Patent Description:
Methods and apparatus to synergically control a welding-type output during a welding-type operation are disclosed, substantially as illustrated by and described in connection with at least one of the figures, as set forth more completely in the claims.

Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW), also referred to as MIG welding, is conventionally performed with a wire feed speed and voltage that is preselected prior to performing a weld. For instance, conventional welding power supplies may be controlled via knobs or buttons on the front panel of the welding power supply. If the operator selects too little power, the resulting weld may lack fusion and the weld may fail. Conversely, if the operator selects too much power, burn-through of the material may occur, creating a hole instead of a welded joint.

Some conventional welders, such as the Millermatic® <NUM> Auto-Set™ MIG Welder from Miller Electric Mfg. , makes the task of selecting weld parameters easier by permitting the operator to select both wire feed speed and voltage based on the wire size and material thickness. Preselection of the welding parameters is effective when the workpiece is of a uniform thickness and geometry, but in some situations the workpiece may have varying thickness and/or geometry. For instance, if an operator is welding a workpiece in which the workpiece progressively narrows, the heat sink capability of the metal is reduced and using the same power settings for the entire distance may result in burn-through and creating a hole.

Disclosed example methods and apparatus provide a welding-type power supply for GMAW welding that enables an operator to synergically adjust the output power during welding. A method of synergic adjustment by an operator according to the invention involves manipulating a control on the torch that is easily accessible to the operator during welding.

Where conventional welding-type power supplies may provide recommended voltage and wire feed speed, and permit a user to vary the voltage and/or wire feed speed within a specified narrow range, disclosed examples provide a control device that permits the operator to adjust the output power of a GMAW welding-type power supply over a wide operation range. For example, a manually adjustable control on the weld torch may be provided to adjust the power synergically by simultaneously changing the output voltage and the wire feed speed to raise or lower the output power to suit the work conditions and the weldment. The example welding torch, and the attached power supply and/or remote wire feeder, changes the welding output power and/or the wire feed speed while the operator is welding with an easy to use method such as a variable-input (e.g., analog input) trigger.

Some example methods and apparatus further automatically change a mode of operation or deposition mode during welding, such that the operator can change processes on-the-fly in a continuously variable manner, such that the operator has a very wide operating range of the output power. For example, if the operator wants to go from a first power operation or deposition mode (e.g., short arc welding) to a higher power operation or deposition mode (e.g., pulse spray welding), such as if the operator encounters an increase in the thickness of the work piece being welded, a power control circuit may follow a synergic control scheme to slowly raise the output voltage and the wire feed speed until the wire transitions from a short arc condition to a pulsed spray condition. In another example scenario, the a power control circuit may allow the operator to transition from a first power operation or deposition mode (e.g., short arc welding) to a lower power operation or deposition mode (e.g., Regulated Metal Deposition (RMD™)). Disclosed examples enable an operator to enter other deposition modes, such as a Controlled Short Circuit (CSC) process, and/or arcless 'hotwire' deposition. An operator may change between the different deposition modes on-the-fly during a welding operation to finely control wire deposition and/or heat input to the weld.

As used herein, the term "welding-type power" refers to power suitable for welding, plasma cutting, induction heating, CAC-A and/or hot wire welding/preheating (including laser welding and laser cladding). As used herein, the term "welding-type power supply" refers to any device capable of, when power is applied thereto, supplying welding, plasma cutting, induction heating, CAC-A and/or hot wire welding/preheating (including laser welding and laser cladding) power, including but not limited to inverters, converters, resonant power supplies, quasi-resonant power supplies, and the like, as well as control circuitry and other ancillary circuitry associated therewith.

As used herein, a welding-type power supply refers to any device capable of, when power is applied thereto, supplying welding, cladding, plasma cutting, induction heating, laser (including laser welding, laser hybrid, and laser cladding), carbon arc cutting or gouging and/or resistive preheating, including but not limited to transformer-rectifiers, inverters, converters, resonant power supplies, quasi-resonant power supplies, switch-mode power supplies, etc., as well as control circuitry and other ancillary circuitry associated therewith.

As used herein, a "weld voltage setpoint" refers to a voltage input to the power converter via a user interface, network communication, weld procedure specification, or other selection method.

