Disclosed is a system and method to track the consumption and use period of various consumable and/or durable welding-type products via tracking the consumption and/or use of various other consumable and/or durable welding-type products. The system and method may provide alerts when the use period of a consumable and/or durable welding-type product satisfies a threshold and therefore should be replaced.

A method of preventing arc flaring events for a welding system is provided. The method includes determining, by a controller, a real-time welding output characteristic of the welding system. The method additionally includes comparing, by the controller, the real-time welding output characteristic to a threshold welding output characteristic. The method further includes controlling an operating characteristic of the welding system in response to a determination that the real-time welding output characteristic exceeds the threshold welding output characteristic.

A method to assist with the production of an assembly of two elements implemented by a remotely operated robot. The method includes an arm, hinged to the end of which is mounted a heat-supply member suitable for delivering heat to a heat-supply point; position sensors; guiding actuators; a video capture device; an interface; and a processing unit. The method involves the following steps: acquiring a type of assembly to be produced; calculating a reference path of the heat-supply point; defining a shell for guiding the heat-supply member; and controlling guiding actuators so as to prevent the heat-supply member from moving out of the guiding shell.

A system for manufacturing boiler tubes includes a first spindle for receiving a first tube having a first weld preparation, a second spindle for receiving a second tube having a second weld preparation, the first spindle and the second spindle being rotatable synchronously, and a welding device having a first weld head. The welding device is configured to automatically weld the first tube to the second tube according to a control routine stored in memory to produce a boiler tube.

Apparatus, systems, and/or methods are disclosed relating to welding systems that monitor welds performed by an operator. In some examples, the welding system monitors one or more welds performed using a welding tool, evaluates characteristics of the one or more welds in comparison to certain predetermined criteria, and determines a performance score for the operator based on the evaluation. In some examples, the characteristics of the one or more welds include the location of each of the one or more welds and/or the order in which the one or more welds are executed. In such an example, the predetermined criteria may include target locations for each of the one or more welds and/or a target order of execution. In some examples, the welding system may respond to deviations from the target locations and/or target order, such as by reducing a performance score, disabling weld operations, providing guidance to the operator, etc.

A dummy tool is used to teach a robot the path the robot will follow to perform work on a workpiece to eliminate the possibility of damaging an actual tool during the training. The dummy tool provides the robot programmer an indication of potential collisions between the tool and the workpiece and other objects in the work cell when path is being taught. The dummy tool can have a detachable input/output device with a graphic user interface (GUI) that can communicate wirelessly with the robot controller. The dummy tool can also have a moveable camera attached thereto to track the relationship of the tool to objects in the work area.

A spot welding-type system is provided adapted to facilitate evaluating a rechargeable battery. The system includes first and second electrodes to contact the rechargeable battery. The first electrode includes a first contact surface to facilitate inducing an internal short circuit within the rechargeable battery during operation of the spot welding-type system, and the second electrode includes a second contact surface to contact the rechargeable battery. The first and second contact surfaces are dissimilar contact surfaces, and the second contact surface is larger than the first contact surface. The system with the rechargeable battery disposed between the first and second contact surfaces produces, in operation, a localized pressure on, and a localized heating of, the rechargeable battery in a spot-sized region where the first contact surface contacts the rechargeable battery to facilitate generating and evaluating a potential internal short circuiting of the rechargeable battery.

A positioning system includes a centrally mounted robot within a work area. Workpiece holders are independently moveable relative to the robot between working positions on opposite sides of the robot and a shared loading and unloading position. The system permits the robot to continuously operate without a need to wait for movement between the loading position and the working position. Furthermore, the system can be used as a single workpiece system while maintenance or hardware change is being performed on one of the workpiece holders. The workpiece holders move between the work positions and the loading and unloading position in a rotation and sliding fashion.

A gas tungsten arc welding system includes a welding power source including a controller comprising a memory storing a plurality of parameters that at least partially define a welding waveform. The welding waveform includes a high frequency stage, an AC arc initiation stage following the high frequency stage wherein the AC arc initiation stage comprises a plurality of AC current pulses that decrease in amplitude during a slope duration, and an AC sequencing stage following the AC arc initiation stage. The system further includes a user input in communication with the controller and configured to receive a manual activation of an increased energy AC arc initiation mode. The controller is configured to increase energy of the AC arc initiation stage, when the increased energy AC arc initiation mode is activated, by at least lengthening the slope duration of the AC arc initiation stage.

A welding system includes a welder configured to create an assembly by forming a weld-joint, a test-device configured to produce test-data indicative of a characteristic of the weld-joint, and a controller-circuit in communication with the welder and the test-device. The controller-circuit is configured to determine whether the welder-process-data violates a quality-metric and determine a number of violating-weld-joints.