SpotTrack · Development of an automated spot weld inspection device for safe vehicle repair

There are over three thousand spot welds in a typical car. When a car is repaired the spot welding parameters can be different as the mass production machinery used in manufacture can no longer be used. The repairer often is not an expert at inspecting spot welds. Assured reliability of the spot weld is paramount, since the integrity of the spot welds is vital to the crash performance of a car and the safety of its passengers. Therefore, there is a need for a rapid non-destructive inspection device that can be operated by somebody without specialist skills. SpotTrack proposal is for creating the first automatic spot weld tracking device that can be applied non-destructively in the automotive repair industry.The only inspection option available to body repair shops today is to create a spot weld on an off-cut and carry out a ‘peel test’ on it, which is destructive. However, the assumption that the test spot weld is identical to the one on the car can be unsatisfactory. In some cases the spot weld may not be tested at all. The new SpotTrack device will allow the user to quickly and reliably tell whether a spot weld is acceptable by giving a simple pass or fail indication. The proposed SpotTrack system will have the advantage of testing the actual weld made within a matter of seconds and without the need for interpretation. Most importantly it will ensure that the actual spot welds going into service are safe.