Process Details

In this system the seam tracker camera 'looks ahead' of the welding site to locate the joint and assure proper alignment of the MIG torch and laser beam over the weld joint. It also scans the joint geometry, like the gap between parts, and feeds that information into the control system. The process control system then determines the gantry motion, weld speed, laser power, MIG power and wire feed rates, and other parameters that drive this semi-automated system. An IR (infrared) camera observes the welding process to monitor weld pool stability. The poroscan camera follows behind the weld site and visually inspects the weld for defects. This allows the operator to know if and when defects occur, giving the user a chance to modify the weld if needed.

This system is ideal for simple or complex shape and high-speed welding. It is currently being tailored for US Navy shipbuilding applications specifically for three independent technologies: beam manufacturing, plate butt welding, and sandwich panel manufacturing. It has other application possibilities for transportation services, structural components, shipyard welding, etc.

Butt Welding

The intent of the ATS panel welding program is to reduce the time and cost of making high-quality butt welds while improving panel accuracy by reducing distortion and residual stress. Welding at higher speeds means that less heat is released into the panel, which reduces heat distortion and increases accuracy in the final components. Butt welds also have their own complexity associated with set-up between plates and the related accuracy requirements. ATS automated butt welding system can weld joints that have significant gap between them and still produce reliable results, meaning less time and money spent in part setup. In addition, it can make these welds in a single pass for panels up to 3/4" thick, saving even more set-up time and money while reducing part distortion.

Beam Welding

ATS is currently pursuing the development of technology necessary for high-speed, high quality welding of structural shapes. As this particular effort has matured, significant testing including typical mechanical performance, fatigue, structural properties, local instability, and non-destructive testing (NDT) of our hybrid specimens has been carried out to validate the quality our hybrid beam welding process. ATS' PC/QA system allows for welding at high speeds (in excess of 300 inches per minute). This high speed is essential for reducing heat input and thermally induced distortion.

Sandwich Panel Welding

As with beam welding, speed and distortion control are of prime importance for sandwich panel manufacturing. Structural sandwich panels have been analyzed for a wide variety of trial applications, with many comparative designs offering a weight advantage of up to 50% in total structural weight when compared to beam-stiffened plate structures. Beam-stiffened panels are usually manufactured with very rough dimensional tolerances and incur significant thermal distortion which results in significant rework time and money during construction. ATS' goals in this development are to use our hybrid welding methodology to provide a reduction in cost and distortion compared to traditional panel production and to develop a gantry system that will allow the breakthrough performance of sandwich panels to be achieved at attractive manufacturing costs.