Meaning of Automation:

Automation means that some or all of the functions or steps in an operation are performed in sequence by
mechanical or electronic means.

• Automation may be partial, with certain functions or steps performed manually (Partial Automation), or
it may be full, meaning that all functions and steps are performed by the equipment in proper sequence
without adjustment by an operator (Total Automation).
• Automation may include the loading and unloading of the components of the operation.
• Automation can be applied to many welding, brazing, soldering, and thermal cutting processes, as well as
ancillary operations.
• Automatic equipment may be designed to accommodate a single assembly or family of similar assemblies
(Fixed Automation), or automation equipment may be flexible enough to be quickly modified to
perform the similar operations on different components or assemblies (Flexible Automation).

When to use Automation:

Regardless of the degree of automation, its objective is to reduce manufacturing costs by increasing
productivity, and improving quality and reliability. This is possible by the reduction or elimination of human
errors.
Other benefits of automation include lower floor space requirements, lower in-process inventory, and
increased throughput. When automation systems are integrated into production scheduling systems,
improved production flows result in better deliveries to customers.
Automation can succeed or fail depending on the application. A successful application requires careful
planning, economic justification, and full cooperation and support of management, product designers,
manufacturing engineers, labor, and maintenance. Major factors that should be carefully analyzed to
determine if automation is feasible include: the product, the plant and the equipment, and costs.

FUNDAMENTALS OF WELDIING AUTOMATON

Automation involves more than equipment or computer controls. It is a way of organizing, planning, and
monitoring a production process. The procedures, systems, and production controls used for the manual
welding cannot usually be adapted to automatic welding.
Most manual welding methods rely heavily upon the knowledge, skill, and judgment of the welder.
To successfully produce sound welds automatically, the equipment must perform in much the same manner
as a welder or welding operator.
Machine Welding:
In Machine Welding, the operation is done by the welding equipment, not a welder, under the constant
observation and control of a welding operator. The equipment may or may not perform the loading and
unloading of the work.
The work may be stationary while a welding head is moved mechanically along the weld joint, or the work
may be moved under a stationary welding head. Machine welding can increase welding productivity by
reducing operator fatigue, and by increasing the consistency and quality of the welds.
The equipment should control the following variables when arc welding:
(1) Initiation and maintenance of the welding arc
(2) Feeding of the filler metal into the joint
(3) Travel speed along the joint

In machine welding, the welding operator must be near to the point of welding to closely observe the
welding operation. The operator interacts continuously with the equipment to assure proper placement and
quality of the weld metal. Machine welding should provide the welding operator with sufficient t h e to
monitor and control the guidance aspects of the operation as well as the welding process variables. Weld
quality can be enhanced as a result of proper control of process variables.

AUTOMATIC WELDING
Automatic welding is done with equipment that performs an entire welding operation without adjustment of
the controls by a welding operator. An automatic welding system may or may not perform the loading and
unloading of the components.
The equipment and techniques currently used in automatic welding are not capable of controlling the
operation completely. A welding operator is required to oversee the process. An important aspect of
automatic welding is that the operator need not continuously monitor the operation. Compared to machine
welding, this tends to increase productivity, improve quality, and reduce operator fatigue.
A welding operator, although not directly controlling the welding process, requires several Skills to operate
and interact with automatic equipment. The operator is responsible for the proper operation of a complex
electromechanical system, and must recognize variations from normal operation. Deductive skills may be
required if the welding operator cannot directly view the actual welding process.

All of the elements required for machine welding are utilized in an automatic welding system.
Continuous filer wire feeding, where used, arc movement, and work piece positioning technology
are basic to automatic welding. Automatic welding requires welding fixtures to hold the component parts in
position with respect to each other. The welding fixtures are usually designed to hold one specific assembly
and, by minor variation, may allow for a family of similar assemblies. Because of the inherent high cost of
design and manufacture, the use of welding fixtures is economical only in high volume production
where large numbers of identical parts are produced on a continuous basis.
Automatic welding requires a complex welding cycle controller that must provide for control of the welding
operation as well as the material handling equipment and component fixturing. The controller must precisely
time a complex sequence of operations.
The successful application of automatic welding offers the following advantages:
(1) Consistent weld quality
(2) Reduced variable welding costs
(3) Predictable welding production rates
(4) Integration with other automatic operations on the weldment
(5) Increased productivity as a result of increased welding speeds and filler metal deposition rates
Automatic welding has limitations, including the following:
(1) Capital investment requirements are much higher than for manual or machine welding equipment.
(2) Dedicated fixturing is required for accurate part location and orientation.
3) Elaborate arc movement and control devices with predetermined welding sequence are required.
(4) Production requirements must be large enough to justify the costs of equipment and installation, the
training of programmers, and the maintenance of the equipment.

