Welding machine for producing butt welding joints

Abstract

The utility model relates to a method for producing butt welding joints between pipe sections of a pipe made of weldable plastic materials by using a welding machine and a welding machine (10), and the two pipe sections are respectively held by clamping equipment (11) of a welding device (21) of the welding machine. Welding contact surfaces of the pipe end cross sections of the pipe sections are melted by means of a heating element (22) of the welding device, and the welding contact surfaces are subsequently pressed against each other by means of a treatment device (18) of the welding device with a joining pressure in order to form a butt weld seam connecting the pipe sections to each other in a joining plane, the welding device is controlled by a control device of the welding machine, a data model of a pipe system having at least one pipe and a plurality of butt weld joints is stored in the control device of the welding device, the data model comprising at least one object data set representing a respective butt weld joint, each object data set having an attribute, the control device detects at least one welding parameter of the welding device as another property of the respective butt welded joint and adds the welding parameter to the object data set.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to a method for producing butt welding joints between a plurality of pipe sections of a pipe made of weldable plastic material using a welding machine and a welding machine, wherein two pipe sections are respectively held by a clamping device of a welding device of the welding machine, welding contact surfaces of the pipe end cross sections of the pipe sections are melted by means of a heating element of the welding device, and the welding contact surfaces are subsequently pressed against each other by a processing device of the welding device using a joining pressure to form a butt welding seam of the joined pipe sections in a joining plane, and the welding device is controlled by a control device of the welding machine. Background Art

[0002] Such a process and a welding machine are well known and are used for butt welding plastic pipes. In particular, two pipe sections of the pipe to be formed by a butt welding joint are joined together by a butt welding joint. The pipe end cross sections of the pipe sections usually have matching diameters and are held in a clamping device with a clamping tool, fixed and aligned relative to each other. The pipe end cross sections of the pipe sections are then heated and plasticized by means of a heating device using a heating element. Finally, the plasticized pipe end cross sections are pressed against each other by a joining pressure using a processing device until the butt weld seam formed in this way hardens. Finally, the clamping device is released and the pipe can be separated from the welding machine.

[0003] In principle, the method can be performed completely manually using a welding machine. However, a partially automated or fully automated version can also be provided, wherein the welding machine comprises a control device which at least partially controls the corresponding production steps for producing a butt-welded joint by the welding machine. Such a welding machine is known from EP 3 804 965 A1.

[0004] Particularly when high-quality pipe systems are to be produced, for example in the field of semiconductor manufacturing and in the production of food and pharmaceuticals, there is the problem that, regardless of the high quality of the welding machine and the materials used, the user of the welding machine may produce defective or poor-quality butt-welded joints. Since the pipe systems for the above-mentioned manufacturing facilities are usually very complex, the user may, for example, accidentally use the wrong pipe section. Incorrect operation of the welding machine may also lead to defective butt-welded joints. Utility Model Content

[0005] The object of the invention is therefore to propose a method and a welding machine for producing butt-welded joints, both of which make it possible to easily produce high-quality pipe systems.

[0006] This object is achieved by a welding machine for producing butt-welded joints between pipe sections of pipes made of weldable plastic material, the welding machine having a welding device, a clamping device for holding two pipe sections in each case, a heating element for melting the welding contact surfaces of the pipe end cross-sections of the pipe sections, and a processing device for subsequently producing a butt weld seam connecting the pipe sections to one another in a joining plane by pressing the welding contact surfaces against one another with a joining pressure, the welding device being controllable by a control device of the welding machine, a data model of a pipe system having at least one pipe and a plurality of butt-welded joints being stored in the control device of the welding device, the data model comprising at least one object data set representing the respective butt-welded joints, each object data set having attributes, the control device detecting at least one welding parameter of the welding device as a further attribute for the respective butt-welded joint, and adding the welding parameter to the object data set.

