Why Orbital Welding Does it Better

Industrialization and automation have taught us the value of machines: a good machine can do a lot more work than a person a lot faster and a lot more reliably. This truth isn’t limited to tractors or robotic arms either. As technologies advance they demand higher technology from the processes used to produce them. Semiconductor manufacturing provides a fine case study in manufacturing technology opening the doors to other technologies.

Introduced in the 1960′s to the aerospace industry, orbital tube welding equipment has allowed us to produce technologies that that would be impossible to produce with even the most adept human welders. Chips, solar panels, and even standard electronic equipment require microscopic welds without any contamination that cannot be executed by the human eye or human hands with a regular arc. Even larger applications like the fitting of large aircraft parts together benefit from the special qualities of today’s orbital tube welding, without which welds would be of inferior quality and consistency.

Today’s equipment improves on older equipment and human hands in a few ways. First, orbital tube weld heads create a near-perfect inert environment in which the arc operates by creating a near. This practically eliminates any contamination of welded materials with atmospheric gasses that can cause a change conductive properties or cause warping – in other words, new weld heads greatly reduce contamination that could render many finished goods useless. A more inert environment also serves to keep arc length and direction consistent, which ensures the weld is more accurately implemented. Second, advances in gas purification make it economically possible for manufacturers to use high-purity gasses. Purer gasses greatly reduce contamination and, in the case of the arc, keep its size and temperature consistent to create a uniform weld. Next, in conjunction with an MFC, arc machines and weld heads can create a microscopic arc. This arc creates similarly small welds that are necessary to keep components small and to conserve their conductive properties. And because arcs are rotated automatically by new equipment, precision is greatly improved over less dextrous human hands.

In sum, new equipment for orbital welding has made the production of new technologies possible. By reducing the risk of contamination and improving the precision and consistency of welds through technology and automation, the new technology provides a clear example of how unsung production technologies inform the invention of so many of the products we rely on in our day-to-day lives.