Application 173

Robotic Spot Welding Force

Application Summary

Robotic spot welders can vastly speed up the manufacturing process by automating welding of complex or hard to access assemblies. The robot must apply the same force to clamp the parts being welded to make a strong, complete weld. To ensure this, an LCB400 Rod End Load Cell is used in line with the tong's actuator to measure clamping force during welding.

Products in Use

One LCB400 Rod End Load Cell paired with Instrumentation (IAA Series or IDA100).

How it Works

An LCB400 Rod End Load Cell is installed in line with the actuator controlling the spot welding tongs.
As the actuator closes the tongs around a part, the LCB400 measures the force applied onto the part.
The measurement from the LCB400 is then sent to the IAA series or IDA100 Strain Gauge Analog Amplifiers.
An amplified analog signal is then sent to the PLC controlling the spot welding tongs enabling clamp force control.
Additionally, our SENSIT software can be used to log sensor output for quality control purposes from the IDA100.