Robotic welding with a laser based vision system is capable of finding the weld, adaptive welding, part verification, and other combinations of technologies. Vision robotic welding systems are able to weld with more difficult areas and with more precision and accuracy than a human welder.
- Perfect world, parts would be made exactly the same, no need to worry about fit-up. Never-changing robot tool center point (TCP) and the perfect automation scenario would be present. Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world.
- Assemblies in industry not repeatable enough to utilize a robot that lacks a method of compensating in an intelligent way.
- Many methods of intelligent compensation available and most are common to the major robot manufacturers.
- Robotic welding with a laser-based vision system. Adaptive vision welding has been around for many years. Intelligent Camera mounted on or next to the welding torch. The camera field of view (FOV) is leading the welding torch along the welding path with the typical camera emitting a laser line similar to a barcode scanner.
- Vision system processes information and sends trajectory information to the robot for path modification. Finding the Weld - the weld joint, most vision/robotic combinations have two methods
- Adaptive Welding - pre-scanning or seam tracking, a robot with a vision system offers much more capability than just position correction.
- Adaptive welding is not just limited to adjusting for a gap. Part Verification - visual inspection.
- Combination of Technologies - vision for positioning is incorrect calibration between the robot and camera as well as unpredictable positioning of the weld wire.
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