Wireless tracking and inventory monitoring for welding-type devices

• US 9,129,330 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2014
• Issued: 09/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
• Original Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
• Inventors: Albrecht, Bruce Patrick, Harvey, Darryl Grant, Ulrich, James F., Nagarajan, Sundaram
• Primary Examiner(s): JENNISON, BRIAN W
• Application Number:
  US14/231,165
• Publication Number:
  US 20140214604A1
• Time in Patent Office: 526 Days
• Field of Search: 219/137.7, 219/130.1, 219/130.01, 375/219, 375/220, 375/259, 375/349
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/10 Other electric circuits therefor; Protective circuits; Remote controls
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/1062 with computing means
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/1087 Arc welding using remote control
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0018 Transmission from mobile station to base station
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing

Abstract

A welding-type device has a wireless communication unit to transmit wireless signals comprising at least identification information or location information. The information may be transmitted either automatically or in response to request signals. Such a welding-type device may be configured to communicate with other welding-type devices, a monitoring device, or both. A wireless communication system has at least one welding-type device, at least one wireless communication assembly, and at least one monitoring device and is capable of assisting a user in locating particular welding-type devices, monitoring inventory, preventing theft of welding-type devices, and scheduling preventive maintenance.

Claims

1. A method for implementing a consumable inventory system comprising:

configuring a number of welding-type consumable containers to emit locatable data signals;

emitting locatable data signals from at least one of the welding-type consumable containers;

arranging a wireless detection network in a facility to receive the locatable data signals;

associating a non-transitory computer readable storage medium with a processing unit of the wireless detection network; and

storing a computer program on the non-transitory computer readable storage medium which, when executed by the processing unit, causes the processing unit to;

determine a remaining amount of welding-type consumables within the facility;

automatically generate a re-supply order when the remaining amount of welding-type consumables reaches a threshold re-supply level;

determine a location within the facility of a particular welding-type consumable container based upon a locatable data signal received therefrom;

determine whether the particular welding-type consumable container is located within an incompatible welding process zone; and

generate an incompatibility signal if the particular welding-type consumable container is located within an incompatible welding process zone.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the incompatibility signal comprises at least one of a disabling command or a warning command.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising configuring the wireless detection network to acquire at least one of triangulation data, GPS data, DME/VOR-type data, and LORAN-type data and transmit the data to the processing unit for location determination.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the computer program further causes the processing unit to determine the threshold re-supply level by at least one of user settings, past re-supply levels, usage statistics, and estimated production requirements.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of configuring the number of welding-type consumable containers further comprises attaching a long range wireless device to a shipment container and short range wireless devices to each of a plurality of individual units of the shipment container.

6. A welding-type consumable inventory unit comprising:

a shipment unit having a transceiver attached thereto;

a plurality of welding-type consumable containers stored with the shipment unit, each of the plurality of welding-type consumable containers having a low power transmitter which is constructed to emit a signal indicating consumable type data; and

wherein the transceiver is positioned to receive signals of the low power transmitters and emit a locatable signal of relatively higher transmission strength representing the consumable type data of the plurality of welding-type consumable containers, the transceiver is configured to determine interoperatibility of the plurality of welding-type consumable containers with a welding-type device within a selected distance of the shipment unit, and the transceiver is configured to generate an incompatibility signal when the plurality of welding-type consumable containers and the welding-type device are not interoperable.

7. The welding-type consumable inventory unit of claim 6 wherein the locatable signal includes at least one of a beacon signal, GPS data, a DME/VOR-type signal, and a LORAN-type signal.

8. The welding-type consumable inventory unit of claim 6 further comprising remaining consumable sensors attached to each of the plurality of welding-type consumable containers and connected to provide remaining consumable data for the low power transmitters of the welding-type consumable containers.

9. The welding-type consumable container of claim 6 wherein at least one of the shipment unit and the plurality of welding-type consumable containers include incompatible welding process indicators, activatible by the incompatibility signal.

10. A consumable monitoring network comprising:

at least one wireless transceiver having a processing unit and positioned within a facility to receive wireless signals of welding-type devices in the facility and process location and characteristic data therefrom;

a memory unit having welding-type compatibility data stored thereon and connected to communicate with the at least one wireless transceiver; and

wherein the at least one wireless transceiver is configured to generate an incompatibility signal by comparing location and characteristic data of at least one welding-type device with compatibility data stored on the memory unit, wherein the welding-type compatibility data comprises one of interoperability data for a number of welding-type device categories or data indicating welding-type processes designated for a number of locales of the facility and welding-type device categories compatible with each welding-type process, and the wireless transceiver is configured to determine welding-type process compatibility of a welding-type device within a locale of the facility and generate the incompatibility signal when the welding-type device is not compatible with the welding-type process of the locale.

11. The network of claim 10 wherein the wireless signals of the welding-type devices comprise at least one of beacon signals, encoded GPS data, DME/VOR-style signals, and LORAN-style signals.

12. The network of claim 10 wherein the characteristic data includes at least one of device category, type, style, serial number, ownership, capabilities, remaining resources, and devices connected thereto.

13. The network of claim 10, wherein the wireless transceiver is further configured to determine interoperability of two or more welding-type devices within a selected distance of one another and generate the incompatibility signal when the two or more welding-type devices are not interoperable.

14. The network of claim 10 wherein the incompatibility signal is encoded to disable a welding-type device or cause a warning indicator of the welding-type device to become active upon receipt by the welding-type device.

15. The network of claim 10 wherein the at least one wireless transceiver is configured to automatically generate a re-supply request when remaining resource data from the wireless signals of the welding-type devices indicates that total inventory of a given category is below a threshold level.

16. The network of claim 10 further comprising at least one intermediate transceiver positioned to receive the wireless signals of the welding-type devices and retransmit data thereof to at least one monitoring device.