Final ReportSummary - SINTEST (A Rapid Non-Invasive Instrument for Determining the Global and Local Porosity of Parts Manufactured by Powder Metallurgy)
This project addresses the current need to provide small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) consortium with an innovative, effective and cost-efficient ultrasonic technology-based system for the improved on-line inspection of powder metallurgy (P/M) sintered parts. The new inspection tool developed was based on pulse echo ultrasonic technology, which makes it possible to provide a global density map of sintered parts, thus enabling a better control of the output into the market, increasing manufacturer reliability for the supply of P/M parts, increasing European Union (EU) competitiveness and opening up a host of new markets. The ultrasound technology has developed to the point that it is now coming out of the laboratory environment and being used for in-situ application. The ultrasound technology has already been enabled in compact form next to production lines in order to provide a quasi online volumetric examination system. This advancement makes it possible to use ultrasound technology in intensive industrial environments. SINTEST will help increase the competitiveness of consortium SME partners by providing them with an innovative, cost efficient, technology to guarantee the quality and robustness of the parts marketed.
Project context and objectives:
P/M is the processing of mechanical parts from metal powders and other components and a major manufacturing route for a wide range of industrial sintered parts. While today the automotive industry constitutes the largest market for P/M parts, representing about 70 % of the total market, P/M parts are in high demand industry-wide internationally and across Europe due to their cost effectiveness and functional flexibility. Companies served by the P/M sector supply mechanical components to the electrical machinery industry, as well as manufacturers of household appliances, power tools, hydraulics, motors and magnetic materials, among others. The world's market for P/M parts has annual sales exceeding EUR 30 billion.
Future expansion of the sector depends directly upon its capability to manufacture high quality P/M parts for applications with more complex mechanical characteristics, such as those for the aerospace and medical industries, sectors that require zero - defective parts. Nevertheless, the optimisation of the manufacturing process to comply with such industry standards is time consuming, due to the lack of fast and systematic instruments and procedures for the inspection of the inner structure of parts. In recent years the applicability of several techniques for the inspection of P/M parts have been investigated, such as Eddy current testing, computer tomography or X-Ray imaging, but studies have revealed that all of them have deficiencies that make them unavailable for a complete and reliable flaw detection and density defect recognition. Published studies of other traditional inspection methods, such as resistance tests, gas permeability or magnetic particle inspection, have also not reported promising results. The only reliable method currently available for determining the local porosity of P/M parts is destructive optical microscopy where after sintering a sample part is cut and examined on the cut surface with a microscope for deficiencies in the inner structure. Unfortunately, in order to obtain a meaningful result, this technique requires careful preparation of the specimens, making it time consuming and expensive.
The lack of an adequate inspection system in the P/M industry has important implications from the point of view of quality assurance. Unfortunately, today there is no dependable method able to appropriately reveal the inner structure of sintered parts. Lack of relevant and quickly accessible information about the internal conditions of P/M parts regarding defects and density deflection inhibit the dissemination of Powder Technologies and limit its use in the manufacturing of components.
This project addresses the current need to provide SMEs consortium with an innovative, effective and cost-efficient ultrasonic technology-based system for the improved online inspection of P/M sintered parts.
SINTEST project builds upon an existing technology by performing research and development in the area of powder metallurgy parts inspection. There are two main objectives of this project, as a reaction to the needs in P/M industry:
1. Reliable and fast detection of subsurface cracks in the final product, those constituting a serious risk for the final performance of the component, thus all the defective parts can be sorted out at the end of a production line.
2. Determination of internal density maps in sintered components to identify possible localised density defects, which may result finally in mid-term failure of the component during service. This information will be useful as a final quality control of the end product, as well as to reduce the cost and time required for designing new tool sets for new parts.
The project started in October 2008, and finished in October 2010 involving 2 years of research and development between 9 companies all experts in their specific field. From an end user side we had partners from Turkey, Spain and Denmark. The technology was aided by SME partners from Bulgaria, Spain and Germany while they were supported by experienced European research companies and a university to bring laboratory research into life in industry.
The project has reached 80 % of the set objectives and has proven that the chosen technology does have a future in this industry. There is still room for improvement, however, which the consortium is planning to perform in the future through a follow on European project or private funding. Nevertheless the consortium is happy with their achievements and are very confident that they can finish the work they have started on this novel machine that can benefit the whole P/M industry not just them.
Project results:
Even though the prototype is not 100 % reliable it has to be noted that the achievements are outstanding. Over 80 % of the objectives have been achieved and a lot of development progress was made in the field of pulse echo ultrasound applied in the P/M industry:
Achievements:
- The principle of detecting defects in P/M parts has been proven and validated at a laboratory level.
- The detection of local densities has been validated on ferrous powder metallurgy parts.
- The coupling medium used for P/M parts has been tested an determined.
- The software being able to read CAD files and generate scanning paths has been perfected.
