WO1997014527A1 - Dispositif d'alimentation en fil - Google Patents

Dispositif d'alimentation en fil Download PDF

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Publication number
WO1997014527A1
WO1997014527A1 PCT/GB1996/002526 GB9602526W WO9714527A1 WO 1997014527 A1 WO1997014527 A1 WO 1997014527A1 GB 9602526 W GB9602526 W GB 9602526W WO 9714527 A1 WO9714527 A1 WO 9714527A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
wire
spool
inlet port
flexible
guide
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/GB1996/002526
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Sergey Vasilyevich Bakushin
Yuriy Danilovich Morozov
Original Assignee
Marubeni Uk Plc
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Marubeni Uk Plc filed Critical Marubeni Uk Plc
Priority to AU73110/96A priority Critical patent/AU7311096A/en
Publication of WO1997014527A1 publication Critical patent/WO1997014527A1/fr

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B23—MACHINE TOOLS; METAL-WORKING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • B23K—SOLDERING OR UNSOLDERING; WELDING; CLADDING OR PLATING BY SOLDERING OR WELDING; CUTTING BY APPLYING HEAT LOCALLY, e.g. FLAME CUTTING; WORKING BY LASER BEAM
    • B23K9/00—Arc welding or cutting
    • B23K9/12—Automatic feeding or moving of electrodes or work for spot or seam welding or cutting
    • B23K9/133—Means for feeding electrodes, e.g. drums, rolls, motors
    • B23K9/1333—Dereeling means
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B23—MACHINE TOOLS; METAL-WORKING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • B23K—SOLDERING OR UNSOLDERING; WELDING; CLADDING OR PLATING BY SOLDERING OR WELDING; CUTTING BY APPLYING HEAT LOCALLY, e.g. FLAME CUTTING; WORKING BY LASER BEAM
    • B23K9/00—Arc welding or cutting
    • B23K9/12—Automatic feeding or moving of electrodes or work for spot or seam welding or cutting
    • B23K9/133—Means for feeding electrodes, e.g. drums, rolls, motors
    • B23K9/1336—Driving means

