Welding operation evaluation system

Abstract

To provide a welding work evaluation system capable of easily evaluating skills for welding work.SOLUTION: A welding work evaluation system according to the present invention comprises: a measurement device 7 that measures the operation of a welding torch 2 held by a welding worker 50 welding a material to be weld 3; a database 35 that stores multiple reference data; an ideal motion data generation unit 33 that generates ideal motion data at a welding part angle 5 using the multiple reference data; and a welding motion evaluation unit 34 that scores the welding motion of the welding worker 50 determined from the motion of the welding torch 2 based on a scoring algorithm and the ideal motion data. The reference data is welding operation data arbitrarily determined according to a welding posture. The welding part angle 5 is an angle of the material to be weld 3 with respect to a predetermined reference surface. The ideal motion data is data regarding welding motion targeted by the welding worker 50. The scoring algorithm is a method for scoring the welding operation of the welding worker 50.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a system for evaluating the skills of welding work.

Background Art

[0002] Hitherto, advanced skills such as welding have been taught by experienced welders to beginners over time through OJT and the like. However, in the midst of the rapid decline of skilled welders due to the recent aging and declining birthrate, beginners may not necessarily receive education from skilled workers, and skilled skills are rapidly being lost from the manufacturing site. In such a situation, efforts have been made to automate welding work using robots, and results have been achieved in reducing man-hours and stabilizing quality. On the other hand, in the welding of narrow areas where robots cannot access or large structures with large dimensional variations, the need for manual welding remains high, and a system for efficiently training the next generation of welders is required.

[0003] In view of such recent situations, several educational support systems and support methods for welding work have been proposed. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a system and method for providing arc welding training in a simulation virtual reality environment or an augmented reality environment and importing and analyzing external data into a virtual reality welding system. Patent Document 2 discloses a welding work evaluation device for more appropriately evaluating the skills of welding work.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In the prior art, to evaluate welding skills, the welding operations of a welder are measured by measuring devices, and the measured welding operations need to be evaluated or scored based on data of ideal welding operations (hereinafter referred to as "ideal operation data"). In actual welding, the postures taken by welders vary. Welding postures can be broadly classified into a downward posture in which welding is performed in a direction looking down at the workpiece to be welded, an upward posture in which welding is performed in a looking-up direction, a horizontal posture in which welding is performed horizontally with respect to the direction of gravity, and a vertical posture in which welding is performed parallel to the direction of gravity. Therefore, to evaluate welding skills, it is necessary to prepare ideal operation data for each of these postures.

[0006] Furthermore, when welding pipes that are abundant in plants such as factories and power plants, if the pipes are fixed, the welder performs welding work while changing postures. For this reason, ideal operation data is also required for any welding posture other than the above-described welding postures. The ideal operation data is stored in a database and used. The database storing the ideal operation data is called an "ideal operation database".

[0007] Thus, in the prior art, to evaluate welding skills, it is necessary to store a large amount of ideal operation data corresponding to various welding postures in the ideal operation database. Since the ideal operation database needs to be constructed while examining the relationship between welding conditions (current, voltage, welding speed, welding torch angle, etc.) and welding defects through welding experiments, it is a problem that construction takes a lot of time and cost. For this reason, a system that can easily evaluate the skills of welding work without constructing an ideal operation database corresponding to various welding postures is desired.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a welding work evaluation system that can easily evaluate the skills of welding work.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] The welding operation evaluation system according to the present invention includes a measuring device that measures the operation of a welding torch held by a welder who welds a workpiece to be welded, a database that stores a plurality of reference data, an ideal operation data generation unit that generates ideal operation data for the welding part angle using the plurality of reference data, and a welding operation evaluation unit that scores the welding operation of the welder obtained from the operation of the welding torch measured by the measuring device based on a scoring algorithm and the ideal operation data. The reference data is data of welding operations arbitrarily determined according to the welding posture. The welding part angle is the angle of the workpiece to be welded with respect to a predetermined reference plane. The ideal operation data is data regarding the welding operation targeted by the welder. The scoring algorithm is a method for scoring the welding operation of the welder.

Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a welding operation evaluation system that can easily evaluate the skills of welding operations.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Welding work is a complex work in which many physical phenomena are combined. Skilled welders perform welding work by finely adjusting welding conditions based on a lot of experience. For example, even with the same welding method, in upward welding where welding is performed looking up at the joint and downward welding where welding is performed looking down at the joint, the way the gravity acts on the molten metal is different. Generally, in upward welding, since the welding metal is likely to drip during welding, it is necessary to increase the welding speed to quickly solidify the welding metal.

[0013] As described above, in the prior art, to evaluate welding skills, an ideal operation database needs to store a lot of ideal operation data corresponding to various welding postures. However, constructing such an ideal operation database requires a lot of time and cost and is difficult. For example, in the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, the evaluable welding postures are limited. Also, for example, Patent Document 2 describes the case where the welding posture gradually changes, but the case where the welding posture of the welder is different from the reference data is not considered. Thus, in the prior art, it is difficult to evaluate the welding skills in the actual field where work is performed in various welding postures.

