ELECTRICALLY ISOLATED ROTARY COOLING PLATE ASSEMBLY

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The subject invention is related to an electrically isolated cooling plate for a workpiece. More particularly, the present invention relates to an electrically isolated, infinitely rotatable cooling plate for a workpiece integrated into a device for performing work on workpieces.

The application of the present invention is a surface to hold a workpiece being worked upon by various means including typical machining techniques (e.g., milling, drilling, lathing), various welding applications, direct metal laser sintering (DMLS), Additive Manufacturing (AM), Wire/Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM), Directed Energy Deposition (DED), Hybrid Manufacturing, and Hotwire Deposition (HWD), etc.

The environment for the application of the present invention, for example, can be in a milling machine with three or more axes, for example a three-axis, four-axis, or five-axis computer numerical control (CNC) milling machine, a traditional milling machine, vertical machining centers (VMCs), horizontal machining centers (HMCs), CNC lathes, machines for micro-machining and rotary tables for producing machined parts.

In general, the work performed on a workpiece secured to present invention can be various milling and machining techniques, application techniques which include paint, particle deposition, electrostatic deposition, or securing techniques which include welding, soldering, adhering, gluing, and combinations thereof.

2. Problem to be Solved

The problem to be solved by the present invention is that there does not exist a stand-alone, single or unitary, closed system, electrically isolated, infinitely rotatable, cooling plate assembly inside a device for performing work on workpieces. Furthermore, the present invention can be integrated into existing devices while maintaining electrical isolation from existing devices and systems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

These and other aspects and advantages of the subject invention will become more readily apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the drawings.

One aspect of the invention is an electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly being an operable assembly of components in a single closed system, having:

• • a cooling plate having a top side for affixing a workpiece to be worked on, the cooling plate having a coolant channel therein for coolant flow;
  • a layer of non-conductive material attached to an underside of the cooling plate, a side opposite to the top side;
  • a coolant tube assembly connected to the underside of the cooling plate for transporting coolant to and from the coolant channel in the cooling plate;
  • a rotary union block connected to an end of the coolant tube assembly, opposite from an end connected to the cooling plate, for transporting coolant to and from the coolant tube assembly;
  • an anti-rotation block connected to the rotary union block to prevent the rotary union block from rotating; and
  • a rotary ground connected to the coolant tube assembly.

Another aspect of the invention is an electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly being an operable assembly of components in a single closed system, having:

• • a cooling plate having a top side for affixing a workpiece to be worked on, the cooling plate having a coolant channel therein for coolant flow;
  • a layer of non-conductive material attached to an underside of the cooling plate, a side opposite to the top side;
  • a coolant tube assembly connected to the underside of the cooling plate for transporting coolant to and from the coolant channel in the cooling plate;
  • a rotary union block connected to an end of the coolant tube assembly, opposite from an end connected to the cooling plate, for transporting coolant to and from the coolant tube assembly from a cooling system for coolant;
  • an anti-rotation block connected to the rotary union block to prevent the rotary union block from rotating;
  • a rotary ground connected to the coolant tube assembly; and
  • the cooling system for coolant connected in a closed loop arrangement to the rotary union block.

Still a further aspect of the invention is a system for an electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly with feedback control, the system having:

• • an operable assembly, in a single closed system, comprising:
    • a cooling plate having a top side for affixing a workpiece to be worked on, the cooling plate having a coolant channel therein for coolant flow and having a cooling plate isolation sensor to determine if the cooling plate is electrically isolated;
    • a layer of non-conductive material attached to an underside of the cooling plate, a side opposite to the top side;
    • a coolant tube assembly connected to the underside of the cooling plate for transporting coolant to and from the coolant channel in the cooling plate;
    • a rotary union block connected to an end of the coolant tube assembly, opposite from an end connected to the cooling plate, for transporting coolant to and from the coolant tube assembly from a cooling system for coolant;
    • an anti-rotation block connected to the rotary union block to prevent the rotary union block from rotating;
    • a rotary ground connected to the coolant tube assembly; and
    • the cooling system for coolant connected in a closed loop arrangement to the rotary union block; and
  • a processor, the processor being configured to:
    • receive data from the cooling plate isolation sensor;
    • determine whether or not the cooling plate is electrically isolated;
    • generate an alarm if the cooling plate is not electrically isolated; and
    • send a signal to a device working on the workpiece to halt operation so that all work is terminated and no external electrical energy is transmitted to the cooling plate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

So that those skilled in the art to which the subject invention appertains will readily understand how to make and use the method and device of the subject invention without undue experimentation, preferred embodiments thereof will be described in detail herein below with reference to certain figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of the invention above and below a machine table and not integrated into a machining chamber (not shown);

FIG. 2 is a top perspective view of the invention with a cooling plate removed;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the cooling plate with one of two joined plates removed so the interior cooling fluid channel is visible;

FIG. 4 is a top perspective view of a rotary union block;

FIG. 5 is a view of the rotary union block from one face showing a lower coolant tube inserted and non-visible, internal parts in broken lines;

FIG. 6 is a two-dimensional, exploded view of the invention above and below a machine table showing each of the components of the invention vertically arranged and not assembled together;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a bottom cover for the invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a rotary ground of the invention;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the rotary union block with each of the O-rings arranged vertically above the rotary union block and not assembled;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an anti-rotation block with a connecting pin arranged vertically and not connected;