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a wire feed device and, more particularly, to a wire feed device for feeding one or more wire electrodes into an electric arc processing zone.
  • a number of mechanisms exist for feeding a wire electrode to be used in an electric arc process such as cutting, welding, soldering, metallizing, atomization, spraying or surfacing into the required working zone.
  • these mechanisms involve actuators which physically contact the wire electrodes and act by gripping the wire and moving it along its longitudinal axis to force the wire into the working zone.
  • Previous examples of such wire feed mechanisms can be seen in Figures la, b, c and d of the accompanying drawings and in JP-B-63-38271, DE-A- 2440016, EP-A-0045093 , EP-A-0124170 and JP-A-60-32907.
  • Figure la shows a typically known wire feed device using a cylindrical clamping roller pair.
  • the wire electrode is held between a pair of rollers, one roller being attached to the shaft of a drive mechanism and the other roller being pressed down against the wire electrode and drive roller so as to convert rotational movement of the drive roller into linear movement of the wire electrode.
  • Figure lb shows a prior art wire feed device employing a planetary clamping roller pair.
  • the wire electrode is held between a pair of rollers each of which rotates about an axis offset from the longitudinal axis of the wire electrode, the rotational axes of the planetary rollers, in turn, lying perpendicular to each other.
  • One planetary roller is mounted on the shaft of a drive mechanism, the other roller is pressed against the drive roller and wire electrode, the opposing rollers rotating in opposite directions to each other so that rotation of the rollers against the wire causes the wire to be fed in the desired direction.
  • Figure lc shows a prior art wire feed device comprising a wedge-shaped mechanism.
  • a wedge restraint, or grip which extends along the longitudinal axis of the wire electrode grips the wire electrode and is contained within a chamber which further comprises a pair of spring-loaded balls which interact with the wedge restraint to cause a reciprocating motion of the wedge restraint along an axis which is parallel to the longitudinal axis of the wire electrode, thereby causing linear movement of the wire electrode in the feed direction.
  • Figure Id shows a further known wire feed device which employs rotatable drive means and a plurality of rotating bearings, rotated helically along the side of the wire as a ball screw, which act against the surface of the wire electrode to convert rotational movement of the drive mechanism into linear movement of the wire electrode in the feed direction.
  • JP-B-63-38271 discloses a welding wire feed device incorporating a pair of feed rollers, a first rotation transmission mechanism connected to the feed rollers and a second rotation transmission mechanism mounted on the rotating axle of the first rotation transmission mechanism.
  • An inclined plate which interacts with an oscillatory element is fastened to the rotating axle.
  • the second rotation transmission mechanism fitted with a first oscillatory lever which is also mounted on the rotating axle.
  • a second oscillatory lever is mounted on the first oscillatory lever by means of a pin.
  • the second oscillatory lever carries a pair of guide rollers.
  • This wire feed device is also fitted with a drive electric motor which drives the first rotation transmission mechanism. When the element is in the middle of its oscillatory motion, the pin and the middle of the rotating axle are in line with the roller contact points.
  • the rotating axle has a displacement capability through an angle of 90°C relative to the above-mentioned line.
  • DE-A-2550016 discloses a planetary gear mechanism for a wire feed device for feeding consumable welding wire into a working zone.
  • the planetary mechanism incorporates planetary rollers which are mounted in supports resting on a hollow driven shaft which is concentric to the wire being fed. The roller supports are pressed against the wire by means of a wedge-type press-down device.
  • the end of the hollow drive shaft of DE-A-2550016 comprises a travel thread on which a support bushing is mounted.
  • a press-fit conical ring is mounted on the shaft behind the thread.
  • the rotary supports which are in the form of two-arm levers mounted in parallel to the shaft axis rest on the side surface of the support bushing.
  • EP-A-0045093 discloses a wire feed mechanism which incorporates feed rollers which rotate about a helical axis around the wire being fed, similar to planetary wheels.
  • the wire feed device further comprises a hollow casing which acts as a load-bearing component and a guide device.
  • the casing is positioned across the longitudinal axis of the wire and symmetrically about it.
  • the casing is enclosed by elements of similar shape which are, in turn, symmetrical about the casing.
  • the aforementioned elements can move axially relative to the casing and each element holds the axle of one of the feed rollers, the casing providing elongated guide recesses for these axles.
  • the weight of the moving elements can be centred to one or both sides of the longitudinal axis of the wire.
  • the mechanism rolling solids run around the aforementioned elements and the wire feed device of EP-A-0045093 is designed for adjustable pressing of the feed rollers to the wire.
  • This wire feed device incorporates spring-loaded elements and magnets at the axial, tangential or radial directions.
  • EP-A-0124170 discloses a wire feed device having a casing which accommodates at least one wire grip having a symmetrical plane and being capable of a reciprocating movement.
  • This wire feed device has certain second guide holes made in two opposing walls, The plate of symmetry of the wire grip coincides with the central longitudinal axis of the first and second guide holes.
  • a chamber surrounding the casing comprises inclined walls which become wider in the direction from the first guide hole to the second guide hole.
  • Two spring-loaded balls allocated within the chamber and the wire grip are associated with the spring-loaded balls.
  • JP-A-60-23907 discloses a wire feed device which is wound spirally, thus forming a guide for the filler wire.
  • the guide rotating about its axis, continuously feeds wire into a working zone.
  • a second layer of the guide is wound around the first layer in a similar fashion, but in the opposite direction, the layers being in contact with each other.
  • Several such layers may be wound in order to form a multi-layer structure.
  • This wire feed device also incorporates a spool for the wire bundle and a pair of press-down cylindrical feed roller Several disadvantages have been found to occur with the prior art devices. In particular, the power source to the electrode can be impaired during electric arc processing of the wire electrode which seriously affects the stability and precision of the process.
