ADAPTIVE WELD CONTROL THROUGH EXPERT SYSTEM INTERPRETATION

AUTOMATED WELDING HAS THE POTENTIAL TO IMPROVE WELD QUALITY AND REDUCE SCRAP RATE. IF PARTS TO BE WELDED ARE ACCURATELY POSITIONED AND FITTED, NC TYPE PROCESSING CAN BE SUCCESSFULLY CARRIED OUT. THE JIGS AND FIXTURES NECESSARY TO PROVIDE THE ACCURATE POSITIONING ARE SINGLE PURPOSE AND EXPENSIVE. ADAPTIVE SENSOR CONTROLLED WELDING OFFERS THE PROMISE OF REDUCED TOOLING AND PART PREPARATION COSTS, IMPROVING THE QUALITY AND REDUCING THE SCRAP RATE OVER MANUAL OR NC WELDING. IN ADDITION, ON-LINE QC OF THE WELD CAN BE IMPLEMENTED USING THE SAME SENSORS. THE REQUIREMENTS FOR A RULE BASED EXPERT SYSTEM UTILIZING MULTIPLE SENSORS AND LOOK AHEAD CAPABILITY FOR REAL TIME ADAPTIVE WELDING SHALL BE DETERMINED. APPROPRIATE SENSORS SHALL BE DEFINED BASED ON INFORMATION CONTENT AND SYNERGISM. THE FUNCTION OF THE HIGHEST INFORMATION CONTENT SENSING TECHNIQUE SHALL BE EVALUATED.