Millimeter-Wave Radar Sensor for Automated Tomographic Imaging of Composite Materials in a Manufacturing Environment

To unlock the full potential of composite materials, reliable measurement methods during and after their manufacturing are required. Established measuring methods are commonly based on ultrasound or thermographic imaging techniques and offer only a limited usability. A promising alternative to the aforementioned methods are millimeter-wave-based systems. It has already been demonstrated that such systems can provide a tomographic representation of composite materials, enabling the detection, localization, and classification of critical defects within the component. The tomographic millimeter-wave imaging system presented here is operating in the W band and is packaged for the operation in a manufacturing environment. For this purpose, it is enclosed by a dustproof housing and can be mounted on an industrial robot, which enables the development of an automated measurement procedure during and after the manufacturing process of composite materials. The direct integration of the measurement system into the manufacturing process allows for early-stage fault detection and classification, which is essential for the production of high-quality, high-performance, and highly reliable composite materials.