  • the use of the wire feed device actuators and other dynamic loads on the wire invariably causes the wire to slip, thereby distorting the wire feed pattern which is unacceptable in high precision technologies such as electric arc processing.”
  • Slipping occurs between the side surface of the wire and the components of the feed device, which rest on this side surface, i.e. the feed rollers, the clamping fasteners and the like. This is a very serious fault, e.g. during welding it may result in complete instability of the arc process, so that a high-quality welded seam will not be obtained.
  • “Sticking" of the wire occurs in the current- supplying area during welding or cutting and is caused by increased coefficient of friction in the wire guide if the shape of the wire is defective (non-cylindrical wire, "breaks” in the wire, etc.) , increased coefficients of friction found in the wire guide at bends therein, instability (fluctuation) of rotation of the magazine with the wire coil, unstable operation of the braking systems of conventional magazines, and "sliding" of the wire between the clamping feed rollers, which have become worn.
  • the prior art wire feed devices are necessarily complicated and comprise a large number of stationary and moving parts arranged in a complex configuration. This means that manufacture of the prior art wire feed devices is expensive and time consuming and the resulting product is large and bulky. If it is decided to change the diameter of the wire being fed, these devices then need complex adjustment or complete replacement of the feeding elements and while the wire being fed is stored on a spool, it is often necessary to use additional devices for elimination of the adverse effect of "self-unwinding" of the spool wire, which lowers the reliability of the wire feeding mechanism.
  • the aim of all feed devices is to wind the wire with the smallest possible diameter (compactness) , chosen in dependence on the properties of the wire. Owing to the resulting elastic forces in the wire, the coil “tries” to unwind (the “self-unwinding” effect) and the wire slides off the magazine or rolls up into a ball and becomes useless.
  • Various additional devices are used in conventional magazines to prevent this (e.g. JP-B-3-33434 , JP-B-3-34424) .
  • Such systems have a very high efficiency and fast capabilities of electric arc process regulation, but due to use of the prior art wire feed devices, are large and bulky with extremely complicated structures, have low reliability of co-ordination of the electrode feed patterns of the plurality of electrode wires and resulting difficulties in electric insulation of dissimilar potentials and phases of the multiple electrode wires.
  • the present invention is based on the realisation that the impairment of power to the electrode is usually caused by distortion of the surface and/or cross-sectional shape of the electrode.
  • a device for feeding a flexible elongate member comprising retaining means, guide means and means for exerting a force on a flexible elongate member, parallel to the longitudinal axis of the member, without substantial force exerted on the member transverse to the longitudinal axis.
  • the device further comprises drive means, and more preferably the means for exerting force on the elongate member comprise the retaining means which are driven by the drive means.
  • the retaining means comprises a spool, preferably such that the elongate member is retainable on the inner annular surface of the spool.
  • the inner annular surface has a co ⁇ efficient of friction which may be provided by knurling the inner annular surface of the spool.
  • the inner annular surface comprises a stop for fixing in position a free end of an elongate member.
  • the guide means of the device comprise a flexible cantilevered inlet port having increasing stiffness from a flexible tip to a relatively rigid root. It is preferred that the flexible cantilevered inlet port is located adjacent the retaining means.
  • the device of the present invention may comprise a plurality of retaining means and preferably comprises a plurality of guide means associated with the plurality of retaining means.
  • each retaining means has at least one guide means associated therewith.
  • the device of the present invention is particularly useful for feeding a wire electrode and may be incorporated into any convenient wire electrode processing apparatus.
  • the present invention further provides a method of feeding a flexible elongate member using a device according to the present invention, which method comprises retaining a flexible elongate member in the retaining means, exerting a force on the member parallel to the longitudinal axis thereof without substantial force exerted on the member transverse to the longitudinal axis and guiding the movement of the flexible elongate member, driven by the force exerted by the means for exerting force, using the guide means.
  • the present invention uses a completely different physical principle to that of the prior art - the production of forces parallel to the axis of the wire electrode over the entire cross-section without any deforming action on the side surface of the wire.
  • the wire feed device of the present invention comprises novel components and introduces modifications in the existing conventional components of a wire feed device, so as to implement the said physical principle.
  • the wire feed device of a preferred embodiment of the present invention uses a radically different method of feeding wire whereby the wire "feeds itself” without the use of actuators which specifically contact the surface of the wire.
  • This embodiment also eliminates any slippage effects, thereby allowing the provision of a constant wire feed pattern and highly precise and stable electric arc processing techniques.
  • the problem of slipping is solved by use of a completely different physical feed principle, the design of the magazine, and the absence of components exerting force on the side surface of the wire.
  • the assigned parameters of electrode free end movement are precisely maintained.
  • Direct transmission of the torque to the wire without any auxiliary mechanisms and without applying elasto-plastic actions to the wire allows maximum possible efficiency of the conversion of the drive moment into a linear force during transformation of the rotational movement of the magazine into translational movement of the wire and consequential improvement of the efficiency of the drive mechanism, thereby allowing the use of motors of lower power and smaller overall dimension.
  • the simplified structure of the wire feed device of the present invention allows a reduction in the number of stationary and moving parts and minimisation of the overall dimension of the device as a whole, thereby resulting in minimal wear and energy consumption, higher operating reliability and easier standardisation of wire feed devices for feeding electrode wire of different diameters.
