Automatic Ladle Monitoring - TANDM · But furnace insulations have also a ... feeling when planning and repairing refractory lining. Still each customer process is different and existing

Automatic Ladle Monitoring Reliable thermographic complete solutions with the VarioCAM® hr

InfraTec GmbH Infrarotsensorik und Messtechnik Gostritzer Straße 61 – 63 01217 Dresden / GERMANY

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InfraTec infrared LLC 5048 Tennyson Pkwy. Plano TX 75024 / USA

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Huesrev Oezcan

A ladle typically contains up to 290 tonnes of hot, liquid steel when it is transporting the melted good to the continuous caster. 290 tonnes of hot, liquid steel does not only represent a high material value for the steelworks, which has to be protected, but also an enormous hazard potential to the ladle itself, all other equipment and, of course, to the employees of the steelworks, too. Ladle-temperature measurements with contact-free infrared thermography are an ideal basis for the early detection of impending breakage.

ArcelorMittal GmbH, Bremen www.arcelormittal.com/bremen InfraTec Solution: VarioCAM® hr head 480

The ArcelorMittal Bremen GmbH has recognised and taken advantage of this opportunity. The plant has an annual production capacity of some 4 million tonnes of crude steel, which is ultimately an equivalent to more than 14,000 ladles. Huesrev Oezcan was commissioned with minimising this tremendous hazard potential by introducing an automated ladle monitoring system.

He realised his project with the qualified expertise of InfraTec’s engineers, who rely on 20 years of experience in automation of thermographic solutions. InfraTec delivered the entire thermographic ladle monitoring and integrated it completely into ArcelorMittal Bremen’s already existing SPS system control. This was made possible by the competencies of InfraTec’s software developers, who ideally adjusted the solution to the customer’s specifics. Five precise and industrial-suited thermographic cameras now monitor all ladles during their way through the steelworks to the continuous caster. The cameras of the VarioCAM® high resolution series with their high geometric resolution can display even smallest defects and their outstanding thermal resolution allows for an early detection of thermal abnormalities already during the initial stages. On top of this, the temperature profile of the ladles can be traced over a long period of time via the software interface. The system has been adjusted to the harsh conditions of the foundry, for example by equipping it with solid protective housings, which ensure correct measurements by means of integrated air flushing. Temperature measurements and any occurring alerting are automatically matched with the respective ladles. Thus, ladle breakage can be prevented early on. With all this, ArcelorMittal Bremen minimises their economic risks as well as the hazards posed to their employee’s health.

Ladle during casting process Thermal camera with protective housing Control monitor

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Thermography for Climate Research VarioCAM® HD head for atmospheric monitoring


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Climate research is one of the most exposed types of academic research these days. With the continuous discussion about extreme weather events and long‐term implications of human‐made climate factors the related science has become a part of everyone´s daily life.

New York University/Abu Dhabi http://nyuad.nyu.edu/en/ InfraTec solution: InfraTec CLOUD‐SCAN with VarioCAM® HD head 800

One part of climate studies is extensive statistical groundwork based on scientific imaging. Time lapse video recording is a tool to gather numerical data for subsequent analysis. Cloud research is one aspect of this topic. When performed with common digital cameras, operating in the visual spectral region, the collected data are strongly affected by daytime‐related factors, for example by the incidence of light. Those factors can be easily avoided by using a thermal camera instead. Operating in the long‐wave infrared (7 … 14) µm, an uncooled system like the VarioCAM® HD head from InfraTec is a perfect system for 24/7 cloud pattern monitoring and recording. Professor David M. Holland from the New York University´s Center for Atmospheric Ocean Science chose InfraTec´s CLOUD‐SCAN solution for his statistical research on cloud motion and further statistical analysis.

Observation of clouds with VarioCAM® HD head

The core of this system is a VarioCAM® HD head 800 as the only globally available uncooled radiometrically calibrated thermal camera with (1,024 × 768) infrared pixel. Such a large detector creating a batch of 786,432 data sets per image is perfectly suited for providing a solid base for the statistics to be done. The camera´s 15 mm wide‐angle lens provides a field‐of‐view covering (60.3 × 47)°. While the data can be collected via the InfraTec IRBIS® 3 software package, Prof. Holland and his colleagues also utilise the versatile 16‐bit ASCII export capability for subsequent handling in MATLAB routines.

Since the system is permanently mounted on top of a New York City university building in downtown Manhattan, an additional temperature‐regulated enclosure was designed for the VarioCAM® HD head 800. While the infrared camera is already quite a tough camera with its new industry‐level body, massive rainfall, snow or extended sunshine are not affecting the system´s long‐duration accuracy. The CLOUD‐SCAN system is mounted in addition to other weather monitoring equipment, but it is also prepared for trips to polar regions. The inherent long‐term stability of the VarioCAM® HD head design has been well proven in long‐term monitoring programs all around the world where thermal cameras need to operate for months or even years without interruption.

Protective housing

Thermography for Insulation Checks VarioCAM® high resolution – precise, efficient and reliable



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All kind of hot industrial processes need to be contained well to allow the process itself to go on and at the same time to protect neighbouring installations and employees working there. But furnace insulations have also a second very important purpose ‐ energy saving. Especially in times of rising energy costs and environmental protection demands the good shape of furnace insulations becomes increasingly valuable. Thermography helps to detect weak points and provides first indications for necessary repairs.

Morgan Thermal Ceramics www.morganthermal‐ceramics.com InfraTec Solution: VarioCAM® hr inspect 680

The world market leader Morgan Thermal Ceramics has been operating in the furnace insulation business for more than 30 years. Being present in nearly all parts of the world for such a long time a vast experience has been gained. Its customers can make use of this experience by expert soft‐ware predicting the best time for repairs or total replacement of the insulation depending upon a variety of parameters. This is a big step ahead from traditional guts feeling when planning and repairing refractory lining. Still each customer process is different and existing prediction cannot take into account all parameters. In this situation Steve Chernak and his team thought about thermography. This technology has been around for a while also being used in furnace insulation monitoring. Temperatures can be con‐tact‐less measured enabling quick and precise measurements when and where needed. Employees will not have to go close to the equipment any longer and can measure from save and convenient distances. The idea of the team was to compare the suggestions the software models proposed with the findings by using high‐quality thermal cameras. Due to the high geometrical resolution of 640 x 480 pixels of the VarioCAM® hr inspect 680 infrared camera Steve Chernak gets a large field of view and still can resolve small details. That is making his work very efficient not having to take many images and stitching them together. The other even more important advantage of his camera is the excellent thermal resolution. Thus already minor problems of the insulation materials can be spotted and com‐pared with the results of the theoretical software model. Steve Chernack is sure that combining the recommendations of Morgan Thermal Ceramics´ soft‐ware and actual findings using an infrared camera can greatly support plant engineers in taking the right and on‐time decision between a fast hot‐spot repair and a complete installation of new furnace lining.

