Kathy Scott, Service Sales Director at Yxlon/Comet Technologies USA knows that service matters. With her 29 years of experience, she knows service and support should rate nearly as high in the decision to purchase a non-destructive testing (NDT) inspection system as the system itself. 

One might think a measurement using the same calibrated tool would have the same accuracy regardless of the object being measured.  But metrology is more than that, as this whitepaper will show. “Uncertainty of measurement” can be influenced by the object being measured, as well as the specific measurement task. 

Microlaunchers are an alternative to conventional launch vehicles. Able to carry payloads of up to 350 kilograms, these midsized transport systems are designed to launch small satellites into space. Researchers at the Fraunhofer IWS and the TU in Dresden developed an additively manufactured rocket engine with an aerospike nozzle for microlaunchers. The scaled metal prototype is expected to consume 30 percent less fuel than conventional engines on the way to orbit.

The gold standard for 3D measurement equipment is the DIN EN ISO 10360 Geometrical Product Specification (GPS). It is designed to help compare different equipment and create a clear understanding of when a system is within the specification and when it is not.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIB) have become an indispensable part of modern life. The intensive testing of rechargeable batteries is not only important for ensuring their quality and function but even more for safety aspects.

In a CT system, X-ray photons emitted from an X-ray tube will travel through the object and hit a detector. The detector senses the dose at each pixel of the detector area. This creates digital images while the object is rotated. The reconstruction software calculates virtual slices based on the dose at each location from different angles. The result is called a tomogram. Each pixel in the tomogram represents a density of material, a voxel.

There is a range of terminology for CT system accuracy and uncertainty that should be understood when evaluating 3D scanning systems, this blog post illustrates some of those terms, such as Precision and Accuracy, Tolerance, Uncertainty of Measurement, Resolution, Error, and Suitability.

Evolution, and thereby the origin of us human beings, still raises many questions for science. Prof. Dr. John Nyakatura, who holds the chair of 'Comparative Zoology' at the Humboldt University in Berlin, and his young team of junior scientists are focusing on the functional morphology of vertebrates and trying to track down the evolution of early primates. "A key to understanding their evolution seems to be the feet," John Nyakatura explains.

Electromobility confronts the automotive industry with many new challenges. New components sometimes require new test methods to ensure functionality and safety. Research and development are running at full blast and partnerships find solutions that clearly push the current boundaries of what is possible. In a joint project, the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials and Yxlon International have succeeded for the first time in taking a look into the inside of cast rotors.

Computed tomography (CT) is the most effective technology for non-destructive testing (NDT).The dataset obtained from a CT scan allows users to examine material samples, observe defects, perform measurements and identify materials with different densities. Engineers, builders, researchers and scientists can therefore discover features that could not previously be examined without destroying the test object.

In an extensive development project from the automotive industry, funded by the BMBF in AGENT-3D, it once again became clear that x-ray computed tomography is much more than a technology for non-destructive material testing. Moreover, CT supports in research & development as well as in the elaboration of production processes and helps to save time and money.