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MANUFACTURING
NIT
I3LASWELD
ensures excellence
in laser welding
New Infrared Technologies (NIT), in collaboration with the
AIMEN Technology Centre, has developed the I3LASWELD
system for the inline quality control of laser welding processes,
capable of detecting defects in weld seams in real time
and identifying defective parts.
The I3LASWELD system (Inline Infrared Imaging Laser Welding
QA) is based on a high speed infrared camera (1 kHz)
manufactured by NIT, opto-mechanically coupled to the laser
optics, which continuously monitors the geometry of the
melt-pool. These infrared images of the melt-pool, acquired
coaxially, are processed in real time using powerful algorithms
based on neural networks, which provide information
about the areas where the defects are concentrated and
thus enable an evaluation of final quality (OK / NOK).
The I3LASWELD system is compatible with both fixed and
remote welding laser optics, and can be trained to detect
multiple defects in different configurations, process types
(transparency, butt or edge), sheet materials and thicknesses.
As training is based on images of real processes, in which
the defects to be detected have been forced in a production
scenario, I3LASWELD provides very high defect detection
rates with a success rate of more than 99%. Some examples
of defects that I3LASWELD is able to detect very accurately
are: lack of penetration, lack of fusion (false friend), excessive
throat depth and absence of bead (discontinuities, pores,
holes), among others.
I3LASWELD has been successfully validated in a collaborative
project with VOLVO, in which quality control of
transparency welds between steel sheets (0.75 mm +
0.70 mm) was carried out to ensure that the process met
the required standards regarding both depth of the weld
throat and internal width of the joint.
Currently, NIT and AIMEN are implementing the I3LAS-
WELD system in a GESTAMP production cell, at its
Abrera plant, to detect defects in welds on-the-fly using
a remote welding optical scanner, aiming to control the
quality of more than 10,000 weld beads per production
shift. The interconnection of I3LASWELD with the production
quality control system implemented in the process
cell will enable immediate performance metrics to be
obtained, providing very accurate and valuable information
to production engineers, in real time.
Rodrigo Linares
Director of Business Development
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