[0007] The object is also achieved by a welding machine for producing butt-welded joints between pipe sections of a pipe made of weldable plastic material, the welding machine having a welding device, a clamping device for holding two pipe sections in each case, a heating element for melting the welding contact surfaces of the pipe end cross-sections of the pipe sections, and a processing device for subsequently producing a butt weld seam connecting the pipe sections to one another in a joining plane by pressing the welding contact surfaces against one another by means of a joining pressure, the welding device being controllable by a control device of the welding machine, the control device detecting at least one welding parameter of the welding device, the clamping device comprising four clamping receptacles formed by clamping jaws; and two of the clamping receptacles being arranged on a slide of a processing device of the welding device, the slide being moved relative to one another along the longitudinal axis of the pipe to be produced by means of the processing device.

[0008] Further advantageous embodiments of the welding machine emerge from the following description.

[0009] Optionally, the control apparatus includes a display device, the display device is composed of one or more screens and includes a first display area and a second display area.

[0010] Optionally, a printer is connected to the control device, the printer being formed by an adhesive label printer, the adhesive label printer being integrated in the welding machine or connected to the welding machine via an interface, and the printer prints at least one adhesive label associated with the butt weld joint for each butt weld joint.

[0011] Optionally, a tool of the welding device is used to machine the pipe end cross section of the pipe section to form the welding contact surface.

[0012] Optionally, the welding device comprises one or more sensors.

[0013] Optionally, transverse guides are formed on the slide such that the tube sections are aligned relative to each other about the longitudinal axis.

[0014] Optionally, the slide is arranged on a frame of the welding machine, the frame forming a guide for the slide, and the drive for the handling device is arranged in the frame.

[0015] Optionally, the welding machine is operated by means of operating elements and a screen on a user unit of the welding machine.

[0016] Optionally, the data model is stored in a storage device of the control device before the butt weld joint is produced.

[0017] In a method for producing butt-welded joints between pipe sections of a pipe made of a weldable plastic material using a welding machine according to the utility model, the two pipe sections are each held by a clamping device of a welding device of the welding machine, the welding contact surfaces of the pipe end cross-sections of the pipe sections are melted by means of a heating device of the welding device, and the welding contact surfaces are subsequently pressed against each other by a processing device of the welding device using a joining pressure to form a butt weld seam connecting the pipe sections to each other in a joining plane, the welding device is controlled by a control device of the welding machine, a data model of a pipe system having at least one pipe and a plurality of butt-welded joints is stored in the welding device of the welding device, the data model includes at least one object data set representing a corresponding butt-welded joint, each object data set having attributes, the control device detects at least one welding parameter of the welding device as another attribute of the corresponding butt-welded joint, and adds the welding parameter to the object data set.

[0018] A pipe system is understood to be at least one pipe formed by a plurality of butt welded joints and / or a corresponding number of pipe segments. A pipe system may also include a plurality of pipes and connections and / or pipe branches for connecting valves, containers, reactors, machines, etc. A data model of a pipe system is understood to be a digital embodiment of a pipe system, which can be created and further processed by data processing means, such as a computer. Since the data model of the pipe system as part of the method according to the present invention is stored in a control device, the control device is also designed to process digital data and can therefore be a computer, for example. The data model of the pipe system includes object data sets, each of which represents a butt welded joint to be formed using a welding machine. By storing the data model of the pipe system in the control device, it can be ensured that basic data describing the butt welded joint are already available in the control device. The corresponding object data set in turn includes attributes with basic information about the butt welded joint to be produced, such as information about the type of pipe segment in question. Since the information and / or data required for forming the butt welded joint are already stored in the welding machine for the user, possible errors of the user can be avoided when transferring data from the planning file of the pipe system to the welding machine and / or the control device.