[0014] In the welding work evaluation system according to the present invention, even when the welding posture of the welder is different from the reference data (reference data), the welding skills are evaluated by generating ideal operation data from the reference data and using a scoring algorithm. Therefore, the welding work evaluation system according to the present invention can easily evaluate the skills (welding skills) of welding work without constructing an ideal operation database corresponding to various welding postures.

[0015] Hereinafter, the welding work evaluation system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The welding work evaluation system according to this embodiment evaluates welding skills by scoring the welding operations of the welder. In the following embodiments, as an example, the case where the welder performs arc welding will be described. In the drawings used in this specification, the same or corresponding components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the repeated description of these components may be omitted.

Embodiment

[0016] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the welding work evaluation system according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention and the welding work of the welder 50.

[0017] The welding torch 2 is connected to the digital welding machine 1 and is held by the welder 50. When power is supplied from the digital welding machine 1 to the welding torch 2, the welder 50 holds the welding torch 2 and performs a welding operation on the workpiece 3. A weld bead 4 is formed on the workpiece 3 by the welding operation.

[0018] The welding operation evaluation system according to this embodiment includes a sensor 6, a measuring device 7, a data logger 8, and a control device 10, and evaluates the skill (welding skill) of the welder 50's welding operation. The devices shown in FIG. 1, for example, the digital welding machine 1, the measuring device 7, the data logger 8, and the control device 10 are interconnected via a communication network such as a wireless LAN or a wired LAN.

[0019] The digital welding machine 1 is connected to the welding torch 2 and supplies the electric power and welding materials (welding consumables) required for welding. The digital welding machine 1 has a function of managing the current, voltage, and supply amount of welding materials supplied to the welding torch 2.

[0020] The data logger 8 acquires information on the current, voltage, and supply amount of welding materials supplied to the welding torch 2 from the digital welding machine 1 and supplies it to the control device 10. In addition, the data logger 8 acquires information on the operation of the welding torch 2 measured by the measuring device 7 from the measuring device 7 and supplies it to the control device 10.

[0021] Regarding the workpiece 3, the angle of the surface of the welded portion of the workpiece 3 with respect to a predetermined reference plane (for example, a horizontal plane) is referred to as the welded portion angle 5. The welded portion angle 5 can be obtained by the control device 10 as described later. Also, if the welded portion angle 5 is known in advance, it can also be input to the control device 10 by the operator (user) of the welding operation evaluation system.

[0022] The sensor 6 is attached to the welding torch 2 and measures the position, posture, and movement of the welding torch 2. The sensor 6 can be composed of at least one of, for example, a GPS sensor, a level sensor, and a gyroscope.

[0023] The measuring device 7 is a device that measures the operation of the welding torch 2. The measuring device 7 measures the operation of the welding torch 2 with respect to the work piece 3 (for example, the angle with respect to the work piece 3, the welding speed, the torch height, etc.) by, for example, acquiring the position of the tip of the welding torch 2. The measuring device 7 can measure the operation of the welding torch 2 using the information from the sensor 6, or can also measure the operation of the welding torch 2 without using the information from the sensor 6.

[0024] The measuring device 7 can be configured with any device. When the measuring device 7 measures the operation of the welding torch 2 using the information from the sensor 6, the measuring device 7 can be configured with a device that calculates and obtains the operation of the welding torch 2 from the measured values of the sensor 6. Also, for example, if the measuring device 7 can be installed around the welder 50, the measuring device 7 can obtain the operation of the welding torch 2 from the video data of this camera by including a motion capture camera or a stereo camera. In the configuration where the measuring device 7 includes a camera, the measuring device 7 can measure the operation of the welding torch 2 without using the information from the sensor 6.

[0025] FIG. 1 shows, as an example, a configuration for obtaining the operation of the welding torch 2 using a camera-type measuring device 7. The measuring device 7 shown in FIG. 1 is composed of a camera, but can also measure the operation of the welding torch 2 using the information from the sensor 6. In actual welding, since strong arc light is generated, it is necessary to use the sensor 6 and the camera that are not easily affected by this.

[0026] The information on the operation of the welding torch 2 measured by the measuring device 7 is supplied to the control device 10 via the data logger 8.

[0027] The control device 10 inputs, via the data logger 8, the information on the current, voltage, and supply amount of the welding material supplied to the welding torch 2, and the information on the operation of the welding torch 2 measured by the measuring device 7.

[0028] The control device 10 includes an input interface 20, an arithmetic unit 30, and an output interface 40. Also, for the control device 10, the shape and position of the workpiece to be welded 3 (spatial coordinates of the position to be welded) are input by the user in advance and stored by it.

[0029] The input interface 20 is operated by the user and inputs setting values necessary for the calculations performed by the control device 10 and the scoring algorithm specified by the user into the control device 10. The input interface 20 can be configured, for example, by a keyboard and a touch panel.

[0030] The setting values necessary for the calculation are, for example, the scoring section and the scoring interval. The scoring section is the time range during which scoring is performed. The scoring interval is the time interval of scoring within the scoring section. Scoring means assigning a score to the welding operation of the welder 50. The welding operation of the welder 50 is measured and scored. Further, when the welding part angle 5 is known in advance, the welding part angle 5 can be included in the setting values input by the input interface 20.