Furnace door Aluminium kiln

Inspection of High Voltage Networks VarioCAM® High Definition – precise, reliable, efficient



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Feeding of renewable energy and rising consumption peaks – operators of energy networks face great challenges in meeting the set levels of electrical power supply. The increasing network load asks for intensified predictive maintenance. Airborne inspections highly increase the efficiency of high power line monitoring. Also here infrared thermography provides advantages for the precise identification of problems at isolators and power lines by tracing and measuring of atypical heatings.

swiss controlling GmbH

9055 Bühler/Switzerland

www.swisscontrolling.com

InfraTec solution: VarioCAM® HD head 880

Paul Spengler

Helicopter with VarioCAM® High Definition mounted in gimbal

swiss controlling provides services for operators of electrical networks and does this with all the Swiss virtues of precision and reliability. Already small thermal problems can be precisely recog-nised and efficiently documented. For this job Paul Spengler and his team have found their ideal thermographic camera – the VarioCAM® HD head 880 with (1,024 x 768) infrared pixels. Like swiss controlling also this product, made in Germany, puts precision and reliability first. The high number of (1,024 x 768) infrared pixels not only precisely resolves small details but it also helps to avoid measurement errors caused by insufficient geometrical resolution. The high grade design of the camera can already be realised from the outside by little details like the use of LEMO plugs that guarantee long-lasting usage.

When integrating the camera into the gimbal and subsequently onto the helicopter swiss controlling had been comprehensively advised and supported by the InfraTec specialists. For instance, an optimised user interface was developed which enables the inspector to control the camera directly from the cockpit using a joystick. This also allows thermal images to be taken and the control of other instrumentation such as a visual camera. The fully radiometric thermographic measurement data can be stored together with GPS coordinates and additional information like visual images, the number of the respective pole and a precise time stamp. Storage is possible as single images or as a sequence of thermal images.

Thermal image of high voltage net pole

Maximum efficiency in reporting of the current condition of the inspected high voltage network is achieved by the use of the convenient IRBIS® 3 report software package. In this way a large number of thermal images as well as other previously saved information can be directly included and automatically processed resulting in most meaningful reports for swiss controlling customers.


Infrared Thermography Applications at “Kunststoff-Zentrum in Leipzig (KuZ)“



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The infrared thermography is an adequate instrument for non-contact temperature measurements. In this way, absolute temperatures, temperature distributions and relative temperature changes can be measured and tracked within dynamic conditions. The capabilities of infrared thermography systems are multifaceted. As a result, applications in all kind of industries exist. The most popular examples are: Evaluation of thermal insulation of buildings Determination of the performance of photovoltaic modules Monitoring with infrared for easy fire detection Inspection of spot welded joints for car body construction Safety and object monitoring Diagnosis of disease pattern in medicine Quality management of electric/electronic components

Kunststoff-Zentrum in Leipzig gGmbH www.kuz-leipzig.de/ Text: M. Eng. Markus Tröbs Dr. Thomas Wagner InfraTec solution: VarioCAM® hr inspect 650

Due to relative good emission ratios of many plastics, infrared thermography is suitable for the extended characterisation of plastic processing technology and its optimisation. This application report exemplifies infrared thermography applications for plastic processing and inspection technologies at the KuZ. Cooling performance of a moulded part during the injection-moulding process The characteristics of an injection-moulded part are determined by the used plastic, geometry, and processing conditions. The cooling behaviour of the part inside the mould plays a major role. When the cooling effect happens too fast, for example, internal tensions can be frozen inside the moulded part. On the basis of attempts to get into the low-stressed condition, the moulded part could be seriously damaged during later applications. Furthermore, the cooling behaviour determines the crystalline structure of a partial crystalline thermoplastic material. Due to a rapid cooling, the crystallization is restrained and therefore the crystallization is at its lowest level. On the other hand, if there is a slow cooling effect, a higher level of crystallization develops, which can have a positive impact on the mechanical properties. In this way the cooling process influences the morphology development of a plastic moulded part. In addition, the cooling down process also influences the shrinkage behaviour. Local temperature differences in a mould cavity cause differ-ent local shrinkage behaviour. This can lead to a deformation of moulded parts. In general, the cooling process plays a big role in the development of moulded part properties.

Nr.

Mould temperature [°C]

Total Cooling Time [s]

1.

60 60

20 30

2.

60 80

100

25 25 25

Tab. 1 Temperature control parameter

Fig 1 Thermogram of the moulded part at 60 °C mould temperature and 20 s totals cooling time

With the help of infrared thermography, the cooling process of an injection moulded part with different mould temperatures and total cooling times was analysed at the KuZ (see table 1). The used material was PC/ABS. For IR recordings the thermographic system VarioCAM® hr inspect of the company InfraTec was used.





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Figure 1 shows the thermogram of the moulded part with open mould after the total cooling time has elapsed. It makes it possible to see quite large local temperature differences due to differences in wall thickness. Figures 2 and 3 show temperature time sequences of three defined measuring points after opening the mould with a total cooling time of 20 s and 30 s, respectively. The duration of the recorded sequence is 120 s with a frame rate of 2 Hz.

Fig. 2 Temperature-time sequence of the moulded part at 60 °C mould temperature und 20 s total cooling time

Fig. 3 Temperature-time sequence of the moulded part at 60 °C mould temperature und 30 s total cooling time

It shows that after a 20 s total cooling time the temperature-P1 increases for about 10 s and the temperature time sequence passes a maximum. This effect is the result of the thermal transfer from the warmer inner “soul” into the external layer which raises the temperature of the external layer. Afterwards, a typical cooling process results as seen in P2 and P3. With a total cooling time of 30 s, there is no rise in temperature anymore in the thick-walled area (P1) after the opening of the mould. In the additional 10 s cooling time, the heat from the warmer inner soul was fairly discharged over the mould surface. Figures 4, 5 and 6 show the recorded thermal images of the moulded part for different adjusted mould temperatures. These examples show the potential of infrared thermography for optimised demoulding and cooling of the injection moulding process. From these so called “hot spots”, temperature differences and curves can be visualised. This is useful for defining and justifying mould temperatures and demoulding times. In addition, through infrared thermography measurements, an optimising of mould design and mould cooling is also possible.

Fig. 4 Temperature-time sequence of the moulded part at 60 °C mould temperature and 25 s total cooling time

Fig. 5 Thermogram of the moulded part at 80 °C mould temperature and 25 s totals cooling time

Fig. 6 Thermogram of the moulded part at 100 °C mould temperature und 25 s total cooling time





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Burning behaviour of PA66 during UL94-testing Important for flame-proofed equipment of plastics is to archive, with the help of suitable filter materials and additives, that the developing melt does not drip off on fire during the firing procedure. In a current research project at the KuZ1, the burning behaviour of PA66-mixes during the burning process is recorded with infrared thermography. Figure 7 shows the thermogram of a UL94-panel of additive PA66 after a heating duration of 10 s. The evaluation of the thermogram was done with two measurement points and one measuring range. It is conspicuous that the maximum temperatures are very local. With an increasing distance to the flame along the panel, the temperature decreases exponentially (as in figure 8).