As used herein, a "circuit" includes any analog and/or digital components, power and/or control elements, such as a microprocessor, digital signal processor (DSP), software, and the like, discrete and/or integrated components, or portions and/or combinations thereof.

As used herein, "synergic control" refers to controlling two or more variables or components according to a specified relationship.

As used herein, the term "remote wire feeder" refers to a wire feeder that is not integrated with the power supply in a single housing.

Disclosed welding-type power supplies, according to the invention, include a power conversion circuit, a communication circuit, and a control circuit. The power conversion circuit converts input power to welding-type power and outputs the welding-type power to a welding-type torch. The communication circuit receives a control signal from a remote control device during a welding-type operation, and the control circuit synergically controls a voltage of the welding-type power and a wire feed speed based on the control signal.

According to the invention, the control circuit synergically controls the voltage and the wire feed speed by: setting a commanded power level of the welding-type power based on the control signal, determining the voltage and the wire feed speed corresponding to the commanded power level, controlling the power conversion circuit to output the voltage, and controlling a wire feeder based on the wire feed speed. In some such examples, the control circuit accesses a lookup table to determine the commanded power level of the welding-type power based on the control signal.

In some example welding-type power supplies, the communication circuit receives the control signal from at least one of the welding-type torch or a foot pedal. In some examples, the control circuit synergically controls the voltage of the welding-type power by changing a deposition mode from a first deposition mode to a second deposition mode in response to the control signal. In some such examples, the first deposition mode is an arcless hotwire mode, a regulated metal deposition mode, a controlled short circuit mode, a short arc mode, a pulse spray mode, or a spray transfer mode, and the second deposition mode is another of the arcless hotwire mode, the regulated metal deposition mode, the controlled short circuit mode, the short arc mode, the pulse spray mode, or the spray transfer mode.

In some example welding-type power supplies, the control circuit synergically controls the voltage of the welding-type power and the wire feed speed to enable manual control of a heat input to the welding-type operation in real time during the welding-type operation. In some examples, the control circuit synergically controls the voltage of the welding-type power and the wire feed speed by controlling a remote wire feeder based on the wire feed speed. In some example welding-type power supplies as defined in claim <NUM>, the control circuit selects the voltage from a substantially contiguous voltage range and selects the wire feed speed from a substantially contiguous wire feed speed range.

Disclosed example control devices for a welding-type system include an input circuit, a control circuit, and an output circuit. The input circuit identifies a user input during a welding-type operation involving welding-type power. The control circuit determines a voltage adjustment of the welding-type power and a wire feed speed adjustment based on the user input, and based on a synergic control scheme for a voltage of the welding-type power and a wire feed speed. The output circuit generates one or more control signals to control a welding-type power supply providing the welding-type power to perform the voltage adjustment and to control a wire feeder to perform the wire feed speed adjustment.

In some example control devices, the control circuit determines the voltage adjustment and the wire feed speed adjustment based on the synergic control scheme by looking up the voltage adjustment and the wire feed speed adjustment in a lookup table. In some examples, the control circuit changes a deposition mode from a first deposition mode to a second deposition mode in response to the user input based on at least one of the voltage adjustment or the wire feed speed adjustment. In some such examples, the first deposition mode is an arcless hotwire mode, a regulated metal deposition mode, a controlled short circuit mode, a short arc mode, a pulse spray mode, or a spray transfer mode, and the second deposition mode is another of the arcless hotwire mode, the regulated metal deposition mode, the controlled short circuit mode, the short arc mode, the pulse spray mode, or the spray transfer mode.

In some example control circuits, the output circuit transmits at least one of the one or more control signals to a remote wire feeder to control the remote wire feeder based on the wire feed speed adjustment. In some examples, the output circuit transmits at least one of the one or more control signals to the welding-type power supply to control the welding-type power supply based on the voltage adjustment. In some examples, the control device is a welding-type torch, a foot pedal, the welding-type power supply, or a remote wire feeder.

Turning now to the drawings, <FIG> is a block diagram of welding system <NUM> having a welding-type power supply <NUM>, a wire feeder <NUM>, and a welding torch <NUM>. The welding system <NUM> powers, controls, and supplies consumables to a welding application. The example welding torch <NUM> is configured for gas metal arc welding (GMAW). In the illustrated example, the power supply <NUM> is configured to supply power to the wire feeder <NUM>, and the wire feeder <NUM> may be configured to route the input power to the welding torch <NUM>. In addition to supplying an input power, the wire feeder <NUM> supplies a filler metal to a welding torch <NUM> for various welding applications (e.g., GMAW welding, flux core arc welding (FCAW)).

