Abstract:
A welding system including a welding electrode, a closed-loop cooling device, and a vent. The closed-loop cooling device is configured to cool the welding electrode. The closed-loop cooling device includes a pump and a water line. The vent is located along a path of the water line. The vent is configured to release air trapped within the water line.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present application is related to and claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/325,915, filed Apr. 21, 2016, titled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VENTING AIR IN A WELDING SYSTEM” (attorney docket no. 010121-8849-US00), the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    The application relates to welding systems or machine. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0003]    Typically, welding system includes cooling systems, such as closed-loop cooling systems, to cool electrodes used in the welding process. During welding, for example, mash seam welding, water is pumped through welding electrodes to remove heat from the electrodes. The water heated by the electrodes is continuously moved through a closed-loop cooling system that lowers the water temperature before it is pumped back through the electrodes. Over time, the electrodes need to be replaced. Before removing/replacing the electrodes, air is pumped through the closed-loop cooling system to drain the cooling water. This conserves the water, but results in air remaining in the cooling system after new electrodes are installed. This air can cause damage to the cooling system. 
         [0004]    The application solves these issues by, in one embodiment, providing a welding system including a welding electrode, a closed-loop cooling device configured to cool the welding electrode, the closed-loop cooling device including a pump and a water line, and a vent located along a path of the water line, the vent configured to release air trapped within the water line. 
         [0005]    In another embodiment the application provides a method for cooling a welding system, the method includes providing a welding electrode, cooling, via a closed-loop cooling device, the welding electrode, and releasing, via a vent, air trapped within the water line. Wherein the closed loop cooling device includes a pump and a water line. 
         [0006]    In another embodiment the application provides a closed-loop cooling device configured to cool a welding electrode of a welding system, the closed-loop cooling device includes a pump, a water line, and a vent located along a path of the water line. The vent is configured to release air trapped within the water line. The closed-loop cooling device also includes an electronic controller configured to cool the welding electrode by operating the pump and releasing air trapped within the water line by controlling the vent. 
         [0007]    Other aspects of the application will become apparent by consideration of the detailed description and accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]      FIG. 1  is a front view of a welding system according to one embodiment. 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is a front view of a shaper of the welding system of  FIG. 1  according to one embodiment. 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  is a detail view of a welder of the welding system of  FIG. 1  according to one embodiment. 
           [0011]      FIG. 4  is a block diagram of a control system of the welding system of  FIG. 1  according to one embodiment. 
           [0012]      FIG. 5  is a schematic representation of a cooling system of the welding system of  FIG. 1  according to one embodiment. 
           [0013]      FIG. 6  is a schematic representation of a work piece for use in the welder of  FIG. 1  according to one embodiment. 
           [0014]      FIG. 7  is a flow chart that illustrates a process of changing a welding electrode used in the welding system of  FIG. 1  according to one embodiment. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0015]    Before any embodiments of the application are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the application is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The application is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. 
         [0016]      FIG. 1  illustrates a front view of a welding system  100  in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. In some embodiments, the welding system  100  is configured to weld a work piece, or product,  105  ( FIG. 6 ) having a first end  110  and a second end  115 . 
         [0017]    The welding system  100  includes a shaper  120  and a welder  125 . The work piece  105  is first fed into the shaper  120  in a feed direction shown by an arrow  118 . The shaper  120  includes a first guide  121 , a frame  122 , a pusher  123 , a frame guide  127 , and a plurality of feed rollers  130 . The guide  121  includes a plurality of rollers disposed along a track. The guide  121  aligns the work piece  105  as the work piece  105  is pushed through the shaper  120  by the pusher  123 . The frame  122  and the frame guide  127  help shape the work piece  105  into a predetermined shape. In some embodiments, the shaper  120  is configured to shape the work piece  105  into a substantially cylindrical shape ( FIG. 6 ). 
         [0018]    As shown in  FIG. 2 , the shaper  120  may include a plurality of feed rollers  130 . In some embodiments, the feed rollers  130  have an hourglass shape. In the illustrated embodiment, the plurality of feed rollers  130  are arranged to form a passageway  137  having a substantially circular cross sectional shape. In such an embodiment, the plurality of feed rollers  130  are configured to receive the work piece  105  and feed the work piece  105  into the substantially cylindrical passageway  137  such that the first end  110  and the second end  115  of the work piece  105  slightly overlap. The feed rollers  130  provide a force on the outside edge of the unwelded work piece  105  to maintain the work piece  105  in a cylindrical shape as the work piece  105  is fed into the welder  125 . 
         [0019]      FIG. 3  illustrates a side view of the welder  125  of the welding system  100 . The welder  125  includes a first electrode  135 , a second electrode  140 , and a control system  145  ( FIGS. 1 and 4 ). 
