General Electric Company

James A Mees

Louis L Aiello

James Edward Charnley

Robert C Dixon

A laser profiler is mounted to the focusing head for a laser welding beam to generate profile data for successive transverse viewing planes of an elongated joint prior to their presentations to the welding beam. The profile data is computer processed in accordance with a joint extraction algorithm using parameters defined in a tracking schedule characterizing the geometry of the joint to calculate the location of the joint centerline. The centerline location data is computer processed in accordance with a tracking algorithm to generate signals for activating a positioning head to adjust the position of the welding beam focal point and thus to track the moving joint as seam welding is effected.

Precision joint tracking laser welding system

An apparatus and process for the construction of a cruciformed section control rod is disclosed. The control rod is characterized by having square exterior sectioned tubes with central cylindrical volumes for the containment of neutron absorbing poisons. In the process, these tubes are welded together at the corners of the square sections to form the planar members of the cruciformed shaped rods. An apparatus and process is disclosed in which the rods are all held by a jig in the same configuration as is ultimately fabricated. Thereafter, the jig is drawn through fixtures, which fixtures accurately guide the rods to be joined by welding past paired and opposed laser welding heads. By the expedient of positioning the laser and rapidly drawing the braced together tubes by the laser, control rod fabrication occurs. There results a solid, integral control rod constituting a suitable pressure vessel for neutron absorbers for control of nuclear reactions.

Growing community of inventors

Wilmington, NC, United States of America

James A Mees