Robot hull inspectors

Ships are extremely important to national economies and trade, yet each year approximately 400 sink as a result of corrosion and/or poor welding during construction. Welds are not inspected thoroughly, and now that ships are built with thinner hull sections, what little inspection does take place is inappropriate for the new thicknesses.


Working on a solution was the X-SCAN project. The seven-member consortium aimed to develop a reliable, fast, cheap and safe technique for checking ship structures. The technique involved novel, automated, non-destructive ultrasonic and electromagnetic methods. A further aim was to develop a laser-guided manipulator for automatically checking inaccessible welds. After two years, the undertaking closed in November 2013.


Activity during the first reporting period saw development of three non-destructive techniques, systems and sensors, as well as a robotic manipulator. The work yielded designs for an ultrasonic phased array and alternating current field measurement (ACFM) device for the prototype. Additional development included a laser tracking technique and sensor, which guide the robot.


Subsequent work developed the robotic systems, plus operations for deployment of the non-destructive testing systems. Optimal solutions were chosen after defining initial design options and testing. The design was completed and the manufacturing of components commenced. Control software was also developed, and all components were assembled. The team tested the prototype on a demo plate, which was coated and retested. The system was demonstrated at Chalkis shipyards in Greece.


Project work included developing training materials and providing a dedicated hands-on session for participating small and medium-sized enterprises.


X-SCAN's legacy was reliable and non-destructive automatic robot systems for inspection of welds in ship hulls. The systems improve speed, cost and safety compared to current methods, making shipping more reliable and economic.