[0031] The scoring algorithm is a method for scoring the welding operation of the welder 50. The welding operation of the welder 50 is scored according to this scoring algorithm for each parameter (operation parameter) representing the welding operation. The control device 10 stores one or more scoring algorithms in advance, and the user can specify by selecting from among them according to the welding method and the skill level of the welder 50. The user selects and specifies the scoring algorithm by operating the input interface 20.

[0032] The arithmetic unit 30 is composed of a computer and includes hardware as a general computer such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and an SSD (Solid State Drive). The SSD stores an OS (Operating System), application programs, and various data. The OS and application programs are expanded in the RAM and executed by the CPU. In FIG. 1, the interior of the control device 10 shows functions realized by application programs and the like as blocks.

[0033] The output interface 40 displays measurement data, calculation results (e.g., scoring results) of the arithmetic unit 30, and the like. The output interface 40 can be composed of, for example, an analog tester, a digital tester, and a display. Also, when outputting measurement data and calculation results as sound, the output interface 40 can also be composed of a speaker or earphone.

[0034] The measurement data includes the current and voltage supplied to the welding torch 2, the supply amount of the welding material, the position, posture, and movement of the welding torch 2 measured by the sensor 6, and the operation of the welding torch 2 measured by the measuring device 7. When the measuring device 7 is configured to include a camera, the measurement data can include the video data of the camera. The output interface 40 may display, as measurement data, the data obtained by the control device 10 as it is, or may display data with adjusted sampling rate and image quality as necessary.

[0035] As the scoring result, the scoring result of the measured operation parameters (parameters representing the welding operation) of the welder 50 is displayed. The output interface 40 may display, as the scoring result, the scoring results of all operation parameters visualized by a radar chart or the like, or may show the scoring results of individual operation parameters numerically.

[0036] The arithmetic unit 30 includes a welded part angle calculation unit 31, an ideal operation data generation unit 33, a database 32, a database 35, and a welding operation evaluation unit 34. The database 32 and the database 35 may be configured as one database.

[0037] The welded part angle calculation unit 31 calculates and acquires the welded part angle 5. Since the welded part angle 5 is the angle of the surface of the welded part of the work piece 3 with respect to a reference plane (for example, the horizontal plane), the welded part angle calculation unit 31 can calculate the welded part angle 5 from the measurement data (for example, the position, posture, and movement of the welding torch 2 measured by the sensor 6, and the operation of the welding torch 2 measured by the measuring device 7) and the shape and position of the work piece 3 input in advance. When the welded part angle calculation unit 31 calculates the welded part angle 5, the user does not have to input the welded part angle 5 through the input interface 20.

[0038] The ideal operation data generation unit 33 inputs the welded part angle 5 input by the input interface 20 or the welded part angle 5 calculated by the welded part angle calculation unit 31, and uses a plurality of reference data stored in the database 35 to generate ideal operation data at this welded part angle 5. The ideal operation data is data on the ideal welding operation of the welder 50, that is, the welding operation targeted by the welder 50. For example, the ideal operation data includes the target value and standard deviation of the welding operation. The ideal operation data generation unit 33 stores the generated ideal operation data in the database 32.

[0039] A plurality of reference data is stored in the database 35. The reference data is data serving as a reference for the welding operation, arbitrarily determined in advance according to the welding posture. In this embodiment, as will be described later, four reference data are used. The reference data includes the target value and standard deviation of each operation parameter in each welding posture as reference data.

[0040] The welding operation evaluation unit 34 scores the welding operation of the welder 50 for each operation parameter based on a scoring algorithm and ideal operation data. The welding operation evaluation unit 34 can obtain the welding operation (operation parameter) of the welder 50 from the operation of the welding torch 2 of the welder 50 measured by the measuring device 7, or the current, voltage, and supply amount of the welding material supplied to the welding torch 2. The welding operation evaluation unit 34 transmits the scoring result to the output interface 40.

[0041] Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of measurement data and scoring results displayed on the output interface 40. In the item of welding conditions in Figure 2, as measurement data, the average of the measured current value, voltage value, welding speed, and heat input is displayed. In the item of time-series data, the welding conditions and the movement of the torch with respect to the elapsed time are displayed. In the item of video, the video of the welding operation of the welder 50 taken by the measuring device 7 equipped with a camera is displayed. In the item of scoring data, the result of scoring the operation parameters indicating the welding conditions and the movement of the torch, etc. by the welding operation evaluation unit 34 is displayed in a radar chart.

[0042] Note that the items shown in Figure 2 are an example of the displayed items. In addition to the items shown in Figure 2, the output interface 40 can also display data on the characteristic quantities of welding and data obtained by calculating the characteristic quantities.

[0043] Figure 3 is a flowchart of the scoring process for the welding operation of the welder 50 executed by the welding operation evaluation system according to this embodiment. Representative operation parameters to be scored include welding speed, welding torch angle, welding torch height, current value, voltage value, etc. Hereinafter, the welding speed will be taken as an example to explain the operation parameters to be scored.

[0044] In step S00, the control device 10 starts the scoring process of the welding operation of the welder 50. The scoring process of the welding operation is performed after the completion of the welding operation of the welder 50. However, when the welding part angle 5 is known in advance and input to the control device 10 as a set value, the scoring process can also be performed while the welder 50 is performing the welding operation.