  • the use of non-contact and, therefore, non-wearing actuators also increase the life of the device.
  • the structure of the wire feed device of the present invention allows the generation of an actual feeding force which is uniformly distributed all over the cross-section of the wire as well as accurate transmission of the assigned drive movement at the working end of the wire. Furthermore, the simplicity of the design allows an easier standardisation of the feed devices for different electrode wire diameters allowing the provision of easily replaceable, simply manufactured parts to allow the wire feed device to operate with different electrode wires with differing diameters. The reduction in the number of moving parts also allows a higher operating reliability as well as a much longer working life due to the elimination of many interacting parts and therefore a great reduction in overall wear.
  • the wire electrodes need not be completely of metal.
  • a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises two main features - a wire magazine in the form of a spool and a wire guide having a flexible, cantilevered inlet tip with increasing stiffness along the guide toward the root and preferably also a drive.
  • a spool is attached in cantilever fashion to the end of a drive shaft, such that the rotation of the drive shaft causes rotation of the spool.
  • the spool is attached to the end of the drive shaft in an electrically insulated fashion thereby electrically insulating the spool and the wire thereon from the other parts of the drive.
  • the preferred design of the magazine spool in the wire feed device of the present invention is one in which the wire is wound and stored in an inner surface of the spool rather than on an outer surface of the spool (as in traditional methods) and in which movement between the spool and wire is restrained by the highly frictional inner surface of the spool, which allows close winding of the wire by using the effect of "self-unwinding" of the coil of wire and rotation of the coil of wire and spool as a single element.
  • the wire is wound on an external cylindrical surface (an ordinary reel) .
  • the wire is wound on an internal cylindrical surface. This, for example, automatically eliminates the harmful effect of self- unwinding of a wire coil, as on an ordinary reel. This problem is solved by the magazine itself, without any additional devices.
  • the wire is coiled and placed within the spool so that the un-coiling of the wire causes the wire to press firmly against the inner surface of the spool.
  • the inner surface of the spool has a high co ⁇ efficient of friction, either by means of manufacture of the inner surface of the spool using any suitable material having a high co-efficient of friction or by physically structuring the inner surface of the spool so as to have such a high co-efficient of friction, e.g. by knurling.
  • This allows the wire to rotate with the spool with no slippage between the wire and the spool thus ensuring full transmission of the drive moment from the spool to the wire.
  • the spool may comprise a wire stop against which the end of the wire that is not being unwound from the spool may be placed so as to prevent slippage of the wire within the spool.
  • a magazine spool may be made of any suitable material, for example a steel alloy which is easily machined or stamped, casting alloys, aluminium alloys, heat setting thermoplastics or any other suitable constructional materials.
  • the material from which the magazine is to be made will depend on the operating characteristics of the spool. If electrical insulation is required, at least the inner surface of the spool should be made of a dielectric material and the whole spool may be made of such a material. Any appropriate dielectric material may be used such as ebonite or polyethylene.
  • the diameter of the magazine spool may be calculated in known fashion in respect of the diameter of the wire. In this respect, it is generally accepted that the most acceptable ratio of the diameter of the wire to the inner diameter of the spool is 1:75 to 1:125. Construction within this ratio allows the provision of the most efficient construction.
  • the free end of the wire is tangentially removed from the spool and fed into the flexible inlet tip of the cantilevered wire guide.
  • This arrangement presents several advantages. Firstly, because of the high friction co-efficient on the inner surface of the spool which eliminates slippage between the free end of the outer layer of the wire bundle and the inner surface of the spool, it is possible to use the elastic force of the wire, acting against the curvature of the wire bundle, in order to achieve a uniform distribution of the wire over the entire inner circular space of the spool and thus restrain the wire bundle within the spool completely. Furthermore, if the inner surface of the spool is manufactured from a suitable material, the spool itself can ensure total electrical insulation of the electrode wire from the remainder of the drive.
  • the high co-efficient of friction between the wire and the inner surface of the spool allows rotation of the wire bundle and the spool as a single element allowing smooth tangential removal of the wire from the spool. Furthermore, due to the leverage on the bundle being equal to the radius of the turn being unwound minus the width of the wire bundle, maximum possible efficiency of the drive moment conversion into linear force is achieved. This leads to the ability to maintain precisely the assigned parameters of the movement of the free end of the wire electrode, guided through the wire guide, by maintaining precise drive moment.
  • the flexible cantilever inlet of the wire guide is one of the main components of the entire device. It necessarily has variable stiffness (flexibility) .
  • One analogue is a fishing rod in which the line runs inside the rod. The thin end, from which the line depends, must be very pliant for maximum sensitivity, whereas the handle portion must be very rigid to allow full control.
  • the inlet tip and root of the wire guide must have similar characteristics.
  • the flexible cantilever inlet with its varying rigidity, is what ultimately, and with the maximum possible advantageous effect, implements the inventive physical principle of wire fee ⁇ in the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
  • this construction of this component ensures other advantageous functions and stabilises the motion of the wire.
  • the point at which the electrode wire leaves the wire bundle on the inner surface of the magazine spool must, necessarily, vary both in distance from the inner surface of the magazine spool as well as in its transverse position across the surface of the spool. Therefore, the free portion of wire between the inner surface of the spool and the wire guide is necessarily moving in a three dimensional manner with the movement of the point at which the wire leaves the bundle on the inner surface of the spool.