The power supply <NUM> receives primary power <NUM> (e.g., from the AC power grid, an engine/generator set, a battery, or other energy generating or storage devices, or a combination thereof), conditions the primary power, and provides an output power to one or more welding devices in accordance with demands of the system <NUM>. The primary power <NUM> may be supplied from an offsite location (e.g., the primary power may originate from the power grid). The power supply <NUM> includes a power converter <NUM>, which may include transformers, rectifiers, switches, and so forth, capable of converting the AC input power to AC and/or DC output power as dictated by the demands of the system <NUM> (e.g., particular welding processes and regimes). The power converter <NUM> converts input power (e.g., the primary power <NUM>) to welding-type power based on a weld voltage setpoint and outputs the welding-type power via a weld circuit.

In some examples, the power converter <NUM> is configured to convert the primary power <NUM> to both welding-type power and auxiliary power outputs. However, in other examples, the power converter <NUM> is adapted to convert primary power only to a weld power output, and a separate auxiliary converter is provided to convert primary power to auxiliary power. In some other examples, the power supply <NUM> receives a converted auxiliary power output directly from a wall outlet. Any suitable power conversion system or mechanism may be employed by the power supply <NUM> to generate and supply both weld and auxiliary power.

The power supply <NUM> includes a controller <NUM> to control the operation of the power supply <NUM>. The power supply <NUM> also includes a user interface <NUM>. The controller <NUM> receives input from the user interface <NUM>, through which a user may choose a process and/or input desired parameters (e.g., voltages, currents, particular pulsed or non-pulsed welding regimes, and so forth). The user interface <NUM> may receive inputs using any input device, such as via a keypad, keyboard, buttons, touch screen, voice activation system, wireless device, etc. Furthermore, the controller <NUM> controls operating parameters based on input by the user as well as based on other current operating parameters. Specifically, the user interface <NUM> may include a display <NUM> for presenting, showing, or indicating, information to an operator. The controller <NUM> may also include interface circuitry for communicating data to other devices in the system <NUM>, such as the wire feeder <NUM>. For example, in some situations, the power supply <NUM> wirelessly communicates with the wire feeder <NUM> and/or other welding devices within the welding system <NUM>. Further, in some situations, the power supply <NUM> communicates with the wire feeder <NUM> and/or other welding devices using a wired connection, such as by using a network interface controller (NIC) to communicate data via a network (e.g., ETHERNET, 10BASE2, 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, etc.).

The controller <NUM> includes at least one processor <NUM> that controls the operations of the power supply <NUM>. The controller <NUM> receives and processes multiple inputs associated with the performance and demands of the system <NUM>. The processor <NUM> may include one or more microprocessors, such as one or more "general-purpose" microprocessors, one or more special-purpose microprocessors and/or ASICS, and/or any other type of processing device and/or logic circuit. For example, the processor <NUM> may include one or more digital signal processors (DSPs).

The example controller <NUM> includes one or more storage device(s) <NUM> and one or more memory device(s) <NUM>. The storage device(s) <NUM> (e.g., nonvolatile storage) may include ROM, flash memory, a hard drive, and/or any other suitable optical, magnetic, and/or solid-state storage medium, and/or a combination thereof. The storage device <NUM> stores data (e.g., data corresponding to a welding application), instructions (e.g., software or firmware to perform welding processes), and/or any other appropriate data. Examples of stored data for a welding application include an attitude (e.g., orientation) of a welding torch, a distance between the contact tip and a workpiece, a voltage, a current, welding device settings, and so forth.

The memory device <NUM> may include a volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM), and/or a nonvolatile memory, such as read-only memory (ROM). The memory device <NUM> and/or the storage device(s) <NUM> may store a variety of information and may be used for various purposes. For example, the memory device <NUM> and/or the storage device(s) <NUM> may store processor executable instructions <NUM> (e.g., firmware or software) for the processor <NUM> to execute. In addition, one or more control regimes for various welding processes, along with associated settings and parameters, may be stored in the storage device <NUM> and/or memory device <NUM>, along with code configured to provide a specific output (e.g., initiate wire feed, enable gas flow, capture welding current data, detect short circuit parameters, determine amount of spatter) during operation.