FIG. 11 is a perspective, exploded view of a lower coolant tube with connectors shown vertically below and two O-rings shown above the lower coolant tube and not assembled;

FIG. 12 is a perspective, exploded view of an upper coolant tube with connectors and two O-rings shown above the upper coolant tube and not assembled;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the cooling plate showing holes for the internal connecting means and the internal coolant channel;

FIG. 14 is a perspective, exploded view of the components of the invention vertically arranged and unassembled;

FIG. 15 illustrates an example communication network utilized with one or more of the illustrated embodiments;

FIG. 16 illustrates an example network device/node utilized with one or more of the illustrated embodiments;

FIG. 17 illustrates a diagram depicting a feedback control system utilized with one or more of the illustrated embodiments;

FIG. 18 is a flow diagram of the cooling plate feedback control loop of the system of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals represent the same or similar elements.

The disclosed methods, systems and processes leverage unique software and hardware to configure a manufacturing device that is capable of conducting process development and planning, dimensional analysis, pre-machining, surface preparation, dust collection, and post machining in a single integrated manufacturing and repair device. The manufacturing and repair device can include a main sealed (vacuum or inert gas) or unsealed chamber and an antechamber operably connected to provide sealed or unsealed communication therebetween. The main chamber and the antechamber are both operably connected, in sealed or unsealed communication, with a machine tool chamber. The main chamber can contain an articulated robot with a machine, application or joining tool. The electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 of the present invention can be integrated into the main chamber of the manufacturing and repair device.

The machining chamber can be configured with a variety of machine tools, such as a multi-axis machine tool that is operably configured with a part scanner, pallet handling/transfer system, and automatic tool changer.

Unique software code is written to integrate software packages which to allow full programming of the entire repair or manufacturing process from initial laser scan and or dimensional probing with the multi-axis machine tool, to pre-machining of the part, to the operation inside the main chamber, back to post machining and final dimensional probing or nondestructive inspection. Thus, a machined part or a part to be repaired can be moved in a sealed or unsealed environment between the main chamber and the machine tool chamber through an antechamber.

The electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 of the present invention has six main operably connected components, a cooling plate 100, a layer of non-conductive material 600, a coolant tube assembly 200, a rotary union block 300, an anti-rotation block 400, and a rotary ground 500. FIG. 1 shows the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 operably assembled. The electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 of FIG. 1 is shown with cooling plate 100 attached to a machine table 800 which is a part of a device (not shown) for performing work on a workpiece. The electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 is also operably connected to a power source (not shown) and a cooling system 2000 for distributing and cooling coolant which flows through cooling plate 100, coolant tube assembly 200, and rotary union block 300.

The power source is typically an alternating current (AC) or a direct current (DC) power source.

The cooling system 2000, shown in FIG. 6, typically consists of a cooling apparatus that includes a reservoir coupling hardware that couples a reservoir of a cooling fluid/a coolant (e.g., water, air, inert gas, a non-conductive coolant, an inert coolant, glycol based coolant, refrigerant, etc.) to the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 in an open or a closed loop arrangement. The coolant is passed through the cooling plate 100 such that the pass through of the coolant causes the cooling plate 100 to be cooled. The coolant can pass through a condenser, separator, and then move to a recirculatory (e.g., a liquid pump) all of which are components of the cooling apparatus. The condenser can remove heat from the coolant, condensing more coolant, resulting in an increased amount of coolant in liquid form and an increased cooling capacity for the system.

A controller can function to manage the cooling apparatus. The controller can comprise a temperature control component configured to adjust the temperature of the coolant before it enters the cooling plate 100. Since coolant can come from the separator and reservoir, the coolant can be at different temperatures, one or both undesirable, the temperature control component can control the coolant to interact with the cooling plate at a desired temperature.

After being passed through cooling plate 100, where heat is absorbed via a coolant phase change, the coolant can be processed by the separator that can separates the coolant that passes through cooling plate 100 to a vapor part and a liquid part. The liquid part can be recirculated while the vapor part can be released into an environment.

The controller can comprise a processor and the computer-readable medium (e.g., non-transitory computer-readable medium). The computer-readable medium can be communicatively coupled to the processor and stores a command set executable by the processor to facilitate operation of at least one component of the cooling system, such as the temperature control component of cooling apparatus controller.

Cooling Plate

The cooling plate 100 is attached to a top side of the machine table 800 which is a part of a device (not shown) for performing work on a workpiece, as shown in FIG. 1. The main functions of cooling plate 100 are to securely hold a workpiece, to cool a workpiece secured thereon by being a heat sink and to be an electrically isolated platform.

Cooling plate 100 can be made of metal such as aluminum (Al), various aluminum alloys, various steels, various stainless steels, other alloys, copper, metals and composite materials.

Cooling plate 100 can have an anodic coating, such as zinc aluminum, magnesium, or cadmium coating, a nitride layer or other sacrificial coating on a top side, the top side being a side upon which a workpiece is secured, to create a hard, wear-resistant surface layer. For example, a steel cooling plate 100 can have a black nitride layer on the top surface. A nitride layer on aluminum can be formed of aluminum nitride (AlN). An anode layer on aluminum can be an anodic oxide layer formed thereon.

