The assessment of the surface quality of a product requires specially adapted lighting. In diffuse light (normal hall lighting or individual fluorescent tubes mounted above the test site) the surface defects do not get any contours to be sufficiently visible.
In contrast, the iLux lighting systems with their patented light shades® distribute a directed light evenly on the surface to be inspected. This gives errors a clearly recognizable structure and is clearly visible to the viewer. The employee is no longer forced to examine the surface point by point with his eyes, but reacts reflexively to light signals emitted by the errors. As a result, surface defects are detected quickly and reliably and follow-up costs are avoided.
The inspection areas, which are often brightly and diffusely illuminated by a large number of fluorescent tubes, make it difficult for the observer to inspect the surface without fatigue. Illumination intensities of 2,000 to 5,000 lux are measured at many test sites.
Too bright light, however, means stress for the eye and leads to premature fatigue. We therefore determine the optimal illumination intensity by means of tests with fault patterns and also take ergonomic aspects into account. Due to the directional light, the illumination intensity can usually be reduced to 500 to 1,000 lux. This increases vision and concentration enormously.
With the help of our lighting systems, concentrated work over a long period of time is possible.
![[Translate to English:] Lichtlabor](/fileadmin/_processed_/2/1/csm_Lichtlabor_f3f00be696.jpg "[Translate to English:] Lichtlabor")
Based on tests in our lighting laboratory, on-site visits and the documents provided by the customer, we plan each lighting system individually. In addition to the main focus of our work, the illumination of inspection workstations, we also plan and deliver the light in the immediate vicinity of the inspection as well as the appropriate enclosures for the protection of foreign light. In the future, the area of general working area illumination, e.g. at assembly stations and directional light for colour-sampling, will grow. We are also happy to assist you with general lighting questions as part of a lighting and ergonomics consultation. Why don’t you just ask for our offer?
Automatic or visual error detection?
Despite the enormous technological advances in automatic surface inspection systems, the detection performance of the human eye is still unmatched. Visual inspection is therefore just as essential for the “learning” and continuous monitoring of the automatic systems as it is for the detection of errors that are not detected by the automatic inspection systems.
For this reason, both systems are used together during belt inspection. If the automatic system reports an error that it cannot clearly attribute, employees receive a signal. They then examine the corresponding strip section in a targeted manner, e.g. by grinding or creeping. The final decision on release or blocking is always made by the human being.
Visual inspection thus ensures that the automatic system really only screws out defective material and therefore does not unnecessarily double load the capacity.
Automatic and visual inspection complement each other in an ideal way.