Photonic Techniques and Machine Vision Technology: End of Arm Tooling (EOT) for ASTM E1417 Silicon Nitride Ball and Roller Design Crack Detection

New higher throughput quality control tools are needed for ASTM E 1417 inspection of silicon nitride rolling elements at the manufacture prior to its supply to the bearing manufacture. Laser & Plasma Technologies, a niche photonics company, proposes use of novel light scattering techniques, machine vision technology and collaborative robotics for end of arm tooling. Phase I for the envisioned end effector, will include expanding its preliminary data set for USAF POD ball and roller designs as well laboratory studies to inform the systems architecture. Simulation and modeling as well as material characterization will be done by a group at the University of Virginia. TRL 4.