Method and apparatus for coating thickness inspection of a surface and coating defects of a surface

Abstract

The title of the invention is a method and apparatus for coating thickness inspection of a surface and coating defects of a surface. A method and apparatus are provided to inspect the coverage of a coating applied to a surface of an assembly. Coating color space values of a coating color based on a camera, a light source and the surface are obtained, each value having an associated coating thickness applied to the surface. An image of the coating covered surface is obtained. Each image is processed by determining color space values of the image, determining whether the associated coating thickness of the color space value is within a specified tolerance of a desired coating thickness based on a comparison of the color space value and the color space value associated with the desired coating thickness, and in response to the associated coating thickness of the color space value being outside the specified tolerance, providing an indication that the surface shown in the image is outside the specified tolerance.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Generally, the present disclosure relates to overlay coating inspection of surfaces, and more particularly to computer-implemented coating inspection. Background Art

[0002] Inspection of cover coatings on surfaces such as automobiles, aircraft, etc. has traditionally relied on visual inspection to check for differences in cover thickness based on color differences in the coating.

[0003] Devices utilizing electromagnetic meters have been used on metal surfaces, using a constant-voltage probe to demonstrate consistent readings between device operators. Devices employing eddy current technology have also been used on other conductive metals, such as aluminum. These devices operate by placing a probe near the conductive metal surface. A coil in the probe generates an alternating magnetic field, which creates eddy currents on the metal surface. These eddy currents generate their own opposing electromagnetic field, which can be sensed by a second, adjacent coil. These devices are ineffective on composite surfaces.

[0004] For other surfaces, inspection using a magnifying glass is necessary to detect variations in coating thickness and to detect defects such as small pinholes in the coating. This requires manual inspection, which can be inconsistent between inspectors performing the inspection because it relies on the accuracy of human vision and the repeatability of inspectors inspecting multiple surfaces. Inconsistency between inspectors can result in some surfaces passing inspection that should have failed due to failures such as insufficient coating coverage, incorrectly applied coating, etc. Summary of the Invention

[0005] A method for inspecting the coverage of a coating applied to a surface of a component, performed by a processor, is provided. The method includes obtaining coating color space values ​​for a color of the coating based on a camera, a light source, and a surface, each coating color space value having an associated coating thickness applied to the surface of the component. The method also includes obtaining an image of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source. The method also includes processing each obtained image by: determining one or more color space values ​​for the image; determining whether the associated coating thickness of the one or more color space values ​​of the image is within a specified tolerance of the desired coating thickness based on a comparison of the one or more color space values ​​of the image and one or more color space values ​​associated with a desired coating thickness; and in response to the associated coating thickness of the one or more color space values ​​of the image being outside the specified tolerance, providing an indication that the surface shown in the image is outside the specified tolerance.

[0006] According to another example, a method of inspecting coverage of a coating applied to a surface of an assembly is provided for execution by a processor. The method includes obtaining coating color space values for a color of the coating based on a camera, a light source, and the surface, each coating color space value having an associated coating thickness. The method also includes obtaining images of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source. The method further includes, for each image obtained: determining one or more color space values of the image; determining whether the associated coating thickness of the one or more color space values of the image is within a specified tolerance of a desired coating thickness based on a comparison of the color space values of the image and the color space values associated with the desired coating thickness; determining whether the coating of the surface shown in the image is free of specified defects based on comparing the image to images of the specified defects; providing an indication that the surface shown in the image is outside the specified tolerance in response to the associated coating thickness of the color space values of the image being outside the specified tolerance; and providing an indication that the coating has a defect in response to determining that the coating of the surface shown in the image has a defect, the indication including at least an identification of the defect and a location of the defect.

[0007] According to another example, a coating inspection apparatus is provided configured to inspect coverage of a coating applied to a surface of an assembly. The coating inspection apparatus has a processing circuit and a memory coupled to the processing circuit, wherein the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit, cause the coating inspection apparatus to perform operations including controlling a camera / illumination positioner having a camera and a light source to position the camera and the light source at specified locations relative to the surface in order to obtain images of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source. The operations also include obtaining and storing images of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source. The operations further include processing the obtained images to determine whether the coating applied to the surface is free of defects and has a thickness within a specified tolerance of a specified thickness.

[0008] One advantage that can be provided by the inventive concept is repeatability of inspection between assemblies and can avoid inconsistencies that can occur between manual inspections over time. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0009] The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate certain non-limiting examples of the inventive concepts. In the drawings:

[0010] Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating an operating environment according to some examples;

[0011] Figure 2A and Figure 2B are examples of assemblies that can be reviewed for coverage thickness inspection and defect inspection according to some examples of the inventive concept;

[0012] Figures 3A-3F is an illustration of defects that can be found in a coating applied to a surface.

[0013] Figure 4 is a block diagram showing a camera and a light source positioned by a camera / illumination positioner according to some examples of the inventive concepts;

[0014] Figure 5 is a block diagram showing a coating thickness sample used in some examples of the inventive concepts.

[0015] Figures 6-12 is a flowchart showing the operation of a coating inspection apparatus according to some examples of the inventive concepts. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] The inventive concepts will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which examples of the inventive concepts are shown. The inventive concepts may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the examples set forth herein. Rather, these examples are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the inventive concepts to those skilled in the art. It should also be noted that these examples are not mutually exclusive. Components in one example can be assumed / used in another example by default.

[0017] The following description gives various examples of the disclosed subject matter. These examples are presented to teach the principles of the disclosed subject matter and are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the disclosed subject matter. For example, certain details of the described examples can be modified, omitted, or extended without departing from the scope of the described subject matter.

[0018] Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the operating environment of a coating inspection system 100 configured to inspect a coating of a surface 120 by detecting defects in the coating and inspecting the coating thickness of the surface 120. The surface 120 can be a component of a commercial aircraft, a rocket, a vehicle, etc. In Figure 2A and 2B Examples of a surface 120 having a coating applied thereto are shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The surface 120 can have an opening 200 and can have a shadow 202. The shadow can be due to a curved or protrusion having surface 120. The surface 120 can be smooth, abraded, etc.

[0019] The coating inspection system 100 includes a coating inspection apparatus 102, a camera 112, a light source 114, a camera / illumination positioner 116, and a database 118. Each of the camera 112, the light source 114, the camera / illumination positioner 116, and the database 118 can be integrated with the coating inspection apparatus 102 or be separate components.