In some examples, the welding power flows from the power converter <NUM> through a weld cable <NUM> to the wire feeder <NUM> and the welding torch <NUM>. The example weld cable <NUM> is attachable and detachable from weld studs at each of the power supply <NUM> and the wire feeder <NUM> (e.g., to enable ease of replacement of the weld cable <NUM> in case of wear or damage).

The example communications transceiver <NUM> includes a receiver circuit <NUM> and a transmitter circuit <NUM>. Generally, the receiver circuit <NUM> receives data transmitted by the wire feeder <NUM> and the transmitter circuit <NUM> transmits data to the wire feeder <NUM>. The example wire feeder <NUM> also includes a communications transceiver <NUM>, which may be similar or identical in construction and/or function as the communications transceiver <NUM>.

In some examples, a gas supply <NUM> provides shielding gases, such as argon, helium, carbon dioxide, and so forth, depending upon the welding application. The shielding gas flows to a valve <NUM>, which controls the flow of gas, and if desired, may be selected to allow for modulating or regulating the amount of gas supplied to a welding application. The valve <NUM> may be opened, closed, or otherwise operated by the controller <NUM> to enable, inhibit, or control gas flow (e.g., shielding gas) through the valve <NUM>. Shielding gas exits the valve <NUM> and flows through a cable <NUM> (which in some implementations may be packaged with the welding power output) to the wire feeder <NUM> which provides the shielding gas to the welding application. In some examples, the welding system <NUM> does not include the gas supply <NUM>, the valve <NUM>, and/or the cable <NUM>. In some other examples, the valve <NUM> is located in the wire feeder <NUM>, and, the gas supply <NUM> is connected to the wire feeder <NUM>.

In some examples, the wire feeder <NUM> uses the welding power to power the various components in the wire feeder <NUM>, such as to power a wire feeder controller <NUM>. As noted above, the weld cable <NUM> may be configured to provide or supply the welding power. The wire feeder controller <NUM> controls the operations of the wire feeder <NUM>. In some examples, the wire feeder <NUM> uses the wire feeder controller <NUM> to detect whether the wire feeder <NUM> is in communication with the power supply <NUM> and to detect a current welding process of the power supply <NUM> if the wire feeder <NUM> is in communication with the power supply <NUM>.

A contactor <NUM> (e.g., high amperage relay) is controlled by the wire feeder controller <NUM> and configured to enable or inhibit welding power to continue to flow to the weld cable <NUM> for the welding application. In some examples, the contactor <NUM> is an electromechanical device. However, the contactor <NUM> may be any other suitable device, such as a solid state device, and/or may be omitted entirely and the weld cable <NUM> is directly connected to the output to the weld torch <NUM>. The wire feeder <NUM> includes a wire drive <NUM> that receives control signals from the wire feeder controller <NUM> to drive rollers <NUM> that rotate to pull wire off a spool <NUM> of wire. The wire drive <NUM> feeds electrode wire to the weld torch <NUM>. The wire is provided to the welding application through a torch cable <NUM>. Likewise, the wire feeder <NUM> may provide the shielding gas from the cable <NUM> through the cable <NUM>. The electrode wire, the shield gas, and the power from the weld cable <NUM> are bundled together in a single torch cable <NUM> and/or individually provided to the welding torch <NUM>.

The welding torch <NUM> delivers the wire, welding power, and/or shielding gas for a welding application. The welding torch <NUM> is used to establish a welding arc between the welding torch <NUM> and a workpiece <NUM>. A work cable <NUM> couples the workpiece <NUM> to the power supply <NUM> (e.g., to the power converter <NUM>) to provide a return path for the weld current (e.g., as part of the weld circuit). The example work cable <NUM> is attachable and/or detachable from the power supply <NUM> for ease of replacement of the work cable <NUM>. The work cable <NUM> may be terminated with a clamp <NUM> (or another power connecting device), which couples the power supply <NUM> to the workpiece <NUM>.