Fig. 7: Thermogram of the burning UL94-test object after 10 s flaming period

In figure 9, the temperature-time sequence of the three measurement points is shown. In the first stage, the temperature increase is due to the first flame treatment. After removing the burner from the sample, the temperature decreases suddenly by approx. 150 K. The second rise in temperature was caused by the second flame treatment. Afterwards, temperature-P1 and R3_MAX (max. temperature of evaluation scale) lead into a plateau. This plateau is penetrated by drastic temperature reductions which are caused by the polymer melt drip off. After the burner is removed again from the sample, the undisturbed cooling down process can be observed. It is expected that there are differentiated assessments from this research about influence of compound structure and other parameters to the process of flame development during melt drops drip offs.

Fig. 8: Temperature-Time sequence of the burning UL94- test object

Fig. 8: Temperature in relation to the test object lengths

1 Founded by: Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie (Reg.-Nr. VF120006)


Thermography in CFRP Processing ImageIR® 8300 – precise, reliable and efficient



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In 1960 when the first laser was announced there was no indication of how the field would develop and today there is almost no area of science and industry that remains untouched by lasers. New applications emerge almost daily demanding the development of even more sophisticated laser systems and one of the leading global research and development institutions for laser-based solutions and their implementation is Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH). Many of these new systems operate at very high laser intensity levels and consequently require close control of thermal processes. This is achieved by the use of infrared thermography which is both contact-less and provides imagery.

Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. 30419 Hannover www.lzh.de InfraTec solution : ImageIR® 8300

Dr. Peter Jäschke

The cutting and welding of carbon fiber reinforced polymer composite (CFPR) requires a precisely defined energy input from the laser. Precision is vital as the carbon fibres only start to melt above 3,000 °C whereas the polymer matrix making up the composite has already begun to melt and vaporize at temperatures as low as 130 °C. Because of the wide variation in the thermo-physical properties of the fibre and matrix a highly precise and temporally resolved temperature measurement is required. Fast image acquisition is necessary as the operational cycles of the laser processes are often very short. Only by using such fast measurement capability can processes be understood overcoming thermal interference effects from the base material in the quality of cut edges and weld seams produced.

Temperature distribution during laser welding of CFRP

Temperature distribution during laser cutting of a CFRP component

To investigate the emitted thermal radiation from the laser cutting and welding processes Dr. Peter Jäschke and his composite material team use a cooled camera operating in the mid-wave infrared waveband (2 … 5) microns – the ImageIR® 8300 from InfraTec. With two separate filter wheels, each with five positions, spectral anomalies during CFRP processing can be detected at a level of accuracy in temperature measurement of ±1 %. This high level of accuracy can only be achieved by the implementation of specially developed precision calibration methods to use the full dynamic range of the infrared detector as well as the integration of several calibration curves to guarantee for long-term stability and drift compensation. Using InfraTec's special lenses the smallest detail can be well resolved from a relatively large and therefore safe working distance. Control of the camera, acquisition, storage and analysis of measurement data is performed with the IRBIS® 3 thermographic software ensuring the efficient conversion of acquired data into usable knowledge.


Thermography for Optimisation of Installed Wind Turbines


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Due to the decreasing number of suitable locations for wind turbines and the increasing push towards renewable energy sources, new activities have been introduced to improve the efficiency of rotor blades for wind turbines.

Deutsche WindGuard Engineering GmbH

www.windguard.de

InfraTec solution: ImageIR® 8300

The goal towards high efficiency is of great interest, because it has a direct impact on the achievable energy output of wind turbines and thus, on the profit of the operator. Of course, the rotor blades of modern wind turbines have an already optimised efficiency resulting from decades of aerodynamic research: their profiles are designed with supercomputers and optimised in wind tunnels. In their production new technologies are applied, which were first designed for the construction of high performance aircrafts. The goal of these measures is to have maximum percentage as well as maximum controlling of laminar flow between the rotor surface and the surrounding air. However, turbulent flows reduce the efficiency and therefore must be reduced to what is absolutely necessary. In addition, there are many more factors that negatively affect the efficiency of wind power stations. It starts with alignment of the blades, leading edge contamination, erosion and damages to defective flow control add-ons, such as leading edge protection, vortex generators and zig-zag tape sections.

For several years now, thermography has been a valuable tool for investigating the boundary layer behavior on airfoils in order to aerodynamically optimise it. It makes use of the fact that the heat transfer resistance of the boundary layer is significantly lower in turbulent flow than in laminar flow. For example, if the surrounding air is colder than the rotor blade surface, a thermal pattern appears on the surface which indicates the state of the flow. Because the temperature on the turbulent flow region is colder than on the laminar low region, measuring this thermal pattern with a thermal imaging camera permits detecting the boundary layer condition in real-time. Highly thermally sensitive high-speed infrared cameras with high performance telephoto lenses are used to visualize the boundary layer condition of rotor blades in operation, in which the rotor blades and the measurement position are several hundred meters apart. These measurements deliver qualitative information regarding the transition location along the rotor blades, and allow comparisons between different operational states and conditions.

A high-speed actively cooled high-end infrared camera ImageIR® 8300 with an InSb-focal-plane array photon detector in the format (640 x 512) IR pixels and with a thermal resolution better than 20 mK is used together with a telephoto lens of 200 mm to acquire high resolution thermal images of rotor blades in operation. Due to extremely short integration times, only minor motion blurs occur during tip speeds of 75 m/s. Mit freundlicher Unterstützung von:

C. Dollinger, N. Balaresque, M. Sorg: Thermographic Boundary Layer Visualisation of Wind Turbine Rotorblades in Operation. EWEA 2014, Bacelona, Spain: Europe’s Premier Wind Energy Event. EWEA The European Wind Energy Association, Barcelona, 2014.


Thermography for Quality Assurance ImageIR® – precise, efficient and reliable



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Tristan Sczepurek

Today gas and steam turbine power plants by the SIEMENS AG are more than ever complex high-tech products. They provide a continuous and reliable electrical power supply for industry and population worldwide. They do this using fossil fuels very efficient and therefore exceptionally friendly for our environment. To achieve this highest quality of every single component is absolutely imperative. Thus heavily stressed parts like the turbine blades are tested with the latest measurement techniques for example with infrared thermography.