[0020] The coating inspection device 102 (which can be referred to as a mobile terminal, a mobile communication terminal, a wireless communication device, a wireless terminal, a wireless communication terminal, a user equipment, a UE, a user equipment device, etc.) is configured to provide inspection of a coating of a surface 120 according to examples of the inventive concept to detect coating thicknesses that are outside of a tolerance and / or defects in the coating. As shown, the coating inspection device 102 has processing circuitry 104 (also referred to as a processor) coupled to memory circuitry 106 (also referred to as a memory) and to interface circuitry 108 (also referred to as an interface). The memory circuitry 106 can include computer readable program code that, when executed by the processing circuitry 104, causes the processing circuitry to perform operations according to examples disclosed herein. According to other examples, the processing circuitry 104 can be defined to include the memory, such that a separate memory circuitry is not needed. The coating inspection device 102 also includes a storage 110 that stores images provided by a camera 112. The images provided by the camera 112 can also be stored in a database 118.

[0021] As discussed herein, operations of the coating inspection device 102 can be performed by the processing circuitry 104. For example, the processing circuitry 104 can control the interface circuitry 108 to transmit communications, such as alerts, via the interface circuitry 108 and / or to receive communications, such as control messages, through the interface 108 (through a radio interface or a wired interface). Moreover, modules can be stored in the memory circuitry 106 and / or the storage 110, and these modules can provide instructions so that when the instructions of the modules are executed by the processing circuitry 104, the processing circuitry 104 performs various operations as described herein.

[0022] The camera 112 and the light source 114 are used to acquire images of the coating on the surface 120. The coating can be a primer color coating, a sprayed color coating, or an adhered texture color coating. The images are processed to determine whether the coating thickness on the surface 120 is within a specified tolerance of a desired coating thickness. In addition, the images are processed to determine whether the coating has any defects.

[0023] The camera 112 in examples is a high resolution camera, such as a 4K camera. In other examples, a lower resolution camera is used. When the camera 112 has an auto-focus feature, the focal length of the camera 112 need not be a fixed focal length.

[0024] The light source 114 should uniformly include wavelengths throughout the visible color spectrum (i.e., white light). However, LEDs and fluorescent lights are typically close to white light, which has spikes in the invisible ultraviolet (UV) and other areas, depending on the type of light. In the case of LED lights, there can be spikes in the visible violet portion. In some examples, the spikes are filtered out of the image during processing of the image. In some examples, a single light source 114 is used. In other examples, multiple light sources 114 are used.

[0025] Figure 2A and 2B Components that can be inspected according to the operations described below are shown. Figure 2A A surface 120 is shown that is part of a commercial aircraft. The surface 120 can have openings 200, such as windows, wiring openings, cooling openings for ducts, etc. The surface 120 can also have ridges that form shadow areas 202 that need to be accounted for during coating inspection. The surface 120 can also be curved (see Figure 2B ), rough, smooth, abraded due to friction during operation of the surface 120, etc.

[0026] Turning to Figures 3A-3F Examples of defects that can be found during inspection include blisters (see Figure 3A ), cratering (see Figure 3B ), fisheyes (see Figure 3C ), pinholes (see Figure 3D ), popping (see Figure 3E ), wrinkling (see Figure 3F ), nonadherent overspray, etc. Other types of defects can also be specified, and the coating inspection device 102 can be trained to detect these defects. For example, for other defects such as adhesion failure, alligatoring, bleeding, bridging, blistering, brush marks, cracking, cobwebbing, crazing, impact damage, lifting, runs, rust, sink, etc., they can be detected when the coating inspection device is trained to detect any of these defects.

[0027] Turning to Figure 4, an example of a camera / illumination positioner 116 is shown. The camera / illumination positioner 116 has a robotic arm 400, which is controlled by the coating inspection device 102, another device (not shown) or a staff member such as an inspector responsible for inspecting the coating on the surface 120 by moving the robotic arm 400 to place the camera 112 and the light source 114 at the position of the coating image at a specified position on the capture surface 120. For example, when the robotic arm 400 moves across the surface 120, images can be captured in a segmented manner. The robotic arm 400 can be controlled locally or remotely, depending on the position at which the coating surface 120 to be tested is positioned. Depending on the position of the camera / illumination positioner 116, the robotic arm base 402 can be fixed or movable. If there is no available robotic arm 400 at the position of the coating surface 120 to be tested, other methods using cameras and light sources can be used. For example, the camera 112 and the light source 114 can be mounted on a rod and used to capture the image of the coating surface 120. When no camera / lighting positioner 116 is available, as described below, the inspector can use the camera 112 to capture an image of the coated surface 120 to be tested. Figure 4 The light source 114 and the camera 112 are shown as separate components in FIG. 1 , but the camera 112 and the light source may be integrated into a single component.

[0028] Before describing the operation of the coating inspection apparatus 102, Figure 5 1 shows examples of coating thicknesses on surface 120. Surface samples 500 to 508 are shown, which are small sections of surface 120 that have been "coated" to a known coating thickness. The coating thickness varies from a relatively thin thickness as shown in surface sample 500 to a relatively thick thickness as shown in surface sample 508. For example, in some instances, surface sample 500 may be considered outside of an acceptable thickness due to its thin thickness. Each thickness is associated with a color of the coating on surface 120. In the example, one of the surface samples has a coating that is substantially close to the desired or specified thickness.

[0029] In the following description, an image of a coating applied to a surface 120 is acquired. Color space values ​​are generated from the image acquired using a known algorithm and used to determine the thickness of the coating applied to the surface 120. The surface 120 can be a composite surface or a non-composite surface. The color space values ​​can be red-green-blue (RGB) color space values, hue-saturation-value (HSV) color space values, and / or brightness / red-green / blue-yellow (LAB) color space values. The color space values ​​from the acquired image are compared with the color space values ​​of a coating of known thickness applied to the surface 120 to determine whether the coating thickness shown in the acquired image is outside a specified thickness.

[0030] Turning now to Figure 6 Operation of the coating inspection apparatus 102 will now be discussed in terms of some examples of the inventive concept. For example, modules can be stored in the memory 106 of Figure 2, and these modules can provide instructions such that when the instructions of a module are executed by the respective device processing circuitry 104, the processing circuitry 104 performs Figure 6 the respective operations of the flowcharts.

