Initial situation:
Detection of ultra-fine surface imperfection on large measuring objects
In many companies manual inspection of large metal surfaces is still in use, even though the precision of this method is restricted: Flatness imperfection on large surfaces cannot be identified by human eye; the same is valid for height deviations smaller than 500µ over a width of 2 – 3 m. Quality requirements for industrial metal plates however have increased, particularly with respect to homogenous flatness, thickness and absence of surface defects. These requirements by conventional manual measuring methods cannot be met.
Particular challenges
It is clear that objectified quality supervision, to be carried out to 100% within the running production, by conventional measuring methods is simply impossible. Examination of a steel plate with dimensions of 3×6 meters for example, by coordinate measuring systems, consumes too much time and therefore cannot be performed inline. Processing of metal ingots usually entails excessive metal removal, as the height deviations of raw material are unknown. The number of working steps on the other hand cannot be optimized without detailed knowledge of the height deviations.
QuellTech solution
For the QuellTech 2D/3D Laser Scanner, precise inline detection of surface imperfection is a normal task; and the system is even able to simultaneously measure thickness, flatness, width and length. A special QuellTech software solution enables these measuring parameters to be assessed with flexibly adapted tolerance fields corresponding to the current application.
Benefits for the client
New settings can be implemented whenever needed without additional programming. This allows optimization of the machine cycle, as the measurement can be carried out before as well as after completion of the process. This way trends caused by machine and tool wearing can be recognized in time, e.g. structure defects originating from worn scrapers – and losses due to corresponding rejections are eliminated.