Cooling plate 100 includes securing holes 110 for the insertion of a fastening means, such as nuts and bolts, to secure cooling plate 100 to machine table 800. Respective securing holes 810 of machine table 800 which align with securing holes 110 of cooling plate 100 for the fastening means are shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 6. Securing holes 110 of cooling plate 100 and securing holes 810 of machine table 800 can be threaded. The securing holes 110 are also depicted in FIG. 13.

FIG. 14 shows an exploded view of the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 without the machine table 800. In FIG. 14, non-conductive bolts 120 and non-conductive nuts 130 are shown. In this embodiment non-conductive bolts 120 and non-conductive nuts 130 are threaded into securing holes 110 and the respective securing holes 810 to mechanically attach cooling plate 100 to machine table 800. Additional insulating means, securing means or tightening means may be added to mechanically attach cooling plate 100 to machine table 800.

The machine table 800 with cooling plate 100 mechanically secured thereto is rotatable in the clockwise and counterclockwise directions without a limit or stop point and therefore is infinitely rotatable. The machine table 800 is rotated by a power source (not shown) and machine table 800 is controlled by a programmable controller. The programmable controller controls the operation of machine table 800 depending on the application. The programmable controller can comprise a processor and the computer-readable medium (e.g., non-transitory computer-readable medium). The computer-readable medium can be communicatively coupled to the processor and stores a command set executable by the processor to facilitate operation of the rotation of machine table 800.

The non-conductive bolts 120 and non-conductive nuts 130 may be made of a non-conductive material, such as a composite of graphite or plastic, including Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE/Teflon®), Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) and Polyetherketoneketone (PEKK), ceramic, ceramic composites, or may be made of metal coated with a non-conductive material. Alternatively, conductive nuts and bolts can be used if isolated from cooling plate 100 by a non-conductive sleeve.

The cooling plate 100 also includes threaded holes 140 in a grid pattern on a top side of the cooling plate 100 that can be used for various fixturing purposes for securely fixing workpieces to cooling plate 100.

The cooling plate 100 consists of two machined plates joined together and finish machined to ensure flatness and accuracy, critical for proper integration with the machine table. Once cooling plate 100 is finish machined, the fact that it was made of two joined plates is not noticeable. In FIG. 1, cooling plate 100 includes a bottom plate 170 which is joined to cooling plate 100 to form a unitary plate. FIG. 6 shows bottom plate 170 before being joined to cooling plate 100. The final machined plates feature internal passages for coolant flow, designed to dissipate heat generated during the welding process, for example. FIG. 3 shows one of the machined plates which shows a coolant channel 150 for coolant flow inside of cooling plate 100. An external cooling system 2000 or chiller unit chills and circulates the coolant (e.g., water, air, inert gas, a non-conductive coolant, an inert coolant, glycol based coolant, refrigerant, etc.) to remove heat from the system.

The coolant channel 150 is shown in a serpentine path inside cooling plate 100. Any path which keeps coolant channel 150 closed and which can dissipate heat from the surface of cooling pate 100 can be used. The coolant channel 150 is shown as a single path with inlet and outlet ports (not shown) in the center of cooling plate 100 where two ends of coolant channel 150 do not contact each other at location 160.

Alternatively, instead of one single, connected, non-intersecting, internal coolant channel 150, cooling plate 100 can have a plurality of internal passages which intersect and are arranged in various configurations for cooling the cooling plate 100.

The coolant channel 150 is hollow to allow coolant to pass therethrough. The cross-section of coolant channel 150 can be circular, elliptical, square, rectangular, n-sided polygonal shaped, I-beam shaped, etc. It will be appreciated that coolant channel 150 can have any other suitable cross-sectional shape such that the flow path acts an open, straight-through passageway for coolant flow to remove heat from cooling plate 100.

Layer of Non-Conductive Material

The cooling plate 100 has a thin layer 600 of a non-conductive material installed between cooling plate 100 and machine table 800. The thin layer 600 of non-conductive material is shown in FIGS. 6, 13 and 14. The thin layer 600 of non-conductive/insulating material is a material such as silicone; various ceramics; various rubbers; polyamide/nylon; and various plastics, including Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), Nylon, Polyamides (PA), Polyimides (PI), Polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), Polycarbonates (PC), Polyetheretherketone (PEEK), Polyetherketone (PEK), Low Density Polyethylene (PDPE), High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Polyimides, Polyoxymethylene plastic (POM/Acetal), Polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), Polyphenylene oxide (PPO), Polysulphone (PSU), Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE/Teflon®), Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE/UHMW), and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC), and mixtures thereof.

The thin layer 600 of non-conductive material can have a thickness in a range of thicknesses from 100 μm to 10 mm, for example 100 μm, 200 μm, 300 μm, 400 μm, 500 μm, 600 μm, 700 μm, 800 μm, 900 μm, 1 mm, 1.5 mm, 2 mm, 2.5 mm, 3 mm, 3.5 mm, 4 mm, 4.5 mm, 5 mm, 5.5 mm, 6 mm, 6.5 mm, 7 mm, 7.5 mm, 8 mm, 8.5 mm, 9 mm, 9.5 mm and 10 mm.