SIEMENS AG Energy Sector Fossil Power Generation Division www.energy.siemens.com InfraTec Solution: ImageIR® 8320

During the production of the turbine blades for gas and steam turbine power plants the Siemens AG uses ceramic coatings since higher entry temperatures to the turbine blades are reachable which increases efficiency. Thereby it is necessary to ensure the correct application of the coatings with-out any losses at the flow channels. Mr. Sczepurek together with his team takes the responsibility for the required test techniques and processes. Out of the range of non-destructive testing methods he chose infrared thermography as it allows for checking large turbine areas particularly fast and reliable at the same time. InfraTec supports this quality assurance by supplying high-performance and reliable infrared cam-eras from its own ImageIR® series manufactured in Dresden. The geometric resolution of 640 x 512 pixels being high for commercial, cooled thermal cameras provides together with a fast frame rate the necessary prerequisites to realize the test of every turbine reliably but also in eco-nomically justifiable time.

A fast motorized focussing as well as a data acquisition to the split milisecond and a camera control by a capable and cus-tomizable software of InfraTec also plays an important role. The flexible inter-face concept of the ImageIR® camera moreover allows for a seamless integration into the existing system environment. Additionally, the infrared cameras of the ImageIR® series can be combined with external excitation devices due to its precise trigger possibility. Thus, further parameters of turbine blades can be de-termined within the methodology of active heat flow thermography. Their analysis and practical ap-plication result in a further increase in efficiency for the customers of the gas and steam turbine power plants of the SIEMENS AG.

Thermographic testing of turbine blades Thermographic test bench


Quality Assurance with Active Thermography in Series Test at Zwickau Volkswagen Plant



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Non-destructive testing methods are becoming increasingly more important in the industry. One reason is that they cost much less than other test methods. As a very elegant method, the active heat flow thermography method is now firmly established as a powerful method of non-contact and non-destructive testing of products of different manufacturing technologies.

Image 1: Robot in test position

The quality assurance staff at Volkswagen Sachsen GmbH in Zwickau (Germany) have successfully relied on this innovative test method for several years. Working closely with InfraTec, they have developed tailored applications for their measurement tasks and gradually adapted them to the types of vehicles and specific local conditions. Specialists there test laser welds of body components with two- and three-plate connections. Since the integration of the modular production kit MPB in the factory in Saxony, the testing became even more comprehensive. Now, there are checked technologically more sophisticating welded seams at the test side in a fully automated way. With this thermographic check, Sven Beier and his team can detect even the smallest details of car bodies. They examine and evaluate bodies and side panels of different vehicle types, which is not an easy task. After all, a single component can have up to 250 individual welds, depending on vehicle model. Performing the testing in a three-shift operation, up to 3,500 laser welds can quickly pass through this non-destructive inspection by the end of each day. Ralf Albrecht, head of quality assurance for car chassis, is especially pleased about the newfound freedom: "By automating the testing facility, the test throughput has been significantly increased and made more flexible." The heart of this test system is the special flash head, developed jointly by Volkswagen and InfraTec, where in addition to the powerful flash lamp, a thermal imaging camera is also integrated. Designed to replace the previous standard flash heads, this new development enables both the so-called incident and transmitted light test. Sven Beier supervised the test system on site and is absolutely convinced of its unique combination of industry flash lamp and high-end thermographic camera ImageIR®: "With the new flash head construction, we reach significant greater life expectancy when compared to the previous solution." A car body group is tested using two special flash heads, mounted on powerful 7-axis robots. After the program starts, an automatic execution of all programmed test


Quality Assurance with Active Thermography in Series Test at Zwickau Volkswagen Plant



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positions of a test sequence is carried out. The team, however, can change at any time in a subsection or test sequence to test single laser welds. In active thermography, a defined trigger, high-energy flash sends a heat pulse to the laser weld to be tested. This creates a heat flow that causes a temperature change at the surface of the object. The lateral distribution of temperature change and the time course is recorded by a high-sensitivity, high-speed thermographic camera of the ImageIR® series. This creates a real-time sequence of infrared images and sends them to a PC, where they are stored. Flaws or defects lead to a change in heat flow and cause a characteristically altered temperature distributions on the component surface. A test software, developed by InfraTec in collaboration with the quality assurance team at the Volkswagen plant in Zwickau, analyses the stored sequences and provides the analysis results and other data. The inspector can then gather detailed information from this data about the condition of the welds and, where appropriate, promptly take action to ensure quality remains high. This intuitive test software enables a full documentation of the test results, as well as operator actions and can be individually adapted to each test position. This procedure further increases the testing security compared to destructive testing, even with significantly shorter testing times and lower costs. In result, this provides an additional benefit in quality and quantity concerning the entire production.

Abb. 2: From left: Andreas Zein, Sven Beier and Ralf Albrecht

Abb. 3: High-End-Thermography Camera ImageIR® by InfraTec


Thermal Stress Analysis of Metals High‐End‐Thermography with ImageIR® 8300 hp



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Initial situation Numerous chemical and physical effects affect metals whereby their material properties such as tensile strength can change. Analyses on the degree of change are crucial for assessing whether or not a component or a complete device can still carry out its function without restriction. Tensile testing provides information for such assessments. During this procedure external mechanical pressure is applied to solid state objects resulting in stress changes in their interior. The changed surface temperature is a parameter that describes the sum of all internal stress changes of the body which reach the surface. As a result of positive changes in pressure solid bodies heat up and cool down accordingly during negative changes in pressure. The inner stress change Δσ thus behaves directly proportional to the measured temperature change ΔT. The example of a test for tensile specimen measurement demonstrates that metallic solid bodies can be tested for such stress changes with the help of thermographic cameras. Test object Two aluminium specimen with a typical shape for tensile testing are used for the analysis. These specimen are coated with a high infrared emitting varnish on one side. Testing equipment An ImageIR® 8300 hp with a 100 mm lens is used. The lens allows an adequate distance with a suitable image detail for small test objects. The camera which is equipped with a detector in the format of (640 x 512) IR pixels works in the sub‐windowing mode to solve the task. With an image size of (320 x 256) IR pixels the image frame rate can be increased to the necessary 600 Hz. The corresponding data are captured with the software IRBIS® 3.1 professional and then analysed with the software IRBIS® 3 active.




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Test procedure Clamped in a resonance tensile testing machine the samples are stretched periodically within their mechanical elastic range. During the entire procedure the ImageIR® 8300 hp acquires the surface temperature of the sample and sends the data in real time to a laptop for storage. In addition to the IR data an analogue signal of the tensile testing machine is also recorded. This signal corresponds to the current excitation frequency and its amplitude allows conclusions to be drawn as to the actual tensile force applied. Results Sample 1: At the beginning of the test sample 1 is subjected to a static mechanical pre‐stress of 2.25 kN. Afterwards, a periodically load was applied slowly increasing from zero to a signal of +/‐ 2.25 kN resulting in an absolute load between 0 and 4.5 kN to the sample. The excitation frequency is around 100 Hz and is dependent on the combination of sample and resonance tensile testing machine. As expected the temperature profile shows an increase in temperature along the vertical sample axis at the narrowest region of the sample. However, significant temperature differences occur between the left and right side. Apparently, higher stress is built up on the left side.