A communication cable <NUM> connected between the power supply <NUM> and the wire feeder <NUM>, which enables bidirectional communication between the transceivers <NUM>, <NUM>. The communications transceivers <NUM> and <NUM> may communicate via the communication cable <NUM>, via the weld circuit, via wireless communications, and/or any other communication medium. Examples of such communications include weld cable voltage measured at a device that is remote from the power supply <NUM> (e.g., the wire feeder <NUM>).

The example torch <NUM> includes a power selector circuit <NUM> to permit the user of the torch (e.g., the welder) to make adjustments to the welding output from the torch in a synergic manner. For example, as the user makes adjustments via the power selector circuit <NUM>, the power supply <NUM> and the wire feeder <NUM> synergically change the output voltage and the wire feed speed of the weld. An example implementation of the power selector circuit <NUM> is a pressure-sensitive trigger. For instance, the torch <NUM> may include the same trigger used in conventional welding-type torches, modified to provide an analog signal or encoded digital signal to represent an amount of input to the trigger. In some examples, the operator may incrementally depress the trigger (e.g., apply more pressure) to synergically increase the voltage and wire feed speed and/or incrementally release the trigger (e.g., apply less pressure) to synergically decrease the voltage and wire feed speed. Alternative implementations of the power selector circuit <NUM> include a wheel or slide configured to control a potentiometer and positioned to enable an operator to manipulate the input while welding (e.g., while simultaneously holding the trigger).

The power selector circuit <NUM> outputs a control signal <NUM> to a power control circuit <NUM> of the wire feeder <NUM>. The control signal <NUM> may be an analog or digital signal that represents the output from the power selector circuit <NUM>. The example power control circuit <NUM> may be implemented using the controller <NUM> and/or as a separate circuit. The power control circuit <NUM> identifies a user input (e.g., an input from the power selector circuit <NUM>) during a welding-type operation involving welding-type power. The power control circuit <NUM> determines, based on the user input, a voltage adjustment for the welding-type power and a wire feed speed adjustment. For example, the power control circuit <NUM> may reference a synergic control scheme, such as an algorithm or a lookup table, to determine a voltage setpoint and/or a wire feed speed setpoint corresponding to the user input. A lookup table may be stored in, for example, the storage device(s) <NUM> and/or the memory <NUM> of the controller <NUM>.

The example power control circuit <NUM> generates one or more control signals to control the welding-type power supply <NUM> to perform a voltage adjustment and to control the wire feeder <NUM> to perform a wire feed speed adjustment. For example, the power control circuit <NUM> may provide a wire feed speed command to the controller <NUM> to control the wire feed speed of the wire drive <NUM>, and/or transmit a control signal to the power supply <NUM> via the communications transceiver <NUM> and the communications cable <NUM> to control the output voltage of the power supply <NUM>.

In some examples, the synergic control of the voltage and the wire feed speed causes the power control circuit <NUM> to change a deposition mode in response to the user input via the power selector circuit <NUM>. For example, GMAW deposition modes, such as an arcless hotwire mode, a regulated metal deposition mode, a controlled short circuit mode, a short arc mode, a pulse spray mode, or a spray transfer mode, typically correspond to different voltage ranges (with some overlap between some modes).

<FIG> is a block diagram of another example welding-type system <NUM> configured to provide synergic power control with a welding-type power supply <NUM> having an integrated wire feeder <NUM>. The example welding-type power supply <NUM> includes the power converter <NUM>, controller <NUM>, the user interface <NUM>, the display <NUM>, the processor(s) <NUM>, the storage devices(s) <NUM>, the memory <NUM>, the instructions <NUM>, and the valve <NUM> of the example power supply <NUM> of <FIG>.

In contrast with the example system <NUM>, in the example of <FIG> the power supply <NUM> includes the integrated wire feeder <NUM> instead being connected to a remote wire feeder. The power supply <NUM> of <FIG> outputs welding-type power and electrode wire to the torch <NUM>, which includes the example power selector circuit <NUM>.

The integrated wire feeder <NUM> includes the wire drive <NUM>, the drive rollers <NUM>, and the wire spool <NUM>, and feeds the wire through a torch cable <NUM> to the torch <NUM>.