[0031] In operation 600, the processing circuitry 104 obtains coating color space values for the color of the coating based on the camera 112, the light source 114, and the surface 120, each coating color space value having an associated coating thickness applied to the surface of the component. The coating color space values can be obtained from coating color space values stored in the database 118 or the memory 110.

[0032] When there are no stored coating color space values in the database 118 or the memory 110, the coating color space values are generated. One example of generating the coating color space values is shown in Figure 8

[0033] Turning to Figure 8 , the coating inspection apparatus 102 is trained to learn the color space values. In operation 800, a plurality of surface samples are obtained, each surface sample covered with a coating of the color, the thickness of the coating being different from the other surface samples in the plurality of surface samples. Figure 5 The surface samples 500-508 are shown, each surface sample having a coating thickness that is different from the other coating thicknesses of the other surface samples. In operation 802, an average thickness of the coating on each surface sample is obtained. The average thickness can be determined by determining the coating thickness at various points on the sample and obtaining the average thickness based on the determined thicknesses.

[0034] In operation 804, the processing circuitry 104 obtains images of each surface sample taken by the camera 112 and the light source 114. For each image taken by the camera 112, the distance and the angle of incidence of the surface relative to both the light source 114 and the camera 112 should be the same distance and angle. The angle of incidence should be normal to the surface. However, if the angle of incidence is not normal to the surface, then a normalization technique is used to process the image, provided that the variation in normal installation is known and constant for the images taken by the camera 112. The images obtained should be from images taken at various positions.

[0035] ​In operation 806, values of different types of color spaces (e.g., RGB, HSV, LAB, etc.) are determined by the processing circuit 104. Depending on the surface 120 receiving the coating and the coating properties, certain color space values can be weighted higher than others. However, in most cases, more than one color space value is used to determine the measurement. Different color space analysis values can provide better predictions for different coating thicknesses, different coating colors, and different types of surfaces 120.

[0036] In operation 808, the processing circuit 104 correlates the average thickness of the coating to the coating color space values. In operation 810, the processing circuit 104 stores the average thickness as a correlated coating thickness, and stores the correlation of the correlated coating thickness to the coating color space values of the image and information about the surface sample. For example, the information about the surface sample can include the surface type (e.g., composite or non-composite), the surface material, whether the surface is smooth or rough, etc.

[0037] It should be noted that the processing circuit 104 uses transfer learning when a sufficient number of samples of colors have been processed using the operations of Figure 8 This enables the use of existing different color space classifications to adequately detect thicknesses that are out of tolerance without requiring the use of coating samples while still providing a reasonably high success rate.

[0038] Returning to Figure 6 In operation 602, the processing circuit 104 obtains an image of the surface covered by the coating using the camera 112 and the light source 114. In one example, the processing circuit 104 uses a geometric drawing (e.g., a computer aided design (CAD) drawing) to determine which areas of the surface 120 will be inspected using the image obtained by the camera 112, and which areas (e.g., openings) will not be inspected (i.e., no image is obtained). For example, the processing circuit 104 obtains a drawing of the surface 120 that shows each location of an opening in the surface. Each opening (e.g., opening 200) is plotted to ensure that based on the plot, none of the images obtained are of an opening. This results in the processing circuit 104 obtaining images of only the areas that are known to need to be inspected. In another example, the processing circuit 104 learns which areas of the surface 120 are not to be inspected based on the image acquisition.

[0039] The camera 112 and light source 114 are used to acquire images. The distance to the surface and the angle of incidence to both the light source 114 and the camera 112 depend on the features on the part. For example, flat parts or gently curved parts (possibly approximated over small sections) provide a different level of complexity compared to parts with multiple contours or with protruding features (such as a spar on a wing panel). Where appropriate, based on the light source 114, filters can be used to remove noise areas related to the measurement. For large surfaces 120, the coating coverage of the surface 120 is checked by acquiring "sectional" images of the surface 120. This allows the camera 112 and light source 114 to be placed at the same angle to acquire images of the coated surface 120. Typically, the angle(s) of the light source 114 (one or more if there are multiple light sources) and the camera 112 acquisition angle should be within + / - 5 degrees of the other images acquired by the camera 112.

[0040] Where possible (for example, gently curved surfaces such as a wing panel), the use of "sectional" images to segment the surface allows the surface to be approximated as a flat surface. Where this is not possible (for example, a spar or stringer on a wing panel), the areas contributing to the perturbations are removed from the acquired images using the part geometry, for which the lighting of the light source 114 is controlled, and across the angles required to minimize the impact of the light. These areas are examined separately.

[0041] When the camera / illumination positioner 116 is available and is a robotic arm 400 or other type of mechanical positioning arm, the camera angle of the camera 112 is controlled by the mechanical positioning arm. This is useful, for example, when the surface 120 is held in place by a fixture such as the fixture shown in Figure 2A and 2B .

[0042] When the images are processed, the processing circuitry 104 can determine whether there are:

[0043] 1. surface textures that affect the image processing,

[0044] 2. features that help to locate the image (for example, relative to a CAD drawing),

[0045] 3. features that indicate areas to be processed separately (for example, stringers / other protrusions / recesses / contours and shadowed areas where the stringers / protrusions / recesses / contours are projected based on the image acquisition / illumination position), and

[0046] 4. image area(s) to be further processed.

[0047] When processing circuitry 104 determines that there is an area of ​​surface 120 to be processed separately, processing circuitry 104 may begin controlling the position of camera 112 and the position of light source 114 relative to the area of ​​surface 120 to be processed separately so that light source 114 and camera 112 are located at positions that do not cause shadows to appear on images captured by camera 112.

[0048] In operation 604, the processing circuit 104 determines a color space value of the image. For example, the image may be processed to determine one or more of an RGB color space value, an HSV color space value, and a LAB color space value.

[0049] In operation 606 , the processing circuitry 104 determines whether the associated coating thickness of the one or more color space values ​​of the image is within a specified tolerance of the desired coating thickness based on a comparison of the one or more color space values ​​of the image and the one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness.

[0050] In one instance, using Figure 7 The determination in operation 606 is performed by performing the operations in the flowchart shown.

[0051] Now go to Figure 7 In operation 700, the processing circuit 104 obtains one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness. These one or more color space values ​​can be obtained from Figure 6 The coating color space value of the color of the coating obtained in operation 600 is obtained.