  • the flexible inlet port of the preferred embodiment of the present invention is able to move in response to that three dimensional movement.
  • Stability of the free wire portion is determined by the resilience of the particular wire used (e.g. the elastic limit of the particular material of the electrode wire and the diameter of the wire) . It is known that, inevitably, any electrode wire used will have some technologically acceptable defects such as fluctuation in the elastic limit, slight defects in the shape or slight buckling. For these reasons, the free wire portion will fluctuate but this will fluctuate within a previously set range known as the "stable section", which range is determined experimentally for each specific case. The automatic adjustment of this range occurs by setting the inlet port at a specific distance from the point at which the wire leaves the bundle on the inner surface of the spool.
  • the optimum length of this free wire portion is an experimental quantity which is determined under specific operating conditions and depends upon the resilience of the wire used, the diameter of the wire used, the feed rate, the distance from the device to the working area, the total length of the wire guide itself and the coefficient of friction within the wire guide. It is determined after repeated monitoring of the device using a specific wire. Additional adjustment of this length is brought about by moving the cantilever input relative to the magazine.
  • the cantilever inlet port of the wire guide is positioned so as to set the stable section appropriately and so that the radius of the curvature of the wire continually decreases from the point at which the wire leaves the bundle on the inner surface of the spool until it enters the cantilever inlet port. This together ensures stability of the free wire portion.
  • the free wire portion has a length of from 10 to SO times the diameter of the wire used, more preferably from 10 to 50 times the diameter of the wire used.
  • the cantilevered port of the wire guide stabilises the free portion of the wire over its entire cross-section during transformation of rotational movement of the wire into translational movement without any auxiliary mechanisms, thus further being aided by tangential removal of the wire from the spool.
  • the inner surface of the cantilever inlet port should have a low co-efficient of friction and a high resistance to wear. It is important that microparticles, dislodged from the inner surface of the cantilever inlet port and reaching the surface of the wire, should not significantly influence the technology process in which the device is taking part and the material on the inner surface of the spool should, therefore, be inert with respect to the technological process for which the wire device is being used. Furthermore, it is preferable that the outer surface of the cantilever input port should be electrically insulated.
  • the cantilever inlet port may be manufactured in many different ways including in a layered fashion, with increasing numbers of layers in the wall of the wire guide between the cantilevered inlet port and the root, thereby increasing the rigidity of the wire guide.
  • the number of layers in such a construction, the quality, the chemical compositions of the materials used and other requirements depend upon the conditions in which the device operates.
  • the inlet port may be made of any material which retains elasticity after prolonged operation, such as strip and coil spring steel alloys (Fe-Mn) with a high content of manganese, produced in the form of wires of various diameters, which wires are coiled to form individual layers.
  • Such alloys have high resilience, resistance to wear and strength.
  • Other suitable alloys include spring beryllium bronze (Cu- Be) which is also produced in the form of wires of various diameters, and in the form of ribbons.
  • Such spring beryllium bronze wires and ribbons also have a low friction coefficient.
  • the inner surface of the cantilever inlet port is coated with a substance having a minimum co-efficient of friction, such as TEFLON (Trade Mark) , a fluoroplastic or similar substances.
  • TEFLON Trade Mark
  • fluoroplastic or similar substances.
  • the cantilever inlet port must be flexible, at least towards the tip, there are, of course, limits. These will depend upon the individual circumstances in v/hich the cantilever inlet guide is to be used and are easily determinable.
  • the flexibility of the cantilever inlet port at the tip thereof is substantially equal to the rigidity of the electrode wire at the point at which the wire leaves the bundle on the inner surface of the spool. It is particularly preferred that the maximum rigidity of the cantilever inlet port is at the root, at the point in which the cantilever inlet port is fixed, and that this maximum rigidity shows an absence of elastic deformation. It is particularly preferred that the outer diameter of the cantilever inlet port, at the place at which the cantilever inlet port is fixed, should be no less than 5 diameters of the electrode wire itself. It is also particularly preferred that the length of the cantilever inlet port is approximately 15 to 25% of the circumferential length of the inner surface of the magazine spool.
  • the inlet port and inlet tip of the cantilevered wire guide is located adjacent the magazine spool.
  • the inner tip has, as has been stated above, flexibility, so as to allow the inlet tip to adapt a curvature in three dimensions in accordance with the shape of the free portion of wire entering the inlet port.
  • the stiffness of the wire guide increases thereby gradually guiding the wire electrode passing therethrough in a given direction. Therefore, at the inlet tip the wire guide adapts its curvature to the shape of the free wire portion entering the wire guide whilst toward the root the roles are reversed and the path of the wire electrode is determined by the wire guide. This allows a stable and smooth transition of the path of the electrode wire from the wire bundle to the wire guide.
  • Another advantage of the wire feed device of the preferred embodiment of the present invention is that several spools can be mounted on the same drive shaft for feeding a plurality of electrode wires into a multi-arc process. Because the spools are electrically insulated from each other and from other parts of the wire feed device, this leads to simpler and more reliable electrical insulation of the electrodes and allows electrical insulation of the dissimilar potential and phases of the different electrode wires. Also, because several spools can be mounted on the same drive shaft, this allows for synchronisation of the feeding of the electrode wires into multi-arc processes and identical transmission of the same feed pattern to each work zone.
  • Figure la shows a first prior art wire feed device.
  • Figure lb shows a second prior art feed device.
  • Figure lc shows a third prior art feed device.
  • Figure Id shows a fourth prior art feed device.