[0019] According to the invention, it is also provided that for the butt-welded joint in question, the control device determines at least one welding parameter, such as a temperature. The welding parameters can be detected by sensors of the welding device and / or also by calculations of the control device with the aid of an algorithm. The relevant welding parameters are added to the relevant object data set in the form of additional attributes of the butt-welded joint. The control device can add the detected additional attributes to the corresponding object data set and save it as part of the data model. In this way, a traceability document for the production of the pipe system can be created. This also makes traceability verification of compliance with production specifications possible.

[0020] Before forming the butt weld joint, the data model can be stored in a storage device of the control device. The control device therefore has a storage device. In principle, the storage device can be any type of data carrier that is suitable for storing data or files. Several data models of the pipe system can also be stored in the storage device. The storage device can also be a data carrier suitable for the welding machine.

[0021] Before, during and / or after the production of the corresponding butt-welded joint, the control device can detect at least one welding parameter of the welding device as a further property, which welding parameter can be the ambient temperature during production, the joining pressure, the heating element temperature, the device temperature, the welding time and / or the cooling time. Even before the butt-welded joint is formed, the control device can use the properties contained in the object data set to calculate further properties, such as the wall thickness of the pipe section, in order to detect the required heating element temperature. The welding device can also have one or more sensors, with which the control device can record measured values ​​as further properties, such as the ambient temperature, during the formation of the butt-welded joint. After the butt-welded joint is formed, the control device can also process the properties and / or measured values ​​contained in the object data set in order to detect further properties, such as the wall thickness of the pipe section in combination with the ambient temperature to determine the required cooling time. On the one hand, this makes it possible to precalculate the required welding parameters based on the properties contained in the object data set, and on the other hand, makes it possible to measure and / or verify these welding parameters during and after the formation of the butt-welded joint.

[0022] The control device can control the welding device based on the properties of the object data set, which can be pipe diameter, pipe wall thickness, plastic material, manufacturing time, manufacturer name, product number and / or serial number. Certain functions of the welding device can be associated with these properties, for example the heating element temperature depends on the plastic material used. If the plastic material is not included as an attribute in the object data set, the plastic material used can also be obtained from the article number and the manufacturer name. In principle, however, these properties can also be used to trace the production process of the butt-welded joint back to the production of the pipe segment used.

[0023] By means of a display device of the control device, user-oriented instructions and data models for the welding machine can be output. The display device can be formed by one or more display means. The instructions can be signaled in an audible and / or visual form, for example by light signals, graphic displays and / or instructions in text form. The instructions can, for example, prompt the welding machine to be equipped with a certain type of pipe section or to start certain functions of the welding machine, such as the welding process itself. In principle, it is also possible for the welding machine to perform some or all functions semi-automatically or fully automatically. It is also intended that the welding machine outputs a data model. The output can be performed by displaying a list with an object data set or by a graphical representation of the pipe system to be created using a display device.

[0024] The display device can be formed by one or more screens, the instructions can be displayed in a first display area, and the data model with the object data set and the corresponding attributes can be displayed in a second display area. The screen can be a touch-sensitive screen so that the user can interact with the control device, for example by confirming the instructions. Due to the second display area for the data model, the user no longer needs to implement a comparison with the planning file of the pipe system. The data model can then include the planning documents stored in the control device. When operating the welding machine, the user can first select the butt weld joint to be produced from the data model, which can be displayed in the second display area in the form of a graphical, two-dimensional or three-dimensional representation of the pipe system. The control device can then use the attributes contained in the object data set to display instructions in the first display area, such as information about the pipe segment to be inserted into the clamping device. After the butt weld joint has been formed, at least one additional attribute can be added to the object data set in the data model. For example, the butt weld joint in question can then be displayed as fully welded in the second display area. Therefore, the production of accidental repetition of butt weld joints can be reliably prevented.