- The control library for an industrial robot controller has been developed that can be adapted with relative ease to other types.
- The overall control of the individual parts have been integrated into one user-friendly interface.
- The visual representation of the scans have been perfected so the user can select any cross-section of the part to be displayed through a three-dimensional (3D) approach.
- Parts could be scanned using the integrated system and the results were promising in some cases showing the potential in the inspection machine.
- The manufacturing cost of the system was kept under EUR 12 000 (calculating with a second hand robot).
- Further ideas for improvement have been recommended which are supported by the consortium and plans are being made for a follow on project.
Potential impact:
Dissemination of knowledge
In the plan for using and disseminating the knowledge, the consortium of SINTEST has set out in a detailed and verifiable manner, the terms of use and dissemination of the knowledge arising from the project, which they own, in accordance with their interests.
It was an evolving document based on D13: draft of the exploitation agreement (EA), business plan (BP) and plan for the use and dissemination of the foreground (PUDF) describing plans for using and disseminating knowledge generated during the which have been regularly updated to give a cumulative overview of the project's undertaken and planned activities, and submitted at the end of each reporting period.
Dissemination activities:
2008: Project website
7 to 8 May 2009: Research connection conference and exhibition - conference
September 2010: Non-invasive instrument for determining the global and local porosity of parts manufactured by powder metallurgy - flyer
10 to 14 October 2010: P/M word congress and exhibition: scientific paper and presentation
14 October 2010: Technical conference on the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7)
November 2010: Progress in non-destructive testing of structural P/M parts at PM2010
December 2010: Multimedia guide on SINTEST.
Future actions planned:
October 2012: Euro PM2012 congress and exhibition
September 2012: Turkey's 7th International Powder Metallurgy Conference and Exhibition.
Overview with exploitable doreground
The SME partners have identified IPR protection methods for the areas identified at the beginning of the project as follows:
1. The whole SINTEST system, based in the uniqueness of the measurement method to simultaneously measure using only one ultrasonic emitter/receptor.
2. The protection of SINTEST by a patent was the option that the consortium investigated in detail, considering that patent protection is solid and provides a clear competitive advantage to its owners (the SMEs). At the same time, patents can only be granted for inventions which are new, imply an inventive step and are capable of industrial application. However:
- due to the limitations in the performance of the final system the partners have decided to put on hold the application for a patent until the system is perfected;
- in order to achieve this, the consortium is planning to do a follow on project which would include carrying out the necessary modifications to develop a marketable product;
- the piezoelectric element on its own, with a novel design and excitation modes, is off the shelf, so this result is no longer relevant.
3. The specialised algorithms to continuously analyse the signals received to extract both these measurements, along with other process information. This will be protected by copyright and owned by the SMEs.
4. The electronic design for a fast acquisition system to process and analyze the signal in real time. Data acquisition is achieved through a data acquisition card (off the shelf) with minor modification such as a time gain amplifier, so this result is no longer relevant
Project website: http://sintest.mfkk.hu/(opens in new window)
Project context and objectives:
P/M is the processing of mechanical parts from metal powders and other components and a major manufacturing route for a wide range of industrial sintered parts. While today the automotive industry constitutes the largest market for P/M parts, representing about 70 % of the total market, P/M parts are in high demand industry-wide internationally and across Europe due to their cost effectiveness and functional flexibility. Companies served by the P/M sector supply mechanical components to the electrical machinery industry, as well as manufacturers of household appliances, power tools, hydraulics, motors and magnetic materials, among others. The world's market for P/M parts has annual sales exceeding EUR 30 billion.
Future expansion of the sector depends directly upon its capability to manufacture high quality P/M parts for applications with more complex mechanical characteristics, such as those for the aerospace and medical industries, sectors that require zero - defective parts. Nevertheless, the optimisation of the manufacturing process to comply with such industry standards is time consuming, due to the lack of fast and systematic instruments and procedures for the inspection of the inner structure of parts. In recent years the applicability of several techniques for the inspection of P/M parts have been investigated, such as Eddy current testing, computer tomography or X-Ray imaging, but studies have revealed that all of them have deficiencies that make them unavailable for a complete and reliable flaw detection and density defect recognition. Published studies of other traditional inspection methods, such as resistance tests, gas permeability or magnetic particle inspection, have also not reported promising results. The only reliable method currently available for determining the local porosity of P/M parts is destructive optical microscopy where after sintering a sample part is cut and examined on the cut surface with a microscope for deficiencies in the inner structure. Unfortunately, in order to obtain a meaningful result, this technique requires careful preparation of the specimens, making it time consuming and expensive.
The lack of an adequate inspection system in the P/M industry has important implications from the point of view of quality assurance. Unfortunately, today there is no dependable method able to appropriately reveal the inner structure of sintered parts. Lack of relevant and quickly accessible information about the internal conditions of P/M parts regarding defects and density deflection inhibit the dissemination of Powder Technologies and limit its use in the manufacturing of components.
