Detect tool wear at an early stage – directly within the forming process, without an additional inspection station and suitable for high-speed production processes.
Inform-QC is an autonomous, camera-based inline quality control system. It analyzes the surface of formed components during production, enabling early detection of tool changes caused by wear. This makes it possible to identify quality trends within the process and systematically narrow down potential causes of defects.
Inform-QC combines optical sensing and digital image analysis in a compact inline quality control system. The sensor can be integrated directly into an available station of a progressive die and inspects the manufactured components during the ongoing production process.
The system is based on photometric stereo: The component is illuminated sequentially from different directions and captured by a fixed-position camera. From these images, Inform-QC calculates a digital surface map, known as a normal map. This makes even subtle changes in the component surface visible.
A captured defect-free component serves as the reference. During production, Inform-QC compares the current surface with this reference and visualizes deviations in a wear mask. This allows wear-related changes to be localized and characteristic defect patterns to be assigned to potential process stages or tool components. Automated stopping of the production process is also conceivable.
Companies in sheet metal processing, toolmaking and production engineering
Detecting tool wear before quality problems occur
In high-speed stamping and forming processes, abrasion, material adhesion and, where applicable, changing machine parameters alter the surfaces of the tools being used. These changes can be transferred to the manufactured components, resulting in quality deviations or scrap.
Conventional inspections often take place only after the actual forming process. As a result, an entire batch of formed parts may have to be rejected. Quality-oriented production therefore requires an inspection system that detects changes at an early stage – ideally directly within the progressive die.
The basis for Inform-QC was developed in a research project on industrial sheet metal forming: a cost-effective inline quality control system based on photometric stereo. It continuously analyzes components at production rates of up to 400 strokes per minute and detects wear-related deviations at an early stage.
The system operates autonomously, requires no dedicated training and helps reduce scrap and downtime. The technology therefore provides a foundation for predictive maintenance and intelligent process monitoring.
Demonstration of 400 strokes per minute, partly shown in slow motion
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The solution can either be adapted to new progressive dies or integrated directly into an available station of an existing progressive die. This allows the component surface to be captured during the ongoing manufacturing process.
Photometric stereo is an optical, image-based method in which an object is illuminated and photographed from several directions. The orientation of each point on the component surface is calculated from the resulting images. This makes fine surface structures and variations visible.
Typical surface changes in forming processes caused by abrasion and adhesion can be detected. Characteristic changes on the manufactured component can provide indications of wear affecting individual tool components or process stages.
Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research IGD