Alternatively, thin layer 600 of non-conductive material described above can be physically deposited on an underside of cooling plate 100, a side opposite the side for securing workpieces, to provide electrical insulation from machine table 800.

Coolant Tube Assembly

The main function of coolant tube assembly 200 is to facilitate the transfer of coolant to and from cooling plate 100 to and from rotary union block 300. The coolant tube assembly 200 consists of two interconnected components, an upper coolant tube 210 connected to cooling plate 100 and a lower coolant tube 220 connected to rotary union block 300, with the interconnected parts secured together with fastening means, such as screws or nuts and bolts.

When the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 is operably integrated into a device for performing work on a workpiece, upper coolant tube 210 passes through machine table 800 as well as part of the device (not shown) directly below machine table 800. The part of the device (not shown) directly below the machine table can be a U-shaped or saddle-shaped rotatable arm which is part of the device for working on a workpiece. The machine table is rotatably connected to this U-shaped or saddle-shaped part (not shown). As shown in FIG. 2, upper coolant tube 210 is cylindrical in shape allowing it to rotate along with the other rotating parts, namely cooling plate 100, lower coolant tube 220 and rotary ground 500.

As shown in FIG. 12, upper coolant tube 210 contains two internal passages 212, one internal passage 212 for delivering coolant to cooling plate 100 and one internal passage 212 for removing coolant from cooling plate 100. Internal passages 212 can be of any cross-sectional shape, but typically have a circular cross-sectional shape. Internal passages 212 connect, at the end attached to cooling plate 100, to coolant channel 150 in cooling plate 100 at the center, designated as location 160, as shown in FIG. 3, to allow coolant to flow uninterrupted through internal passages 212 to and from coolant channel 150 in cooling plate 100.

As shown in FIG. 2, the end of upper coolant tube 210 connected to the underside cooling plate 100 has circular connection ports 214, for connecting internal passages 212 to coolant channel 150 and holes 216 for a fastening means to securely, mechanically connect upper coolant tube 210 to cooling plate 100. Seated in each connection port 214 is a sealing means, such as a gasket, O-ring, rubber part, etc., to create a tight, leak-proof, sealed connection between each internal passage 212 and coolant channel 150. In this embodiment O-rings 218, as shown in FIG. 12, are used to create a tight, sealed connection between each internal passage 212 and coolant channel 150. Also, in this embodiment bolts 219 are used to mechanically connect upper coolant tube 210 to cooling plate 100 as shown in FIG. 6.

Lower coolant tube 220 is also cylindrically shaped allowing it to rotate in rotary union block 300. As shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 11, lower coolant tube 220 contains two internal passages 222, one internal passage 222 for delivering coolant to upper coolant tube 210 and one internal passage 222 for removing coolant from upper coolant tube 210. Internal passages 222 can be of any cross-sectional shape, but typically have a circular cross-sectional shape. Internal passages 222 connect at the end attached to upper coolant tube 210 to allow coolant to flow uninterrupted through internal passages 222 to and from internal passages 212 of upper coolant tube 210.

As shown in FIG. 4, the end of lower coolant tube 220 connected to upper coolant tube 210 has circular connection ports 224, for connecting internal passages 222 to internal passages 212 and holes 226 for a fastening means to securely, mechanically connect lower coolant tube 220 to upper coolant tube 210. Seated in each connection port 224 is a sealing means, such as a gasket, O-ring, rubber part, etc., to create a tight, leak-proof, sealed connection between each internal passage 222 and internal passage 212. Internal passages 222 are of different lengths. In this embodiment O-rings 228, as shown in FIG. 11, are used to create a tight, leak-proof, sealed connection between each internal passage 222 and internal passage 212. Also in this embodiment bolts 229 are used to mechanically connect lower coolant tube 220 to upper coolant tube 210 as shown in FIG. 6.

As shown in FIG. 11, lower coolant tube 220 has an wider, upper cylindrical part 221 and a narrower, lower cylindrical part 223. Upper cylindrical part 221 is above rotary union block 300 while lower cylindrical part 223 is inserted into rotary union block 300 with a portion of lower coolant tube 220 extending beyond a bottom surface of rotary union block 300. Lower cylindrical part 223 extending beyond the bottom surface of rotary union block 300 has a groove 225 for a snap ring (now shown). Groove 225 is also depicted in FIG. 5.

Coolant tube assembly 200 can be made of metal such as aluminum (Al), various aluminum alloys, various steels, various stainless steels, other alloys, metals and composite materials, with the two interconnected components fastened together with metal bolts.

Rotary Union Block

The main function of rotary union block 300 is to facilitate the transfer of coolant to and from cooling tube assembly 200 to and from the cooling system 2000. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, rotary union block 300 is a block shape of metal such as aluminum (Al), various aluminum alloys, various steels, various stainless steels, nitrided steels, anodic coated steels, other alloys, metals and composite materials, which has at one end a reciprocal, cylinder through hole 310 for receiving lower coolant tube 220, two flow paths 320 in communication with through hole 310, and at an opposite end a through hole 330 for receiving a pin of anti-rotation block 400. Rotary union block 300 can be any polygonal-shaped block. In this embodiment, rotary union block 300 is rectangular-shaped with one of the short, flat, faces having a beveled or angled face 340 as compared with the two adjoining, side faces. The purpose of the angled face is for accommodating flow path connectors 350, as shown in FIG. 2, for connecting rotary union block 300 to the rest of the cooling system 2000, which shown in FIG. 6.