[0025] After the butt weld joint is produced, an adhesive label with a presentation of the corresponding object data set of the butt weld joint and / or with a presentation of a code representing the object data set can be output by a printer, which can be connected to a control device or can have a control device. The printer can be formed by an adhesive label printer, which is integrated in the welding machine or connected to the welding machine via an interface. At least one adhesive label can then be printed for each butt weld joint, which label has at least one object data set associated with the butt weld joint. The object data set may already include other attributes, such as the production date of the butt weld joint. The user can then stick the adhesive label on one of the pipe sections so that basic information about the butt weld joint is immediately recognizable. The object data set can be presented on the adhesive label in text or character form. Alternatively or additionally, the adhesive label can have a code with which information about the butt weld joint can be detected. This can be, for example, a barcode or a QR code that can be scanned with a mobile device.

[0026] A data model may be used which has graphical image data and / or vector data of the pipe system supplemented by an object data set. The graphical image data or the vector data may be in two-dimensional or three-dimensional form. Advantageously, computer-aided design (CAD) data or other known graphical data formats may contain the object data set or be linked thereto. The graphical representation of the pipe system makes it possible to dispense with planning documents in paper form when producing butt-welded joints.

[0027] A data model with pipe sections and / or butt weld joints can be used as objects with associated object data sets. Each pipe section and / or butt weld joint can thus be defined as an object in the data model. An object data set can be assigned to each of these objects. All components of the pipe system and their butt weld joints can then be clearly documented in the data model.

[0028] A data model with a parts list of the pipe system can be used. The data model can be stored in the form of a parts list in the control device and displayed according to the user. All necessary information and / or properties of the pipe sections to be welded and the butt-welded joints to be produced can then be collected from the parts list. In addition to the representation of the parts list, a graphical representation of the data model of the pipe system can also be used.

[0029] Advantageously, the method can be performed in the following order:

[0030] a) generating a data model of a pipe system having at least one pipe and a plurality of butt-welded joints;

[0031] b) transmitting and storing the data model in the control device;

[0032] c) selecting the butt welding joint to be welded;

[0033] d) calculating welding parameters of the welding device by the control device based on the properties of the corresponding object data set;

[0034] e) outputting a series of user-oriented instructions for the welding machine;

[0035] f) controlling the welding device by means of a control device for executing the production steps;

[0036] g) detecting further properties by means of the control device and storing them in corresponding object data sets;

[0037] h) Outputting and / or transmitting corresponding object data sets or data models via the control device.

[0038] The tool using the welding device can machine the pipe end cross section of the pipe section to form the welding contact surface. Thus, the tool for machining the welding contact surface can be arranged in a fixed position. The tool can also make a separating cut to form the pipe section, which can also be used to form the welding contact surface. Thus, the pipe section is then formed from the semi-finished product by the tool. However, after the pipe section has been clamped in the clamping device, the tool device can also process the pipe section on its welding contact surface so that they can abut each other without gap in the joining plane.

[0039] Furthermore, the data model can also be transmitted via the control device using an external data network. The data model can be transmitted mutually, for example from a computer to the control device, and after the data model is changed by adding further properties in the control device by saving the data model on the computer. The external data network can include at least one computer and a connection between the control device and the computer. The connection can also be a wireless connection using a data line or a known radio standard. Alternatively, the data model may also be only partially stored in the control device and only fully available on the computer of the external data network. In this case, data can be exchanged continuously between the control device and the computer and / or server. In particular, it is then also possible to provide information about the progress of production and any planned changes to the pipe system in real time to the personnel involved in production and planning.

