Contaminants on component surfaces – such as residues of lubricants or release agents – can disrupt downstream steps in the production process. Modern welding, bonding and sealing processes, in particular, are highly sensitive to organic contamination. The laser scanners from Fraunhofer IPM use fluorescence measurement technology to check the cleanliness of surfaces. “We have recently developed special F-scanner systems for two very different applications and introduced them in the customers’ production processes,” says Dr. Alexander Blättermann, Group Manager of the Optical Surface Analytics Group at Fraunhofer IPM.

For perfect welding joints

In the field of power electronics, the F-Scanner enables 100 percent inspection of components before welding. The system checks several power electronics components with a total of up to 100 welding points for cleanliness in a single step. The decision as to whether a component is acceptable or not is made automatically by the algorithm on the basis of application-specific criteria. This ensures the quality of the spot welds and thus the long-term reliability of the components. The system is already in use at a German automotive supplier and is to be implemented at several locations worldwide in the coming year.

For perfect bonding

High-performance electric engines can generate enormous forces. Therefore, adhesive bonds must meet particularly high standards. To ensure the quality of the surface before bonding, a German car manufacturer and its supplier rely on large-area inspection using F-Scanners. The inspection systems are specially designed for use in production environments and each has a modular, dust-tight and splash-proof housing with active cooling. Together with automatic calibration, this ensures maximum stability and data quality as well as minimum maintenance and downtime of the systems. The complete integration of several scanners into the production lines is planned in follow-up projects.