3D AI AOI Equipment Enables Online Full Inspection of Electrode Coating

With the rapid development of the new-energy battery industry, the inspection of electrode coating quality has become a crucial step. WeLinkirt's 3D AI AOI equipment provides an effective solution for the online full inspection of electrode coating with its unique advantages.

User Scenario: A leading new-energy battery manufacturer needs to conduct online full inspection of electrodes during the coating process on its electrode coating production line. As the core component of new-energy batteries, the coating quality of electrodes directly affects the performance and safety of batteries. The inspection objects include the thickness uniformity, surface flatness of electrode coating, and defects such as air holes and hidden solder joints.

Pain Points: Traditional inspection methods face many difficulties in electrode coating inspection. The miss-detection rate is relatively high. According to statistics, the miss-detection rate of traditional methods can reach 5%, which means that a large number of defective electrodes may flow into subsequent processes, posing hidden dangers to battery quality. The false-alarm rate is also as high as 30%. Frequent false alarms not only increase the workload of manual re-inspection but also reduce the production efficiency of the production line. In addition, manual inspection requires a large amount of labor input, and labor costs are constantly rising. Moreover, when switching to produce different models of electrodes, the model-changing time of traditional inspection methods is as long as 30 minutes, seriously affecting the flexibility of the production line. Referring to the efficiency and accuracy improvement brought by the release of the Youkeces high-precision flash measuring instrument, the manufacturer urgently needs a more advanced inspection solution to solve these problems.

Technical Principle

WeLinkirt's 3D AI AOI equipment can effectively solve the above problems, based on advanced algorithms and hardware technologies. In terms of hardware, it uses a self-developed 3D camera, which features high resolution and high frame rate, and can quickly and accurately capture the three-dimensional topography information of electrodes. In terms of algorithms, it uses three-dimensional topography reconstruction and point-cloud technology to convert the image data collected by the camera into an accurate three-dimensional point-cloud model. Through the analysis of this three-dimensional point-cloud model, various defects on the surface and inside of the electrodes, such as hidden solder joints and air holes (defects in the 2D optical blind area), can be clearly detected. At the same time, combined with 2D-3D fusion technology, it can not only obtain the surface texture and color information (2D information) of the electrodes, but also acquire their height and depth information (3D information), thus comprehensively and accurately detecting various defects of the electrodes. This multi-dimensional detection method can greatly improve the accuracy and precision of inspection, as it can observe the electrodes from different angles and avoid miss-detection that may occur in single-dimensional detection.

• The self-developed 3D camera provides high-quality image data collection, laying the foundation for subsequent analysis.
• Three - dimensional topography reconstruction and point-cloud technology convert image data into an analyzable three-dimensional model, facilitating the discovery of hidden defects.
• 2D-3D fusion technology comprehensively utilizes 2D and 3D information to achieve all-round detection.
• Advanced algorithms can quickly process and analyze the collected information, improving inspection efficiency.

WeLinkirt's Solution and Product

Centered on the 3D AI AOI equipment, WeLinkirt provides a complete online full-inspection solution for electrode coating. The equipment has high-precision detection capabilities and can detect micron-level topographical defects, ensuring that the electrode coating quality meets high standards. In the actual implementation process, the equipment can be seamlessly connected to the production line to achieve automated inspection. At the same time, the supporting DaoAI AI AOI software system uses the feature-recognition technology of the visual basic model, and can achieve few-shot learning with only 1-20 good samples. Automatic programming without code can be completed in 5 minutes for one good sample. The software system also has a semantic false-alarm filtering function, which can effectively reduce the false-alarm rate. In addition, the DaoAI World model, as a unified base, provides the entire inspection system with the capabilities of semantic understanding, cross-scenario generalization, and continuous learning from production-line feedback. It also supports 100% local private deployment to ensure that data does not leave the factory and safeguard data security.

The 3D AI AOI equipment brings a high-precision and high-efficiency solution to the inspection of new-energy battery electrode coating with its advanced technology.

Quantitative Results: After using WeLinkirt's 3D AI AOI equipment, the detection rate of electrode coating inspection has been significantly increased to 98%, and the miss-detection rate has been reduced to <2%, effectively preventing defective electrodes from flowing into subsequent processes. The false-alarm rate has been reduced by -60%, greatly reducing the workload of manual re-inspection and improving the production efficiency of the production line. At the same time, when switching production models, the model-changing time has been shortened from the original 30 minutes to 5 minutes, significantly improving the flexibility and adaptability of the production line.