Fig. 1‐3: Lock‐In amplitude image of sample 1. The asymmetric stress curve in the sample is clearly visible. At the bottom left the 3D visualization is shown with the same scaling.




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Sample 2: The second sample has to withstand similar load conditions. However, the stress changes here periodically from the beginning with a signal of +/‐ 2.25 kN. Moreover the sample is loaded until breakage in this case. Overall, it seems to be more homogeneous compared with the first sample since the stress distribution appears more symmetrical. Just before the breakage a load peak occurred on the left edge within the narrowest region. During persisting load this peak shifts with the resulting crack further towards the middle of the sample. The changing stresses are reflected accordingly in the temperature changes with regard to the measurements.

Fig. 4‐6: Lock‐In amplitude result of sample 2 at the start of the load cycle. A relatively symmetrical temperature (stress) distribution can be recognised over the sample cross‐section. At the bottom left the 3D visualization is shown with the same scaling.




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Fig.7‐8: With progressive breakage of sample 2 the stress peak shifts towards to the middle of the sample. On the right the 3D visualization is shown with the same scaling.

Summary Lock‐In thermography is suitable for qualitative stress measurement both for the elastic stress range and for the transition to the plastic stress range. Using suitable formulas for the relationship of the temperature change to the stress change within the material quantitative results can certainly be calculated. Particularly in the case of poor heat conductors such as steel inhomogeneity within the material such as surface corrosion with considerable penetration depth and the associated material cross‐section weaknesses can be recognised and their influence on the tensile strength determined.

Inspection of High Voltage Networks VarioCAM® High Definition – precise, reliable, efficient



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Based on programs for energy conservation and for promotion of renewable energies, until 2009 in the European Union photovoltaic facilities for more than 15 GWp were installed, which approximately corresponds to the surface of Milan. Like for all electrical devices, solar cells and modules need to be maintained especially as they are located outdoors. Infrared thermo-graphy offers the possibility to localize and classify problems fast and also with a high accuracy.

HaWe Engineering GmbH, Munich

www. hawe-eng.com

InfraTec-Solution: VarioCAM® hr inspect 780

Bernhard Weinreich

The company HaWe Engineering GmbH, formerly Solarschmiede GmbH, successfully uses the camera VarioCAM® hr inspect 780 camera for inspecting photovoltaic installations of all types. Mr. Bernhard Weinreich, CEO & Head of Thermography, emphasizes primarily the high geometrical resolution of the cam-era of (1,280 x 960) pixels, which provides a good first overview of possible problemes even of large instal-lation areas. Based on this, only faulty modules and cells have to be checked in detail which considerably increases the efficiency of HaWe Engineering GmbH.

The precise inspection of primarily localized problems, visualizes a multitude of different failures. Cell line defects and disruptions can be detected as well as faults on busbars or sockets hidden behind the cells.

Cell defects and disruptions

High transfer resistance on socket of a thin-film module

HaWe Engineering GmbH can provide detailed reports for the operators of photovoltaic facilities, which are generated with the professional thermographic software IRBIS® 3 from InfraTec. These analyses offer a very good basis to increase the performance of photovoltaic installations but also to overcome possible faults in time before they could lead to fires or even more serious damages.

Overview on a photovoltaic plant


Thermographic Microscopy ImageIR® 8300 – precise, reliable and efficient



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At the same time that the performance of electronic components is being driven ever higher the demand for thermal management at ever smaller scales is also occurring. The Fraunhofer Institute for Silicon Technology (ISIT), as a development partner, supports companies in meeting these growing needs in an optimal fashion. As a result, the latest scientific developments can be implemented in new products very quickly, sus-taining the rapid rate of innovation required by the industry. In order to deal with this challenge, the ISIT, as well as other Fraunhofer Institutes, has a range of excellent technology. This technology enables its specialists to fulfill their tasks in the very best way.

Fraunhofer Institute for Silicium Technology (ISIT) 25524 Itzehoe www.isit.fraunhofer.de/ InfraTec-Solution: ImageIR® 8300

Mr. Sebastian Puls

Analysing electronic components the ISIT has to detect smallest possible temperature differences. It does so by using the thermal camera ImageIR® 8300 from InfraTec which can precisely measure temperature differences of 20 mK securely identifying any even just emerging thermal issue. Thus, development failures can be avoided at an early stage. By using a detec-tor with (640 x 512) IR pixels at a 15 µm pitch and a high performance 3x microscopic lens a geometric reso-lution of only 5 µm can be achieved. At the same time, a field of view of (3.2 x 2.6) mm2 is displayed which is suitable for many microelectronic applications. Additional, easily interchangeable lenses with a range of focal lengths enable the ISIT to further exploit the flexibility of their infrared camera across a wide variety of applications.

Another benefit for the ISIT derives from the precision calibration of the ImageIR® 8300 camera. The use of a set of additional side calibration curves compensates for drift and ensures a maximum measurement accuracy even under fluctuating measurement conditions. As with all thermographic testings of electronic components and circuits, measurements are influenced by the differing emissivity of the individual components. To overcome this situation, InfraTec offers an automated pixel wise emissivity correction routine directly in its control and analysis software IRBIS® 3. Using these tools precise statements can be made about temperature distributions and developments over time. With the time component of the heating playing an increasingly important role in the ever decreasing sizes of components, the ISIT is able to take advantage of the multi-kHz frame rates possible with the ImageIR® 8300.

Inverter with loaded components to forecast their lifecycle

Defective analogue-digital converter with leakage current


Thermography in Electronics Development VarioCAM® high resolution – precise, efficient and reliable



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Being one of the largest automobile component supplier throughout the world Delphi attaches fundamental importance to the quality of its products. In Wiehl where Delphi’s laboratory plant “Test & Validation Services” is located, thermography is used for design and product validation as part of quality assurance. Therewith, a stable hardware basis is set for integrating new technologies in motor vehicles that again present a substantial contribution to traffic safety. In order to fulfil the high demands in terms of hardware, e.g. fuses, connectors and printed circuit boards, Delphi counts on efficient and exact thermographic test routines.

Delphi Deutschland GmbH Test & Validation Services www.delphi.com InfraTec‐ solution: VarioCAM® hr inspect

Alexander Ott

The laboratory plant in Wiehl has decided for the VarioCAM® high resolution series as the most suitable thermography solution because these cameras offer high flexibility. Already today, Delphi is testing products in various sizes asking for an optimal adaption of field of view and a high detail resolution. Already now small details of components and products can reliably be measured using its inbuilt close focus function. By extending the cameras with other lenses up to microscopic ones the test engineers of Delphi are also able to quickly meet emerging future demands.