[0052] In operation 702, the processing circuit 104 compares one or more color space values ​​of the image with one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness. For example, the processing circuit 104 compares the R, G, and B color space values ​​of the image with the R, G, and B color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness.

[0053] In operation 704, based on comparing the one or more color space values ​​of the image and the one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness, the processing circuit 104 determines whether each of the one or more color space values ​​of the image is within a predetermined level (e.g., a threshold level) of the one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness. When the one or more color space values ​​of the image are within the predetermined level, the one or more color space values ​​of the image are within a specified tolerance of the desired coating thickness.

[0054] In determining whether each of the one or more color space values of the image is within a predetermined level of the one or more color space values related to the desired coating thickness, the processing circuit 104 can weight some of the one or more color space values related to the desired coating thickness higher than other color space values related to the desired coating thickness. For example, depending on the material receiving the coating and the coating properties, RGB color space values can be more accurate than HSV color space values or LAB color space values in determining coating thickness. With other materials and / or other coatings, HSV color space values can be more accurate than RGB color space values and LAB color space values in determining coating thickness. In some other materials and / or some other coatings, LAB color space values can be more accurate than RGB color space values and HSV color space values in determining coating thickness. In these cases, the more accurate color space values can be weighted higher than the other color space values. The determination then uses the weighted evaluation to determine whether the color space values of the image are within the predetermined level, and in some instances, determines a percentage level of confidence of the weighted evaluation.

[0055] Returning to Figure 6 In operation 608, in response to the coating thickness related to the one or more color space values of the image being outside of the specified tolerance, the processing circuit provides, via the interface circuit 108, an indication that the coating on the surface shown in the image is outside of the specified tolerance. The indication can indicate that the coating shown in the image needs to be reworked, and includes location information about where the surface shown in the image is located.

[0056] The indication can include:

[0057] (1) a display on the processed still image,

[0058] (2) a display in the field of view of a portable device (e.g., tablet, cell phone, etc.) that has a camera that actively points to the surface under inspection and a screen that displays the camera view with the processed information superimposed, or

[0059] (3) a display using a virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), or extended reality (XR) headset that uses a static set of previously acquired images (e.g., point cloud data and 2D images), or uses an actively acquired camera integrated with the VR / AR / MR / XR device to dynamically overlay the processed information in 3D directly in the field of view, or

[0060] (4) a message sent to a local and / or remote recipient that indicates that the coating on the surface is outside of the specified tolerance. This indication can indicate that the coating is too thin, too thick, missing, etc.

[0061] In one example, the processing circuit 104 determines, based on the image, whether the coating applied to the surface is free of specified defects based on comparing the image to images of specified defects, where the specified defects include at least one of blisters, cratering, fisheyes, non-adhesion over-spray, pinholes, blowholes, and wrinkles. For example, the processing circuit 104 can compare the image to images of defects as shown. Figures 3A-3F

[0062] The criteria for inspection can vary based on the component having the surface 120 and the coating applied to the surface 120. For example, two layers of primer are applied to a wing panel. An inspection is performed after each coating. A thickness tolerance is allowed after each operation. If the thickness falls within the allowed thickness, the operation will pass for the area inspected, otherwise it will fail as being too thick or too thin. A digital point cloud of measured thickness values for a separate portion of the surface 120 of the component or multiple surfaces 120 can be stored for later analysis (e.g., consistency, efficiency of coating thickness, etc.).

[0063] When the coating thickness of the surface 120 is outside of a specified tolerance or a defect is found on the coating of the surface 120, rework of the coating is performed. In one example, as the digital point cloud map is being constructed, an alert is issued to the area of failure as image acquisition can still be ongoing. Based on the color space analysis described above, the failure is specified on the digital representation of the component using color coding (shading) and digital measurements.

[0064] In one example, the image acquisition is decoupled from the image analysis. In this example, the processing circuit 104 performs the analysis and generates a surface coating thickness map on the fly (which can then be displayed on the digital representation of the component geometry, or for example, loaded as point cloud data to be visualized in an immersive reality headset or as an overlay on a two-dimensional display such as a tablet or smartphone).

[0065] Turning now to Figure 9 In another example, coating thickness inspection and defect inspection are performed. In operation 900, the processing circuit 104 obtains coating color space values for a color of the coating based on the camera, the light source, and the surface, each having an associated coating thickness. The processing circuit 104 performs the same or similar operations as described above with respect to operation 600 when performing operation 900.

[0066] In operation 902, the processing circuit 104 obtains an image of the surface covered by the coating using the camera 112 and the light source 114. The processing circuit 104 performs the same or similar operations as described above with respect to operation 602 when performing operation 902.

[0067] ​At operation 904, the processing circuit 104 determines color space values of the image. For example, the image can be processed to determine one or more of RGB color space values, HSV color space values, and LAB color space values. The processing circuit 104 performs the same or similar operations described above with respect to operation 604 when performing operation 904.

[0068] At operation 906, the processing circuit 104 determines whether the relevant coating thickness of the one or more color space values of the image is within a specified tolerance of the desired coating thickness based on a comparison of the one or more color space values of the image and the one or more color space values related to the desired coating thickness. The processing circuit 104 performs the same or similar operations described above with respect to operation 606 when performing operation 906.

[0069] Figure 10 One example of determining whether the relevant coating thickness of the one or more color space values of each image is within a specified tolerance of the desired coating thickness is shown. Turning to Figure 10 At operation 1000, the processing circuit 104 determines one or more color space values of the image as described above. At operation 1002, the processing circuit compares the one or more color space values of the image to one or more color space values of stored images, each stored image being an image of a coating applied to a surface at a known thickness.

[0070] At operation 1004, the processing circuit 104 determines the thickness of the coating by comparing the one or more color space values of the image to the one or more color space values of the stored images to determine which one or more color space values of the stored images most closely match the one or more color space values of the image.

[0071] At operation 1006, the processing circuit 104 obtains the known thickness of the stored image. At operation 1008, the processing circuit determines whether the known thickness of the stored image is within a tolerance level of the specified thickness. At operation 1010, the processing circuit 104 provides an indication that the thickness of the surface shown by the image is outside of the tolerance level in response to the known thickness of the stored image being outside of the tolerance level.

[0072] Returning to Figure 9 At operation 908, the processing circuit 104 determines whether the coating of the surface 120 shown in the image is free of a specified defect based on comparing the coating of the surface shown in the image to an image of the specified defect. The specified defect is one or more of blistering, cratering, fisheyes, nonadhesion over-spray, pinholes, blowholes, and wrinkling.