  • Figure 2 shows a perspective partially sectioned view of a first embodiment of the present invention.
  • Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the device of Figure 2 along lines III-III.
  • Figure 4 shows a side view of the feed device of Figure 2.
  • Figure 5 shows a partial view of the magazine spool of Figure
  • Figure 6 shows a partially sectioned front perspective view of a wire feed device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
  • Figure 7 shows a schematic view of possible spacial positions of the cantilevered wire guide port.
  • Figure 8 shows a front perspective partially- sectioned view of a wire feed device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
  • Figure 9 shows a transverse sectional view through an alternative magazine and drive arrangement.
  • Figure 10 shows a transverse sectional view through a second alternative magazine and drive arrangement.
  • Figure 11 shows a transverse sectional view through a third alternative magazine and drive arrangement.
  • Figure 12 shows a front perspective view of a fourth alternative magazine and drive arrangement for feeding wire of a very small diameter.
  • the first embodiment of the present invention shown in Figures 2 to 5 comprises a drive 1 which, in turn, comprises a motor 2 and a transmission, in the form of a reduction gear, 3.
  • the outward shaft of the drive 1 bears, on the free end thereof, a cantilevered magazine in the form of an annular spool, 4.
  • the spool 4 comprises a hub, a back wall extending radially from the hub, an annular flange extending from the back wall parallel to the hub and an annular lip, depending from the free edge of the flange extending inwardly towards the hub. This arrangement gives rise to an annular space bounded by the back wall, the flange and the lip, within the spool.
  • the internal annular space of the spool is knurled so as to have a very high friction coefficient.
  • the internal space also comprises, on the internal face of the flange, a notch, shown in Figure 5, which forms a wire stop 5.
  • the wire guide 6 Located adjacent the open face of the spool 4 is the wire guide 6. This comprises an elongate hollow guide member through which a wire electrode 8 is passed increasing in rigidity from the flexible cantilevered inlet port at the tip through to the relatively rigid root.
  • the inlet port of the wire guide 6 is cantilevered and increases in stiffness from a very flexible inlet port tip toward the substantially more rigid root of the wire guide 6.
  • the root of the wire guide 6 is secured by a bracket 7 which is adjustable allow fine adjustment of the positioning of the wire guide inlet port in relation to a coil of wire 8 located within the spool 4.
  • the root end of the elongate wire guide 6 is attached to a conventional wire guide 9 which allows the wire to pass therethrough smoothly, guiding the wire 8 to the work zone.
  • a suitable coil of wire 8 is first placed in the magazine spool 4.
  • the free end of the wire is located in the wire stop notch 5 to prevent slippage of the free end of the wire against the movement of rotation of the spool 4 during wire feeding.
  • the diameter of the inner surface of the spool 4 is chosen so that, as a result of the elasticity of the wire 8, the first coiled layer of wire 8 tightly abuts the inner surface of the flange.
  • the next layer is placed on the first wound layer, and so on.
  • the elasticity of the wire 8 itself ensures maximum density of packing.
  • the spool 4 and the coil of wire 8 become so tightly conjoined as to act as a single whole.
  • the drive torque may be transmitted, without any slipping or other defects, to the feed point 10 at which the wire 8 leaves the coil, i.e. to the beginning of the free portion 11 of the wire 8.
  • the free end of the wire 8 which is to be passed to the work zone is separated from the coil at a point adjacent the tip of the cantilevered inlet port of the wire guide 6 and threaded into the cantilevered inlet port of the wire guide 6, through the wire guide 6 and the conventional wire guide 9, out to the work zone.
  • the feed point 10 is the point at which the wire leaves the coil to form a short free portion 11 extending into the cantilever inlet port.
  • the spacial position of the cantilever inlet port of the wire guide 6 is then carefully adjusted relative to the feed point 10 so as to set an optimal length of the free portion 11 of the wire 8 extending from the feed point 10 to the cantilever inlet port of the wire guide 6 so as to ensure stability of this length throughout operation.
  • the spool 4 When the wire feed device has only one magazine in all, the spool 4 is rigidly fastened to the cantilever output power shaft of the drive 1.
  • the advantages of this fastening of the spool 4 are immediate transmission of driving torque to the free portion 11 of the wire 8 without additional components and devices, the possibility of standardising the connecting unit of the output drive shaft for spools 4 of varying diameter (a set of spools 4 for wires 8 of varying diameters) , and, in the case of wire more than 3 mm in diameter, the spool 4 has sufficient free internal space for receiving the entire power drive.
  • the free portion of wire ll is always between the beginning of the flexible inlet port and the feed point 10 of the coil. The length of this portion remains practically constant all the time.
  • This length is determined by the length of the flexible inlet of the wire guide and is automatically maintained by its elastic properties and the elasticity of the wire 8 itself.
  • the length of the free portion 11 may increase by 5 - 10%. This increase is unimportant and does not affect the stability of this portion of wire 8.
  • Compressive forces on the free portion of wire 11 result from forces transmitted to this portion of wire from the drive 1 (via the magazine spool 4 and wire coil) and are directed towards any frictional forces occurring in the flexible inlet of the wire guide 6 and the main standard wire guide 9, which are both constructed so as to reduce such frictional forces as far as possible.
  • the drive 1 When the wire 8 is required to be fed to the work zone, the drive 1 is operated so as to rotate the spool 4. In this way the induced moment of the output shaft of the drive 1 is transmitted to the spool 4. Because of the tight contact between the coil of wire 8 and the inner surface of the flange of the spool 4, the rotary moment applied by the shaft of the drive 1 is transmitted, through the spool 4, to the coil of wire 8. As the free end of the wire 8 passes the feed point 10, the wire 8 leaves the coil to form the free portion 11.
  • Figure 6 shows a wire feed mechanism constructed in a similar manner to the wire feed mechanism shown in Figures 2 to 5 but with the feed point 10 and the wire guide 6 orientated in different spacial alignment with the spool and drive.
  • Figure 7 shows five possible spacial arrangements of the cantilevered inlet port of the wire guide 6 with respect to the spool 4 illustrating the flexibility of orientation of wire feed from a device according to the present invention.
