Welding on newer machines with digital dashboards.....

[Concept Automation LLC]

Hi folks. Should have my used B2650HSDC delivered next week. Has a LA 534 and BH77. Will be adding several chain hooks to the buckets ( Welding on).
Besides removing both the Neg. & Pos. battery terminals, and always placing the welder ground right next to the weld joint to prevent current pass thru bearings etc., I'd like to unplug the control ECU as a precaution as well. Any guidance where it's located in this enclosed cab.
Or other thought, as the front bucket is a Q.D., just drop it, and as I'm adding a mechanical Thumb, just pull the whole thing off as well ?
My first Kubota.
Thanks, KP.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

The easy way... just drop the bucket.

 

[Concept Automation LLC]

The easy way... just drop the bucket.

 

[Concept Automation LLC]

Thanks. Just did'nt want to drop the Bh77 bucket off the arm, but to be safe. I found the ECU/ECM looks buried under in the dash.

 

[Daferris]

The 2650 has a mechanical injection motor there is no ECU. The only module is the operator presence one

 

[Concept Automation LLC]

The 2650 has a mechanical injection motor there is no ECU. The only module is the operator presence one

 

[GreensvilleJay]

oops, didn't see the 's'.
When you weld the hook on the BH bucket, be sure it's in the 'good' spot, try the full range of motions to be sure it won't interfere and of course place in in the correct direction......

 

[GreensvilleJay]

The 2650 has a mechanical injection motor there is no ECU. The only module is the operator presence one

well the 'dash' has a computer. Call it the 'DCU' Dash Computer Unit ??

 

[Concept Automation LLC]

Thanks. The ECU, I meant control for the electronic dashboard on my used '19 B2650HSDC, to be delivered next week. I work on industrial machinery, so to pull off the dash cover, and try to unplug the dash module, not too much a worry. Such an upgrade from my old blue warhorse Ford '86 open saddle stick shift shift 1910.

 

[number two]

Why not disconnect the negative battery cable?
Easy!

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Disconnecting the negative cable is all you need to do.
No other disconnections required.

 

[Concept Automation LLC]

Why not disconnect the negative battery cable?
Easy!

Thanks, I already said I would say I'd do both battery pos & neg. . But voltage spikes can still be put into a chassis with any welder. I have been selling and installing industrial welding and cutting equipment 46 years.
I found where the electronic control module is for the Kubota dash display, and will unplug it as well. My first Kubota, that is probably well over $1k to replace.

 

[Hugo Habicht]

Disconnecting the negative cable is all you need to do.
No other disconnections required.

I disagree.

The welding creates large magnetic fields that in turn creates currents flowing in loops in the wire harness. This can damage electronics where those wires are connected to, depending on the skills of the electronics designer.

Keeping the welding loop area small (welding gun and return cable area) also reduces the risk of damage.

Disconnecting electronic units is a safe way preventing damage.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Hugo's 100% correct. Unplug to be safe, connect a shorting connector to be safer. Modern 'inverter' welders are far 'nosier' than old school 'buzzboxes'.
While keeping the welder ground to the 'work area' really helps, it doesn't stop the air born radiation from being 'received' from all the wires, which are effectively 'antenna'.

FYI, just checked, the dash for the BX23S is just over $1000 Cdn.

 

[Sawdust&Shavings]

I disagree.

The welding creates large magnetic fields that in turn creates currents flowing in loops in the wire harness. This can damage electronics where those wires are connected to, depending on the skills of the electronics designer.

Keeping the welding loop area small (welding gun and return cable area) also reduces the risk of damage.

Disconnecting electronic units is a safe way preventing damage.

I used to test military electronics susceptibility specifically for this. Oersted (a.k.a. Orsted) law of electromagnetic fields addresses this…let’s just say it’s best to address the problem when the electronic design is still a blank sheet of paper than having to fix it after the fact.

 

[Concept Automation LLC]

I disagree.

The welding creates large magnetic fields that in turn creates currents flowing in loops in the wire harness. This can damage electronics where those wires are connected to, depending on the skills of the electronics designer.

Keeping the welding loop area small (welding gun and return cable area) also reduces the risk of damage.

Disconnecting electronic units is a safe way preventing damage.

I agree with whay tou say.
Best Welding practice on any machinery is to :
1) Disconnect it from any Primary (Shore Power) if in a factory, or Marine or, mobile unit on a charging source.
2) Disconnect any internal Battery for Starting or Memory Backup.
3) Disconnect / Isolate CNC controls, Servo Motor Controls, All control boards, where possible.
4) Place welding ground lug securely on a clean unpainted surface as close to the weld performed as possible. Avoiding any possible moving joints / gaps such as bearings, metal slip joints / sleeves, etc.

 

[Concept Automation LLC]

I agree with whay tou say.
Best Welding practice on any machinery is to :
1) Disconnect it from any Primary (Shore Power) if in a factory, or Marine or, mobile unit on a charging source.
2) Disconnect any internal Battery for Starting or Memory Backup.
3) Disconnect / Isolate CNC controls, Servo Motor Controls, All control boards, where possible.
4) Place welding ground lug securely on a clean unpainted surface as close to the weld performed as possible. Avoiding any possible moving joints / gaps such as bearings, metal slip joints / sleeves, etc.

Sorry on typos. On a flex keyboard.

 

[McMXi]

Disconnecting the negative cable is all you need to do.
No other disconnections required.

This is my approach too, although I'll readily admit that I've welded on a lot of machinery without disconnecting the battery. What I always do is connect the ground clamp as close as possible to where I'm welding and make sure that the ground has good contact with the workpiece.

I would have no concerns at all welding a hook or two on a backhoe that's connected to the tractor with just the battery ground disconnected, regardless of whether or not the tractor has an ECU.

 

[Trash Panda]

I’ve done a lot of welding on work trucks over the years, and certainly not one has ever had the ECM/TCM/PCM unplugged or removed.

Remove the battery cables, keep the ground clamp in the work area, and you’ll be fine. No need to over complicate it.

 

[McMXi]

I’ve done a lot of welding on work trucks over the years, and certainly not one has ever had the ECM/TCM/PCM unplugged or removed.

Remove the battery cables, keep the ground clamp in the work area, and you’ll be fine. No need to over complicate it.

I'd love to see the math on the magnetic field generated from welding, or even some empirical data showing Gauss measurements as a function of distance from various components required for welding. Then a EE can tell us what all this means in terms of small wires and electrical components on circuit boards buried under seats, dashes etc. We know that a current in a wire generates a magnetic field, and a wire moving in a magnetic field generates a current, but arguably it's a very complicated real-world scenario with lots to consider.

I would expect a steel cab, shell, plate etc., to act as a Faraday cage of sorts.