[0073] In one example, the images of the specified defects are obtained from memory 110 or database 118. In another example, the images are generated. Turning to Figure 11 In operation 1100, processing circuitry obtains a plurality of surface samples of the surface, each surface sample covered with a coating of the color and having one of the specified defects. In operation 1102, processing circuitry obtains images of the plurality of surface samples of the surface using camera 112 and light source 114. The images can be obtained from one or more environments such as a painting facility, a maintenance facility, etc. In operation 1104, processing circuitry 104, for each of the obtained images having one of the specified defects, stores the image and an indication that the image shows one of the specified defects.

[0074] Returning to Figure 9 In operation 910, processing circuitry 104 provides an indication that the surface shown in the image is outside of the specified tolerance in response to the relevant coating thickness of the color space value of the image being outside of the specified tolerance. Processing circuitry 104 performs the same or similar operations as described above with respect to operation 608 when performing operation 908.

[0075] In operation 912, processing circuitry 104 provides an indication that the coating has a defect in response to determining that the coating of the surface shown in the image has a defect, the indication including at least an identification of the defect and a location of the defect. The indication can be displayed in the same manner as described in operation 606, but for the specified defect rather than for the thickness being outside of the specified tolerance. Additionally, the indication can be provided in the digital point cloud or digital representation of the same components described above.

[0076] Turning now to Figure 12 In operation 1200, processing circuitry 104 of coating inspection device 102 controls camera / illumination positioner 116 having camera 112 and light source 114 to position camera 112 and light source 114 at a specified position relative to surface 120 in order to obtain an image of the surface covered by the coating using camera 112 and light source 114.

[0077] In operation 1202, processing circuitry 104 obtains and stores an image of the surface covered by the coating using camera 112 and light source 114.

[0078] In operation 1204, processing circuitry 104 processes the obtained image to determine whether the coating applied to the surface is free of defects and has a thickness within the specified tolerance of the specified thickness.

[0079] The processing circuit 104 determines whether the coating applied to the surface is free of defects by comparing the obtained images to the stored images of coatings applied to surfaces having defects as described above. The processing circuit 104 provides an indication of a defect in response to one of the obtained images matching one of the stored images having a defect as described above.

[0080] For each of the obtained images, the processing circuit 104 determines whether the thickness of the coating applied to the surface is within a specified tolerance of a specified thickness. In determining whether the thickness of the coating applied to the surface is within the specified tolerance, the processing circuit 104 determines one or more color space values of the image and compares the one or more color space values of the image to one or more color space values of stored images, each of the stored images being of a coating applied to a surface at a known thickness. The processing circuit 104 determines the thickness of the coating by comparing the one or more color space values of the image to the one or more color space values of the stored images to determine the stored image that most closely matches the one or more color space values of the image and obtaining the known thickness of the stored image, determines whether the known thickness of the stored image is within a tolerance level of the specified thickness, and provides an indication that the thickness of the surface shown in the image is outside the tolerance level in response to the known thickness of the stored image being outside the tolerance level.

[0081] In some instances, other operations performed by the coating inspection device 102 include obtaining a plurality of images of surface samples, where a coating is applied to the surface samples, each sample having a known thickness of the coating, the coating having a specified color. For each of the plurality of images, the coating inspection device 102 determines one or more color space values of the image and stores the known thickness of the coating shown in the image, the one or more color space values of the image, the specified color, and an association of the image in memory. The coating inspection device 102 obtains the association of each of the plurality of images from memory when processing the obtained images to determine whether the thickness of the coating applied to the surface is within a specified tolerance of a specified thickness and determines whether the one or more color space values of the obtained image is within any of the associated tolerance levels.

[0082] In other examples, other operations of the coating inspection apparatus 102 obtain a plurality of images of surface samples with a coating applied to the surface samples, the coating having a known defect in the coating, each sample having the known defect in the coating, the coating having a specified color. For each image of the plurality of images, the coating inspection apparatus 102 stores an association of the known coating defect in the image with the image in memory. In processing the obtained images to determine whether the coating applied to the surface is free of defects, the coating inspection apparatus 102 obtains the association for each image of the plurality of images from memory, obtains each image of the plurality of images, and determines whether any of the obtained images are within a tolerance level of any of the plurality of images having the known defect. The known defect can be one or more of blistering, cratering, fisheyes, non-adhesion over-spray, pinholes, blowholes, and wrinkling.

[0083] In the description of the various examples of the inventive concepts above, it should be understood that the terms used are for the purpose of describing particular examples and are not intended to limit the inventive concepts. Unless specifically defined herein, all terms used herein, including technical and scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the inventive concepts belong. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the specification and relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

[0084] When an element is referred to as being “connected”, “coupled”, “responsive”, or variants thereof to another element, it can be directly connected, coupled, or responsive to the other element, or intervening elements can be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly connected”, “directly coupled”, “directly responsive”, or variants thereof to another element, then there are no intervening elements present. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout. Furthermore, “coupled”, “connected”, “responsive”, or variants thereof, as used herein, can include wireless coupling, connection, or response. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Well-known functions or constructions can not be described in detail for brevity and / or clarity. The term “and / or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0085] It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, third, etc. can be used herein to describe various elements / operations, these elements / operations should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element / operation from another. Thus, a first element / operation in some instances can be termed a second element / operation in other instances without departing from the teachings of the present inventive concept. The same reference numerals or same reference designators denote the same or similar elements throughout the specification.

[0086] As used herein, the terms "comprise", "comprising", "comprises", "include", "including", "includes", "have", "has", "having", or variants thereof are open-ended, and include one or more stated features, integers, elements, steps, components or functions but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, elements, steps, components, functions or groups thereof. Furthermore, as used herein, the common abbreviation "e.g." (which derives from the Latin phrase "exempli gratia"), can be used to introduce or specify a general example of a non-exhaustive list of items. The common abbreviation "i.e." (which derives from the Latin phrase "id est"), can be used to specify particular items.

[0087] The exemplary examples are described herein with reference to block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations of the computer-implemented methods, apparatus (systems and / or devices) and / or computer program products. It is understood that a block of the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations, can be implemented by computer program instructions that are executed by one or more computer circuits. The computer program instructions can be provided to a processor circuit of a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, and / or other programmable data processing circuit to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer and / or other programmable data processing apparatus, transform and control transistors, values stored in memory locations, and other hardware components within such circuitry to implement the functions / acts specified in the block or blocks of the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations, thereby creating means and / or structural equipment for implementing the functions / acts specified in the block or blocks of the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations.

