankenship, George Daryl, Spear, Theresa M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shaw, Clifford C.
• Application Number:
  US09/796,192
• Time in Patent Office: 636 Days
• Field of Search: 219/130.01, 219/125.1, 219/130.5, 219/137.R, 219/136, 901/42, 700/95, 700/96, 700/106, 700/107, 700/117, 700/249, 705/26, 705/28, 705/29, 702/184
• US Class Current: 219/136
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/1062 with computing means
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/1087 Arc welding using remote control
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

A welding and network information system and methodology is provided in accordance with the present invention. The system includes a welder operatively coupled to a server and a network interface to enable a network architecture, the network architecture serving a network that communicates with at least one remote system, wherein the remote system includes at least one remote interface to communicate with the network architecture and provide welding information to a user, wherein the remote system accesses at least one HTTP socket to establish web communications with the welder and loads at least one application from the welder, wherein the remote system accesses at least one Welding Application socket via the at least one application to exchange information between the welder and the remote system, the at least one application includes at least one welding information broker to determine whether the welding information in a local database is to be updated, the user receives the welding information via the remote interface and the local database or the remote interface and the network. The present invention enables automated order and fulfillment of items such as replacement parts and/or welding programs and procedures.

Claims

1. A welding and network information system, comprising:

a welder operatively coupled to a server and a network interface to enable a network architecture, the network architecture serving a network that communicates with at least one remote system, wherein the remote system includes at least one remote interface to communicate with the network architecture and provide welding information to a user, wherein the remote system accesses at least one HTTP socket to establish web communications with the welder and loads at least one application from the welder, wherein the remote system accesses at least one Welding Application socket via the at least one application to exchange information between the welder and the remote system, the at least one application includes at least one welding information broker to determine whether the welding information in a local database is to be updated, the user receives the welding information via the remote interface and the local database or the remote interface and the network.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the welding information broker resides within a welding system on a local network.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the welding information broker resides outside a welding system as an entity on a network.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is at least one of a web server and an HTTP server, and the remote interface is a web browser.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the application is at least one of a Java applet or a Java application.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the application requests at least one web page from the welder via the at least one HTTP socket.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the welder further includes an e-mail component and a communications component for transferring messages and files to and from the welder.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the web page is at least one of HTML, SHTML, VB Script, JAVA, CGI Script, JAVA Script, dynamic HTML, ASP, XML, PDF, and WML format.

9. The system of claim 6, further comprising a graphical user interface (GUI) to enable welding information transfers and component acquisitions.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the GUI enables welding operator training, troubleshooting, and maintenance.

11. The system of claim 5, wherein the welder includes at least one of a browser and a JAVA Virtual Machine to communicate with other welders and remote systems.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the welding information includes at least one of an operator manual, a troubleshooting procedure, a replacement component and a service manual.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the user selects the replacement component from at least one of the operator manual, the troubleshooting procedure, and the service manual via the remote interface.

14. The system of claim 13, where in the replacement component is purchased and acquired from the user selection.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the selection is determined from at least one of a mouse input, a keystroke, and touch screen selection.

16. The system of claim 14, further comprising an ordering, receiving, and fulfillment component to automatically purchase and acquire the replacement component.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the web server provides applets to the web browser to enable the remote interface.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the applets are JAVA applets and interact with a JAVA Virtual Machine at the remote interface.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein the Welding Application socket includes at least one of an HTTP socket, an FTP socket, an SMTP socket, an RPC socket, an RMI socket, a JDBC socket, an ODBC socket, an SSL socket, an NFS socket, a Winsock, a POP3 socket and a TELNET socket.

20. The system of claim 19, further including a client to proxy requests over the Welding Application socket to or from the welder'"'"'s native system.

21. The system of claim 20, further comprising a database to provide access to methods or properties exhibited by each object.

22. The system of claim 19, further comprising an Arc Link protocol to enable configuration of the welding information broker.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the Arc Link protocol transmits at least one of a manufacturing history version, software version, firmware version, hardware type, serial number and model number.

24. The system of claim 1, further comprising a security component to facilitate communications over the network.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the security component further comprises at least one of a Authentication and Authorization component, an encryption component, and a Weld Policy Module to facilitate communications over the network.

26. A method to retrieve welder specific technical documents, comprising:

registering at least one welding broker with version information relating to a welding system;

linking the at least one welding broker to a remote information server;

determining if welding system information resides in the remote information server or in a local information server via the at least one welding broker; and

presenting the welding system information to a remote interface from either the remote information server or the local information server depending on the version information within the welding broker.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising,

displaying the welding system information via web pages.

28. The method of claim 26, further comprising at least one of,

displaying manuals to provide guidance in the operation or service of a welding system;

utilizing the welding system information to troubleshoot the welding system; and

identifying replacement components from the welding system information.

29. The method of claim 26, further comprising at least one of,

receiving a component request from a server associated with a welding system;

retrieving welder purchasing information from a remote server via the at least one welding broker;

generating an order to purchase the replacement component;

fulfilling the generated order with retrieved warranty information to complete purchase of the replacement component; and

notifying a supplier via the generated order.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising at least one of,

displaying inventory status;

displaying replacement component availability; and

displaying a supplier location for the replacement component.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein a welding operator automatically generates a purchase order by selecting from at least one of inventory status, availability, and supplier location.

32. The method of claim 29, wherein the purchase order is generated from a single action by a user.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the single action is at least one of a mouse click, key stroke, or touch screen input.

34. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for executing at least a portion of the method of claim 26.

35. A system to retrieve welder specific technical documents, comprising:

means for registering at least one welding broker with version information relating to a welding system;

means for linking the at least one welding broker to a remote information server;

means for determining if welding system information resides in the remote information server or in a local information server via the at least one welding information broker; and

means for presenting the welding system information to a remote interface from either the remote information server or the local information server depending on the version information within the at least one welding information broker.

36. A data structure within a welding broker, comprising:

a welding system version field;

a documentation version field; and

a purchasing information field.

37. A signal for communicating between welding systems, comprising:

a welder operatively coupled to a server and a network interface via a signal to enable a network architecture, the network architecture serving a network that communicates via the signal to a remote interface to provide welding information to a user, wherein the signal links a weld broker to a local database and a remote server to determine whether at least one document in the local database is to be updated, the user receives the at least one document via the signal and the local database or the signal and the remote server.

38. A method to generate an order of welder specific programs, comprising:

registering at least one weld broker with program version information relating to a welding system;

determining if a selected program is available for sale at a remote server;

retrieving purchasing information associated with the welding system;

automatically generating an order for the selected program; and

fulfilling the order by enabling a purchaser of the selected program to download the selected program to the welding system.