Abb. 1: 5x digital zoom of thermal image with hotspot ‐ PCB

Abb. 2: 5x digital zoom of thermal image of fuse block

But it is not just the optic design of the VarioCAM® high resolution that convinced Alexander Ott of Delphi but also the opportunity to operate the thermal camera both handheld as well as stationary. In stationary application while the camera is being fixed on tripod and remotely controlled via a computer radiometric data can be acquired with a frame rate of up to 60 Hz without any smearing for further analysis. Therewith, even fast temperature changes can be measured with reliability and further be surveyed in detail. For analysing its data Delphi has decided for the software IRBIS® 3 plus. Thus, the time curve of a temperature distribution or the distribution of temperature changes in turn‐on processes can be reviewed. In image no. 1 a hidden hotspot can be seen that was detected with the help of infrared thermography. In order to increase sturdiness in operation the circuit part has been revised by optimisation. Image no. 2 shows the temperature distribution of a fuse block. Based on the thermal test results Delphi now benefits from reduced development times as hardware is optimally designed in the first design process already. This again results in high standards of quality and cost optimization at the same time.

Thermography for Building Inspections ARCHIMEDES Facility-Management GmbH



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Poorly insulated door framing and failing wall- floor connection

Heat loss below the window and at the door of the garage

ARCHIMEDES Facility-Management GmbH is a full service provider for real estate and buildings. They offer comprehensive services ranging from planning, via facility management and building conversions up to complete refurbishment. Project Manager Dipl.-Ing. Olaf Hauck has increasingly regarded the usage of an infrared camera in his field of business as indispensable for fast and effectively detecting and analyzing poor conduction of builders´ work.

ARCHIMEDES Facility-Management GmbH

Dipl.-Ing. Olaf Hauck

www.archimedes-fm.de

InfraTec Solution: VarioCAM® hr inspect 680

When ARCHIMEDES decided to purchase an infrared camera it went for the professional VarioCAM® high resolution inspect 680 by the German manufacturer JENOPTIK being exclusively represented by InfraTec in most of the countries. Olaf Hauck got especially convinced by this camera model because of its excellent thermal and geometrical resolution as well as its wide range of optionally available interchangeable lenses.

The components of those special lenses and the camera itself are well tuned to each other guaranteeing an optimal result in the most different measurement situations. The ergonomic design of the infrared camera and the modern SONY battery concept being applied allow for a fatigue-free and convenient handling for long operation hours. ARCHIMEDES uses its infrared camera predominantly for revisions and securing of quality standards during the construction phase of newly erected buildings and the refurbishment of older buildings. Thereby the detection of construction faults like thermal bridges, poor insulations or air leakages plays a major role. Also weak points at window or door framings can easily be located. Besides, for

checking the outer shell of the buildings the camera is also used by Olaf Hauck and his team for a convenient exposure of covered leakages of pipes for floor heating and the like. ARCHIMEDES also applies its infrared camera for thermography of electrical installations. Using the VarioCAM® hr inspect 680 dangerous points in electrical enclosures can quickly be found, e.g. corroded contacts or abnormally heated busbars. Olaf Hauck praises the close consultation by InfraTec during the purchasing process but also thereafter. Additionally the two-days introductory training is highly appreciated by him as it allowed for a fast understanding of the infrared camera and the technological basics of infrared thermography. Thereby he and his colleagues got a fine grasp of the matter and could start working with the infrared camera.


Nickel‐titanium Wires in Tension Test High‐resolution high‐speed thermography with ImageIR® 9300



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How do solid materials change structurally? The engineers Prof. Stefan Seelecke and Marvin Schmidt from Saarland University investigate this fundamental question in materials research. Both consider this topic with the help of microthermography. Their cutting‐edge basic research ensures that we will have even more energy‐efficient electric devices to use at home in future.

Saarland University Zentrum für Mechatronik u. Automatisierungstechnik

www.zema.de

InfraTec solution: ImageIR® 9300

In the last few decades, researchers have worked increasingly on alternative cooling technologies that do not use refrigerants containing fluorocarbons. Technologies such as ferroelastic cooling promise high effectiveness, a more efficient use of resources and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. This form of cooling uses wires of a pseudo‐elastic shape memory alloy based on nickel/titanium (NiTi). A mechanical load on the NiTi wires causes large, reversible deformations due to a stress‐induced martensitic transformation. A martensitic structure is created, and thermal energy is given off to the surroundings. With removal of the load, the stress‐induced martensitic structure changes back into the original austenite. Thermal energy from the surroundings must be expended for this. To achieve the maximum savings potential of ferroelastic cooling, the entire deformation process must be regulated optimally. The researchers want to control parameters independently, such as frequency or phase shift between the mechanical stress and heat transfer. In addition, they want to measure the resulting cooling performance for a specific material and a specific device geometry. To do this, Seelecke and Schmidt have developed an imaging measurement platform. It works with an ImageIR® 9300. The high‐end thermal imaging camera is equipped with a 1x microscope lens and detects the wire to be measured, whose diameter is only approximately 150 µm. Exact thermographic temperature measurement even on longer wire sections is ensured through the geometric resolution of 15 µm. In this way, the researchers can retrace the ferroelastic cooling effects very precisely. Thanks to the camera's (1,280 x 1,024) IR‐pixel detector, the Saarbrücken‐based scientists can monitor long parts of the tiny wire and record the structural changes. The high temporal resolution of the ImageIR® 9300 of up to 106 Hz in full‐frame format also lets them follow even brief temperature changes.

The images clearly show how a NiTi wire heats up through stretching and cools off when relaxed.

Evaluation of the thermograms is just as sophisticated. Reflection effects and emission coefficients that are complicated to determine are among the regular challenges. Seelecke and his team therefore value the integrated correction model of the supplied IRBIS® 3. “With the software we can compensate for astonishingly many effects. That clearly makes our work easier.” The software, together with the large detector format and the high geometric, thermal and temporal resolution, forms a package that makes the ImageIR® 9300 ideally qualified for use in materials research. And by the way, this combination will hopefully do its part to ensure that we all can save more energy and protect the environment in the foreseeable future.

Tire Inspection with Thermography High-end camera series ImageIR 8300



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Mechanically stressed car components like tires are a continuous issue for quality inspection and related R&D improvements. At Bridgestone Corporation in Hofu (Yamaguchi prefecture in South-Western Japan) new test procedures for off-the-road tires for construction and mining vehicles (OR tires) had to be developed to meet the literally growing scale of performance concerning the carrying capacity.

Bridgestone Corporation Ozaha Hamajata / Japan www.bridgestone.com

InfraTec-Solution: ImageIR® 8325

Huge dump trucks like a Komatsu 960E-1K can carry more than 300 tons of mine rock. When this monster moves on stony soil for many hours a day the workload on those tires is enormous. The long-term tests realised by Bridgestone run in different factories and include parallel inside and outside thermal inspections. The inside inspections are accomplished after several holes have been drilled into the tires carcass, while the outside measurements concentrate on external peripheral structures.

