In the shipbuilding industry, welding is one of the most critical and challenging processes. Traditional welding methods often come with high safety risks, heavy labor intensity, long working hours, and strong dependence on operator skills, making it difficult to ensure consistent and reliable welding quality. With the rapid development of automation, intelligent welding has become a key driver for industry transformation.
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Challenges in Ship Welding
In ship assembly, workpieces are usually large, heavy, and structurally complex, with welding seams distributed irregularly. Relying on manual positioning and welding introduces several issues:
- High risk: Workers are constantly exposed to welding fumes, strong light, and high temperatures, posing safety and health concerns.
- High labor intensity: Welding requires significant physical strength and professional skills, often leading to worker fatigue and high turnover.
- Time-consuming: Manual positioning and path planning slow down overall production efficiency.
- Skill dependency: Welding quality varies depending on individual worker experience, making standardization difficult.
These pain points highlight the urgent need for intelligent, automated welding solutions.
Goermicro DS Series 3D ToF Camera Solution
To meet the challenges of ship assembly welding, Goermicro offers the DS Series 3D ToF cameras with the following capabilities:
- High precision: Millimeter-level accuracy ensures reliable detection of complex workpieces.
- Stable operation: Strong anti-interference and real-time performance allow consistent sensing under challenging lighting conditions.
- Fast recognition: The camera quickly completes coarse positioning and precise identification, generating 3D point cloud data within milliseconds.
- Seamless integration: Data is transmitted to the robot control system, enabling automatic path planning and execution.
- 24/7 efficiency: Supports continuous, stable welding operations while reducing labor costs and improving productivity.
How ToF Cameras Empower Intelligent Welding
The intelligent welding workflow powered by ToF cameras follows a clear sequence:
- Coarse Positioning: The ToF camera quickly captures the position of the workpiece, establishing a spatial reference.
- Accurate Recognition: Detailed 3D data ensures precise identification of weld seams.
- Path Planning: Based on the recognition data, the system generates optimized welding paths automatically.
- Automated Welding: Robots execute standardized welding operations without manual intervention.
This end-to-end closed loop—from perception → decision → execution — enables intelligent welding that is more accurate, stable, and efficient compared to traditional methods.
Key Technical Advantages of Goermicro’s 3D ToF Cameras
Goermicro DS Series 3D ToF cameras deliver distinct advantages for intelligent welding applications:
- High-Precision Depth Sensing: Millimeter-level measurements guarantee welding accuracy.
- Strong Anti-Light Interference: Stable operation even with welding sparks, reflections, and strong ambient lighting.
- Real-Time Performance: Millisecond-level response supports robots in high-speed, continuous operations.
- Consistency & Standardization: Data-driven processes reduce reliance on individual skills, ensuring uniform quality.
- Enhanced Safety: Workers shift from hazardous welding tasks to safer supervisory roles, lowering occupational risks and physical strain.
Conclusion
As automation grows, intelligent welding workstations are becoming standard in shipbuilding. Goermicro DS Series 3D ToF cameras enable the shift from manual to automated welding with high accuracy, stability, and safety, while continuing to support broader industrial automation applications.