[0040] The welding machine according to the invention is used for producing butt-welded joints between pipe sections of a pipe made of weldable plastic material, the welding machine having a welding device, a clamping device for holding two pipe sections in each case, a heating element for melting the welding contact surfaces of the pipe end cross-sections of the pipe sections, and a processing device for subsequently producing a butt-welded seam connecting the pipe sections to one another in a joining plane by pressing the welding contact surfaces against one another with a joining pressure, the welding device being controllable by a control device of the welding machine, a data model of a pipe system having at least one pipe and a plurality of butt-welded joints being stored in the control device of the welding device, the data model comprising at least one object data set representing the respective butt-welded joints, and each object data set having attributes, the control device detecting at least one welding parameter of the welding device as a further attribute for the respective butt-welded joint, and adding the welding parameter to the object data set. With regard to the advantages of the welding machine according to the invention, reference is made to the description of the advantages of the method according to the invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0041] In the following, a preferred embodiment of the method and a schematic representation of a preferred embodiment of a welding machine for carrying out the method are explained in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0042] Figure 1 A perspective view of a welding machine is shown;

[0043] Figure 2 A flow chart showing a method of producing a butt weld joint. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0044] Figure 1 A welding machine 10 for producing a butt-welded joint between two pipe sections (not shown) of a pipe is shown. A welding device 21 of the welding machine 10 comprises a clamping device 11 having four clamping receptacles 12, which in turn are formed by jaws 13, 14 and 15. Two clamping receptacles 12 are arranged in each case on slides 16 and 17 of a handling device 18 of the welding device 21. The slides 16 and 17 can be moved relative to each other along the longitudinal axis 19 of the pipe to be produced by means of the handling device 18. For this purpose, the slides 16 and 17 are arranged on a frame 20 of the welding machine 10, which forms a guide (not shown) for the slides 16 and 17. A drive for the handling device 18 is also arranged in the frame 20. In addition, the welding device 21 comprises a heating plate 22. A user unit 23 of the welding machine 10 is arranged on the frame 20 and has two screens 24, which in turn form a first display area 25 and a second display area 26.

[0045] During the welding process, the user first clamps the pipe section to the two clamping receptacles 12 of the respective slides 16 and 17 using the clamping jaws 13, 14 and 15. Then, if necessary, the pipe sections are aligned relative to each other about the longitudinal axis 19. For this purpose, a transverse guide 27 is formed on the slide 16. After possible machining of the welding contact surfaces of the pipe section, the heating plate 22 is arranged between the welding contact surfaces so that the pipe end cross section of the pipe section is melted by means of the heating plate. The heating plate is then removed and the pipe sections are pressed against each other by means of the slides 16 and 17 with the joining pressure to form a butt weld. Finally, the pipe formed in this way can be removed from the clamping receptacle 12. The welding machine 10 is operated by the user by means of other elements such as the screen 24 and the operating element 28 on the user unit 23. The control device (not shown) of the welding machine 10 controls in particular a series of welding processes and the related functions of the welding machine 10.

[0046] Figure 2 Shows the use of Figure 1 The flow chart of the method is performed by using the example of the welding machine 10 shown. In a first step 30, a data model of the pipe system to be produced using the welding machine 10 is first generated. The data model can be designed, for example, on a computer and stored on the computer in the form of graphic image data or vector data. The data model is then generated independently of the welding machine 10. In a second step 32, the data model is transmitted to the welding machine 10 and stored in the control device. This transmission can be performed using a data carrier, a data line or a radio standard for data transmission. In a third step 33, the data model is displayed in the second display area 26 in the form of a graphical representation or list from the control device. The user can now select the butt weld joint to be welded to produce the pipe system in the second display area 26. In the case of the welding machine 10 shown here, this selection can be made by the user touching the representation of the butt weld joint in the second display area 26.

[0047] In a fourth step 34, the control device now calculates the welding parameters of the welding device 21 required to form the butt weld joint. To do this, the control device uses object data sets, which have attributes, are contained in the data model and are assigned to the butt weld joint to be formed. For example, the attributes can include information about the pipe wall thickness and the plastic material. The control device can now calculate the welding parameters of the welding device 21 based on these attributes, such as the joining pressure and the cooling time. In a fifth step 35, a series of instructions for the welding machine 10 is displayed in the first display area 25. For example, this can be information about the pipe section to be inserted into the clamping device 11. It can be provided that the user in question confirms the instructions by touching the first display area 25 at an appropriate point, for example after the pipe section has been inserted and clamped. In a sixth step 36, the control device controls the welding device 21 so that the butt weld joint is formed as described above. In a seventh step 37, the control device detects further attributes before or during the production of the butt weld joint, for example, the further attributes can be welding parameters calculated by the control device or values ​​measured by sensors, such as ambient temperature. This further attribute is stored by the control device in the object data set associated with the butt weld joint. In the simplest embodiment, this further attribute can only contain the information that the butt weld joint has been completed.

