Patent attributes
A welding or additive manufacturing power supply includes output circuitry configured to generate a welding waveform, a current sensor for measuring a welding current generated by the output circuitry, a voltage sensor for measuring an output voltage of the welding waveform, and a controller operatively connected to the output circuitry to control the welding waveform, and operatively connected to the current sensor and the voltage sensor to monitor the welding current and the output voltage. A portion of welding waveform includes a controlled change in current from a first level to a second level different from the first level. The controller is configured to determine a circuit inductance from the output voltage and the controlled change in current, and further determine a change in resistance of a consumable electrode in real time based on the circuit inductance.