[0088] These computer program instructions can also be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable medium produce an article of manufacture including instructions which implement the function / act specified in the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations block or blocks. Accordingly, examples of the inventive concepts can be embodied in hardware and / or in software (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) that runs on a processor such as a digital signal processor, which can collectively be referred to as "circuitry," "a module" or variants thereof.

[0089] It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions / acts noted in the blocks can occur out of the order noted in the flowcharts. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently or the blocks can sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality / acts involved. Also, the functionality of a given block can be separated into multiple blocks and / or the functionality of two or more blocks can be combined into a single block, without departing from the scope of the inventive concepts. Finally, additional blocks can be added / inserted between the existing blocks, and / or blocks / operations can be omitted without departing from the scope of the inventive concepts. In addition, while some of the diagrams include arrows on communication paths to show a primary direction of communication, it is to be understood that communication can occur in the opposite direction to the depicted arrows.

[0090] Further, the present disclosure includes examples in accordance with the following clauses:

[0091] Clause 1. A method performed by a processor of inspecting coverage of a coating applied to a surface of an assembly, the method comprising:

[0092] obtaining (600) at least one coating color space value of a color of the coating based on a camera, a light source, and the surface, each coating color space value having an associated coating thickness applied to the surface of the assembly;

[0093] obtaining (602) an image of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source; and

[0094] processing each obtained image by:

[0095] determining (604) one or more color space values of the image;

[0096] determining (606), based on a comparison of the one or more color space values of the image and one or more image space values associated with a desired coating thickness, whether the associated coating thickness of the one or more color space values of the image is within a specified tolerance of the desired coating thickness; and

[0097] in response to the one or more color space values of the image being outside of the specified tolerance for the associated coating thickness, providing (608) an indication that the surface shown in the image is outside of the specified tolerance.

[0098] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein obtaining at least one coating color space value for the coating color includes obtaining at least one coating color space value for the coating base color.

[0099] Clause 3. The method of clause 1, wherein obtaining at least one coating color space value for the coating color includes obtaining at least one coating color space value for a sprayed color coating or a bonded texture color coating.

[0100] Clause 4. The method of any of clauses 1-3, wherein obtaining at least one coating color space value for the coating color based on the camera, the light source, and the surface includes obtaining at least one coating color space value for the coating color based on the camera, the light source, and a composite surface.

[0101] Clause 5. The method of any of clauses 1-3, wherein obtaining at least one coating color space value for the coating color based on the camera, the light source, and the surface includes obtaining at least one coating color space value for the coating color based on the camera, the light source, and a non-composite surface.

[0102] Clause 6. The method of any of clauses 1-5, wherein determining the one or more color space values of the image includes determining at least one of a red / green / blue (RGB) color space value of the image, a hue / saturation / value (HSV) color space value of the image, and a lightness / red-green / blue-yellow (LAB) color space value of the image.

[0103] Clause 7. The method of any of clauses 1-6, wherein determining whether the one or more color space values of the image are within the specified tolerance of the desired coating thickness includes:

[0104] obtaining (700) one or more color space values associated with the desired coating thickness;

[0105] comparing (702) the one or more color space values of the image to the one or more color space values associated with the desired coating thickness; and

[0106] based on comparing the one or more color space values of the image to the one or more color space values associated with the desired coating thickness, determining (704) whether each of the one or more color space values of the image is within a predetermined level of the one or more color space values associated with the desired coating thickness.

[0107] Clause 8. The method of any of clauses 1-7, wherein the indication comprises an indication that a coating of a surface shown in the image needs to be reworked and location information where the surface shown in the image is located.

[0108] Clause 9. The method of any of clauses 1-8, wherein the indication comprises at least one of: a display of the indication on a processed still image; a display of the indication in a field of view of a device having a camera pointed at the surface under inspection and a screen that displays the camera view and processed information overlay; a display of the indication using a virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), or extended reality (XR) device that uses one of a static set of previously acquired images or uses an active acquiring camera integrated with the VR, AR, MR, or XR device to dynamically overlay processed information including the indication in the field of view in 3D directly; or a message sent to a local and / or remote recipient indicating that the coating on the surface is outside of a specified tolerance.

[0109] Clause 10. The method of any of clauses 1-9, wherein obtaining the at least one coating color space value of the color based on the camera, the light source, and the surface comprises:

[0110] obtaining (800) a plurality of surface samples, each surface sample having a coating of a color applied thereon, the coating having a thickness that is different from other surface samples in the plurality of surface samples;

[0111] for each surface sample in the plurality of surface samples:

[0112] obtaining (802) an average thickness of the coating on the surface sample;

[0113] obtaining (804) an image of the surface sample using the camera and the light source, each of the camera and the light source at a specified location relative to the surface sample location;

[0114] determining (806) one or more coating color space values of the coating on the surface sample in the image;

[0115] associating (808) the average thickness of the coating with the one or more coating color space values; and

[0116] storing (810) the average thickness as a correlated coating thickness and storing an association of the correlated coating thickness with the one or more coating color space values of the image and information about the surface of the surface sample, the information about the surface of the surface sample including information about a surface type,

[0117] wherein obtaining the one or more coating color space values for the color based on the camera, the light source, and the surface includes obtaining the one or more coating color space values and a stored association of coating thicknesses to the one or more coating color space values of the image and information about the surface of the surface sample from a memory.

[0118] Clause 11. The method of any of clauses 1-9, further comprising:

[0119] for each image obtained:

[0120] based on the image, determining whether the coating applied to the surface is free of specified defects, which would be determined by comparing the image to images of the specified defects, wherein the specified defects include at least one of blistering, cratering, fisheyes, non-adhesion over-spray, pinholes, blowholes, and wrinkling.

[0121] Clause 12. The method of any of clauses 1-11, further comprising:

[0122] obtaining a map of the surface showing each location of an opening in the surface;

[0123] plotting each location of an opening; and

[0124] based on the plot, ensuring that none of the obtained images have an opening.

