R-Imager

Inline roughness inspection

Inline inspection of surface roughness is important in many industrial applications: Roughness is often a key parameter that significantly influences both the quality and the efficiency of a production process. Random measurements with stylus instruments, that are commonly used for roughness control, do not allow for fast and large-area measurement. Optical measurement methods are faster, but typically have a very small measuring area. They also require exact environmental conditions that are usually impossible to achieve in the production line. A novel solution for inline roughness inspection is the R-Imager. It characterizes the roughness of a surface directly in the production line – on large surfaces and in real time. In this way, the R-Imager ensures consistent product quality while simultaneously increasing production efficiency.

Large-scale measurement – spatially resolved 

Relying on a laser-based optical measurement method, the R-Imager can measure surface roughness quickly, across a large area and without contact. The method is based on spectral speckle correlation (SSC). Thanks to its innovative measuring method, the R-Imager inline inspection system can measure relatively large areas in real time while conventional measuring principles are generally limited to smaller areas. The R-Imager analyzes a measuring area of many square centimeters in just a few milliseconds, providing very comprehensive roughness information.  And although the method does not directly measure the surface topography, it still allows the spatial roughness distribution to be determined. To do this, the R-Imager analyzes the recorded speckle patterns at precise positions.

Roughness measurement in the production line – fast and in motion

The R-Imager allows the determination of roughness at a relatively large working distance, which makes the inline inspection system much easier to integrate, even in challenging production environments. Even when using standard laser light sources, measurement times are in the millisecond range, enabling measurements on moving surfaces – at belt speeds of around 2 m/s; specially adapted systems also work at higher speeds.

Continuous real-time monitoring

The innovative measuring method of the R-Imager excels over other roughness measuring methods when roughness is a critical production parameter and continuous monitoring is desired. In many cases, the R-Imager is the only system available to measure roughness in real time in the production line, thus ensuring production quality and enabling a quick response to changes in the production process.

The R-Imager inline inspection system provides continuous, real-time monitoring of surface roughness, ensuring product quality and production efficiency.