         [0020]    In some embodiments, such as illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 3 , the first and second welding electrodes  135 ,  140  are welding wheels. In other embodiments, the first and second welding electrodes  135 ,  140  are sticks, rings, or wires. The first welding electrode  135  and the second welding electrode  140  are positioned proximate the shaper  120 . The first welding electrode  135  and the second welding electrode  140  are vertically stacked one above the other. The second welding electrode  140  is positioned on a welding horn  180 . The second welding electrode  140  is moveable with respect to the welding horn  180  in the direction shown by an arrow  181  and in a direction opposite the direction shown by the arrow  181 . In some embodiments, the welder  125  is positioned on the welding system  100  in a configuration that is substantially perpendicular to the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3 . In such an embodiment, the welding horn  180  is movable in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction shown by the arrow  181 . In the illustrated construction, pneumatic cylinders (not shown) are used to move the second welding electrode  140 . In some constructions, the second welding electrode  140  is pivotable to keep the second welding electrode  140  in the feed line. In other constructions, the second welding electrode  140  is fixed with respect to the welding horn  180  and the first welding electrode  135  is moveable into alignment with the feed direction. In such an embodiment, pneumatic cylinders are used to reposition the first welding electrode  135 . 
         [0021]    Although the embodiment of the welding system  100  discussed above includes two welding electrodes  135 ,  140 , alternate embodiments may have more or less welding electrodes. 
         [0022]    Once the work piece  105  is fed into the welder  125 , the control system  145  commands the second welding electrode  140  to move in the direction shown by the arrow  181  until it is proximate the work piece  105  and the first welding electrode  135  and second welding electrode  140  are positioned on opposite sides of the overlapping first  110  and second  115  ends of the work piece  105 . The control system  145  then commands a variable voltage source to supply a voltage across the first welding electrode  135  and the second welding electrode  140  as the work piece  105  is fed through the welder  125 . In some embodiments, the speed that the work piece  105  is fed is variable and determined by the control system  145 . The first welding electrode  135  and the second welding electrode  140  weld the overlapping first end  110  of the work piece  105  to the second end  115  of the work piece  105 , forming a seam. 
         [0023]      FIG. 4  illustrates a block diagram of the control system  145 . The control system  145  is configured to communicatively couple to various components of the welding system  100  and may provide control and/or monitoring aspects of the welding system  100 . The control system  145  may include a controller  146  and a user-interface  147 . According to one or more exemplary embodiments, controller  146  includes a plurality of electrical and electronic components that provide power, operational control, and protection to the components and modules within the controller  146 . For example, the controller  146  includes, among other things, an electronic processor  148  (e.g., a microprocessor, a microcontroller, or another suitable programmable device), a memory  149 , and various input units and output units. In some embodiments, the controller  146  is implemented partially or entirely on a semiconductor (e.g., a field-programmable gate array [“FPGA”] semiconductor) chip, such as a chip developed through a register transfer level (“RTL”) design process. 
         [0024]    The memory  149  includes, for example, a program storage area and a data storage area. The program storage area and the data storage area can include combinations of different types of memory  149 , such as read-only memory  149  (“ROM”), random access memory  149  (“RAM”) (e.g., dynamic RAM [“DRAM”], synchronous DRAM [“SDRAM”], etc.), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (“EEPROM”), flash memory, a hard disk, an SD card, or other suitable magnetic, optical, physical, or electronic memory devices. The electronic processor  148  is connected to the memory  149  and executes software instructions that are capable of being stored in a RAM of the memory (e.g., during execution), a ROM of the memory (e.g., on a generally permanent basis), or another non-transitory computer readable medium such as another memory or a disc. Software included in the implementation of the cooling apparatus  200  can be stored in the memory  149  of the controller  146 . The software includes, for example, firmware, one or more applications, program data, filters, rules, one or more program modules, and other executable instructions. The controller  146  is configured to retrieve from memory  149  and execute, among other things, instructions related to the control processes and methods described herein. In other constructions, the controller  146  includes additional, fewer, or different components. 
         [0025]    The user-interface  147  is used to control or monitor the welding system  100 . The user-interface  147  includes a combination of digital and analog input or output devices required to achieve a desired level of control and monitoring for the welding system  100 . For example, the user-interface  147  includes a display (e.g., a primary display, a secondary display, etc.) and input devices such as touch-screen displays, a plurality of knobs, dials, switches, buttons, etc. The display is, for example, a liquid crystal display (“LCD”), a light-emitting diode (“LED”) display, an organic LED (“OLED”) display, an electroluminescent display (“ELD”), a surface-conduction electron-emitter display (“SED”), a field emission display (“FED”), a thin-film transistor (“TFT”) LCD, etc. The user-interface  147  can also be configured to display conditions or data associated with the welding system  100  in real-time or substantially real-time. For example, the user-interface  147  is configured to display measured electrical characteristics of the welding system  100  and the status of the welding system  100 . In some implementations, the user-interface  147  is controlled in conjunction with the one or more indicators (e.g., LEDs, speakers, etc.) to provide visual or auditory indications of the status or conditions of the welding system  100 . In the illustrated embodiment, the control system  145  is further communicatively coupled to a pump  215 , a solenoid  235 , and a sensor  265 , discussed in more detail below. 
