Automation is an integral part of many machine shops, and welding operations are no exception. The quality of seams and increased efficiency drive many business leaders towards implementation of automated solutions. Robots can provide that competitive advantage over your competition, but deployment requires careful planning in order to avoid costly mistakes and time wasted to troubleshooting the setup issues. Even with all the preparation work, getting to optimized process parameters may require several iterations. For complex welding problems, more than one automated machine may actually be more economical solution in the long run.
Key Takeaways:
- When using robots for any process, the method requires amending to accommodate automation. The same is true of welding, which uses several tools not found in its manual equivalent.
- The tool in the robotic arm heats to melt metal to conjoin the desired pieces. As needed, a wire feeder delivers more metal wire to the arm and torch.
- Some materials resist electrical currents, precluding them from other forms of welding. This situation frequently occurs in the automotive industry for piecing together parts of an automobile body.
“Before getting started, consider how these common questions could impact the way you establish a repeatable and consistent robotic welding operation — and how you can get the most out of it.”