The example welding-type power supply <NUM> includes a communication circuit <NUM> to receive the control signal <NUM> from the power selector circuit <NUM> (e.g., during a welding operation). In some examples, the communication circuit <NUM> converts an analog signal to a digital signal for use by the controller <NUM> and/or receives a digital signal from the power selector circuit <NUM>. The example controller <NUM> synergically controls the voltage of the welding-type power (e.g., by controlling the power converter <NUM>) and the wire feed speed (e.g., by controlling the wire drive <NUM>) based on the control signal <NUM>. In this manner, the example controller <NUM> may operate in a similar manner as the power control circuit <NUM> of <FIG>.

The controller <NUM> may reference a synergic control scheme, such as an algorithm or a lookup table, to determine a voltage setpoint and/or a wire feed speed setpoint corresponding to the user input. A lookup table may be stored in, for example, the storage device(s) <NUM> and/or the memory <NUM> of the controller <NUM>.

<FIG> is a block diagram of another example welding-type system <NUM> including a torch <NUM> having a power control circuit configured to provide synergic power control. The example power control circuit <NUM> in the torch <NUM> may be implemented in a similar manner as the power control circuit <NUM> described above with reference to <FIG>.

<FIG> is a block diagram of an example implementation of the power control circuit <NUM> of <FIG> and <FIG>. The power control circuit <NUM> of <FIG> may be implemented, for example, in the torch <NUM>, the remote wire feeder <NUM>, a foot pedal, the power supply <NUM>, and/or any other component of the systems <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> of <FIG>.

The example power control circuit <NUM> of <FIG> includes an input circuit <NUM>, a control circuit <NUM>, and an output circuit <NUM>. The input circuit <NUM> identifies a user input during a welding-type operation involving welding-type power. For example, the input circuit <NUM> may receive the control signal <NUM> from the power selector circuit <NUM> when an operator controls the power selector circuit <NUM> during a weld to synergically adjust the welding output.

The control circuit <NUM> determines a voltage adjustment of the welding-type power and a wire feed speed adjustment based on the user input (e.g., based on the control signal <NUM>). For example, the control circuit <NUM> may determine the voltage adjustment and the wire feed speed adjustment by interpreting the user input according to a synergic control scheme relating the voltage of the welding-type power and the wire feed speed output by the torch <NUM>. In the example of <FIG>, the control circuit <NUM> may look up the voltage adjustment and the wire feed speed adjustment in a lookup table based on the control signal <NUM>.

In some examples, the control circuit <NUM> identifies or determines that the deposition mode is to be changed (e.g., from a first deposition mode to a second deposition mode) in response to the user input. For example, as the synergic control scheme causes the voltage to increase or decrease, a threshold may be crossed that causes the control circuit <NUM> to determine (e.g., based the voltage adjustment, the wire feed speed adjustment, the lookup table <NUM>, and/or any other synergic control factors) that the output power is more appropriately suited to a different deposition mode or transfer mode. Example deposition modes that may be selected by the control circuit <NUM> include an arcless hotwire mode, a regulated metal deposition mode, a controlled short circuit mode, a short arc mode, a pulse spray mode, or a spray transfer mode. In some examples, the control circuit <NUM> may apply a hysteresis to the thresholds so that the control circuit <NUM> does not repeatedly switch between deposition modes having similar or overlapping voltage and/or wire feed speed ranges.

The output circuit <NUM> generates one or more control signals <NUM> to control the power supply <NUM> providing the welding-type power (e.g., to the torch <NUM>) to perform the voltage adjustment, and/or to control the wire feeder <NUM> to perform the wire feed speed adjustment. In some examples, the one or more control signals <NUM> are transmitted to different devices (e.g., the power supply <NUM> and the remote wire feeder <NUM>). In some other examples, the one or more control signals <NUM> are transmitted to a single device (e.g., from the power supply <NUM> to the remote wire feeder <NUM>, from the remote wire feeder <NUM> to the power supply <NUM>, from the torch <NUM> to the power supply <NUM> including the integrated wire feeder <NUM>, etc.).

<FIG> is an example table <NUM> including corresponding voltage, wire feed speed, and process modes that may be used to determine voltage setpoints, wire feed speed setpoints, and/or process modes for performing welding operations. The example table <NUM> may be used to implement the lookup table <NUM> of <FIG>. While one example table <NUM> is shown in <FIG>, the lookup table <NUM> may include multiple tables corresponding to different welding conditions (e.g., different workpiece materials, different wire types, different gas types, etc.). The synergic control scheme represented in the lookup table <NUM> enables the operator to adjust the welding output to react to changes in welding conditions, such as changes in workpiece thickness and/or seam orientation.

