Arc welding device and method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10766094-B2
Application number	US-201615546144-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 22, 2016
Priority date	Jan 28, 2015
Publication date	Sep 8, 2020
Grant date	Sep 8, 2020

Abstract

A plasma ejection unit ( 21 ) of an arc welding device includes a plasma torch ( 26 ), a copper plate ( 27 ), a container ( 28 ), and a gas supplying unit ( 29 ). Plasma gas inside the container ( 28 ) is pressurized by argon gas supplied from the gas supplying unit ( 29 ), and ejected from first to eighth ejection ports. The plasma gas ejected from the first to eighth ejection ports is concentrated in a concentration area (CA) between vehicle body plates ( 16 - 17 ) to form through holes ( 40 ) in the vehicle body plates ( 16 - 17 ), and is separated. The air pressures, in eight areas, of the plasma gas reaching a vehicle body plate ( 18 ) are approximately one-eighth of the air pressure of the plasma gas in the concentration area (CA). Accordingly, while the through holes ( 40 ) are formed in the vehicle body plates ( 16 - 17 ), no through hole is formed in the vehicle body plate ( 18 ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An arc welding device comprising:
a container having a first chamber and a second chamber formed therein separated by a partition, the second chamber configured to accommodate a plasma gas for arc welding;
a plurality of ejection ports formed in the second chamber of the container, the ejection ports configured to eject the plasma gas therefrom in a plurality of plasma gas streams,
a wire dispenser disposed in the first chamber of the container for dispensing a meltable filler wire, and
a plasma gas generating unit disposed in the second chamber of the container, the plasma gas generating unit comprising a copper plate and a plasma torch, the plasma torch being configured to discharge plasma toward the copper plate to generate the plasma gas,

wherein the arc welding device is configured and arranged such that during operation thereof, the plasma gas, ejected from the plurality of ejection ports as the plurality of plasma gas streams, is concentrated in a prescribed concentration area such that a workpiece is welded in the concentration area.

2. The arc welding device according to claim 1 , further comprising a filler filling unit configured to fill, during welding of the workpiece, a portion of the workpiece which is molten by the plasma gas in the concentration area, with a filler in a molten state wherein the filler is melted filler wire from the wire dispenser.

3. The arc welding device according to claim 1 , further comprising a shielding gas supplying unit configured to supply shielding gas to an area inside of the second chamber of the container to pressurize the area inside of the second chamber of the container.

4. An arc welding method performed with an arc welding device including a container having a first chamber and a second chamber formed therein separated by a partition, the first chamber having a wire dispenser disposed therein for dispensing a meltable filler wire, the second chamber of the container having a copper plate and a plasma torch disposed therein,
said arc welding method comprising:
a step of generating a plasma gas, for arc welding, in the second chamber of the container, the plasma torch being configured to discharge plasma toward the copper plate to generate the plasma gas;
a step of ejecting the plasma gas in a plurality of plasma gas streams from a plurality of ejection ports formed in the second chamber of the container so as to concentrate the plasma gas streams in a prescribed area; and
a step of welding a workpiece by the plasma gas concentrated in the prescribed area.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the method is carried out by a welding robot.

6. The method of claim 4 , further comprising steps of:
dispensing a meltable wire filler from the wire dispenser disposed in the first chamber of the container;
forming a hole in the prescribed area of the workpiece by the ejected plasma gas streams; and
melting a portion of the wire filler into the hole formed in the workpiece during the welding step.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein:
each of the ejection ports is disposed at an angle in relation to a common axis,
a plurality of linear plasma gas streams are formed by plasma gas being ejected during the plasma ejecting step, and
the plasma gas streams converge together in the prescribed area during the hole forming step.

8. The method of claim 6 , wherein the workpiece comprises first and second metal plates abutting one another in overlapped relation, wherein a third metal plate is spaced away from the first and second metal plates, and wherein the plasma gas streams diverge from one another after passing through the prescribed area and before contacting the third metal plate.

9. An arc welding device comprising:
a welding torch configured to accommodate a plasma gas for arc welding, the welding torch containing a first container having a first chamber formed therein housing a wire dispenser for dispensing a meltable filler wire, and a second container configured to accommodate a plasma gas for arc welding, the second container having a second chamber formed therein housing a plasma ejection unit including a plasma gas generating unit which comprises a copper plate and a plasma torch configured to discharge plasma toward the copper plate to generate the plasma gas;
the plasma ejection unit having a plurality of ejection ports formed in a wall of the second container and configured to eject the plasma gas from the second container in a plurality of plasma gas streams;
wherein the arc welding device is configured and arranged such that during operation thereof, the ejection ports converge and concentrate all of the plasma gas streams passing outwardly therefrom into a specifed concentration area at a first distance from the ejection ports, in order to form an opening in a workpiece in the concentration area, and to fill the opening with melted filler wire from the wire dispenser.

10. The arc welding device of claim 9 , wherein the plasma ejection unit is configured and arranged so that at a second distance from the ejection ports which is greater than the first distance, the plasma gas streams will diverge from one another.

11. The arc-welding device of claim 9 , wherein the welding torch has a partition formed therein which separates an interior space of the container into a first part and a second part, and isolates the plasma torch from the wire dispenser.

Assignees

• Honda Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Hiruma Yosuke
• Setoda Keishi
• Muramatsu Yusuke

Classifications

• B23K9/173 Primary

  and of a consumable electrode · CPC title

• B23K9/325

  Devices for supplying or evacuating shielding gas · CPC title

• B23K10/02

  Plasma welding · CPC title

• B23K2101/18

  Sheet panels · CPC title

• B23K2101/006

  Vehicles · CPC title