[0045] In step S01, the control device 10 inputs the scoring section specified by the user. The user operates the input interface 20 to specify the scoring section. The scoring section is the time range during which the arithmetic unit 30 scores the welding operation. For example, if the welder 50 performs welding for a total of 45 seconds and wants to score the operation in the range from 5 seconds to 35 seconds, the range of "5~35 (seconds)" is specified as the scoring section. In this case, the length of the time to be scored is 30 seconds (= 35 seconds - 5 seconds).

[0046] Note that generally, special welding operations called start and end processing are often performed at the start and end of welding. In the scoring process of the welding operation of the welder 50, it is desirable to score excluding the operations of the start and end processing.

[0047] In step S02, the control device 10 inputs the scoring interval specified by the user. The user operates the input interface 20 to specify the scoring interval. The scoring interval is the time interval (pitch) during which the arithmetic unit 30 scores the welding operation in the scoring section. For example, if scoring is to be performed every 0.5 seconds, "2.0 (Hz)" is specified as the scoring interval. In this case, if the length of the time to be scored is 30 seconds, the control device 10 performs 60 times of scoring (= 30 seconds × 2.0 Hz). That is, there are 60 scoring periods in the scoring section.

[0048] In step S03, the control device 10 inputs the scoring algorithm specified by the user. As described above, the control device 10 stores one or more scoring algorithms in advance, for example, and the user can specify the scoring algorithm by selecting one from among them. Further, the user may specify the scoring algorithm by inputting the scoring algorithm to the control device 10 via the input interface 20.

[0049] The scoring algorithm is a method for scoring the welding operation of the welder 50. For example, when scoring the variation in the welding operation, the welding operation is scored according to the scoring algorithm using the ideal operation data including the target value and standard deviation of the operation parameters. Hereinafter, the target value and standard deviation of the operation parameters included in the ideal operation data are referred to as the "target value of the ideal operation" and the "standard deviation of the ideal operation", respectively. The scoring algorithm is a criterion for determining how to score the welding operation (operation parameters) using the target value of the ideal operation and the standard deviation of the ideal operation, and is closely related to the welding quality standard and the training policy of the welder 50.

[0050] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the scoring algorithm, and is a diagram showing the relationship between the value of the operation parameter and the score of the operation parameter in scoring. In the scoring algorithm shown in FIG. 4, when the value of the operation parameter is the target value G of the ideal operation, the score is 100 points, and when the value of the operation parameter is larger or smaller than the target value G of the ideal operation by the standard deviation σ of the ideal operation, the score is 0 points. When the value of the operation parameter is between these values, the score linearly changes from 100 points to 0 points. This scoring algorithm is suitable for scoring an operation in which higher quality is obtained as the value of the operation parameter approaches the target value G. Note that the scoring algorithm is not limited to that shown in FIG. 4, and can be arbitrarily determined, for example, that shown in Example 2.

[0051] Return to the description of FIG. 3.

[0052] In step S04, the control device 10 starts the scoring loop process. For example, if the scoring period is 5 to 35 seconds (the length of the time to be scored is 30 seconds) and the scoring interval is 2.0 Hz, there are 60 scoring periods in the scoring interval, and the control device 10 performs 60 scoreings in the scoring interval. Hereinafter, assuming that the scoring is being performed in the nth scoring period of the scoring interval (that is, the nth scoring out of 60 scoreings is being performed), the process in the nth loop will be described.

[0053] In step S05, the welding part angle calculation unit 31 of the control device 10 calculates the welding part angle 5 in the nth scoring period. Hereinafter, the welding part angle 5 in the nth scoring period may also be indicated by the angle φn. The welding part angle calculation unit 31 calculates the welding part angle φn from the measurement data and the shape and position of the work piece 3 input in advance as described above, but the average value during the scoring period may be obtained as the welding part angle φn, or the intermediate value during the scoring period may be obtained as the welding part angle φn.

[0054] In addition, when the user inputs the welding part angle φn as a set value to the control device 10, the process of step S05 can also be omitted.

[0055] In step S06, the ideal operation data generation unit 33 of the control device 10 uses the welding part angle φn to determine the contribution degree (weight) of each of the plurality of reference data stored in the database 35 to the operation parameters in the welding operation of the welder 50. The contribution degree indicates the weight of the proportion of each of the plurality of reference data in the operation parameters. The contribution degree of each reference data is determined by the welding part angle φn.

[0056] The reference data is data of welding operations that is arbitrarily determined in advance according to the welding posture. The reference data includes the target values and standard deviations of each operation parameter in each welding posture, and is stored in the database 35. In this embodiment, as an example, four reference data, namely upward welding data (UD), downward welding data (DD), vertical welding data (VD), and horizontal welding data (HD), are used. The upward welding data, downward welding data, vertical welding data, and horizontal welding data are data of the target values and standard deviations of, for example, each operation parameter in the welding of the upward posture, the downward posture, the vertical posture, and the horizontal posture, respectively. These target values and standard deviations are predetermined.

[0057] FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining an example of a method for obtaining the contribution degree of each reference data to the operation parameter, and shows the welded material 3, the welding part angle 5 (φn), and the welding torch 2. In the example shown in FIG. 5, as an example, the welding part angle φn is 60 degrees.