As shown in FIG. 9, inside through hole 310 are two annular flow paths 312, three annular ring grooves 314 to accommodate three annular rings 316 made of a material which can form a tight, leak-proof, sealed connection between each flow path 312 and each flow path 320 to allow coolant to flow. The three annular rings 316 can be an O-ring or gasket and can be made of a material such as rubber; various elastomers, including nitrile, Ethylene Propylene (EPDM Rubber), silicone, fluorocarbon, and PTFE; or other material which can create a tight, leak-proof, sealed connection. In this embodiment, rubber O-rings are used as the annular ring 316 so coolant does not leak outside the three annular rings 316 into through hole 310. Each of three annular rings 316 are positioned above, below or in-between two annular flow paths 312 in each of the three annular ring grooves 314.

It should be noted that, while the flow paths 320 are formed parallel with the top surface of rotary union block 300 the arrangement of flow paths 320 inside rotary union block 300 are not necessarily limited thereto and the flow paths 320 may traverse vertically, horizontally or in an angled direction when compared with the top surface of rotary union block 300. Flow paths 320 are the link between annular flow paths 312 in through hole 310 at one end of flow paths 320 and flow path connectors 350 at the opposite end of flow paths 320.

Through hole 310 is dimensionally sized to accommodate lower coolant tube 220, to allow for the rotation of lower coolant tube 220 inside through hole 310 and simultaneously provide a sealed coupling for the coolant system to allow coolant to flow to and from the rotary union block 300 to lower coolant tube 220 without leaking coolant outside of the cooling system. The annular flow paths 312 provide an annular space to allow for coolant to traverse to and from flow path 320 to lower coolant tube 220 while lower coolant tube 220 is rotating.

Anti-Rotation Block

The main function of anti-rotation block 400 is to prevent the rotary union block 300 from rotating during the rotary motion of machine table 800. Anti-rotation block 400 is a block of metal such as aluminum (Al), various aluminum alloys, various steels, various stainless steels, nitrided steels, anodic coated steels, other alloys, metals, composite materials, plastics, including acetal, for example Delrin® homopolymer, mechanically attached to a fixed part of the machine tool apparatus (not shown) with a fixing means, such as screws or nuts and bolts.

As shown in FIG. 10, anti-rotation block 400 has two holes 410 for fixing means and a hole 420 for a pin 430 which is inserted at one end of rotary union block 300 into through hole 330. The pin 430 can be press-fit into though hole 330 for a fiction connection. The pin 430 which is also made of a strong metal to resist forces generated by the rotating machine table and transmitted to the rotary union block 300 such that the pin 430 coupled to the anti-rotation block 400 which is fixed to the machine apparatus (not shown) prevents the rotation of rotary union block 300.

Rotary Ground

The main function of rotary ground 500 is to provide electrical grounding for the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 in an application using electricity, such as welding for example, where a current path is needed form the welding touch to ground in order to form an electrical circuit to operate. An example of the rotary ground 500 is a component is currently made by Meridian Laboratory, part number ERG-400-11. Rotary ground 500 provides electrical grounding for rotational welding, plating, polishing, and other high-current applications that require rotation.

As shown in FIG. 8, rotary ground has a threaded spindle 510 which connects to a reciprocal threaded cavity 227 at one end of lower cooling tube 220 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 11.

Part of the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 can be enclosed with bottom cover 900 as shown in FIGS. 6, 7 and 14.

System for Feedback Control and Feedback Control Operation

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied as a system, method or computer program product. Accordingly, aspects of this disclosure may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.), or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects, all possibilities of which can be referred to herein as a “circuit,” “module,” or “system.” A “circuit,” “module,” or “system” can include one or more portions of one or more separate physical hardware and/or software components that can together perform the disclosed function of the “circuit,” “module,” or “system”, or a “circuit,” “module,” or “system” can be a single self-contained unit (e.g., of hardware and/or software). Furthermore, aspects of this disclosure may take the form of a computer program product embodied in one or more computer readable medium(s) having computer readable program code embodied thereon.

Any combination of one or more computer readable medium(s) may be utilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer readable storage medium would include the following: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. In the context of this document, a computer readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signal with computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, in baseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may take any of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to, electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. A computer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium that is not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate, propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmitted using any appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless, wireline, optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of this disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programming languages. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).

Aspects of this disclosure may be described above with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems) and computer program products according to embodiments of this disclosure. It will be understood that each block of any flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in any flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in any flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable medium that can direct a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readable medium produce an article of manufacture including instructions which implement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or other devices to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide processes for implementing the functions/acts specified herein.

Additionally a controller or control module can be operatively connected to receive signals indicative of electrical isolation, coolant flow rate, coolant temperature, and cooling plate temperature for example, from one or more sensors, and a feedback module configured to analyze the sensor data and output a feedback signal to the controller to generate and alarm and automatically shut off relevant parts the system and or the device working on the workpiece on the basis of the analyzed sensor data.

