what is a welder inverter?

Answer 1

Do you mean welder/invertor.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welding_power_supply;;;;; check paragraph 6ish(same thing as rectifier.
Since the advent of high-power semiconductors such as the IGBT, it is now possible to build a switching power supply capable of coping with the high loads of arc welding. These are known as inverter welding units. These supplies generally convert utility power to high voltage and store this energy in a capacitor bank; a microprocessor controller then switches this energy into a second transformer as needed to produce the desired welding current. The frequency of switching is very high- typically at least 10,000 Hz and often much higher. Because of this high frequency, inverter-based welding machines can be much more efficient than transformer-based machines.

The actual IGBTs in an inverter based machine are controlled entirely in software, by a microcontroller, so the electrical characteristics of the welding power can be changed by software in real time updates. Typically the controller software will implement features such as pulsing the welding current, variable ratios and current densities through a welding cycle, variable frequencies, and automatic spot-welding; all of which would be prohibitively expensive in a transformer-based machine but require only program space in software-controlled inverter machine.

Answer 2

i probably understood maybe a third of that PDF. I believe yes, you'd blow up the control system. I built one myself, with minimal budget and many jury-rigged parts. i used some MOT, the line voltage input is still the input, I removed the high voltage output and wound my own 1:5 (1 turn for every 5 turns of 120v primary) super heavy 2 gauge wire I had to really muscle it in. the output is 24 Volts, approximately. the master regulator for the whole thing is a huge bar of graphite that cuts down current draw to under 6 amps. the hotter it gets the higher the resistance, the lesser the current draw, so it's basically self-regulating. probably not the most elegant solution but where else am i supposed to find a 500-700 watt resistor for around 10 bucks? besides, I've been using pencil graphite resistors for a while now. the pencil resistors have a limit of about 35 watts (or when the paint on the pencil blisters). this huge bar i got probably has a limit of 600 watts. that means it can do the job and it doesn't melt. for inverting, I didn't bother with anything fancy. its inverted on the 120V side into a pulsating DC, on the low voltage side it comes out pulsating DC. i have tried to weld a few times with it, i don't know whether its me or my welder, often time its unsuccessful. I never learned how to weld, probably the biggest factor against any success. I did succeed a few times. I still prefer to solder if i can, and if I'm gonna weld I'm gonna learn who to do it right & get a proper welder first. right now my MOT welder is used to burn stuff and the bar of graphite is a good hot plate. I may convert it into a lead melter. need one of those, i could save myself 60 bucks. it seems its great at making heat.

Answer 3

I assume this is refering to a welder that runs off of DC power