[0058] As shown in FIG. 5, the contribution degree of the vertical welding data is calculated as VDsin(φn), and the contribution degree of the downward welding data is calculated as DDcos(φn). In the example shown in FIG. 5, the contribution degrees of the upward welding data and the horizontal welding data are zero.

[0059] Return to the description of FIG. 3.

[0060] In step S07, the ideal operation data generation unit 33 adds up the contribution degrees of the reference data to the operation parameter to generate ideal operation data at the welding part angle φn. The ideal operation data includes the target value and standard deviation of the operation parameter in the welding operation of the welder 50 at the welding part angle φn.

[0061] In the example shown in FIG. 5, the ideal operation data at the welding part angle φn is {VDsin(φn)+DDcos(φn)} / (sin(φn)+cos(φn)) It is calculated by. For example, when the welding part angle φn is 60 degrees, for the welding speed which is an operating parameter, the target value in the vertical welding data (VD) is 150 mm / min and the standard deviation is 30 mm / min, and the target value in the downward welding data (DD) is 100 mm / min and the standard deviation is 20 mm / min, then the target value of the ideal operation is 132 mm / min, and the standard deviation of the ideal operation is 26 mm / min.

[0062] In step S08, the welding operation evaluation unit 34 scores each operating parameter in the welding operation of the welder 50 based on the scoring algorithm and the ideal operation data during the nth scoring period. The operating parameters of the welder 50 can be obtained from the operation of the welding torch 2 measured by the measuring device 7, or the current, voltage, and supply amount of the welding material supplied to the welding torch 2. Examples of the operating parameters to be scored include the welding speed, welding torch angle, welding torch height, current value, voltage value, etc. as described above.

[0063] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of scoring of operating parameters. In this embodiment, the operating parameter is the welding speed, and the scoring algorithm shown in FIG. 4 is used. In the scoring algorithm, the target value of the ideal operation is 132 mm / min, and the standard deviation of the ideal operation is 26 mm / min. That is, when the welding speed is 132 mm / min, the score of the operating parameter is 100 points. When the welding speed is within the range of the standard deviation, the score changes linearly. When the welding speed is outside the range of the standard deviation (158 mm / min or more or 106 mm / min or less), the score is 0 points.

[0064] The welding operation evaluation unit 34 scores the welding speed of the welder 50 based on such a scoring algorithm and the ideal operation data. As shown in FIG. 6, if the welding speed of the welder 50 is 145 mm / min during the nth scoring period, the score is 50 points.

[0065] Return to the description of FIG. 3.

[0066] In step S09, the welding operation evaluation unit 34 determines whether scoring has been performed for all scoring periods in the scoring section. In this embodiment, there are 60 scoring periods in the scoring section. Therefore, if n is less than 60, scoring has not been performed for all scoring periods, so n is incremented by 1 (n becomes n + 1), and the process returns to the process of step S04. When n is 60, since scoring has been performed for all scoring periods, the process of step S10 is executed.

[0067] When the process of step S09 ends, for all scoring periods in the scoring section, the generation of ideal operation data and the scoring of the operation parameters of the welding operator 50 have been completed.

[0068] In step S10, the welding operation evaluation unit 34 averages the scores of the operation parameters in the scoring section for each operation parameter. For example, if there are 60 scoring periods in the scoring section, and for the operation parameter (welding speed), the score of the first scoring period is 40 points, the score of the second scoring period is 65 points, the score of the nth (3 ≤ n ≤ 59) scoring period is 50 points, and the score of the 60th scoring period is 80 points, then the score of the operation parameter in the welding operation of the welding operator 50 is averaged as follows. (40 + 65 + ··· + 50 + ··· 80) / 60 The welding operation evaluation unit 34 transmits this scoring result to the output interface 40. Note that the welding operation evaluation unit 34 may also obtain scoring periods where the score of the operation parameter is higher or lower than a predetermined reference value without averaging the scores of the operation parameters in the scoring section, and transmit the obtained scoring periods to the output interface 40 as the scoring result.

[0069] In step S11, since the scoring of each operation parameter has been completed, the control device 10 ends the scoring process of the welding operation of the welding operator 50.

[0070] The output interface 40 can display data and information obtained by the control device 10 through operations or inputs, such as these scoring results and measurement data. The welding work evaluation system according to this embodiment can effectively train the welder 50 by visualizing and displaying such data and information. Also, such data and information are automatically stored in the database 32 and can be used for the training of the welder 50 in the future.

[0071] The welding work evaluation system according to this embodiment has the above configuration and can easily evaluate the skills of welding work.

Embodiment

[0072] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the welding work evaluation system according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention and the welding work of the welder 50. The welder 50 is performing pipe welding, which is often seen in on-site welding such as factory plants.

[0073] The welding work evaluation system according to this embodiment includes a motion capture device 12, a data logger 8, and a control device 10, and evaluates the skills (welding skills) of the welding work of the welder 50. The devices shown in FIG. 7, for example, the digital welder 1, the motion capture device 12, the data logger 8, and the control device 10 are interconnected via a communication network such as a wireless LAN or a wired LAN.

[0074] In this embodiment, the work piece to be welded 3 is a cylindrical member such as a pipe. As an example, the welder 50 horizontally welds the work piece to be welded 3 to a vertical fixed wall 9.

[0075] Near the tip of the welding torch 2, a plurality of markers 11 coated with a reflective material are attached as sensors that react to the motion capture device 12.

