A Knowledge-based Approach to Crack Detection in Thermographic Images

This paper describes an innovative visual inspection system for the detection of small cracks in metal parts. Given the extremely low dimension of the defects to be detected, the system is based on a thermographic approach: defects are recognized analyzing the heat flux induced by an excitation. The system is able to analyze parts of very high complexity, like a crankshaft, thanks to the introduction of an articulated robot, used for moving the part. The system also benefits from a deep knowledge of the inspected part and of the imaging system: this is exploited to reduce the high number of artifacts and reflections that appear in thermographic images when heat sources are employed. The core of the inspection mechanism is a computer vision algorithm that is capable of analyzing the thermographic images, extract the thermal information, and exploit a Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier to provide a final decision on the presence of a crack in the analyzed part.