In the last 20 years, the advancements in digital, automation, computer, and mechanical design technologies have led to the growth of automatic welding as a sophisticated manufacturing technology. The significance of welding quality has also played a crucial role in this development.
Automated welding equipment is becoming increasingly crucial in various industrial applications, and the scope of its applications is rapidly expanding.
In contemporary industrial production, the automation of the welding process is an inevitable trend in the modernization of the welding mechanism manufacturing industry. The mechanization of this process is an important aspect of this trend.
Types of automatic welding equipment
Automated welding equipment can be divided into three categories based on their level of automation:
- Rigid Automatic Welding Equipment: These are also known as primary automated welding equipment and are typically designed using open loop control principles. The entire welding process is completed automatically by the equipment, however, deviations cannot be corrected as the feedback of welding parameters during the process cannot be adjusted through a closed-loop feedback system.
- Adaptive Control Automatic Welding Equipment: This type of welding equipment is highly automated and is equipped with sensors and electronic detection lines. It can automatically guide and track the weld trajectory and implement closed-loop feedback control of the main welding parameters. The entire welding process is completed automatically according to preset procedures and process parameters.
- Intelligent Automatic Welding Equipment: This type of equipment utilizes advanced sensing components such as vision sensors, tactile sensors, auditory sensors, and laser scanners, along with computer software systems. The database and expert system have the ability to identify, judge, detect in real-time, calculate, program automatically, store welding parameters, and generate automatic welding record files.
The components of automated welding equipment are:
- Welding Power: The output power and welding characteristics should be suitable for the proposed welding process and equipped with an interface to the main controller.
- Wire Feeder and its Control and Speed Control System: For wire feeders with higher accuracy requirements for speed control, the control circuit should include a speed feedback system.
- Welding Machine Head and its Moving Mechanism: This includes the welding head, the welding head support frame, and the hanging carriage. For precision welding head mechanisms, the drive system should use a servo motor with an encoder.
- Weldment Movement or Displacement Mechanism: This includes welding roller frames, head and tail frame turning machines, rotary platforms, and positioners. The precision moving position mechanism should be driven by a servo motor.
- Weldment Clamping Mechanism: This mechanism is used to securely hold the weldment in place during the welding process.
- Main Controller: Also known as the system controller, it is responsible for the linkage control of each component, control of the welding procedure, setting of the main welding parameters, adjustment, and display. Troubleshooting and man-machine dialogue control functions can be expanded as needed.
- Computer Software: Common computer software used in welding equipment include programming software, functional software, process method software, and expert systems.
- Welding Head Guiding or Tracking Mechanism: This includes the arc voltage automatic controller, the welding gun yoke, and the monitoring system.
- Auxiliary Devices: These include the wire feeding system, the circulating water cooling system, the flux recovery conveyor, the wire support, the cable hose, the drag chain structure, the mechanism design, and the electrical control design.
- Welding Robot: Also known as the robot arm, it is a crucial part of automated welding equipment and is responsible for tasks such as welding, cutting, thermal spraying, and handling.