[0076] The motion capture device 12 is installed around the fixed wall 9 and around the working position of the welding operator 50, and is a measuring device that measures the position of the marker 11 provided on the welding torch 2. The motion capture device 12 corresponds to the measuring device 7 (FIG. 1) in the first embodiment, and measures the operation of the welding torch 2 based on the position of the marker 11. The motion capture device 12 can detect the three-dimensional position of the welding torch 2 based on the reflected light from the marker 11 of the welding torch 2, and can obtain in detail the movement and angle of the tip of the welding torch 2. The motion capture device 12 can thereby specify the position and angle (tilt) of the welding torch 2 with respect to the workpiece 3 to be welded.

[0077] Note that FIG. 7 shows, as an example, a configuration in which the welding operation evaluation system according to this embodiment includes two motion capture devices 12. The number of motion capture devices 12 included in the welding operation evaluation system according to this embodiment may be one or three or more. When three or more motion capture devices 12 are installed, the measurement accuracy can be improved and the measurement range can be widened.

[0078] The control device 10 in this embodiment has the same configuration as the control device 10 (FIG. 1) in the first embodiment. However, the welding part angle 5 is not included in the set value input by the input interface 20 (that is, the user does not input the welding part angle 5). The welding part angle 5 is calculated by the welding part angle calculation unit 31. Further, for the control device 10, the shape and position (spatial coordinates of the position to be welded) of the workpiece 3, which is a cylindrical member, are input by the user in advance and stored.

[0079] The flowchart of the scoring process of the welding operation of the welding operator 50 executed by the welding operation evaluation system according to this embodiment is the same as that in FIG. 3. Hereinafter, the scoring process executed by the welding operation evaluation system according to this embodiment will be mainly described with differences from the points described in the first embodiment.

[0080] In this embodiment, in the welding of the workpiece 3, which is a cylindrical member, to the fixed wall 9, it will be described that the welder 50 performed the operation of changing from the uphill welding in the vertical posture to the downhill welding in 75 seconds.

[0081] In step S00 of FIG. 3, the control device 10 starts the scoring process of the welding operation of the welder 50. The scoring process of the welding operation is performed after the completion of the welding operation of the welder 50.

[0082] In step S01, the control device 10 inputs the scoring section specified by the user. For example, assuming that the welder 50 performed a total of 75 seconds of welding, if the operation in the range from 10 seconds to 70 seconds is to be scored, the range of "10 to 70 (seconds)" is specified as the scoring section. In this case, the length of the time to be scored is 60 seconds (= 70 seconds - 10 seconds).

[0083] In step S02, the control device 10 inputs the scoring interval specified by the user. For example, if scoring is to be performed every 5 seconds, "0.2 (Hz)" is specified as the scoring interval. In this case, if the length of the time to be scored is 60 seconds, the control device 10 performs 12 times (= 60 seconds × 0.2 Hz) of scoring. That is, there are 12 scoring periods in the scoring section.

[0084] In step S03, the control device 10 inputs the scoring algorithm specified by the user. In this embodiment, the control device 10 has three scoring algorithms, and the user specifies the scoring algorithm by selecting one of them.

[0085] FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C are diagrams showing examples of the scoring algorithms in this embodiment, and are diagrams showing the relationship between the values of the operation parameters and the scores of the operation parameters in scoring.

[0086] The scoring algorithm shown in FIG. 8A is the same as the scoring algorithm shown in FIG. 4.

[0087] In the scoring algorithm shown in FIG. 8B, when the value of the operation parameter is the target value G of the ideal operation, the score is 100 points. When the value of the operation parameter is greater or smaller than the target value G of the ideal operation by the standard deviation σ of the ideal operation, the score is 0 points. When the value of the operation parameter is further greater or smaller than the standard deviation σ of the ideal operation, the score is -100 points. When the value of the operation parameter is between these values, the score linearly changes from 100 points to -100 points. This scoring algorithm is used when a large deviation of the value of the operation parameter from the target value G causes a quality defect, etc., and is suitable for scoring when it is desired to set a prohibited operation for the welding operator 50.

[0088] In the scoring algorithm shown in FIG. 8C, when the value of the operation parameter is the target value G of the ideal operation, the score is 100 points. When the value of the operation parameter is greater or smaller than the target value G of the ideal operation by the standard deviation σ of the ideal operation, the score is 0 points. When the value of the operation parameter is between these values, the score is 100 points. This scoring algorithm is suitable for scoring when, even if the value of the operation parameter deviates from the target value G, as long as it is within the range included in the standard deviation σ, there is no significant difference in quality and no quality defect occurs.

[0089] In this embodiment, it is assumed that the user selects the scoring algorithm shown in FIG. 8A.

[0090] Return to the description of FIG. 3.

[0091] In step S04, the control device 10 starts the loop process of scoring. For example, if the scoring period is 10 to 70 seconds (the length of the time to be scored is 60 seconds) and the scoring interval is 0.2 Hz, there are 12 scoring periods in the scoring period, and the control device 10 performs 12 scorings in the scoring period. Hereinafter, assuming that the scoring is being performed in the nth scoring period in the scoring period (that is, the nth scoring out of 12 scorings is being performed), the processing in the nth loop will be described.

