Moving forward - technical advances in resistance welding - closed loop welding systems and process controls

The ongoing need to develop manufacturing processes and controls that ensure product quality through all phases of manufacturing process should be a primary goal for the vacuum electron device industry and is an ongoing effort at Semicon Associates. The search for equipment and devices that permit the introduction of these control schemes has lead to a search outside the "normal" vacuum electron device service industry; into industries where approaches, techniques, and equipment have been developed for somewhat unrelated uses, but do in fact have application to this industry. This paper presents our findings on "closed loop resistance welding equipment", equipment primarily developed for the medical device industry, where the need for quality instrumentation and process control meets or exceeds the requirements of this industry.