FIG. 15 depicts an exemplary communications network 5000 in which below illustrated embodiments may be implemented. It is to be understood a communication network 5000 is a geographically distributed collection of nodes interconnected by communication links and segments for transporting data between end nodes, such as personal computers, work stations, smart phone devices, tablets, televisions, sensors and or other devices such as automobiles, etc. Many types of networks are available, with the types ranging from local area networks (LANs) to wide area networks (WANs). LANs typically connect the nodes over dedicated private communications links located in the same general physical location, such as a building or campus. WANs, on the other hand, typically connect geographically dispersed nodes over long-distance communications links, such as common carrier telephone lines, optical lightpaths, synchronous optical networks (SONET), synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) links, or Powerline Communications (PLC), and others.

FIG. 15 is a schematic block diagram of an example communication network 5000 illustratively comprising nodes/devices 5100-5800 (e.g., displays 5100, sensors 5200, client computing devices 5300 (e.g., network monitoring devices), WiFi routers 5400, smart phone devices 5500, web servers 5600, routers 5700, switches 5800, databases, and the like) interconnected by various methods of communication. For instance, the links 5900 may be wired links or may comprise a wireless communication medium, where certain nodes are in communication with other nodes, e.g., based on distance, signal strength, current operational status, location, etc. Moreover, each of the devices can communicate data packets (or frames) 5950 with other devices using predefined network communication protocols as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, such as various wired protocols and wireless protocols etc., where appropriate. In this context, a protocol consists of a set of rules defining how the nodes interact with each other. Those skilled in the art will understand that any number of nodes, devices, links, etc. may be used in the computer network, and that the view shown herein is for simplicity. Also, while the embodiments are shown herein with reference to a general network cloud, the description herein is not so limited, and may be applied to networks that are hardwired.

FIG. 16 is a schematic block diagram of an example network computing device 6000 (e.g., client computing device 5300, server 5600, etc.) that may be used (or components thereof) with one or more embodiments described herein (e.g., as one of the nodes shown in the network 5000) for determining the probability of an incident occurring to one or more computer applications resulting from one or more application change attributes through implementation of machine learning (ML) techniques. As explained above, in different embodiments these various devices are configured to communicate with each other in any suitable way, such as, for example, via communication network 5000.

Device 6000 is intended to represent any type of computer system capable of carrying out the teachings of various illustrated embodiments. Device 6000 is only one example of a suitable system and is not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use or functionality of the illustrated embodiments described herein. Regardless, computing device 6000 is capable of being implemented and/or performing any of the functionality set forth herein, particularly for creating, and executing feedback control in accordance with the illustrated embodiments.

The components of device 6000 may include, but are not limited to, one or more processors or processing units 6100, a system memory 6200, and a bus 6300 that couples various system components including system memory 6200 to processor 6100. Bus 6300 represents one or more of any of several types of bus structures, including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, an accelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. By way of example, and not limitation, such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus. Computing device 6000 typically includes a variety of computer system readable media. Such media may be any available media that is accessible by device 6000, and it includes both volatile and non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.

System memory 6200 can include computer system readable media in the form of volatile memory, such as random-access memory (RAM) 6210 and/or cache memory 6220. Computing device 6000 may further include other removable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer system storage media. By way of example only, storage system 6230 can be provided for reading from and writing to a non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media (not shown and typically called a “hard drive”). Although not shown, a magnetic disk drive for reading from and writing to a removable, non-volatile magnetic disk, and an optical disk drive for reading from or writing to a removable, non-volatile optical disk such as a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or other optical media can be provided. In such instances, each can be connected to bus 6300 by one or more data media interfaces. As will be further depicted and described below, memory 6200 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g., at least one) of program modules that are configured to carry out the functions of embodiments of illustrated embodiments such as creating, and executing feedback control in accordance with the illustrated embodiments.

Program/utility 6240, having a set (at least one) of program modules 6250, such as underwriting module, may be stored in memory 6200 by way of example, and not limitation, as well as an operating system, one or more application programs, other program modules, and program data. Each of the operating system, one or more application programs, other program modules, and program data or some combination thereof, may include an implementation of a networking environment. Program modules 6250 generally carry out the functions and/or methodologies of the illustrated embodiments as described herein for creating, and executing feedback control in one or more networked computer devices (e.g., 5100, 5600).

Device 6000 may also communicate with one or more external devices 6400 such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a display 6500, etc.; one or more devices that enable a user to interact with computing device 6000; and/or any devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.) that enable computing device 6000 to communicate with one or more other computing devices. Such communication can occur via Input/Output (I/O) interfaces 6600. Still yet, device 6000 can communicate with one or more networks such as a local area network (LAN), a general wide area network (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g., the Internet) via network adapter 6700. As depicted, network adapter 6700 communicates with the other components of computing device 6000 via bus 6300. It should be understood that although not shown, other hardware and/or software components could be used in conjunction with device 6000. Examples, include, but are not limited to: microcode, device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays, RAID systems, tape drives, and data archival storage systems, etc.

Referring now to FIG. 17, it illustrates a feedback control system 7000 according to an embodiment of the illustrated embodiments. The feedback control system 7000 may be implemented by a stationary device or a mobile device, such as a web server, a desktop computer, a notebook, a desktop computer, and the like.

