A Turkish steel producer is optimising the production of high speed-compatible rails with the Diris 3D Hot method, developed by NextSense in Austria.
The method is based on laser light section technology, which facilitates the non-contact examination of surfaces that are still hot meaning defects in the surface structure can be detected at an earlier point in the production process.
The laser light section technology is a method of optical 3D measurement technology that allows for the calculation of a precise height profile. To take the measurement, a laser line is projected on a mobile object. Shifts of the laser line caused by changes in the surface structure are registered by several cameras and converted by means of photometric calculations in 3D coordinates. Once the object has been completely guided along under the laser line, you get a complete height profile of the object.
Christoph Böhm, marketing manager of NextSense, explained: 'Our Diris 3D Hot method works on a completely non-contact and automated basis. The customer gets 3D data in real time, including the spatial depth of production errors as well as a complete documentation.' Hence the method can be applied to surfaces that are still hot, such as those you have in steel production immediately after the rolling.
Defects are detected very early in the production process, and once the cause has been eliminated, the production of large amounts of rejects can be prevented. The technique can discern the type of imperfection and can detect recesses of a depth of a few tenths of a millimetre.
The automation of the surface inspection also improves work safety when dealing with hot steel products of over 1,000°C. There is also full documentation of the measurement results: objective 3D data in colour diagrams replace subjective assessments made by employees.