  • FIG 8 illustrates a further embodiment of the present invention in which several wire electrodes are to be fed to the same work zone using the same feed pattern.
  • three separate magazine spools 4 are mounted on a single shaft of a drive 1 in electrically insulated fashion.
  • Each magazine spool 4 has a cantilever inlet port of a wire guide 6 associated with the magazine spool 4 in the same way as has been previously illustrated with the single magazine spool 4 of the wire feed device illustrated in Figures 2 to 5.
  • a multiple spool wire feed device such as that shown in Figure 8 has the advantage that, because all the spools 4 are located on a single drive shaft, there is guaranteed synchronisation of transmission of the feed pattern to each wire 8 being fed to the work zone.
  • Figures 9, 10 and 11 illustrate differing constructions of magazine spools 4 for mounting on the same drive shaft, for use with wire 8 of differing diameters.
  • the magazine spool 4a illustrated in Figure 9 is suitable for feeding wire of a large diameter
  • the magazine spool 4b illustrated in Figure 10 is suitable for feeding wire of a medium diameter
  • the magazine spool 4c shown in Figure 11 is suitable for feeding wire of a small diameter.
  • Figure 12 illustrates a small magazine spool 4d designed for feeding wire 8 of extremely small diameter which spool 4d has the same diameter as the drive shaft of the drive 1.
  • a device having a multi-purpose magazine, 70 mm in diameter is capable of holding wire electrodes from 0.18 mm to 0.80 mm in diameter.
  • the holding capacity (length of wire of a given diameter) of such a magazine spool is as follows:
  • a cantilevered inlet port may be manufactured in several ways to suit the wire electrode being fed.
  • the cantilevered inlet port is manufactured from layers of wound wire overlaid in stepped fashion to increase the rigidity of the cantilever inlet port toward the root thereof.
  • To feed a wire 0.5 mm in diameter it is necessary to construct a cantilever inlet 30 mm long.
  • An ordinary cylindrical "turn to turn" spring 30 mm long, with an inner diameter 0.8 mm, is made from spring wire 0.3 mm in diameter.
  • the next spring, 20 mm long is wound on the second layer from the same one end, and so on.
  • the flexible cantilever inlet of the wire guide is stepped. At its larger diameter it may be connected to a standard wire guide.
  • the flexibility of the inlet can be regulated by varying at least one of the number of layers of winding, the proportional length of each winding relative to the others, the winding density (fehe distance between turns) , the resiliency of the material for the wound layers, various diameters of wire for preparing the layers, or a combination of these.
  • More complicated technologies can be used for providing this component with continuously changing stiffness from the flexibility at the inlet tip to the stiffness of the fastening at the root, as a separate component made of composite materials. This elasticity is what enables the entire device to work.
  • This component can be standardised for wire electrodes of any diameter.
  • the speed of rotation of the magazine spool 4 may change during operation in accordance with any laws (which are necessary for the final process, i.e. welding, cutting, spraying etc) . This does not affect the operation and reliability of the device.
  • the speed of rotation of the device may be varied considerably so as to allow the device to have a linear feed rate of between 0.01 mm/min and several tens of m/min.
  • the speed may be smoothly varied in broad ranges such as 5- lOOmm/min, 100-lOOOmm/min and 1 to 22 metres/min.
  • a device according to the present invention may be constructed for wire electrodes of anywhere between O.lOmm and 6.0mm in diameter.
  • the devices according to the present invention are intended to be able to replace the majority of existing feed mechanisms in all automatic or semi-automatic welding machines, irrespective of capacity, to provide the advantages discussed above, of high reliability, extreme stability to working processes and longevity.
  • the device according to the present invention for use with multiple magazine wire feeds greatly simplifies and reduces the overall dimension of the system compared with those of the prior art.
  • Simple means may be employed to electrically insulate the various potentials and phases of a number of electrode wires so as to, for example, insulate a multiple arc welding station with consumable wire electrodes for use in a process in which three arcs burn in a single common welding tank at zero potential, using a 3-phase operating current.
  • the device of the present invention simplifies the construction and increases the reliability of a wide number of feed devices such as those for multi-electrode feeding and multi-pass welding in a narrow gap.
  • the device of the present invention is useful in a wide variety of technologies, such as welding, welding and soldering, cutting and spraying or in jet engines, including those used in space, in which the device is a part of the fuel system, if the fuel is metal vapour, e.g. copper vapour.
  • the device of the present invention can be used for direct or indirect arc machining of metals and/or non metals using a consumable or slowly consumable wire electrode being an all metal electrode or flux-cored wire electrode.
  • the wire electrode may be made of many materials such as, for example, copper, tungsten, titanium or steel.
  • the high accuracy and stability of operation together with the compact nature of the wire feed device allows the use of the device in a broader range of applications than has previously been possible including multi-arc systems in high precision arc processes involving u'ltra fine electrode diameters.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Plasma & Fusion (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Electrical Discharge Machining, Electrochemical Machining, And Combined Machining (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un dispositif d'alimentation en fil-électrode comprenant des moyens d'entraînement servant à mettre en rotation une bobine maintenant un fil-électrode sur sa surface intérieure par friction. Le fil est tiré du rouleau à l'intérieur de la bobine et est introduit dans un orifice d'entrée en porte-à-faux du guide de fil, cet orifice d'entrée étant souple au niveau de son extrémité supérieure et relativement rigide au niveau de son extrémité inférieure, de manière à transformer le déplacement rotatif du rouleau de fil en déplacement longitudinal du fil passant à travers le guide. Ce dispositif est utile pour alimenter en fil-électrode une zone de traitement, telle qu'une zone de soudure à l'arc.
PCT/GB1996/002526 1995-10-20 1996-10-16 Dispositif d'alimentation en fil WO1997014527A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AU73110/96A AU7311096A (en) 1995-10-20 1996-10-16 Wire feed device