In conjunction with FIGS. 15 and 16, the feedback control system 7000 of FIG. 17 is operatively coupled to, or integrated with computing device 6000, in accordance with the illustrated embodiments described herein. The feedback control system 7000 preferably includes a communication unit 7100, an input unit 7200, a learning processor 7300, a sensing unit 7400, an output unit 7500, a memory 7600, and a processor 7800. The communication unit 7100 may transmit and receive data to and from external devices, such as other feedback devices, by using wire/wireless communication technology. For example, the communication unit 7100 may transmit and receive historical and contemplated application change attributes, a user input, a learning model, and a control signal to and from external devices, such a server.

The output unit 7500 preferably includes a display unit for outputting/displaying relevant information to a user in accordance with the illustrated embodiments described herein. The memory 7600 preferably stores data that supports various functions of the feedback control system 7000. For example, the memory 7600 may store input data acquired by the input unit 7200, learning data, a learning model, a learning history, and the like.

The processor 7800 preferably determines at least one executable operation of the feedback control system 7000 based on information determined or generated by using a data analysis algorithm or a machine learning algorithm. The processor 7800 may control the components of the feedback control system 7000 to execute the determined operation. To this end, the processor 7800 may request, search, receive, or utilize time-based metric data of the learning processor 7300 or the memory 7600. The processor 7800 may control the components of the feedback control system 7000 to execute the predicted operation or the operation determined to be desirable among the at least one executable operation. When the connection of an external device is required to perform a determined operation, the processor 7800 may generate a control signal for controlling the external device and may transmit the generated control signal to the external device. The processor 7800 may acquire intention information for the user input and may determine the user's requirements based on the acquired intention information. In some embodiments, the processor 7800 may acquire the intention information corresponding to the user input by using at least one of a speech to text (STT) engine for converting speech input into a text string or a natural language processing (NLP) engine for acquiring intention information of a natural language.

In certain illustrated embodiments, at least one of the STT engine or the NLP engine may be configured as an artificial neural network, at least part of which is learned according to the machine learning algorithm. Thus, in certain illustrated embodiments, at least one of the STT engine or the NLP engine may be learned by the learning processor 7300 or may be learned by the learning processor 7400 of the feedback control system 7000, or may be learned by their distributed processing. The processor 7800 may collect history information including the operation contents of the feedback control system 7000 or the user's feedback on the operation and may store the collected history information in the memory 7600 or the learning processor 7300 or transmit the collected history information to an external device. The collected history information may be used to update the learning model.

The processor 7800 may control at least part of the components of feedback control system 7000 so as to drive an application program stored in memory 7600. Furthermore, the processor 7800 may operate two or more of the components included in the feedback control system 7000 in combination so as to drive the application program.

In one configuration of the present invention, the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 can be operably combined with sensors 7400, processors 7800, memory 7600, device 6000, feedback control system 7000, programmable instructions and a communication network 5000, as described for FIGS. 15-17, to create system 3000 whereby the electrical isolation of cooling plate 100, the temperature of cooling plate 100, the temperature of the coolant in cooling plate 100, or the flow rate of the coolant in cooling plate 100 can provide feedback data for the automatic operation the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000. For example data collected from one or more sensors can be output as a feedback signal to a controller to perform various functions automatically such as: to generate an alarm; to regulate current in a tool, such as a welding tool, used on the workpiece to avoid overheating the workpiece, melting the workpiece, arcing the tool; and automatically shut off the tool or tools working on the workpiece if maximum or minimum thresholds for electrical isolation, temperature, coolant flow rate are exceeded or if there was some other kind of fault.

In order to maintain isolation from the device working on the workpiece (not shown), control signals from the system for ensuring electrical isolation of a rotary cooling plate assembly can be sent to a controller separate from the device working on the workpiece which can then send a signal to the device working on the workpiece. By using an additional separate controller, the system for ensuring electrical isolation of a rotary cooling plate assembly can maintain system isolation from the device which is performing work on the workpiece.

FIG. 18 is a flow diagram showing a system 3000 which is a combination of the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 with integrated, operable sensors, processors and programmable instructions, as described for FIGS. 15-17. The system 3000 of FIG. 18 can collect, process and execute instructions based on feedback data to automatically operate the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 and the device (not shown) for working on the workpiece on cooling plate 100.

For example, while in a state of operation, system 3000 can determine in step S1 if cooling plate 100 is electrically isolated. If during the state of operation system 3000 determines that cooling plate 100 is no longer electrically isolated and there is electrical leakage to the device that performs work on the workpiece, then system 3000 can generate an electrical isolation failure alarm in step S1A. For example, the cooling plate 100 may not be properly seated on machine table 800 with the non-conductive material layer 600 not properly fitted in between. Alternatively, there could be metallic shavings or chips in the system causing cooling plate 100 not to be electrically isolated. System 3000 can next halt the execution of the programed instructions and machine operation in step S4A of either the rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 or the device which is performing work on the workpiece. In step S4A, system 3000 can halt the device performing work on the workpiece so that the device stops. System 3000 can perform steps S1, S1A, and S4A automatically as there may not be a human operator attending the machine to notice the alarm in step S1A.

