A mobile welding system that does not rely exclusively on a track to define the path of the welder. The present invention generally provides a mobile welder adapted to move along a work piece, the mobile welder including a chassis supporting a motor assembly; a travel assembly attached to the chassis and adapted to support the chassis over a portion of the work piece, wherein the motor is coupled to the travel assembly to selectively cause the chassis to move relative to the work piece; a controller connected to the motor assembly to control movement of the chassis relative to the work piece; a chassis holder connected to the chassis, the chassis holder being adapted to provide a force holding the chassis a selected distance from the work piece; and a welder supported on the chassis, the welder including an implement adapted to perform a welding operation, wherein the implement is supported on the chassis at a location where the implement and the chassis define an uninterrupted line of sight from the implement to the work piece, wherein the chassis holder is spaced from the line of sight a distance sufficient to prevent the chassis holder from interfering with the welding operation.

A computer numerically controlled machine may include a movable head configured to deliver electromagnetic energy to a part of a working area in which the movable head may be commanded to cause delivery of the electromagnetic energy. The interior space may be defined by a housing and may include an openable barrier that attenuates transmission of light between the interior space and an exterior of the computer numerically controlled machine when the openable barrier is in a closed position. The computer numerically controlled machine may include an interlock that prevents emission of the electromagnetic energy when detecting that the openable barrier is not in the closed position. The commanding may result in the computer numerically controlled machine executing operations of a motion plan for causing movement of the movable head to deliver the electromagnetic energy to effect a change in a material at least partially contained within the interior space.

An apparatus of a setting welding device for an auxiliary joining part with a head and a shaft, includes a linear drive fastenable at the setting device and including an element nest at a movable end, in which an auxiliary joining part is releasably receivable from a transfer unit. The element nest is movable by the linear drive in a first direction. The element nest is supported in a floating manner, and is positionable via a mechanical stop alignment in abutment with an electrode punch in the joining direction below the electrode punch. And/or the element nest is connected with the linear drive via a mechanical direction-changing coupling component so that the element nest is movable by the linear drive in a second direction so that the auxiliary joining part is positionable at the joining location, wherein the second direction is not parallel to the first direction.

A welding apparatus has a guide rail arrangement with at least one guide rail attachable to a welding target. A carriage has a carriage housing and a rail follower assembly that is movably mountable to the guide rail arrangement for relative movement along the at least one guide rail. A feedstock source is disposed within the carriage housing and configured to deposit a feedstock material on a target surface of the welding target. An ultrasonic weld head is partially disposed within the carriage housing and has a sonotrode that extends toward the target surface so as to engage the deposited feedstock material and apply a normal welding force to the deposited feedstock material and the target surface. The sonotrode is operable to conduct ultrasonic vibrations into the deposited feedstock material and the target surface to weld the feedstock material to the target surface.

A welding apparatus has a guide rail arrangement with at least one guide rail attachable to a welding target. A carriage has a carriage housing and a rail follower assembly that is movably mountable to the guide rail arrangement for relative movement along the at least one guide rail. A feedstock source is disposed within the carriage housing and configured to deposit a feedstock material on a target surface of the welding target. An ultrasonic weld head is partially disposed within the carriage housing and has a sonotrode that extends toward the target surface so as to engage the deposited feedstock material and apply a normal welding force to the deposited feedstock material and the target surface. The sonotrode is operable to conduct ultrasonic vibrations into the deposited feedstock material and the target surface to weld the feedstock material to the target surface.

A moveable head of a computer numerically controlled machine may deliver electromagnetic energy sufficient to cause a first change in a material at least partially contained within an interior space of the CNC machine. A feature of the material may be imaged using at least one camera present inside the interior space to update a position of the material, and the moveable head may be aligned to deliver electromagnetic energy sufficient to cause a second change in the material such that the second change is positioned on the material consistent with the first change and with an intended final appearance of the material. Methods, systems, and article of manufacture are described.

Moving unit for moving two soldering assemblies connected by a coupling device, soldering system for selective wave soldering of circuit boards with such a moving unit, and associated method.

A fastener welding apparatus having a frame assembly, a welding assembly, a coupling assembly and a locating assembly. The welding assembly has a welder frame and a welding electrode assembly coupled thereto. The coupling assembly has a suspension frame, a frame axle and a welding axle. The frame axle is fixedly engaged to the frame assembly and the welding axle is fixedly engaged to the welding assembly. The suspension frame is pivotably coupled to each of the frame axle and the welding axle. The locating assembly is structurally configured to selectively allow the suspension frame to pivot relative to the frame axle and the welding axle.

A conversion station (300) comprising a mechanism (240) operable to support at least some portion of a web (250), a conversion device located above the mechanism (240), the conversion device operable to traverse a conversion zone (244) located below the conversion device to bring a cutting member into contact with the web (250) to convert the web (250) into one or more individual products (201A, 202A; 201B, 202B; 201C, 202C), an image capturing device (260) located above the mechanism (240) and adjacent to the conversion device but outside the conversion zone (244), the image capturing device (260) positioned at a non-perpendicular imaging angle (271) relative to a surface plane (270) of the web (250), the image capturing device (260) operable to capture image information (261, 263) by imaging the one or more features located on the web (250) while the features are positioned within the conversion zone (244), and a control system operable to align the web (250) within the conversion zone (244) based on the image information (261, 263).

A welding apparatus includes a housing having facing surfaces in the axial direction, and a welding head turning gear and first to third ring gears inside of the housing. A guide surface is formed on the facing surfaces. The welding head turning gear is coupled to a guide member, and the first to third ring gears are supported by the welding head turning gear and the guide member. Since a roller provided to the guide member rolls on the guide surface to rotatably support the first to third ring gears with respect to the housing, the welding apparatus can be lighter in weight and more compact compared to a conventional welding apparatus.