ImageIR® from InfraTec

To allow a precise measurement during different rotation speed settings a very exact triggering interface for the infrared camera is required – no problem for an ImageIR® 8325. Utilising its nanosecond precision trigger interface the high precision camera collect data with a temperature resolution of 20 mK, very short integration times in the microsecond range and extreme high frame rates

InfraTec’s Japanese partner IR Systems has developed a complete turnkey solution which allows long-term automated test sequences with constant thermography measurements. Since the chosen cameras are equipped with 10,000 hour MTBF longlife coolers the monitoring processes can be performed for extensive test periods. An exploding 2 m tall tire can cause pretty severe damage, so the low-maintenance and stable running cameras were installed in a protected, hardly accessible operational test cell. Bridgestone Corporation was so much convinced by the first ImageIR® units being chosen that they decided to use this camera as measuring device for several test facilities they are realising

Quality control of heavy-duty tires of dump trucks


Thermography in Process Automation VarioCAM® high resolution – precise, efficient and reliable



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Micro thermographic images of low resistance precision resistors

Mr. Patrick Dobener

Resistor VMS: Size (6.35 x 3.05) mm

Heat is one of the most important parameters for weal and woe during production processes and for product quality. Therefore, measuring heat has always had major relevance which is reflected by the early use of temperature sensors during the automation of production processes. Now the fast visualization of temperature distributions with non-contacting infrared thermography allows even more complex automated solutions without using contacted temperature sensors.

Isabellenhütte Heusler GmbH & Co. KG www.isabellenhuette.de

InfraTec Solution: VarioCAM® hr head

The company Isabellenhütte Heusler GmbH & Co. KG has identified this potential at an early stage and uses infrared thermography for the quality assurance of their low resistance precision resistors. In this application the stationary camera VarioCAM® high resolution head proves its very high measuring accuracy. Temperature differences of only 35 mK can be detected. Besides this excellent thermal resolution also the possibility to securely measure smallest details provides an essential measuring basis for further automation. This is achieved by a higher detector resolution of (384 x 288) Infrared Pixels, a special close-up focussing as well as by close-up and microscopic lenses. Furthermore Mr. Dobener of the company Isabellenhütte Heusler GmbH & Co. KG particularly appreciates the very easy integration of the VarioCAM® hr head into the production facilities. That applies for both the mechanics of the camera that stands out with its compact and rugged design and for the data interface with a speed of up to 60 frames per second. The matching functionality of the software development kit supports the precise control of the camera. The trigger ports of the thermographic camera allow for the direct synchronization with the control software of the measuring device. All measuring data are fully issued digitally in real time. Thereby the production facilities can respond even to smallest temperature variations in order to always keep the products of the company Isabellenhütte Heusler GmbH & Co. KG at the very highest level.


VarioCAM® hr head achives Monitoring Task Vehicle-Bound Mobile Surveillance Solution from InfraTec



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2012 marked an important milestone for the Eastern European Countries of Poland and the Ukraine – the jointly organized UEFA European Football Championship 2012. While this kind of events generate a wide public attraction there are certain background activities which contribute to a seamless progress significantly: Security and logistics are two core tasks to be handled by the relevant local authorities.

Company AGTES S.A.

Vehicle-Bound Mobile Surveillance Solution

InfraTec-Solution: VarioCAM® hr head 620

Both countries invested more than 38 Million Euro into the infrastructure and transportation logistics required for such an extended event. Part of this investment contained budgets for security and surveillance projects as well. The massive security activities related to such huge events cannot be avoided nowadays due to permanent impending threats of terroristic activities. In Poland one security project included the implementation of a number of mobile surveillance solutions to be used for protection of the Polish railways. They had been realized by outfitting 4x4 driven Mercedes Sprinter vans with state-of-the-art video surveillance and recording equipment. The extended missions to be carried out from these vehicles also required extended modifications of the operators’ compartment. Technology integration was the driving factor, but aspects of comfort and ergonomics had to be considered as well.

Fahrzeug mit CCTV-System

CCTV-System mit Wärmebildkamera VarioCAM® hr head 620

Placed on top of an extendable mast a mid-range CCTV system was paired with a thermal camera VarioCAM® hr head 620. Both systems are mounted on individually controllable pan-tilt heads and can be conveniently controlled both from inside the van’s generously spaced desk section or a remote place. The decision in favour of the VarioCAM® hr head 620 was based on several factors. Equipped with excellent uncooled microbolometers with (640 x 480) IR-pixel based on amorphous silicon technology its telephoto lenses provide several kilometers of human detection range. InfraTec’s industrial project expertise supported the choice in favour of VarioCAM® hr head 620 because this camera system is globally used in a variety of monitoring tasks where cameras have to operate for many months or even years without interruption.


VarioCAM® hr head achives Monitoring Task Vehicle-Bound Mobile Surveillance Solution from InfraTec



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Thermal cameras utilizing the long-wave infrared spectrum (wavelength (7.5 … 14) µm) are very efficient detecting human and vehicle activities even in total darkness or through fog – without any active illumination support. This combination of passive tech-nology and range performance strongly supports the tactics of covert observations and command-/control-scenarios for intervention teams guided from these vehicles as well. The radiometrically calibrated systems also allow automatic, thermally tunable alarm signals for autonomous operation. While the all-terrain vehicles come with quite a conspicuous appearance their degree of mobility allows them to be parked in tactically good places to monitor all kinds of in-frastructure related to Polish railways.

Thermal camera VarioCAM® hr head 620 from InfraTec

In combination with InfraTec’s IRBIS® 3 software package continuous long-term observations can be conducted, monitored and stored – while initially designed as an autonomous software it actually has become an integrated part of the whole monitoring system. A highly user-friendly operation interface could be generated this way. After the European Football Championship 2012 was over the surveillance vans did not went idle – they are now a valid part of the Polish Railways security infrastructure. They are used for prevent-ing theft of railway infrastructure, 24/7 monitoring of strategic rail facilities, support of regional law enforcement units and ensuring travellers safety.

Personenüberwachung mittels Thermografie Überwachung eines Bahnhofgeländes

InfraTec hat dieses Projekt zusammen mit dem polnischen Distributionspartner AGTES S.A. aus Warschau umgesetzt.


Thermography for Health VarioCAM® high resolution – precise, efficient and reliable



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Dr. med. Fritz H. Hemmerich

For centuries the body temperature has been a vital indicator helping doctors to diagnose illnesses. Originally he would rely on his experience to sense if a patient had an elevated temperature, but with the invention of the thermometer a quantifiable measurement could be made. Even with the use of a thermometer only an indication of a spot temperature can be obtained. Infrared thermography provides the complete picture, non-invasive temperature measurement of the complete body part.

