Towards Automated Quality Inspection Using a Semi-Mobile Robotized Terahertz System

State-of-the-art terahertz time-domain spectrometer can usually only measure one location point at a time. They require certain working conditions regarding distance and angle to the measurement object in order to deliver reliable results. This circumstance is not a challenge when analyzing flat samples but leads to difficulties for curved objects. Therefore, we have designed a robot-assisted positioning system with six degrees of freedom to analyze medium-sized objects for quality inspection of small series. It is supported by an intelligent sensor prototype for automatic alignment of the terahertz measuring head. All subsystems are accommodated in a single housing so that the demonstrator can be transported to the desired location as a complete unit.