[0048] Once the butt weld joint has been formed, the user can remove the tube formed in this way from the clamping receptacle 12. For this purpose, instructions can be displayed in the first display area 25. In an eighth step 38, the corresponding object data set or data model is output or transmitted by the control device. Thus, as in step 32, the data model supplemented with properties can then be transmitted in the opposite direction to the computer and stored in the computer.

Claims

1. A welding machine (10) for producing butt-welded joints between pipe sections of a pipe made of weldable plastic material, the welding machine having a welding device (21), a clamping device (11) for holding in each case two pipe sections, a heating element (22) for melting the welding contact surfaces of the pipe end cross-sections of the pipe sections, and a processing device (18) for subsequently producing a butt weld seam connecting the pipe sections to one another in a joining plane by pressing the welding contact surfaces against one another with a joining pressure, the welding device being controllable by a control device of the welding machine, It is characterized in that A data model of a pipe system having at least one pipe and a plurality of butt-welded joints is stored in a control device of a welding device, the data model comprising at least one object data set representing a respective butt-welded joint, each object data set having attributes, the control device detecting at least one welding parameter of the welding device as a further attribute for the respective butt-welded joint and adding the welding parameter to the object data set.

2. A welding machine (10) for producing butt-welded joints between pipe sections of a pipe made of weldable plastic material, the welding machine having a welding device (21), a clamping device (11) for holding in each case two pipe sections, a heating element (22) for melting the welding contact surfaces of the pipe end cross-sections of the pipe sections, and a processing device (18) for subsequently producing a butt weld seam connecting the pipe sections to one another in a joining plane by pressing the welding contact surfaces against one another with a joining pressure, the welding device being controllable by a control device of the welding machine, the control device detecting at least one welding parameter of the welding device, It is characterized in that The clamping device (11) comprises four clamping receptacles (12) formed by clamping jaws (13, 14, 15); and two of the clamping receptacles (12) are arranged on slides (16, 17) of a handling device (18) of a welding apparatus (21), the slides (16, 17) being moved relative to each other along the longitudinal axis (19) of the tube to be produced by means of the handling device (18).

3. The welding machine (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that The control device includes a display device, which is composed of one or more screens (24) and includes a first display area (25) and a second display area (26).

4. The welding machine (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that The printer is connected to the control device, the printer is formed by an adhesive label printer, the adhesive label printer is integrated in the welding machine (10) or is connected to the welding machine (10) via an interface, and the printer prints at least one adhesive label associated with the butt weld joint for each butt weld joint.

5. The welding machine (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that The tool of the welding device (21) is used to machine the cross section of the pipe end of the pipe section to form the welding contact surface.

6. The welding machine (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that The welding device (21) comprises one or more sensors.

7. The welding machine (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that Transverse guides (27) are formed on the slide (16) so that the pipe sections are aligned relative to each other about the longitudinal axis (19).

8. The welding machine (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that The slides (16, 17) are arranged on a frame (20) of a welding machine (10), the frame forming a guide for the slides (16, 17), and a drive for a handling device (18) is arranged in the frame (20).

9. The welding machine (10) according to claim 3, characterized in that The welding machine (10) is operated by means of operating elements (28) and a screen (24) on a user unit (23) of the welding machine (10).

10. The welding machine (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that Before the butt-welded joint is produced, the data model is stored in a memory device of the control unit.

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