US4532404A — Real time control system and process for controll…

Claim 1

Independent Claim 191 words

A real time control system for controlling predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism movable along a workpiece joint to be welded, said workpiece joint having two opposed edges, said system comprising: thermal radiation sensing means responsive to thermal radiation energy emanating from a heated workpiece joint, said sensing means being positioned along a travelling path of a welding element of said welding mechanism, ahead of and in close proximity to said welding element, said sensing means and welding element being disposed on a common side relative to said workpiece joint; means for causing said thermal radiation sensing means to scan said workpiece joint along a line transverse to said travelling path so as to allow said sensing means to sense a thermal radiation profile along said transverse scanning line and to provide peak signals representative of the relative position of the edges of said workpiece joint in accordance with the thermal radiation profile sensed, thereby defining the actual width of said joint; and circuitry means for processing said peak signals provided by said radiation sensing means to issue command signals for controlling said predetermined operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 191 words

A real time control system for controlling predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism movable along a workpiece joint to be welded, said workpiece joint having two opposed edges, said system comprising: thermal radiation sensing means responsive to thermal radiation energy emanating from a heated workpiece joint, said sensing means being positioned along a travelling path of a welding element of said welding mechanism, ahead of and in close proximity to said welding element, said sensing means and welding element being disposed on a common side relative to said workpiece joint; means for causing said thermal radiation sensing means to scan said workpiece joint along a line transverse to said travelling path so as to allow said sensing means to sense a thermal radiation profile along said transverse scanning line and to provide peak signals representative of the relative position of the edges of said workpiece joint in accordance with the thermal radiation profile sensed, thereby defining the actual width of said joint; and circuitry means for processing said peak signals provided by said radiation sensing means to issue command signals for controlling said predetermined operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 36 words

A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said thermal radiation sensing means comprises an optical means responsive to infrared rays emanating from the heated workpiece joint and from said welding element of said welding mechanism.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 29 words

A system as claimed in claim 2, wherein said optical means comprises an optical pyrometer provided with photo-electric cells responsive to said infrared rays for delivering said peak signals.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 34 words

A system as claimed in claim 2, wherein said optical means is fixedly mounted at an angle onto said welding mechanism movable along a path parallel to the travelling path of said welding element.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 31 words

A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said circuitry means comprises means for processing said peak signals through a microcomputer programmed to adjust the operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 60 words

A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said thermal radiation sensing means comprises a collimator for collecting infrared rays emanating from the heated workpiece joint, the welding element and a molten weld material at a welding zone, said collimator being connected to photo-electric cells responsive to said infrared rays and provided at a location remote from said welding zone.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 38 words

A system as claimed in claim 6, wherein said collimator comprises a bundle of optical fibers operatively set along said workpiece joint and in relation to said welding element to transmit said infrared rays to said photo-electric cells.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 37 words

A system as claimed in claim 7, wherein said bundle of optical fibers has a portion of their length thereof shielded by means of a metal housing to avoid conveyance of stray infrared rays through the fibers.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 32 words

A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said metal housing incorporates a compartment through which a cooling fluid flows for cooling said portion of lengths of said bundle of optical fibers.

Claim 11

Independent Claim 23 words

A system as claimed in claims 6, 7 or 8, wherein optical lens means are inserted between said collimator and said workpiece joint.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 35 words

A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein a mechanical device is connected to said shielding housing by means of a shaft to displace said housing and said optical fibers to scan said workpiece joint.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 22 words

A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said thermal radiation sensitive means comprises an array of a plurality of optic fibers.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 22 words

A system as claimed in claim 1, 6 or 12, further including means for determining solidification rate or a resulting weld seam.

Claim 15

Dependent Claim 204 words

A real time control system for controlling predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism movable along a workpiece joint to be welded, said workpiece joint having two opposed edges, said system comprising: an optical device sensitive to thermal radiation energy emanating from a heated workpiece joint and including photo-electric cells responsive to said radiation energy, said optical device being positioned along a travelling path of a welding element of said welding mechanism, ahead of and in close proximity to said welding element, said optical device and welding element being disposed on a common side relative to said workpiece joint; means for causing said optical device to scan said workpiece joint along a line transverse to said travelling path so as to allow said optical device to sense a thermal radiation profile along said transverse scanning line and cause said photo-electric cells to deliver peak signals representative of the relative position of the edges of said workpiece joint in accordance with the thermal radiation profile sensed, thereby defining the actual width of said joint; and circuitry means for processing said peak signals delivered by said photo-electric cells of the optical device to issue command signals for controlling said predetermined operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 16

