Systems and methods for controlling a vacuum arc remelting furnace based on power input

A control system for a vacuum arc remelting (VAR) process for a metal, the VAR process utilizing a VAR furnace, the VAR furnace including a crucible in which an ingot formed of the metal is formed, a ram operatively associated with an electrode formed of the metal, a vacuum chamber, and a vacuum source associated with the vacuum chamber, the system comprising:

• a direct current (DC) power source operatively associated with the electrode and configured to produce an electric arc between an electrode tip of the electrode and a melt pool of the ingot;
• a ram drive operatively associated with the ram and configured to drive the ram;
• a drip short sensor configured to measure a drip short frequency of the electric arc over a period of time;
• and
• a controller, including a processor, operatively associated with the DC power source, the ram drive, and the drip short sensor, wherein the controller comprises:
• a gap determination module configured to determine a real time arc gap length between the electrode tip and the melt pool based on the drip short frequency received from the drip short sensor;
• and
• a power control module configured to instruct the DC power source to alter an input power level supplied to the electrode if the real time arc gap length determined by the gap determination module differs from a desired arc gap length.