Lincoln Global, Inc.

Robert J Sowko

Dennis D Crockett

Bruce E Fulmer

A method of welding together two steel plates with a thickness greater than about 3/8 inches from one side of the plates, the method comprising the steps of: tapering a generally straight edge of the plates to form an included angle in the range of about 40-60.degree. with a nose at the protruding portion of each edge; positioning the plates with the edges spaced from each other to define an elongated channel with the nose of each edge at the bottom of the channel and spaced from each other to define an elongated generally straight gap with a width g; moving an electrode having a diameter of less than approximately 0.05 inches at a wire feed speed of at least about 450 inches per minute along and in the channel and slightly above the bottom noses; applying a DC current passed between the electrode and the noses to cause an arc welding process to melt the electrode and the noses to form a root pass in the lower area of the channel at the gap and between the edges of said plates; controlling the DC current to control the output in a desired fashion to deliver a set of current pulses, the pulses being formed at a given rate and by a multitude of closely spaced current segments having controlled magnitudes to determine, with the rate, the energy delivered by the current pulses; and, adjusting travel speed to accommodate variations in the gap between the plates being joined and/or the current pulses to prevent overheating at the root pass.

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Wickliffe, OH, United States of America

Robert J Sowko