Welding

Over the previous 50 years, welding has become more productive, automated, and safer. Generally, the welding norm was resistance based and performed with big machinery. The aerospace industry spurred the innovation of new ways to weld thin metal. At this point in history, all welding systems had good and bad aspects; the choice should be made with a balance between the different capabilities of the systems, including its power requirements and limitations.

Manufacturers used this welding technology to hold together a lot of different products. Most of the advanced materials that are available today did not exist fifty years ago. The space program, advanced aircraft, nuclear power, and nuclear weapons helped the advancement of materials science, including titanium and aluminum, and the science of joining them.

Ultrasonic welding was developed in 1960 by Aeroprojects Inc. Fine wire bonding was the first commercial use of ultrasonic welding. A disadvantage of ultrasonic welding is how many variables involved. Ultrasonic plastic welding was first used in 1963. Robert Soloff experimented with a probe and used it to weld two halves of a tape dispenser together. Soloff then realized sound waves traveled around corners as well as down the sides of rigid plastics to weld the joint area. To automate the ultrasonic plastic welding machine he attached it to drill press using some simple mechanical items. This method of joining made the use of plastics wide-spread, and is still the most common welding method today. Automobiles today use ultrasonic welding to attach most all subsystems, and because of this it completely changed the auto industry. Precision pneumatic components and microprocessors have made it easier to use ultrasonic welding. Greater knowledge of ultrasonic welding fundamentals led to wider use, as well as better joint design, and product designs that are based on the advantages of this process.

Robotic welding was developed by the auto industry and is a combination of robotic and welding technology. Before robotic welding, most welders used face masks, portable equipment, and goggles and worked on the vehicle shells attaching components. Automated equipment was used but 80% of welds had to be done by hand. With the advent of robotic welding, welding went from 30% to 90% automation. Robots could move the welder through a programmed set of motions, providing accuracy within 1/16th of an inch. This action could be done 2000 times an hour. Early programmable welders were big and hydraulic-powered with little computer power, and were mainly used for heavier loads, not continuous path welding. The invention of compact servomotors gave welding the required technology to make smaller machines. With robots and welders working together, more efficient and accurate welding could be performed, as well as making robots an integral part of the welding process. Welding robots have allowed the creation of automotive production lines that are more cost effective and more flexible. Recent developments in robotic welding have included the coordination of several welding robots working on the same product without disturbing each other, as well as the used of wireless technology to improve their flexibility.

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