[0125] Clause 13. A method performed by a processor of inspecting coverage of a coating applied to a surface of an assembly, the method comprising:

[0126] obtaining (900) one or more coating color space values for a color of the coating based on a camera, a light source, and the surface, each coating color space value having an associated coating thickness;

[0127] obtaining (902) an image of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source;

[0128] for each image obtained:

[0129] determining (904) one or more color space values of the image;

[0130] based on a comparison of the one or more color space values of the image and color space values associated with a desired coating thickness, determining (906) whether the associated coating thickness of the one or more color space values of the image is within a specified tolerance of the desired coating thickness;

[0131] based on comparing the image to images of the specified defects, determining (908) whether the coating of the surface shown in the image is free of the specified defects; responsive to the relevant coating thickness of the color space values of the image being outside of a specified tolerance, providing (910) an indication that the surface shown in the image is outside of a specified tolerance; and

[0132] responsive to determining that the coating of the surface shown in the image has a defect, providing (912) an indication that the coating has a defect, the indication including at least an identification of the defect and a location of the defect.

[0133] Clause 14. The method of clause 13, wherein the specified defects include one or more of: blistering, cratering, fisheyes, non-adhesion over-spray, pinholes, blowholes, and wrinkling, the method further comprising:

[0134] obtaining (1100) a plurality of surface samples of the surface, each surface sample covered with the coating of the color and having one of the specified defects;

[0135] obtaining (1102) images of the plurality of surface samples of the surface; and

[0136] for each of the obtained images having one of the specified defects, storing (1004) the image and an indication that the image shows one of the specified defects.

[0137] Clause 15. The method of clause 14, wherein determining whether the coating of the surface shown in the image is free of the specified defects comprises:

[0138] comparing the image to each of the images having one of the specified defects; and

[0139] responsive to the image matching within a threshold level of one of the images having one of the specified defects, indicating that the surface coating has one of the specified defects.

[0140] Clause 16. A coating inspection device configured to inspect a coverage of a coating applied to a surface of an assembly, the coating inspection device comprising:

[0141] processing circuitry (104); and

[0142] memory (106) coupled with the processing circuitry, wherein the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processing circuitry, cause the coating inspection device to perform operations comprising:

[0143] controlling (1200) a camera / illumination positioner having a camera and a light source to position the camera and the light source at specified locations relative to the surface in order to obtain images of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source;

[0144] obtaining (1202) and storing images of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source; and

[0145] processing (1204) the obtained images to determine whether the coating applied to the surface is free of defects and has a thickness within a specified tolerance of a specified thickness.

[0146] Clause 17. The coating inspection device of claim 16, further comprising:

[0147] a memory coupled to the processing circuitry and the memory, wherein the memory includes further instructions, which when executed by the processing circuitry, cause the coating inspection device to perform further operations comprising:

[0148] determining whether the coating applied to the surface is free of defects by comparing the obtained images to stored images of coatings applied to the surface that have defects; and

[0149] providing an indication of a defect in response to one of the obtained images matching one of the stored defective images.

[0150] Clause 18. The coating inspection device of claim 16, further comprising:

[0151] a memory coupled to the processing circuitry and the memory,

[0152] wherein the coating inspection device determines whether the thickness of the coating applied to the surface is within a specified tolerance of a specified thickness by:

[0153] for each of the obtained images:

[0154] determining (1000) one or more color space values of the image;

[0155] comparing (1002) the one or more color space values of the image to one or more color space values of stored images, each stored image being of a coating applied to the surface at a known thickness; and

[0156] determining (1004) the thickness of the coating by comparing one or more color space values of the image to one or more color space values of the stored images to determine which one or more color space values of the stored images most closely match the one or more color space values of the image;

[0157] obtaining (1006) the known thickness of the stored image;

[0158] determining (1008) whether the known thickness of the stored image is within a tolerance level of the specified thickness; and

[0159] in response to the known thickness of the stored image being outside the tolerance level, providing (1010) an indication that the thickness of the surface shown by the image is outside the tolerance.

[0160] Clause 19. The coating inspection device of Clause 16, further comprising

[0161] a memory (110) coupled to the processing circuit (104) and the memory (106), wherein the coating inspection device (102) performs further operations comprising:

[0162] obtaining a plurality of images of surface samples, wherein a coating is applied to the surface samples, each sample having a known thickness of the coating, the coating having a specified color;

[0163] for each image of the plurality of images:

[0164] determining one or more color space values of the image;

[0165] storing in memory the known thickness of the coating shown in the image, the one or more color space values of the image, the specified color, and the association of the image; and

[0166] wherein processing the obtained image to determine whether the thickness of the coating applied to the surface is within a specified tolerance of a specified thickness comprises:

[0167] obtaining from the memory the association of each image of the plurality of images;

[0168] determining one or more color space values of the association of the image of the plurality of images that most closely match the one or more color space values of the obtained image;

[0169] determining the known thickness of the association of the image of the plurality of images that most closely match the one or more color space values of the obtained image; and

[0170] determining whether the known thickness is outside of a specified tolerance of the specified thickness.

[0171] Clause 20. The coating inspection apparatus of Clause 16, further comprising

[0172] a memory (110) coupled to the processing circuit (104) and the memory (106), wherein the coating inspection apparatus (102) performs further operations comprising:

[0173] obtaining a plurality of images of the surface sample, wherein a coating having a known defect is applied to the surface sample, each sample having a known defect in the coating, the known defect comprising at least one of blistering, cratering, fisheyes, non-adhesion over-spray, pinholes, blowholes, and wrinkling, the coating having a specified color;

[0174] for each image of the plurality of images:

[0175] determining one or more color space values of the image;

[0176] storing in memory the known defect of the coating, the specified color, the one or more color space values of the image, and the association of the image; and

[0177] wherein processing the obtained images to determine whether the coating applied to the surface is free of defects comprises:

[0178] obtaining the association of each image of the plurality of images from memory and obtaining each image of the plurality of images; and

[0179] determining whether any of the obtained images is within a tolerance level of any of the plurality of images having a known defect.

[0180] Many modifications and variations of the examples can be made without departing from the underlying principles of the inventive concept. All such modifications and variations should be considered illustrative only and do not limit the scope of the inventive concept. Therefore, the subject matter disclosed above is to be considered descriptive only and not restrictive, and the examples of the examples are intended to cover all such modifications, enhancements, and other examples which fall within the spirit and scope of the inventive concept. Accordingly, the scope of the inventive concept is to be determined solely by the broadest permissible interpretation of the following claims (including any equivalents thereof) and shall not be restricted or limited by the foregoing specific disclosure.

