<<BACK TO HOME

Strain measurement uses photographic techniques

Ford’s Genk plant in Belgium is seeing the first deployment of a portable strain measurement system called Phastä, developed by Corus’s research arm and Dutch company Geodelta.

Phastä has been developed to ensure reliable production quality of complex formed body panels during vehicle development and production.

It brings together 3D measurement technology with materials knowledge by photographing a pressed panel from different positions using a digital camera and then processing the data.

The Phastä software links all the photographic measurements automatically, calculating the strains in the pressed part with an accuracy of ±0.5 per cent. Results are typically available within three hours and can then be used to make minor changes to the press tools to avoid any problems identified.

With the growing use of high speed steels in press shops, carmakers need to know better how a material will deform and flow during processing, Corus says. Compared with conventional methods of strain measurement, Phastä is portable and can measure whole components at one pass.

Corus support engineer Hans Brouwer said: “Phastä was originally developed to provide a rapid response to production press shop problems. Additionally, the system allows us to compare the performance of new grades of steel during a current vehicle’s life cycle with the ability to introduce better performing grades if robustness of the pressing process can be demonstrated.”