A Microprocessor-Based Electrode Movement Controller for Spot Weld Quality Assurance

Quality assurance has been of a great concern in the process of resistance spot welding, since considerable variation in the weld quality often arises even when the machine variables are held constant. In this paper a new microprocessor-based control method is developed to obtain uniform weld quality regardless of the changing welding environments. The control system utilizes a proportional (P) control algorithm, incorporating with the electrode movement as a feedback variable. The controller generates the welding control current so as to track a desired trace of the electrode movement (reference electrode movement curve) throughout weld cycle. A series of experiments was performed to evaluate the performance of this control method. The results show that, as a result of the electrode movement tracking, weld strengths of all the weldments approach to a desired strength level.