Disparity Image Analysis for 3D Characterization of Surface Anomalies

The detection of internal defects in composite materials, due to anomalies during the production processes, is a big issue especially for the production of large structures in aeronautic contexts. The costs of the repair processes can weigh upon the total costs, and sometimes the repair itself can be unfeasible and cause the material to be rejected. The early detection of anomalies during the production phase can interrupt the production chain and the solution to the detected problems can be soon found. In this paper we propose the use of an appropriate sensorial setup, based on vision and laser, to monitor the production line and of a pipeline of signal processing methodologies to detect anomalies in the stratification of composite materials. Gaps and overlaps between adjacent stripes that are beyond or below the allowed ranges are soon detected and automatically highlighted to the human operators.