Dr. med. Fritz H. Hemmerich Eridanos – Centre for Salutogenesis www.centro-eridanos.com InfraTec solution: VarioCAM® hr head 480

This potential was identified by Dr. med. Fritz H. Hemmerich. He had worked as a head physician of a gynaecological hospital in Germany and is now the medical director of the Centre for Salutogenesis in Tenerife. Thermography is used as a very important tool during patient examinations and because in contrast to other technologies like X-ray no additional stress is applied to the body it fits well with the concept of salutogenesis. Dr. med. Fritz H. Hemmerich can therefore concentrate on the complete well being of his patients without the interference of a multitude of technical instruments and speed up the convalescence in harmony with nature.

The high demands of Dr. med. Fritz H. Hemmerich patients was matched by the high demands he put forward in his search for a suitable thermographic camera. He finally went for the high quality product made by Jenoptik - VarioCAM® high resolution head 480. The camera made in the centre of the German optical industry Jena has been used on a daily basis for over a year by Dr. med. Fritz H. Hemmerich and proved to be 100% reliable in its precise measurements. His measurements are carried out with a high geometric resolution of 384 x 288 pixels and a thermal resolution of up to 0.05°C. This combination assures that even the smallest changes in temperature within the area of interest can be observed and a well directed diagnosis can be made (see img. 1). Also the success of the treatments of frontal lobe blood perfusion, balance and auricular problems done in the Centre for Salutogenesis are monitored by Dr. med. Hemmerich using his thermographic camera (see img. 2 and 3).

Fig. 1: Inhomogeneous blood circulation with hyperfusion and hypoperfusion at the temporal lobe (diagnosing temporal lobe transients [TLT])])

Fig. 2: before treatment Fig. 3: after treatment


Thermography in Biology VarioCAM® high resolution – precise, efficient and non-disturbing



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Bats are important in the ecosystems, and can provide valuable services to humans such as reducing the numbers of insect pests at night. But the consequences of human population expansion have caused significant reductions in the populations of many bat species over the past hundred years. In order to protect bat populations firstly their ecology has to be understood but it can be very difficult to study the small, nocturnal mammals in the wild. Infrared thermography offers solutions to many of the problems faced by bat ecologists.

University of Bristol – School of Biological Sciences

Prof. Dr. Gareth Jones, Angus Tillotson, Msc

www.bristol.ac.uk/biology

InfraTec solution: VarioCAM® hr research 580

Prof. Gareth Jones leads a highly respected bat research group and has recently supervised a trial undertaken by Angus Tillotson to assess the value of thermal imaging technology for the study of bats.

Prof. Gareth Jones

Angus Tillotson, MSc.

The thermographic camera VarioCAM® high resolution was used to study roosting bats, to count bats as they emerged fromroosts and to observe the behaviour of flying bats. In all threecases thermal imaging offered significant benefits overconventional survey techniques. Roosting bats could be detected through thin building materials such as roofing felt.

At low light levels the thermographic camera enabled bats emerging from roosts to be counted more accurately than by using conventional survey techniques. In a project to study the effects of artificial lighting on the behaviour of bats as they travel between roost sites and foraging areas, the thermographic camera enabled the flying bats to be seen more clearly than when usingconventional (NIR) IR video photography. When imaging Daubenton’s bats foraging over water, reflections of the body heat from the water surface enabledresearchers to calculate the flying height of the bat. Infrared thermography does not require external light sources that may influence natural behaviour and is notaffected by extraneous lighting from streetlights etc., making it well suited for the study of bats in urban or roadsidelocations.

Thermal anomaly of bat roosting between tiles and underfelt

Bat flying over water with reflection

Flying bat


Thermografie in der Biologie VarioCAM® high resolution – präzise, effizient und nicht störend


Telefon +49 351 871-8610 Fax +49 351 871-8727 E-Mail [email protected] www.InfraTec.de

© InfraTec 2011 (Sämtliche aufgeführte Produktnamen und Warenzeichen bleiben Eigentum ihrer jeweiligen Besitzer.)

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Fledermäuse sind wichtig für das Ökosystem und können dem Menschen viele wertvolle Dienste leisten wie z. B. die Insektenflut bei Nacht reduzieren. Aber resultierend aus der starken Ausdehnung der Bevölkerung kam es in den letzten einhundert Jahren zu signifikanten Einschnitten in der Population vieler Fledermausarten. Um den Fledermausbestand zu schützen, muss man ihre Ökologie verstehen. Es ist jedoch nicht einfach diese kleinen nachtaktiven Säugetiere in freier Wildbahn zu beobachten. Infrarot-Thermografie bietet Lösungen für viele Probleme denen Fledermausexperten gegenüber stehen.

University of Bristol – School of Biological Sciences

Prof. Dr. Gareth Jones, Angus Tillotson, Msc

www.bristol.ac.uk/biology

InfraTec Lösung: VarioCAM® hr research 580

Prof. Gareth Jones leitet eine angesehene Fledermaus-Forschungsgruppe und hat kürzlich einen Versuch begleitet, der von Angus Tillotson, durchgeführt wurde und den Wert der Infrarot-Thermografie für Fledermaus-Studien einschätzen sollte.

Prof. Gareth Jones

Angus Tillotson, MSc.

Die Wärmebildkamera VarioCAM® high resolution wurde benutzt, um ruhende Fledermäuse zu beobachten, die Tiere zuzählen, die aus ihrem Unterschlupf hervorkommen und dasVerhalten von fliegenden Exemplaren zu überwachen. In allendrei Fällen bietet die Infrarot-Thermografie signifikante Vorteilegegenüber konventionellen Überwachungstechniken. Ruhende Fledermäuse konnten sogar durch dünne Baumaterialien wie z.B. Dachpappe ausfindig gemacht werden.

Mit der Wärmebildkamera konnten abfliegende Fledermäuse bei Nacht-sichtverhältnissen genauer gezählt werden als mit konventionellen Methoden. In einem Projekt wurden die Effekte von künstlichem Licht auf das Verhalten der Fledermäuse beobachtet, diezwischen ihren Ruheplätzen und den Nahrungsgebieten hin und her fliegen. Die eingesetzte Wärmebildkamera ermöglichte es, die Tiere besser zu sehen, als beim Einsatz konventioneller (NIR) IR Video Fotografie. Bei der Beobachtung von Wasserfledermäusen, die über dem Wasser nach Nahrung suchten, konnten die Wissenschaftleranhand der Reflektionen der Körperwärme auf dem Wasser die Flughöhe der Tiere bestimmen. Infrarot-Thermografie benötigt keine externen Lichtquellen, die das natürliche Verhalten beeinflussen könnten und istauch nicht von fremdem Licht wie z. B. Straßenlaternen beeinträchtigt. Das macht dieses Verfahren besonders geeignet für die Beobachtung von Fledermäusen in städtischen Bereichen und an den Rändern von Straßen.

Fledermaus, die zwischen Dachziegeln und Isolation ruht

Fledermaus mit Reflektion beim Flug über das Wasser

Fliegende Fledermaus

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