FLEXIBLE AUTOMATED WELDING

In flexible automated welding, a numerical control or computer control program replaces complex fixturing
and sequencing devices of fixed automated welding. The welding program can be easily changed to
accommodate small lot production of several designs that require the same welding process, while providing
productivity and quality equivalent to automatic welding. Small volume. Production of similar parts can be
produced automatically in a short time. A flexible system can be easily reprogrammed for a new pat.

An industrial robot is the most flexible of the automated systems used in manufacturing operations. A robot
is essentially a mechanical device that can be programmed to perform some task of manipulation or
locomotion under automatic control. Robots may be designed with various motion systems; two common
systems, articulated and rectilinear
EXTENT OF AUTOMATION
The extent to which automation should be employed is governed by four factors:
(1) Product quality
(2) Production levels
(3) Manpower
(4) Investment
The importance of these factors will change with the application and with the type of industry. The decisions
on how much and when to automate can best be evaluated by examining each factor

BRAZING AUTOMATION
The important variables involved in a brazing process include brazing temperature, time at temperature,
filler metal, and brazing atmosphere. Other variables are joint fit-up, amount of filler metal, rate and mode
of heating, etc. Many brazed joints are made automatically using welding torches. Other processes that may
be automated include furnace brazing (e.g., vacuum and atmosphere), resistance brazing, induction
brazing, dip brazing, and infrared brazing.' Generally, the amount of heat supplied to the joint is automated
by controlling temperature and the time at temperature. Brazing filler metal can be prep laced at the joints
during assembly of components or automatically fed into the joints at brazing temperature.
ADVANTAGES OF BRAZING AUTOMATION
The main advantages of automatic brazing
(I) High production rates
(2) High productivity per worker
(3) Filler metal savings
(4) Consistency of results
(5) Energy savings
(6) Adaptability and flexibility

PROBLEMS OF AUTOMATION
RISK FACTORS
Factory Integration
The introduction of an automatic welding or brazing machine can create many problems in a manufacturing
shop. For example, there can be incompatibilities with other shop operations, such as machining, cutting, or
forming. Material handling for automatic operations can present problems Tasks that are- often overlooked
in preparation for welding automation includes the following:
1. Part Programming:. The procedure for generating and storing machine programs is usually new to a
welding shop. Unlike CNC machine tools and other automatic machines where programs are written off-
line by a trained programmer, some welding robots are programmed on-line by teaching or by direct
keyboard entry of a computer language.
2. Program Proofing:. The program for automatic welding or brazing equipment is usually evaluated using
actual production parts. Simulated production parts cannot duplicate the effects of distortion, heat input,
and clamping, and such parts should only be used in the initial stages of process development.
Manufacturing Planning:. Component sequence may need to be changed for automatic welding or
brazing. A few potential changes are:
(1) Periodic destructive or nondestructive testing and inspection may be required for quality control.
(2) Additional quality control tests, such as joint fit-up inspection, may be required.
(3) Multiple welding operations may be combined at a single work station.
(4) Welding or brazing conditions, machine control programs, and other formulated information
may need to accompany components or be attached to planning sheets.
(5) New process specifications and acceptance criteria may be required.

Reliability of Equipment:. Generally, the reliability of a system is inversely proportional to its complexity,
and automatic welding and brazing machines are complex systems. Nevertheless, the inherent precision and
durability of equipment components usually exceeds the duty requirements because welding and brazing
operations impose light dynamic machine loads and accuracy requirements compared to machining. The
reliability problems in welding machines are usually related to environmental conditions of heat, spatter,
fume, and collision. Electronic components r e q h consideration of the electromagnetic and electric power
environment.
Inspection and Quality Control:. Automatic welding often complicates inspection. Fillet welds are
preferred for automatic welding, but are difficult to inspect. Multiple welding operations performed at one
station often restrict access for inspection, and in-process inspection may not be feasible from operational
and economical stand points. New quality control procedures are usually required.