Temperature field measurement as quality assurance measure in case of laser material processing

The paper presents the results of the development of a new real-time quality assurance sensor. The Temperature Field Sensor is capable to offer a more direct interpretation of the monitoring results in correlation with the processing results and settings. The sensor delivers a temperature map of the heat-affected zone independent from processing parameters like welding speed. Using fibre optics, the sensor head of the new monitoring system has a small size matching the requirements for integration even in case of 3D-applications. The simultaneous acquisition of the distance and of the surface emissivity for each measuring point enables the system to monitor also lowemissivity materials like Aluminium. There is no limitation concerning the geometry of the joints to be monitored.