In another example, while in a state of operation, system 3000 can determine in step S2 if the flow rate or flow volume of coolant changes. If during the state of operation system 3000 determines that the flow of coolant drops below a pre-set or pre-determined minimum flow rate or flow volume, then system 3000 can generate a chiller flow restriction alarm in step S2A. System 3000 can next halt the execution of the programed instructions and machine operation in step S4A of either the rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 or the device which is performing work on the workpiece. In step S4A, system 3000 can halt the device performing work on the workpiece so that the device stops. System 3000 can perform steps S2, S2A, and S4A automatically as there may not be a human operator attending the machine to notice the alarm in step S2A.

In a further example, while in a state of operation, system 3000 can determine in step S3 if the temperature of cooling plate 100 or the temperature of the coolant in the cooling plate exceeds a pre-set maximum value. This can be accomplished with the addition of a sensor or thermos couple attached to cooling plate 100. If during the state of operation system 3000 determines that the temperature of cooling plate 100 or the temperature of the coolant in the cooling plate exceeds the pre-set or pre-determined maximum value, then system 3000 can generate a maximum temperature alarm, for example a maximum coolant temperature alarm, in step S3A. System 3000 can next halt the execution of the programed instructions and machine operation in step S4A of either the rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 or the device which is performing work on the workpiece. In step S4, system 3000 can halt the device performing work on the workpiece so that the device stops. System 3000 can perform steps S3, S3A, and S4A automatically as there may not be a human operator attending the machine to notice the alarm in step S3A.

Finally, while in a state of operation, if system 3000 determines that the cooling plate 100 is electrically isolated, there is no coolant flow rate or flow volume restriction and no pre-set maximum temperature has been exceeded, then system 3000 will continue the state of operation normally as shown in step S4.

In one example, the system for ensuring electrical isolation of a rotary cooling plate assembly can have a processor which is configured to receive data from the cooling plate isolation sensor; determine whether or not the cooling plate is electrically isolated; generate an alarm if the cooling plate is not electrically isolated; and send a signal to a device working on the workpiece to halt operation so that all work is terminated and no external electrical energy is transmitted to the cooling plate.

In another example, the system for ensuring electrical isolation of a rotary cooling plate assembly can have a coolant flow senor to determine coolant flow rate or coolant flow volume; and the processor further being configured to receive data from the coolant flow sensor; determine the rate or volume of coolant flow; determine if the coolant flow falls below a minimum flow rate or minimum flow volume; generate an alarm if the coolant flow falls below a minimum flow rate or a minimum flow volume; and send a signal to a device working on the workpiece to halt operation so that all work is terminated and no external electrical energy is transmitted to the cooling plate if the coolant flow rate or volume falls below a minimum pre-set value.

In a further example, the system for ensuring electrical isolation of a rotary cooling plate assembly can have a temperature senor in the cooling plate or coolant tube assembly to determine the temperature of the cooling plate near the workpiece or determine the temperature of coolant in the cooling plate; and the processor further being configured to: receive data from the temperature sensor; determine the temperature of the cooling plate near the workpiece or the temperature of coolant in the cooling plate; determine if the temperature exceeds a maximum allowed temperature; generate an alarm if the temperature exceeds a maximum allowed temperature; and send a signal to a device working on the workpiece to halt operation so that all work is terminated and no external electrical energy is transmitted to the cooling plate if the temperature exceeds a maximum allowed temperature.

Operation and Effects

The electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 is a unitary closed system which can be installed/retrofitted into existing machines for performing work on a workpiece. Furthermore, a system for ensuring electrical isolation of a rotary cooling plate assembly can be designed to operate automatically with feedback control in the event of system a fault or a threshold setting is exceeded. This ensures the safety of operators and equipment, especially in the event that the system is operating unattended by an operator. In other words, the system is designed to be self-contained so that it does not cause damage to the CNC machine.

An example of the operation of the electrically isolated rotary cooling plate assembly 1000 in a high-current welding application. Depending on the material, like mild steel, aluminum, stainless steel, cast iron and the thickness of the material, the typical amperage is in the range of about 80-200 A. Welding applications using higher current are in the ranges of about 200-300 A, 300-400 A, 400-500 A, 500-600 A and 600-700 A. Especially in the case of high current applications retrofitted into devices for performing work on workpieces, it is important to have a system which is electrically isolated and grounded.

It is also important to have a system which can operate automatically with feedback control to ensure the system remains isolated and will automatically shut off should a fault or maximum operating pre-set threshold be exceeded.

The assembly of the present invention offers the advantages of a unitary, closed-loop, single and electrically isolated assembly. The assembly can be retrofitted into existing equipment because of its previously listed advantages. Furthermore, the assembly can be part of a system with feedback control which can has automatic control features for operator and machine safety.

With certain illustrated embodiments described above, it is to be appreciated that various non-limiting embodiments described herein may be used separately, combined or selectively combined for specific applications. Further, some of the various features of the above non-limiting embodiments may be used without the corresponding use of other described features. The foregoing description should therefore be considered as merely illustrative of the principles, teachings and exemplary embodiments of this invention, and not in limitation thereof.

It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are only illustrative of the application of the principles of the illustrated embodiments. Numerous modifications and alternative arrangements may be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the illustrated embodiments, and the appended claims are intended to cover such modifications and arrangements.