Development and Evaluation of a Smart Welding Torch

Abstract

Welding of structures intended for shipbuilding in Brazilian shipyards is often carried out manually. The welding parameters should be adjusted according to the welding position to ensure the quality of the welding joint. However, this adjustment is frequently ignored due to the lack of preparation of professionals or to reduce the machine's downtime. In this context, the present work aims to present the development of a welding torch capable of recognizing its orientation within space and use an interface with the welding power supply to select the parameters according to the welding position. In order to evaluate the performance of the developed prototype, welding tests were carried out alternating welding positions 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G. The prototype worked well for welding applications, being able to recognize not only the position but also to control the welding parameters on the welding power supply.

Key-words:
Welding torch; Identification; Welding position; Manual welding; Welding parameters