Dependent Claim 204 words

A real time control system for controlling predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism movable along a workpiece joint to be welded, said workpiece joint having two opposed edges, said system comprising: an optical device sensitive to thermal radiation energy emanating from a heated workpiece joint and including photo-electric cells responsive to said radiation energy, said optical device being positioned along a travelling path of a welding element of said welding mechanism, ahead of and in close proximity to said welding element, said optical device and welding element being disposed on a common side relative to said workpiece joint; means for causing said optical device to scan said workpiece joint along a line transverse to said travelling path so as to allow said optical device to sense a thermal radiation profile along said transverse scanning line and cause said photo-electric cells to deliver peak signals representative of the relative position of the edges of said workpiece joint in accordance with the thermal radiation profile sensed, thereby defining the actual width of said joint; and circuitry means for processing said peak signals delivered by said photo-electric cells of the optical device to issue command signals for controlling said predetermined operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 17

Dependent Claim 15 words

A system as claimed in claim 14, wherein said optical device comprises an optical pyrometer.

Claim 18

Dependent Claim 54 words

A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein said circuitry means includes an analog signal processing circuit receiving said signals emitted from the photo-electric cells, said circuit being connected to a microcomputer programmed to control at least one operating characteristic of the welding mechanism in accordance with preset operation values fed to said microcomputer.

Claim 19

Dependent Claim 216 words

A real time control system for controlling predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism movable along a workpiece joint to be welded, said workpiece joint having opposed edges, said system comprising: a collimator for collecting thermal radiation energy emanating from a heated workpiece joint, said collimator being connected to photo-electric cells responsive to said radiation energy and being positioned along a travelling path of a welding element of said welding mechanism, ahead of and in close proximity to said welding element, said collimator and welding element being disposed on a common side relative to said workpiece joint; means for causing said collimator to scan said workpiece joint along a line transverse to said travelling path so as to allow said collimator to collect said thermal radiation energy along said transverse scanning line and to transmit same to said photo-electric cells, whereby to enable said photo-electric cells to sense a thermal radiation profile along said transverse scanning line and to deliver peak signals representative of the relative position of the edges of said workpiece joint in accordance with the thermal radiation profile sensed, thereby defining the actual width of said joint; and means for processing said peak signals delivered by said photo-electric cells to issue command signals for controlling said predetermined operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 20

Dependent Claim 216 words

A real time control system for controlling predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism movable along a workpiece joint to be welded, said workpiece joint having opposed edges, said system comprising: a collimator for collecting thermal radiation energy emanating from a heated workpiece joint, said collimator being connected to photo-electric cells responsive to said radiation energy and being positioned along a travelling path of a welding element of said welding mechanism, ahead of and in close proximity to said welding element, said collimator and welding element being disposed on a common side relative to said workpiece joint; means for causing said collimator to scan said workpiece joint along a line transverse to said travelling path so as to allow said collimator to collect said thermal radiation energy along said transverse scanning line and to transmit same to said photo-electric cells, whereby to enable said photo-electric cells to sense a thermal radiation profile along said transverse scanning line and to deliver peak signals representative of the relative position of the edges of said workpiece joint in accordance with the thermal radiation profile sensed, thereby defining the actual width of said joint; and means for processing said peak signals delivered by said photo-electric cells to issue command signals for controlling said predetermined operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 21

Dependent Claim 58 words

A system as claimed in claim 17, wherein said collimator is adapted to collect infared rays emanating from said heated workpiece joint and said welding element and comprises at least two optical fibers for individually conveying said infrared rays to respective photo-electric cells so as to determine the relative position of the welding element and the workpiece joint.

Claim 22

Dependent Claim 51 words

A system as claimed in claim 18, wherein said collimator is adapted to collect further infrared rays emanating from a molten weld material and comprises a third optical fiber for conveying said further infrared rays to a respective photoelectric cell so as to determine the width of said molten weld material.

Claim 23

Dependent Claim 33 words

A system as claimed in claim 19, wherein a length portion of said optical fibers are shielded by means of a metal housing to avoid conveyance of stray infrared rays through the fibers.

Claim 24

Dependent Claim 23 words

A system as claimed in claim 17, 18 or 20, wherein optical lens means are provided between said collimator and said workpiece joint.

Claim 25

Dependent Claim 30 words

A system as claimed in claim 20, wherein said metal housing includes a compartment through which flows a cooling fluid for suitably cooling said length portion of the optical fibers.

