Using a custom CNC controls retrofit to improve positioning, precision, and efficiency during rocket engine component inspection.
Critical rocket engine components require X-ray inspection to verify their integrity and safety. Traditionally, positioning the X-ray equipment for these inspections was a time-consuming, manual process that relied heavily on technician experience and repeated adjustments.
Concept Systems developed a custom CNC controls retrofit to automate equipment positioning, improve repeatability, and significantly reduce inspection time.
The Problem: Human Error
Capturing an accurate X-ray image requires the X-ray tube, inspected part, and image receptor to be precisely aligned. Traditionally, technicians positioned each element manually, then left the lead-lined room to capture and review the image. If the alignment wasn’t correct, they returned to make adjustments and repeated the process.
The customer had already improved the process by installing motorized arms to hold the X-ray tube and image receptor. However, technicians still needed to translate registration data and manually jog the arms into position.
Because each rocket engine component required inspection at multiple points, these repeated adjustments added significant time and introduced opportunities for positioning inconsistencies. The customer needed a way to further automate the process while maintaining the precision required for X-ray inspection.
The Solution: CNC Controls Retrofit
Concept Systems engineered a custom CNC control system using a Siemens 840D/PL CNC and SIMODRIVE 611D digital drives to automate positioning of the X-ray equipment.
Using registration information entered by the technician and a preprogrammed recipe for each part, the CNC controls the motorized arms holding the X-ray tube and image receptor. The two devices move together around the component, remaining opposite one another as they stop at each required inspection position.
Because both arms operate under common CNC control, their movements are tightly synchronized and programmed to avoid fixed obstacles. Operators can make positioning adjustments from the workstation and save routines for repeat parts, reducing the need for manual setup inside the inspection room.
Once a part is loaded and properly registered, the technician can leave the room while the automated inspection sequence is completed.
The Results
The CNC controls retrofit transformed a repetitive manual positioning process into a programmable, automated inspection sequence. Technicians now enter the room primarily to load and register the part and unload it after inspection.
- Reduced average inspection time by 75%, from approximately two hours to 30 minutes
- Improved positioning accuracy and repeatability
- Reduced the need to rerun properly registered parts
- Enabled programmable routines for repeat components
- Reduced ergonomic risk associated with repeatedly opening and closing the heavy lead-lined inspection-room door
- Achieved a 24-month return on investment
Project Details
ROI
24 Months
Project Duration
12 Months
Team
Client: 3 engineers
Concept Systems: 3 engineers
Technology Used
Siemens 840D/PL CNC
SIMODRIVE 611D Digital Drives
Extend the life and capabilities of existing equipment through controls modernization.