IP Library Granted Patent US 12703037
Granted Patent B2
US 12703037 · App. 17/872,618 · Granted Aug 11, 2026

Systems and methods to provide interfaces for control of welding-type systems

Inventors: Justin Durik (Greenville, WI); Steven Blair Massey, Jr. (Appleton, WI); Craig Steven Knoener (Appleton, WI)
Assignee: Illinois Tool Works Inc.
B23K9/091B23K9/0953B23K9/1062B23K9/1087B23K9/32
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12703037
App. No.
17/872,618
Granted
Aug 11, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

An example welding-type power supply includes: power conversion circuitry configured to convert input power to welding-type power; a user interface configured to receive two or more inputs associated with corresponding qualitative characteristics of a welding arc created by the welding-type power, wherein the two or more inputs are defined within corresponding ranges of the respective qualitative characteristics; and control circuitry configured to: in response to a change in a first one of the two or more inputs, determine a corresponding change in a second one of the two or more inputs based on a relationship between the first and second ones of the two or more inputs; determine two or more welding-type parameters based on the two or more inputs; and control the power conversion circuitry based on the determined welding-type parameters.

Claims (41)

1 . A welding-type power supply, comprising:

power conversion circuitry configured to convert input power to welding-type power;

a user interface configured to receive two or more inputs associated with corresponding qualitative characteristics of a welding arc created by the welding-type power, wherein the two or more inputs are defined within corresponding ranges of the respective qualitative characteristics; and

control circuitry configured to:

in response to a change in a first one of the two or more inputs, determine a corresponding change in a second one of the two or more inputs based on a relationship between the first and second ones of the two or more inputs;

determine two or more welding-type parameters based on the two or more inputs; and

control the power conversion circuitry based on the determined welding-type parameters, wherein the user interface further includes a locking input for the second one of the two or more inputs, wherein the control circuitry is configured to not implement the change in the second one of the two or more inputs when the locking input is enabled.

2 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to update the user interface to represent the changes to the second one of the one or more inputs based on the change made to the first one of the one or more inputs.

3 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the user interface further includes an arc length locking input, wherein the control circuitry is configured to determine changes in the second one of the two or more inputs in response to a change in the first one of the two or more inputs based on maintaining an arc length when the arc length locking input is enabled.

4 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 3 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to determine the changes in the second one of the two or more inputs based on maintaining a heat input while the arc length locking input is enabled, wherein the heat input is based on a configuration of the two or more inputs when the arc length locking input is enabled.

5 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 3 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to display a value of the arc length via the user interface.

6 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the two or more welding-type parameters comprise two or more pulse parameters.

7 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to determine the change in the second one of the two or more inputs based on a lookup table representative of at least one of the relationship or sets of parameter values for the qualitative characteristics.

8 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the two or more inputs comprise two or more arc pulsing qualities.

9 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 8 , wherein the two or more arc pulsing qualities comprise two or more of: a pulse peak, a pulse background, a pulse width, a pulse frequency, or a pulse ramp rate.

10 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the user interface comprises a touchscreen configured to show the two or more inputs.

11 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 10 , wherein the two or more inputs each include an interactive slider input, in which the touchscreen is configured to enable manipulation of each slider input within a corresponding range of the slider input.

12 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the two or more inputs comprise two or more of: an arc heat input; an arc penetration; an arc length; an arc width; or an arc stiffness.

13 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the user interface includes three or more inputs associated with corresponding qualitative characteristics of the welding arc, the control circuitry configured to, in response to the change in the first one of the three or more inputs, determine a corresponding change in the second one of the three or more inputs based on the first one of the three or more inputs and a third one of the three or more inputs.

14 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the user interface includes three or more inputs associated with corresponding qualitative characteristics of the welding arc, the control circuitry configured to, in response to the change in the first one of the three or more inputs, determine corresponding changes in the second one of the three or more inputs and in a third one of the three or more inputs, based on the change in the first one of the three or more inputs.

15 . A welding-type power supply, comprising:

power conversion circuitry configured to convert input power to welding-type power;

a user interface configured to receive two or more inputs associated with corresponding qualitative characteristics of a welding bead created by the welding-type power, wherein the two or more inputs are defined within corresponding ranges of the respective qualitative characteristics; and

control circuitry configured to:

in response to a change in a first one of the two or more inputs, determine a corresponding change in a second one of the two or more inputs based on a relationship between the first and second ones of the two or more inputs;

determine two or more welding-type parameters based on the two or more inputs; and

control the power conversion circuitry based on the determined welding-type parameters, wherein the user interface further includes a locking input for the second one of the two or more inputs, wherein the control circuitry is configured to not implement the change in the second one of the two or more inputs when the locking input is enabled.

16 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the user interface further comprises an input associated with a qualitative characteristics of a welding arc.

17 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the user interface further comprises an input associated with a qualitative characteristics of robotic welding.

18 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 15 , wherein the qualitative characteristics of a welding bead comprise at least one of a weld bead width, a weld bead height, a weld bead concavity, or a penetration.

19 . A welding interface, comprising:

a user interface configured to receive two or more inputs associated with corresponding qualitative characteristics of a welding arc, a welding bead, or a combination of the welding arc and the welding bead, wherein the two or more inputs are defined within corresponding ranges of the respective qualitative characteristics; and

control circuitry configured to:

in response to a change in a first one of the two or more inputs, determine a corresponding change in a second one of the two or more inputs based on a relationship between the first and second ones of the two or more inputs; and

determine two or more welding-type parameters based on the two or more inputs, wherein the user interface further includes a locking input for the second one of the two or more inputs, wherein the control circuitry is configured to not implement the change in the second one of the two or more inputs when the locking input is enabled.

20 . The welding-type power supply as defined in claim 1 , wherein the user interface is configured to:

receive three or more inputs, comprising the first one of the two or more inputs, the second one of the two or more inputs, and a third input corresponding to a third qualitative characteristic of the welding arc,

wherein the user interface further includes a first selectable locking input for the second one of the two or more inputs,

wherein the control circuitry is configured to:

while the first locking input is not selected, in response to a change in the first one of the two or more inputs, determine a corresponding change in the second one of the two or more inputs and a corresponding change in the third input based on a first relationship between the third input and the first and second ones of the two or more inputs; and

while the first locking input is selected, in response to a change in the first one of the two or more inputs, lock the second one of the two or more inputs against changes and determine a corresponding change in the third input based on a second relationship between the third input and the first and second ones of the two or more inputs.