Arc welding control system

Claim 1

AN ARC WELDING CONTROL SYSTEM FOR WORK-IN-CIRCUIT CONSUMABLE ELECTRODE METAL ARC WELDING IN A SELCTED GASEOUS ATMOSPHERE IN WHICH A DIRECT CURRENT CONTINUOUSLY SHORT-CIRCUITING TYPE SHORT ARC IS ENERGIZED BETWEEN THE END OF A WIRE CONSTITUTING SUCH ELECTRODE AND THE WORK BEING WELDED, SUCH SYSTEM COMPRISING A RELATIVELY SMALL WIRE FEED SHUNT MOTOR HAVING A PERMANENT MAGNETIC TYPE FIELD AND AN ARMATURE WHICH IS RELATIVELY LOW, A SHUNT CIRCUIT CONNECTING SAID ARMATURE ACROSS SUCH ARC THROUGH A RHEOSTAT AND A RECTIFIER IN SERIES WITH SUCH ARMATURE, SUCH CIRCUIT EBING RESPONSIVE DIRECTLY TO THE FULL ARC VOLTAGE, THE CURRENT CONDUCTING DIRECTION OF SAID RECTIFIER BEING SUCH THAT SAID LOW INTERTIA ARMATURE OF SAID WIRE FEED MOTOR RESPONDS TO FULL ARC VOLTAGE FLUCTUATIONS OF APPRECIABLE DURATION WITHOUT RESPONDING TO ARC VOLTAGE OUTAGES OCCURRING AT THE CONTINUOUSLY SHORT-CIRCUITING INTERVALS DURING THE METAL TRANSFER PROCESS BETWEEN THE END OF SUCH WIRE AND THE WORK, THEREBY MAINTAINING AN ARC VOLTAGE AND ARC LENGTH CORRESPONDING TO THE SETTING OF SAID RHEOSTAT.