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
UA95104601 1995-10-20
UA95104601 1995-10-20

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO1997014527A1 true WO1997014527A1 (fr) 1997-04-24

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ID=21689084

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/GB1996/002526 WO1997014527A1 (fr) 1995-10-20 1996-10-16 Dispositif d'alimentation en fil

Country Status (2)

Country Link
AU (1) AU7311096A (fr)
WO (1) WO1997014527A1 (fr)

Cited By (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2836078A1 (fr) * 2002-02-18 2003-08-22 Soudure Autogene Francaise Platine de devidage de fil de soudage a galets coniques
DE102008004602A1 (de) * 2008-01-16 2009-07-30 Daimler Ag Lichtbogendrahtbrenner
DE102008024240A1 (de) * 2008-05-19 2009-12-03 Daimler Ag Beschichtungsvorrichtung und Verfahren zu deren Versorgung mit einem Beschichtungsdraht
WO2011062876A1 (fr) * 2009-11-17 2011-05-26 Illinois Tool Works Inc. Dispositif d'alimentation en fil à souder compact
DE102013226361A1 (de) 2013-01-04 2014-07-10 Ford-Werke Gmbh Vorrichtung zum thermischen Beschichten einer Oberfläche
US10124354B2 (en) 2013-01-04 2018-11-13 Ford Global Technologies, Llc Plasma nozzle for thermal spraying using a consumable wire
DE102019127465A1 (de) * 2019-10-11 2021-04-15 Technische Hochschule Köln Drahtvorschubsystem und Verfahren zum Transportieren eines Elektrodendrahtes

Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE947504C (de) * 1943-09-16 1956-08-16 Kjellberg Elektroden & Maschin Drahthaspel fuer Lichtbogenschweissautomat
US3014519A (en) * 1959-05-25 1961-12-26 L & B Welding Equipment Inc Drive assembly
US3365139A (en) * 1964-09-16 1968-01-23 British Oxygen Co Ltd Conveying systems for flexible elongate material
GB1193434A (en) * 1966-05-11 1970-06-03 Nat Res Dev Resilient Band Feed with Deflection Detector
FR2071007A5 (fr) * 1969-12-15 1971-09-17 Commercy Trefileries Ate
US4531682A (en) * 1982-02-03 1985-07-30 Deutche Gesellschaft Fur Wiederaufarbeitung Von Kernrennstoffen Gmbh Apparatus for feeding a wire from a coil to a processing station

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE947504C (de) * 1943-09-16 1956-08-16 Kjellberg Elektroden & Maschin Drahthaspel fuer Lichtbogenschweissautomat
US3014519A (en) * 1959-05-25 1961-12-26 L & B Welding Equipment Inc Drive assembly
US3365139A (en) * 1964-09-16 1968-01-23 British Oxygen Co Ltd Conveying systems for flexible elongate material
GB1193434A (en) * 1966-05-11 1970-06-03 Nat Res Dev Resilient Band Feed with Deflection Detector
FR2071007A5 (fr) * 1969-12-15 1971-09-17 Commercy Trefileries Ate
US4531682A (en) * 1982-02-03 1985-07-30 Deutche Gesellschaft Fur Wiederaufarbeitung Von Kernrennstoffen Gmbh Apparatus for feeding a wire from a coil to a processing station

Cited By (12)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2836078A1 (fr) * 2002-02-18 2003-08-22 Soudure Autogene Francaise Platine de devidage de fil de soudage a galets coniques
EP1338370A2 (fr) * 2002-02-18 2003-08-27 La Soudure Autogene Francaise Platine de dévidage de fil de soudage a galets coniques
EP1338370A3 (fr) * 2002-02-18 2006-02-08 La Soudure Autogene Francaise Platine de dévidage de fil de soudage a galets coniques
DE102008004602A1 (de) * 2008-01-16 2009-07-30 Daimler Ag Lichtbogendrahtbrenner
DE102008004602B4 (de) 2008-01-16 2022-01-05 Daimler Ag Innen-Lichtbogendrahtbrenner
DE102008024240A1 (de) * 2008-05-19 2009-12-03 Daimler Ag Beschichtungsvorrichtung und Verfahren zu deren Versorgung mit einem Beschichtungsdraht
DE102008024240B4 (de) * 2008-05-19 2016-04-07 Daimler Ag Beschichtungsvorrichtung und Verfahren zu deren Versorgung mit einem Beschichtungsdraht
WO2011062876A1 (fr) * 2009-11-17 2011-05-26 Illinois Tool Works Inc. Dispositif d'alimentation en fil à souder compact
DE102013226361A1 (de) 2013-01-04 2014-07-10 Ford-Werke Gmbh Vorrichtung zum thermischen Beschichten einer Oberfläche
DE102013226361B4 (de) 2013-01-04 2018-05-09 Ford-Werke Gmbh Vorrichtung zum thermischen Beschichten einer Oberfläche
US10124354B2 (en) 2013-01-04 2018-11-13 Ford Global Technologies, Llc Plasma nozzle for thermal spraying using a consumable wire
DE102019127465A1 (de) * 2019-10-11 2021-04-15 Technische Hochschule Köln Drahtvorschubsystem und Verfahren zum Transportieren eines Elektrodendrahtes

Also Published As

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