Wittmann presents innovative SKZ quality assurance in injection molding with TDI4.0 at the K trade fair
At the K trade fair in Düsseldorf in October, the Wittmann Group demonstrated a highly automated injection molding process. Among other partners, the production cell was supported by the SKZ plastics center in Würzburg, which enables in-line quality assurance using innovative software.
Comparison of the thermographic image during the ongoing process with a reference image. (Photo: Benjamin Baudrit, SKZ)
Thermography enables automated quality testing directly in the process
At this year's K trade fair in Düsseldorf, SKZ impressively demonstrated the capabilities of its TDI4.0 software solution for thermography-based quality assurance in injection molding. During a live demonstration on an IML system at the Wittmann booth, the software was successfully used in a highly automated manufacturing process.
Seamless inline quality control
The demonstration focused on the production of the so-called “HAIBOX” on a MacroPower 500/3400 injection molding machine. The mold was supplied by Haidlmair (Austria), the polypropylene used was from Borealis, and the IML labels were supplied by Viappiani (Italy). The integration of SKZ's TDI4.0 software into this process enabled seamless inline quality control using thermography.
Software detects even the smallest deviations
Quality assurance is carried out using a thermal camera and SKZ software. After each shot, a current thermal image of the component is taken and automatically compared with a previously defined reference image. The TDI4.0 software analyzes precise temperature distributions and detects even the smallest deviations. If the temperature is outside the defined tolerance limits, the affected component is automatically separated and sorted out by the robot – a crucial step in ensuring consistent product quality.
Less waste and rework
“With TDI4.0, we offer the plastics processing industry a powerful solution for automated quality assurance directly in the production process,” explains Christian Deubel, engineer for industrial injection molding services at SKZ. “The combination of thermography and intelligent image processing enables early fault detection and significantly reduces waste and rework.”
Forward-looking solution
The presentation at the K trade fair underscores SKZ's innovative strength and shows how practical research and development is conducted at SKZ and how successful industry-oriented, solution-oriented cooperation between various partners within the plastics industry can be. Companies that want to make their injection molding processes more efficient and safer will find TDI4.0 to be a forward-looking solution.
