Modeling and Intelligent Control of a Robotic Gas Metal Arc Welding System

Abstract

Welding is an important manufacturing process that can be automated and optimized. This paper focuses on the development of a robotic arc welding system, wherein a three-degreeof- freedom Selective Compliance Assembly Robot Arm (SCARA) is interfaced to a Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) process. The entire system is composed of a robot linked to a GMAW system. Set points are derived using the desired mass and heat input, along with the weld speed. The stick-out and the current of the welding process are controlled using an Adaptive Neural Network Controller (ANNC). The trajectory of the robot or the weld prole is also controlled by implementing a Mixed Fuzzy-GA Controller (MFGAC) on a three-axis SCARA robot. The system is, then, analyzed and the results show adequate improvement in the eciency and performance of the proposed controller in welding a curvilinear weld prole.