This project addresses the current need to provide SMEs consortium with an innovative, effective and cost-efficient ultrasonic technology-based system for the improved online inspection of P/M sintered parts.
SINTEST project builds upon an existing technology by performing research and development in the area of powder metallurgy parts inspection. There are two main objectives of this project, as a reaction to the needs in P/M industry:
1. Reliable and fast detection of subsurface cracks in the final product, those constituting a serious risk for the final performance of the component, thus all the defective parts can be sorted out at the end of a production line.
2. Determination of internal density maps in sintered components to identify possible localised density defects, which may result finally in mid-term failure of the component during service. This information will be useful as a final quality control of the end product, as well as to reduce the cost and time required for designing new tool sets for new parts.
The project started in October 2008, and finished in October 2010 involving 2 years of research and development between 9 companies all experts in their specific field. From an end user side we had partners from Turkey, Spain and Denmark. The technology was aided by SME partners from Bulgaria, Spain and Germany while they were supported by experienced European research companies and a university to bring laboratory research into life in industry.
The project has reached 80 % of the set objectives and has proven that the chosen technology does have a future in this industry. There is still room for improvement, however, which the consortium is planning to perform in the future through a follow on European project or private funding. Nevertheless the consortium is happy with their achievements and are very confident that they can finish the work they have started on this novel machine that can benefit the whole P/M industry not just them.
Project results:
Even though the prototype is not 100 % reliable it has to be noted that the achievements are outstanding. Over 80 % of the objectives have been achieved and a lot of development progress was made in the field of pulse echo ultrasound applied in the P/M industry:
Achievements:
- The principle of detecting defects in P/M parts has been proven and validated at a laboratory level.
- The detection of local densities has been validated on ferrous powder metallurgy parts.
- The coupling medium used for P/M parts has been tested an determined.
- The software being able to read CAD files and generate scanning paths has been perfected.
- The control library for an industrial robot controller has been developed that can be adapted with relative ease to other types.
- The overall control of the individual parts have been integrated into one user-friendly interface.
- The visual representation of the scans have been perfected so the user can select any cross-section of the part to be displayed through a three-dimensional (3D) approach.
- Parts could be scanned using the integrated system and the results were promising in some cases showing the potential in the inspection machine.
- The manufacturing cost of the system was kept under EUR 12 000 (calculating with a second hand robot).
- Further ideas for improvement have been recommended which are supported by the consortium and plans are being made for a follow on project.
Potential impact:
Dissemination of knowledge
In the plan for using and disseminating the knowledge, the consortium of SINTEST has set out in a detailed and verifiable manner, the terms of use and dissemination of the knowledge arising from the project, which they own, in accordance with their interests.
It was an evolving document based on D13: draft of the exploitation agreement (EA), business plan (BP) and plan for the use and dissemination of the foreground (PUDF) describing plans for using and disseminating knowledge generated during the which have been regularly updated to give a cumulative overview of the project's undertaken and planned activities, and submitted at the end of each reporting period.
Dissemination activities:
2008: Project website
7 to 8 May 2009: Research connection conference and exhibition - conference
September 2010: Non-invasive instrument for determining the global and local porosity of parts manufactured by powder metallurgy - flyer
10 to 14 October 2010: P/M word congress and exhibition: scientific paper and presentation
14 October 2010: Technical conference on the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7)
November 2010: Progress in non-destructive testing of structural P/M parts at PM2010
December 2010: Multimedia guide on SINTEST.
Future actions planned:
October 2012: Euro PM2012 congress and exhibition
September 2012: Turkey's 7th International Powder Metallurgy Conference and Exhibition.
Overview with exploitable doreground
The SME partners have identified IPR protection methods for the areas identified at the beginning of the project as follows:
1. The whole SINTEST system, based in the uniqueness of the measurement method to simultaneously measure using only one ultrasonic emitter/receptor.
2. The protection of SINTEST by a patent was the option that the consortium investigated in detail, considering that patent protection is solid and provides a clear competitive advantage to its owners (the SMEs). At the same time, patents can only be granted for inventions which are new, imply an inventive step and are capable of industrial application. However:
- due to the limitations in the performance of the final system the partners have decided to put on hold the application for a patent until the system is perfected;
- in order to achieve this, the consortium is planning to do a follow on project which would include carrying out the necessary modifications to develop a marketable product;
- the piezoelectric element on its own, with a novel design and excitation modes, is off the shelf, so this result is no longer relevant.
3. The specialised algorithms to continuously analyse the signals received to extract both these measurements, along with other process information. This will be protected by copyright and owned by the SMEs.
4. The electronic design for a fast acquisition system to process and analyze the signal in real time. Data acquisition is achieved through a data acquisition card (off the shelf) with minor modification such as a time gain amplifier, so this result is no longer relevant
Project website: http://sintest.mfkk.hu/(opens in new window)