Application of switch back welding to V groove MAG welding

Abstract

The formation of stable back beads in a root pass weld during one side multi-layer welding is important to achieve high quality welded metal joints in MAG welding. The authors employed the switch back welding method for V groove joints without backing plates. In this switch back welding method, the torch moves forward and backward with an oscillation frequency of 2.5 Hz. In order to achieve this welding, personal computers control the conventional welding robot, the power source characteristic and the wire feeder unit. During the forward, the torch is weaving on the V groove gap without the weld pool. If the weaving width becomes wider than the proper width, the tip of the wire becomes high and a good back bead cannot be obtained. The weaving width is adjusted so as to get the proper width in the switch back welding. The suitability of the welding conditions for each root gap was verified by observation of the arc, the weld pool and the external appearance of back beads. A good back bead was obtained under V groove welding in 2–4 mm gap.