Method and device for making a workpiece surface of a metal workpiece
AssigneeFronius International GmbH
InventorsManfred Schörghuber, Andreas Waldhör, Manuel Mayer
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Method and device for marking a workpiece surface (2A) of a metal workpiece (2), in which a welding torch (3) comprising a welding wire electrode (4) is guided along the workpiece surface (2A) to be marked and meanwhile a wire end (4A) of the welding wire electrode (4) is moved towards and away from the work-piece surface (2A) to be marked, wherein an electric voltage (U) present at the welding wire electrode (4) and/or an electric current (I) flowing through the welding wire electrode (4) bring about electric sparks, which bring about material removal and/or material alteration at the workpiece surface (2A) of the metal workpiece (2) to mark the workpiece surface (2A).
Claims20
A method for marking a workpiece surface of a metal workpiece, in which a welding torch comprising:
- guiding a meltable welding wire electrode along the workpiece surface to be marked;
- applying an electric voltage at the welding wire electrode and/or an electric current flowing through the welding wire electrode sufficient to enable the welding wire electrode to generate electric sparks, which sparks cause material removal and/or material alteration at the workpiece surface of the metal workpiece to mark the workpiece surface;
- and
- while the welding wire electrode is guided along the workpiece surface, repeatedly moving the wire end of the welding wire electrode towards the workpiece surface until an electric short circuit with the metal workpiece occurs and then subsequently moving the wire end away from the workpiece surface to interrupt the short circuit;
- wherein an electric spark is produced each time the electric short circuit is interrupted to bring about material removal and/or material alteration in a point-based manner on the workpiece surface of the metal workpiece to generate one or more marking points, with no melting of the meltable welding wire electrode taking place.
A welding system comprising:
- a marking device for marking a workpiece surface of a metal workpiece;
- a welding torch, comprising a meltable welding wire electrode;
- a welding power source;
- and
- a control system configured and operable to guide the welding torch along the workpiece surface to be marked of the metal workpiece while moving a wire end of the meltable welding wire electrode, which protrudes from the welding torch, towards and away from the workpiece surface to be marked so as to produce electric sparks;
- wherein the control system is further configured and operable to;
- control the welding power source to adjust the electric voltage present at the welding wire electrode and/or to adjust the electric current flowing through the welding wire electrode, and
- control a movement profile and/or movement frequency of the wire end, in such a way that the wire end is repeatedly moved towards the workpiece surface until an electric short circuit with the metal workpiece occurs and then subsequently moved away from the workpiece surface to interrupt the short circuit so that an electric spark is produced each time the electric short circuit is interrupted to cause material removal and/or material alteration in a point-based manner on the workpiece surface of the metal workpiece to generate a marking point, with no melting of the meltable welding wire electrode taking place.
A method for using the welding system according to claim comprising simulating a subsequent welding process using a visual and/or acoustic signal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.