Claim 26

Dependent Claim 14 words

A system as claimed in claim 17, wherein said scanning means comprises mechanical means.

Claim 27

Dependent Claim 14 words

A system as claimed in claim 17, wherein said scanning means comprises electronic means.

Claim 28

Dependent Claim 19 words

A system as claimed in claim 17, wherein said collimator comprises an array of a plurality of optical fibers.

Claim 29

Dependent Claim 36 words

A system as claimed in claim 17, wherein said signal processing means comprises a microcomputer for analyzing said peak signals delivered by the photo-electric cells in order to control the operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 30

Dependent Claim 187 words

A process for controlling in real time predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism movable along a workpiece joint to be welded, said workpiece joint having opposed edges, said process comprising the steps of: (a) positioning a thermal radiation energy sensing means along a travelling path of a welding element of said welding mechanism, ahead of and in close proximity to said welding element, said thermal radiation sensing means being responsive to thermal radiation energy emanating from a heated workpiece joint, said sensing means and welding element being disposed on a common side relative to said workpiece joint; (b) causing said thermal radiation sensing means to scan said workpiece joint along a line transverse to said travelling path so as to sense a thermal radiation profile along said transverse scanning line and to provide peak signals representative of the relative position of the edges of said workpiece joint in accordance with the thermal radiation profile sensed, thereby defining the actual width of said joint; and (c) processing said peak signals through circuitry means to issue command signals for controlling said predetermined operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 31

Dependent Claim 187 words

A process for controlling in real time predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism movable along a workpiece joint to be welded, said workpiece joint having opposed edges, said process comprising the steps of: (a) positioning a thermal radiation energy sensing means along a travelling path of a welding element of said welding mechanism, ahead of and in close proximity to said welding element, said thermal radiation sensing means being responsive to thermal radiation energy emanating from a heated workpiece joint, said sensing means and welding element being disposed on a common side relative to said workpiece joint; (b) causing said thermal radiation sensing means to scan said workpiece joint along a line transverse to said travelling path so as to sense a thermal radiation profile along said transverse scanning line and to provide peak signals representative of the relative position of the edges of said workpiece joint in accordance with the thermal radiation profile sensed, thereby defining the actual width of said joint; and (c) processing said peak signals through circuitry means to issue command signals for controlling said predetermined operating characteristics of said welding mechanism.

Claim 32

Dependent Claim 45 words

A process as claimed in claim 27, wherein step (c) comprises processing said peak signals into a quantity proportional to heat input and comparing said quantity to a reference value so as to modify the travelling speed of said welding element whenever said quantity varies.

Claim 33

Dependent Claim 56 words

A process as claimed in claim 27, wherein the thermal radiation energies emanating from said welding element, from said heated workpiece joint and from a molten weld material are sensed simultaneously so as to determine the relative position of said welding element and said workpiece joint as well as the width of said molten weld material.

Claim 34

Dependent Claim 64 words

A process as claimed in claim 29, wherein said thermal radiation sensing means comprises a collimator for collecting infrared rays emanating from said welding element, said heated workpiece joint and said molten weld material, said collimator being connected to photoelectric cells responsive to said infrared rays and being shielded against stray infrared rays, a cooling fluid flowing through a shielded housing of said collimator.

Claim 35

Dependent Claim 15 words

A process as claimed in claim 30, wherein step (b) includes rotationally displacing said collimator.

Claim 36

Dependent Claim 80 words

A process as claimed in claim 27, wherein said peak signals include two major peaks each defining a temperature distribution area and wherein step (c) comprises controlling the position of the welding element of said welding mechanism by laterally displacing said welding element between the edges of said joint to occupy a position corresponding to a central location between said two peaks or by angularly orienting said welding element so as to equalize the temperature distribution areas of said peaks.

Claim 37

Dependent Claim 25 words

A process as claimed in claim 27, further including the step of determining the solidification rate of the resulting weld seam past said welding mechanism.

Claim 38

Dependent Claim 39 words

A process as claimed in claim 33, wherein said determining step includes the step of detecting individually the temperatures of two points located along the longitudinal axis of said weld seam and at a predetermined distance from one another.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	1988-07-29	1989-01-28	1989-07-30	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	1992-07-29	1993-01-28	1993-07-30	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	1996-07-29	1997-01-28	1997-07-30	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Real time control system and process for controlling predetermined operating characteristics of a welding mechanism

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