The first papers on computational welding simulation were published in the 1970s when computers became common place in research environments. The models used were simple and used simple means for verification. Today’s computational power has increased the complexity of both the weld models and the techniques for verification. This paper discusses the methodology of verifying a welding simulations using 3-D image correlation.
3-D image correlation is used for fast measurements of full field strain and displacement.  The advantage of using this technique is that allows the engineer to capture thousands of strain points on the surface of the sample to gain a better understanding of the deformation and strain fields.  This technique was used to measure the strain and displacement on the back side of T-weld during welding real time during welding.  The measured displacements were then correlated back to welding simulation for verification.