Automation of welding face shaping process for tubular structures

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the development of a low cost fully automatic computer controlled oxy‐fuel cutting system for tubular members. Operation of the system should be easy even for unskilled technicians. Design/methodology/approach – The robot consists of one revolute axis and two linear axes. As the pipe rotates, two cutting torches move linearly at both ends of the pipe to complete the cutting process in one rotation. Both torch's cutting paths are calculated in a computer offline. Tool paths are then loaded in a micro control unit for each cutting. When the pipe is attached to the system, the whole cutting process can be completed automatically. The mathematical method for calculation of the geometry of intersecting cylinders is also explained in this paper. Findings – The automation of oxy‐fuel cutting process brings enhancement in the final product quality, considerable increase of repeatability, reduction of rework and reduction of the cutting time. Originality/value – The use of this automated flame cutting system proved to be extremely viable. Although, there are commercial devices for cutting tubular members, the product shown here is completely different than the previous systems. This device can be called a CNC system due to its capability of being completely programmable and automatically carrying through all cutting activities. This is the first system cutting both sides of pipe simultaneously to reduce cutting time.