Development of Automated Ultrasonic Inspection System of Spot Weld

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Spot welding is an advanced joining process of increasing importance within the manufacturing industry, particularly the automotive sector. While current techniques are highly automated, inspection continues to be done manually, which is time-consuming and highly dependent upon specialized technical and analytical skills of the operator, and are only applied to a limited number of weld points. When a defective weld is found, a large quantity of already welded products must be thrown away, resulting in huge losses in materials, labor and disposal costs. There is a critical need for an automated nondestructive inspection system that can handle a much larger number of welds accurately and reliably, and can be integrated within the working cycles of production line. The proposed project aims to develop an ultrasonic inspection system that meets this need. Under the proposed project, University of Waterloo researchers will work alongside HJ Machine and Pattern Ltd. (HJMP) engineers to merge ultrasonic and machine vision technologies to develop an ultrasonic nondestructive inspection system which can perform in-production inspections directly within an automotive plant line. The new system will evaluate weld quality with high resolution and reliability, without depending on operators' skills. The main components of the system will be developed in parallel, including an ultrasound transducer, a controller hub, an automated positioning system, and user interface software. The proposed project holds great potential to innovate the way spot weld inspections are conducted and thus help HJMP position themselves as a leading provider of new automated ultrasonic inspection solutions in North America. Since nondestructive inspection technologies are essential to the safety of automotive chassis, the scientific and technological advances from this project will also be applicable to electric vehicle fleets, which will be the main stream of passenger cars in the near future. Efficient and reliable inspection technologies will be of clear benefit for the Canadian automotive industry, which is the largest manufacturing employer in Canada with over 540 companies.