[0092] In step S05, the welding part angle calculation unit 31 of the control device 10 calculates the welding part angle φn in the nth scoring period.

[0093] Here, with reference to FIG. 9, the calculation method of the welding part angle φn in this embodiment will be described.

[0094] FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining an example of a method for calculating the welding part angle φn in this embodiment, and shows the work piece 3 to be welded, the welding part angle 5(φn), and the welding torch 2. As described above, the control device 10 stores in advance the shape and position (spatial coordinates of the position to be welded) of the work piece 3 to be welded.

[0095] Hereinafter, for easier understanding, it is assumed that the X-axis (horizontal axis) and the Y-axis intersect at the position of the central axis of the cylindrical work piece 3 to be welded, and the outer peripheral radius of the work piece 3 to be welded is R. Also, it is assumed that the coordinates (Xn, Yn) of the tip position of the welding torch 2 are measured by the motion capture device 12.

[0096] The outer peripheral radius R of the work piece 3 to be welded is R = √(Xn^2 + Yn^2) (1) and is expressed as such.

[0097] Welding of the pipe is performed along the outer periphery of the pipe. Therefore, while the work piece 3 which is a cylindrical member such as a pipe is being welded, the tip of the welding torch 2 is always located on the outer periphery of the work piece 3 to be welded. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 9, the welding part angle φn is the angle formed by the tangent to the outer periphery of the work piece 3 at the tip position of the welding torch 2 and the X-axis (horizontal axis). Geometrically, sin(φn) = R / Xn (2) and is expressed as such.

[0098] From equations (1) and (2), the welding part angle φn is obtained by the following equation. φn = arcsin(√(Xn^2 + Yn^2) / Xn) (3) The welding part angle calculation unit 31 calculates the welding part angle φn from Equation (3) using the coordinates (Xn, Yn) of the tip of the welding torch 2 measured by the motion capture device 12.

[0099] If the outer peripheral radius R of the work piece 3 to be welded is known, Equation (3) may include R. However, since the outer peripheral radius R increases due to the stacking of welding, it is desirable to obtain the welding part angle φn from the coordinates (Xn, Yn) of the position of the tip of the welding torch 2. Also, when the sampling interval (sampling frequency of sampling) is large, the welding part angle φn gradually changes during the sampling period. Therefore, it is desirable to use a representative value during this sampling period as the welding part angle φn. For example, in this embodiment, the average value of the welding part angle φn is used as the representative value during the sampling period.

[0100] Return to the description of FIG. 3.

[0101] In step S06, the ideal operation data generation unit 33 of the control device 10 obtains the contribution degree (weighting) to the operation parameters in the welding operation of the welder 50 for each of the plurality of reference data stored in the database 35 using the welding part angle φn. The contribution degree of each reference data is determined by the welding part angle φn.

[0102] In step S07, the ideal operation data generation unit 33 adds up the contribution degrees to the operation parameters of the reference data to generate ideal operation data at the welding part angle φn. The ideal operation data includes the target value and standard deviation of the operation parameters in the welding operation of the welder 50 at the welding part angle φn.

[0103] The ideal operation data at the welding part angle φn is the same as in Example 1, {VDsin(φn)+DDcos(φn)} / (sin(φn)+cos(φn)) It is calculated by, for example, when the welding part angle φn is 60 degrees, and for the welding speed which is an operation parameter, the target value in the vertical welding data (VD) is 150 mm / min and the standard deviation is 15 mm / min, and the target value in the downhand welding data (DD) is 100 mm / min and the standard deviation is 30 mm / min, the target value of the ideal operation is 132 mm / min and the standard deviation of the ideal operation is 20 mm / min.

[0104] In step S08, the welding operation evaluation unit 34 scores each operation parameter in the welding operation of the welder 50 based on the scoring algorithm and the ideal operation data in the nth scoring period.

[0105] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of scoring of operation parameters. In this embodiment, the operation parameter is the welding speed, and the scoring algorithm shown in FIG. 8A is used. In the scoring algorithm, the target value of the ideal operation is 132 mm / min and the standard deviation of the ideal operation is 20 mm / min. That is, when the welding speed is 132 mm / min, the score of the operation parameter is 100 points. When the welding speed is within the range of the standard deviation, the score changes linearly. When the welding speed is outside the range of the standard deviation (152 mm / min or more or 112 mm / min or less), the score is 0 points.

[0106] The welding operation evaluation unit 34 scores the welding speed of the welder 50 based on such a scoring algorithm and the ideal operation data. As shown in FIG. 10, if the welding speed of the welder 50 is 122 mm / min in the nth scoring period, the score is 50 points.

[0107] Return to the description of FIG. 3.

[0108] In step S09, the welding operation evaluation unit 34 determines whether scoring has been performed for all the scoring periods in the scoring section. In this embodiment, there are 12 scoring periods in the scoring section. Therefore, if n is less than 12, since scoring has not been performed for all the scoring periods, n is incremented by 1 (n becomes n + 1), and the process returns to the process of step S04. When n is 12, since scoring has been performed for all the scoring periods, the process of step S10 is executed.

[0109] When the process of step S09 ends, for all the scoring periods in the scoring section, the generation of ideal operation data and the scoring of the operation parameters of the welding operator 50 have been completed.