Claims

1. A method, performed by a processor, of inspecting coverage of a coating applied to a surface of a component, the method comprising: obtaining (600) at least one coating color space value of a coating color based on a camera, a light source, and the surface, each coating color space value being associated with a thickness of a coating applied to the component surface; obtaining (602) an image of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source; and Each acquired image is processed by the following steps: determining (604) one or more color space values ​​for the image; Determining (606) whether the coating thickness associated with the one or more color space values ​​of the image is within a specified tolerance of the expected coating thickness based on a comparison of the one or more color space values ​​of the image and the one or more color space values ​​associated with the expected coating thickness includes: obtaining (700) one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness; comparing one or more color space values ​​of the image to one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness (702); and determining (704) whether each of the one or more color space values ​​of the image is within a predetermined level of the one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness based on comparing the one or more color space values ​​of the image and the one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness; and In response to the coating thickness associated with one or more color space values ​​of the image being outside the specified tolerance, providing (608) an indication that a surface shown in the image is outside the specified tolerance.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining one or more color space values ​​of the image comprises determining at least one of a red / green / blue (RGB) color space value of the image, a hue / saturation / value (HSV) color space value of the image, and a brightness / red-green / blue-yellow (LAB) color space value of the image.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein obtaining at least one coating color space value of the color based on the camera, the light source, and the surface comprises: obtaining (800) a plurality of surface samples, each surface sample being covered with a colored coating having a thickness different from that of other surface samples in the plurality of surface samples; For each surface sample in the plurality of surface samples: obtaining (802) an average thickness of the coating on the surface sample; obtaining (804) an image of the surface sample using the camera and the light source, each of the camera and the light source being at a specified position relative to the position of the surface sample; determining (806) one or more coating color space values ​​for the coating on the surface sample in the image; associating the average thickness of the coating with the one or more coating color space values ​​(808); and storing (810) the average thickness as the associated coating thickness and storing an association of the associated coating thickness with one or more coating color space values ​​of the image and information about the surface of the surface sample, the information about the surface of the surface sample including information about a surface type, Wherein obtaining one or more coating color space values ​​of the color based on the camera, the light source and the surface comprises obtaining from a memory the one or more coating color space values ​​and a stored association of the associated coating thickness with the one or more color space values ​​of the image and the information about the surface of the surface sample.

4. A method performed by a processor to inspect the coverage of a coating applied to a surface of a component, the method comprising: obtaining (900) one or more coating color space values ​​for a color of the coating based on a camera, a light source, and the surface, each coating color space value being associated with a coating thickness; obtaining (902) an image of a surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source; For each image obtained: determining (904) one or more color space values ​​for the image; Determining (906) whether the coating thickness associated with the one or more color space values ​​of the image is within a specified tolerance of the expected coating thickness based on a comparison of the one or more color space values ​​of the image and a color space value associated with the expected coating thickness includes: obtaining (700) one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness; comparing one or more color space values ​​of the image to one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness (702); and determining ( 704 ) whether each of the one or more color space values ​​of the image is within a predetermined level of the one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness based on comparing the one or more color space values ​​of the image with the one or more color space values ​​associated with the desired coating thickness; determining (908) whether a coating of the surface shown in the image is free of the specified defect based on comparing the image to the image of the specified defect; In response to a coating thickness associated with color space values ​​of the image being outside the specified tolerance, providing (910) an indication that the surface shown in the image is outside the specified tolerance; and In response to determining that the coating of the surface shown in the image has a defect, providing (912) an indication that the coating has a defect, the indication including at least an identification of the defect and a location of the defect.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the designated defects include one or more of: blistering, cratering, fisheyes, non-adherent overspray, pinholes, blowouts, and wrinkling, the method further comprising: obtaining (1100) a plurality of surface samples of the surface, each surface sample being covered with a coating of the color and having one of the specified defects; obtaining (1102) images of a plurality of surface samples of the surface; and For each image obtained that has one of the specified defects, the image and an indication that the image shows one of the specified defects are stored (1004).

6. The method of claim 4 or 5, wherein determining whether the coating of the surface shown in the image is free from specified defects comprises: comparing the image to each image having one of the specified defects; and In response to the image matching within a threshold level one of the images having one of the specified defects, an indication is given that the coating of the surface has the one of the specified defects.

7. A coating inspection apparatus configured to inspect the coverage of a coating applied to a surface of a component, the coating inspection apparatus comprising: processing circuit (104); and a memory (106) coupled to the processing circuit, wherein the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit, cause the coating inspection device to perform operations including: controlling (1200) a camera / illumination positioner having a camera and a light source to position the camera and the light source at a specified position relative to the surface so as to obtain an image of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source; obtaining an image of the surface covered by the coating using the camera and the light source and storing the image (1202); and The obtained images are processed (1204) to determine whether the coating applied to the surface is free of defects by comparing the obtained images with stored images of defects in the coating applied to the surface, and for each of the obtained images, determine whether the thickness of the coating applied to the surface is within a specified tolerance of a specified thickness by determining (1000) one or more color space values ​​of the image and comparing (1002) the one or more color space values ​​of the image with one or more color space values ​​of stored images, each stored image being an image of a coating applied to the surface at a known thickness.

8. The coating inspection device according to claim 7, further comprising: a storage coupled to the processing circuitry and the memory, wherein the memory includes further instructions that, when executed by the processing circuitry, cause the coating inspection apparatus to perform further operations comprising: An indication of a defect is provided in response to one of the obtained images matching one of the stored defect images.

9. The coating inspection device according to claim 7, further comprising: a memory coupled to the processing circuit and the memory, wherein the coating inspection apparatus further determines whether a thickness of a coating applied to the surface is within a specified tolerance of a specified thickness by: For each image of said images obtained: determining (1004) a thickness of the coating by comparing one or more color space values ​​of the image to one or more color space values ​​of stored images to determine which of the stored images has one or more color space values ​​that most closely match the one or more color space values ​​of the image; obtaining (1006) the known thickness of the stored image; determining (1008) whether the known thickness of the stored image is within a tolerance level of the specified thickness; and In response to the known thickness of the stored image being outside the tolerance level, an indication is provided (1010) that the thickness of the surface shown in the image is outside the tolerance level.

Images