The single‑robot ground‑rail welding workstation is an intelligent welding cell combining one 6‑axis robot with 7th‑axis ground travelling rail. It is developed for medium‑long steel‑structure workpieces such as H‑beams, crane girders, box beams and structural stiffeners. The ground rail extends robot working stroke, balancing investment budget and processing capacity for automation upgrade of steel fabrication plants.

The workstation consists of 6‑axis welding robot, 7th‑axis ground‑rail travelling mechanism, MIG/MAG welding power source, water‑cooled anti‑collision torch, laser vision seam‑tracking system, torch cleaning‑wire‑cutting unit and electrical control cabinet. The robot reaches maximum 2010 mm arm span, 6 kg payload and ±0.05 mm repeat positioning accuracy. The 6‑meter rail adopts rack‑and‑pinion plus linear‑guide transmission. Overall dimension: 6×1×1.2 m, total power 17 KW, maximum working envelope 6.5×1.2×0.3 m. Average daily welding output hits 140‑200 meters.

Synchronized motion between robot and 7th‑axis rail overcomes reach limits of fixed robotic cells. Laser vision seam‑tracking detects weld paths and compensates cutting & assembly tolerances for stable fillet welds and multi‑layer multi‑pass welding. Optional dual‑station layout along rail enables welding and loading‑unloading simultaneously, improving equipment uptime.

Modular design simplifies on‑site setup without heavy civil engineering. Rail travel length can be customized according to workpiece dimension. It delivers consistent weld appearance and lower rework rate, relieving the shortage of skilled welders. Widely adopted in building steel‑structure and heavy‑equipment manufacturing, it is a cost‑effective automatic welding solution for medium‑long steel components.