[0110] FIG. 11A is a diagram showing an example of the ideal operation data generated in this embodiment. In this embodiment, the scoring section is from 10 to 70 seconds (the length of the time to be scored is 60 seconds), and the scoring interval is 0.2 Hz. Therefore, there are 12 scoring periods in the scoring section and 12 times of scoring are performed. FIG. 11A shows the target value G and the standard deviation σ of the operation parameter (welding speed) generated in this 60 - second scoring time. In FIG. 11A, the horizontal axis represents the passage of time, and the vertical axis represents the welding speed. During this 60 - second scoring time, welding is performed with the welding position angle θ (FIG. 9) ranging from 0 degrees to 90 degrees.

[0111] FIG. 11B is a diagram showing the value P of the operation parameter (welding speed) in the welding operation of the welding operator 50 and the score S which is the scoring result for the ideal operation data shown in FIG. 11A. The closer the value P of the welding speed of the welding operator 50 is to the target value G, the higher the score S becomes. As the value P deviates from the target value G, the score S decreases. When the value P is outside the range of the standard deviation σ, the score S becomes 0 points.

[0112] Return to the description of FIG. 3.

[0113] In step S10, the welding operation evaluation unit 34 averages the scores of the operation parameters in the scoring section for each operation parameter. An example shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B will be described. As shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B, there are 12 scoring periods in the scoring section. The scores of the operation parameters (welding speed) in the welding operation of the welder 50 are averaged as follows for these 12 scoring periods. (57 + 53 + 0 + 83 + 55 + 85 + 28 + 58 + 86 + 52 + 33 + 21) / 12 That is, the score of the welding speed of the welder 50 in this scoring section is 51 points.

[0114] Note that the welding operation evaluation unit 34 may obtain scoring periods where the scores of the operation parameters are higher or lower than a predetermined reference value without averaging the scores of the operation parameters in the scoring section, and transmit the obtained scoring periods to the output interface 40 as scoring results.

[0115] In step S11, since the scoring of each operation parameter has been completed, the control device 10 ends the scoring process of the welding operation of the welder 50.

[0116] The output interface 40 can display data and information such as these scoring results and measurement data, which are obtained by the control device 10 through calculation or input. The welding operation evaluation system according to this embodiment can effectively train the welder 50 by visualizing and displaying such data and information. Also, such data and information are automatically stored in the database 32 and can be used for the training of the welder 50 in the future.

[0117] The welding operation evaluation system according to this embodiment has the above configuration, and similar to the welding operation evaluation system according to Embodiment 1, can easily evaluate the skills of the welding operation.

[0118] Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible. For example, the above embodiments have been described in detail for easy understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to the aspect including all the configurations described. Also, a part of the configuration of one embodiment can be replaced with the configuration of another embodiment. Further, the configuration of another embodiment can be added to the configuration of one embodiment. Also, a part of the configuration of each embodiment can be deleted, or other configurations can be added or replaced.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0119] 1... Digital welding machine, 2... Welding torch, 3... Workpiece to be welded, 4... Weld bead, 5... Welding part angle, 6... Sensor, 7... Measuring device, 8... Data logger, 9... Fixed wall, 10... Control device, 11... Marker, 12... Motion capture device, 20... Input interface, 30... Arithmetic unit, 31... Welding part angle calculation unit, 32... Database, 33... Ideal operation data generation unit, 34... Welding operation evaluation unit, 35... Database, 40... Output interface, 50... Welding operator.

Claims

1. A measuring device that measures the operation of a welding torch held by a welder who welds a workpiece to be welded, A database storing a plurality of reference data, An ideal operation data generation unit that generates ideal operation data for the welding part angle using the plurality of reference data, A welding operation evaluation unit that scores the welding operation of the welder obtained from the operation of the welding torch measured by the measuring device based on a scoring algorithm and the ideal operation data, A welding part angle calculation unit that calculates the welding part angle, Comprising, The reference data is data of a welding operation arbitrarily determined according to the welding posture, and includes operation parameters in the welding posture, The welding part angle is the angle of the surface of the welding part of the workpiece to be welded with respect to a predetermined reference plane, The ideal operation data is data about the welding operation targeted by the welder, and includes the operation parameters in the welding operation of the welder at the welding part angle, The scoring algorithm is a method for scoring the welding operation of the welder, The welding part angle calculation unit calculates the welding part angle during the scoring period for which scoring is performed from the operation of the welding torch measured by the measuring device and the shape of the workpiece to be welded input in advance, The ideal operation data generation unit uses the welding part angle to obtain a contribution degree, which is a weighting for the operation parameters in the welding operation of the welder, for each of the plurality of reference data, adds up the contribution degrees, and generates the ideal operation data at the welding part angle, The contribution degree is determined by the welding part angle, The welding operation evaluation unit scores the operation parameters in the welding operation of the welder based on the scoring algorithm and the ideal operation data during the scoring period, A welding operation evaluation system characterized by the above.

2. Equipped with an input interface, The scoring algorithm is specified by the user operating the input interface, The welding operation evaluation system according to Claim 1.

3. The welding torch is provided with a marker, The measuring device is a motion capture device that measures the position of the marker, and measures the operation of the welding torch based on the position of the marker, The welding operation evaluation system according to Claim 1.

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