Image-based feature extraction for inline quality assurance and wear classification in high-speed blanking processes

Wear is one of the key factors that determine the efficiency of multi-stage processes that include blanking operations. Since wear in these processes not only causes unplanned downtime but also directly affects product quality, inline detection of wear and its effect on product quality is of major importance. However, current quality assurance (QA) methods are limited to manual offline inspection by operators at predefined intervals, so that 100% inspection of the product and description of the state of wear is not found in industrial practice. The aim of this work is therefore to develop an optical system that enables in-line acquisition of product images and the associated control of blanking-specific quality features up to stroke rates of 300 strokes per minute (spm). In order to make the system attractive to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME), the system is designed to minimize integration and investment costs using commercially available components. By combining the system with a methodology for extracting blanking-specific features, so-called key performance parameters (KPPs), the condition of the blanked surface as a relevant quality parameter is derived directly from the workpiece image. To demonstrate the transferability of the methodology to industrial applications, two use cases are investigated. In the first case, the KPPs are used directly to determine the quality of the blanked workpiece and are compared with reference measurements. Here, the KPPs are quantified with a mean absolute error of 18 μm compared to a ground truth. In the second case, the KPPs are used to build a machine learning (ML) model to estimate the wear of the blanking tool. Here, an accuracy of 92% is achieved in classifying the actual wear state.