The example lookup table <NUM> of <FIG> correlates different input values (e.g., values represented by the control signal <NUM>) with corresponding voltages (e.g., arc voltage setpoints), wire feed speeds, and/or deposition modes. For example, as an operator increases a value of the control signal <NUM> and/or decreases the value of the control signal <NUM> during a welding-type operation. (e.g., by incrementally depressing and/or releasing the trigger, by increasing and/or decreasing a control device that is operatively linked to a potentiometer, etc.), the control circuit <NUM> of <FIG> may look up incrementally increasing and/or decreasing input values in the table <NUM> to determine the corresponding output voltage, wire feed speed, and/or deposition mode. In some examples, the corresponding voltages, wire feed speeds, and/or deposition modes are empirically determined and populated into the table <NUM> prior to the welding operations (e.g., during manufacture, downloading a firmware update, downloading a software package, etc.).

<FIG> is a flowchart representative of example machine readable instructions <NUM> which may be executed to implement one or more disclosed example methods and/or apparatus. The example instructions <NUM> may be executed by the example controller <NUM>, the example controller <NUM>, and/or the example power control circuit <NUM> of <FIG> to synergically control a welding-type output during a welding-type operation. The example instructions <NUM> are described with reference to the example welding-type power supply <NUM> of <FIG>, but may be modified for execution by the power control circuit <NUM> of <FIG>, <FIG>, and/or <NUM>.

At block <NUM>, the example controller <NUM> determines whether a welding operation is being performed. If a welding operation is not being performed (block <NUM>), the control circuit <NUM> iterates block <NUM> until welding is occurring. When the controller <NUM> determines that welding is occurring (block <NUM>), at block <NUM> the power converter <NUM> converts input power to welding-type power and outputs the welding-type power to the welding-type torch <NUM>.

At block <NUM>, the communications circuit <NUM> determines whether a control signal (e.g., the control signal <NUM>) is received from a remote control device (e.g., from the power selector circuit <NUM>). If the control signal <NUM> has been received from the remote control device (block <NUM>), at block <NUM> the controller <NUM> determines the synergic voltage and the wire feed speed based on the control signal <NUM>.

At block <NUM>, the controller <NUM> determines whether a change in deposition mode is required (e.g., based on the synergic control scheme used to determine the synergic voltage and the wire feed speed). If a change in deposition mode is required (block <NUM>), at block <NUM> the controller <NUM> determines a deposition mode to be used based on the control signal, the voltage, and/or the wire feed speed.

After determining the deposition mode (block <NUM>), if no change in the deposition mode is to occur (block <NUM>), or if no control signal has been received (block <NUM>), at block <NUM> the controller <NUM> controls the power converter <NUM> to output the determined voltage (e.g., via direct control and/or via a transceiver circuit).

At block <NUM>, the controller <NUM> controls a wire feeder (e.g., the integrated wire feeder <NUM>, the remote wire feeder <NUM>) to feed wire at the determined wire feed speed (e.g., via direct control and/or via a transceiver circuit).

After controlling the power converter <NUM> and/or the wire feeder <NUM>, <NUM>, control returns to block <NUM>.

Claim 1:
A welding-type power supply (<NUM>; <NUM>), comprising:
a power conversion circuit (<NUM>) configured to convert input power (<NUM>) to welding-type power and to output the welding-type power to a welding-type torch (<NUM>);
a communication circuit (<NUM>; <NUM>) configured to receive a control signal (<NUM>) from a remote control device (<NUM>) during a welding-type operation; and
a control circuit (<NUM>; <NUM>),
characterised in that
the control circuit (<NUM>; <NUM>) is configured to synergically control a voltage of the welding-type power and a wire feed speed during the welding type operation based on the control signal (<NUM>) by:
setting a commanded power level of the welding-type power based on the control signal (<NUM>);
determining the voltage and the wire feed speed corresponding to the commanded power level;
controlling the power conversion circuit (<NUM>) to output the voltage; and
controlling a wire feeder (<NUM>) based on the wire feed speed.