Weld Gun Tip Dressing Alignment Tool
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge in robotically controlled weld gun tip dressing is ensuring proper alignment of weld gun tips with the cutter head, as visual estimation is unreliable due to the contour of the blades, leading to potential bad welds and a time-consuming trial-and-error process for alignment.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus involving an alignment tool with a central bore matching the weld gun tips' diameter, integrated into a tip dresser tool, allowing for precise alignment during initial setup and verification, ensuring the tips are centered on the cutter head using a taught robot path.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If visual orientation is used to align weld gun tips with the cutter head, then the alignment process can be performed without additional tools, but the alignment precision is insufficient due to the contour of the blades making it difficult to tell when tips are properly centered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an alignment tool as an intermediary device between the weld gun tips and the cutter head. This alignment tool includes alignment features such as indicators or registration marks that provide a clear visual reference for proper alignment, overcoming the difficulty of visually determining alignment with the contoured cutter head blades alone.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the imprecise visual estimation method with a mechanical alignment system. The alignment tool provides physical guides, bored surfaces, or keyed features that mechanically ensure proper positioning of the weld gun tips relative to the cutter head, substituting human visual judgment with a precision mechanical system.
2Reliability
If trial and error process is used to re-teach robot path after improper alignment, then alignment can be corrected, but the process time and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing alignment using the alignment tool before the actual welding operation begins. The alignment tool ensures that the robot path is correctly established in advance, preventing misalignment issues from occurring during production. This preliminary alignment step avoids the need for time-consuming trial-and-error corrections later.
Solution Approach 2:
The alignment tool provides immediate visual or mechanical feedback to the operator during the alignment process, indicating when the weld gun tips are properly positioned relative to the cutter head. This real-time feedback allows for precise alignment to be achieved quickly and verified before production begins, eliminating the need for iterative trial-and-error adjustments.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for dressing a pair of weld gun tips on a weld gun controlled by a robot is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of: placing an alignment tool in a mounting head of a tip dresser tool, with the alignment tool including a central alignment bore having a diameter corresponding in size to a diameter of the pair of weld gun tips; teaching a robot path to cause the pair of weld gun tips to slide into the central alignment bore while the alignment tool is mounted in the mounting head; removing the alignment tool from the mounting head; inserting a cutter head into the mounting head; using the taught robot path to bring the pair of weld gun tips into contact with the cutter head; and dressing the weld gun tips with the cutter head.