         [0026]    As shown in  FIG. 5 , the cooling apparatus  200  includes a water line network  205 , a reservoir  210 , the pump  215 , a first compressed air input  220 , a second compressed air input  225 , a vent  230 , the solenoid  235 , and the sensor  265 . The water line network  205  includes a first water line  240 , a second water line  245 , and a return water line  250 . The water first line  240  extends through the first welding electrode  135 . The second water line  245  extends through the second welding electrode  140 . The first water line  240  and the second water line  245  are fluidly engaged with the return water line  250  downstream of the welding electrodes  135 ,  140 . The return water line  250  directs water flow back into the reservoir  210 . The pump  215  is positioned proximate to and in fluid communication with the reservoir  210 . The first compressed air input  220  is positioned proximate the first electrode  135 . A first check valve  255  is positioned between the first compressed air input  220  and the first water line  240 . The second compressed air input  225  is positioned between the second water line  245  and the second electrode  140 . A second check valve  260  is positioned between the second compressed air input  225  and the second water line  245 . The first and second check valves  255 ,  260  are configured to prevent water that is flowing through the first water line  240  and second water line  245  from entering the first and second compressed air inputs  220 ,  225 . The vent  230  is positioned proximate the return line  250 . The sensor  265  is positioned proximate the vent  230 . In some embodiments, the sensor  265  is a pressure sensor. The sensor  265  is configured to sense water flow through the return line  250  and send a signal to the control system  145  ( FIG. 1 ) in response to sensed water flow. In some embodiments, the control system  145  controls the shaper  120  and the welder  125  and while a second control system may control the cooling apparatus  200 . 
         [0027]    In operation, the pump  215  causes water in the cooling apparatus  200  to flow from the reservoir  210  to the first water line  240  and the second water line  245 . As shown by arrows  270 , the first water line  240  and the second water line  245  direct cold water to the first welding electrode  135  and the second welding electrode  140 , respectively. As the cold water flows through the first and second welding electrodes  135 ,  140 , heat is transferred from the welding electrodes  135 ,  140  to the water, thus cooling the welding electrodes  135 ,  140 . Downstream of the welding electrodes  135 ,  140 , the first water line  240  and the second water line  245  are combined into the return water line  250 . The return water line  250  returns the hot water to the reservoir  210 , where the hot water can be cooled to an appropriate temperature and once again be used to cool the welding electrodes  135 ,  140 . 
         [0028]      FIG. 7  illustrates a flow chart of a process  300  for replacing the first welding electrode  135  and/or the second welding electrode  140 . Initially, the control system  145  determines if an electrode (e.g., the first welding electrode  135  or the second welding electrode  140 ) needs replacing (step  305 ). When neither electrode  135 ,  140  needs replacing, the process  300  cycles back to step  305 . When at least one electrode  135 ,  140  does needs replacing, the control system  145  turns the pump  215  off, stopping water flow through the cooling apparatus  200  (step  310 ). Next, the control system  145  commands the compressed air inputs  220 ,  225  to introduce compressed air to the first water line  240  and the second water line  245  of the cooling apparatus  200  (step  315 ). In some embodiments, the air is introduced to the first and second water lines  240 ,  245  for a predetermined period of time. The compressed air pushes the water in the first water line  240 , the second water line  245 , and the return water line  250  into the reservoir  210  of the cooling apparatus  200  (step  320 ). After the water is removed from the water lines  240 ,  245 ,  250 , the first welding electrode  135  or the second welding electrode  140  is removed and replaced with a new welding electrode  135 ,  140  (step  325 ). In other embodiments, the first welding electrode  135  or the second welding electrode  140  are removed and repaired. 
         [0029]    With continued reference to  FIG. 7 , the control system  145  determines whether the electrode replacement is complete (step  325 ). In some embodiments, the control system  145  determines whether the electrode replacement is complete by receiving a command, via the user-interface  147 , from the user. When the electrode replacement is not complete, the process  300  cycles back to step  325 . When the electrode replacement is complete, the control system  145  powers the pump  215 , causing water to flow through the cooling apparatus  200  (step  330 ). Simultaneously, the control system  145  commands the solenoid  235  to open the vent  230  (step  335 ). Water flow pushes the air inside of the water lines  240 ,  245 ,  250  through the vent  230 , thus removing the air from the cooling apparatus  200 . When the water flowing through the return water line  250  passes the sensor  265 , the sensor  265  sends a signal to the control system  145  (step  340 ). In response, the control system  145  commands the solenoid  235  to close the vent  230  (step  345 ). 
         [0030]    Thus, the application provides, among other things, a system for venting air from a closed loop cooling system and a method for using the same. Various features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the following claims.