Objective Welding operations on the edges of blocks and sections of a ship in the dock or in the slipway, especially as regards the interior of the ship, are usually carried out in confined spaces : double bottoms, tanks, holds, double hulls, etc.At present the majority of those erection welds are manual. Erection welds length amounts to about 10 % of the total weldings on the ship, whereas the costs and times required to carry out the operations are about 6 or 7 times greater than those for welding operations in the workshops, where the blocks and sections are constructed.The aim of the research is to design and develop a prototype of a novel robotic welding system, expected to provide the following advantages : automate erection welding as much as possible; eliminate the presence of man in confined areas where such welding is to be carried out; allow the activity control from an external position in safe conditions, allow one operator to control several automatic machines to further improve yard productivity.The steps foreseen for developing the research are :- definition of system requirements - system design - preliminary tests of critical components - detail subsystem design, based on critical component test results - prototypes construction and functional tests - site tests on ship section mock-ups. Fields of science social scienceseconomics and businesseconomicsproduction economicsproductivity Programme(s) FP3-BRITE/EURAM 2 - Specific programme (EEC) of research and technological development in the field of industrial and materials technologies, 1990-1994 Topic(s) 2.2.1 - Tools, techniques and systems for high quality manufacturing Call for proposal Data not available Funding Scheme CSC - Cost-sharing contracts Coordinator Tecnomare SpA Società per lo Sviluppo delle Tecnologie Marine Address San marco 3584 30124 Venezia Italy See on map EU contribution € 0,00 Participants (3) Sort alphabetically Sort by EU Contribution Expand all Collapse all ASTILLEROS ESPANOLES S.A. Spain EU contribution € 0,00 Address Ochandiano 14 el plantio 28023 Madrid See on map CSIC R&D CENTRE Spain EU contribution € 0,00 Address C.n iii km 22'800, la poveda 28500 Arganda del rey/madrid See on map Fincantieri - Cantieri Navali Italiani SpA Italy EU contribution € 0,00 Address Passegio s andrea 6 34123 Trieste See on map
