Evaporator Coil Digital Fingerprinting After Brazing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge in mass production of evaporator coils is the inability to effectively track and identify components during automated brazing due to high temperatures and obscured views, which hinder direct observation and tagging mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
A system using a camera and analysis tool to generate digital fingerprints from coil brazing, employing corner detection and binary descriptor algorithms to identify rotationally invariant feature points, enabling component tracking and defect identification through high-heat processes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If tagging mechanisms like barcodes are used to identify components, then component tracking is enabled, but the high temperatures inside the brazing chamber alter or damage the tagging
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a digital copy of the component's visual appearance (digital fingerprint) rather than using physical tags. The camera captures images of the coil slabs, and image processing algorithms generate digital fingerprints that represent the component's state. This digital copy can be stored and processed without exposure to high temperatures, solving the problem of temperature-sensitive physical tagging.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces physical tagging mechanisms with an optical/digital system. Instead of attaching physical barcodes or tags to components, the system uses cameras to capture visual information and processes this information through image algorithms to create digital identifiers. This substitution eliminates the need for physical tags that would be damaged by heat.
2Reliability
If direct observation is attempted during automated brazing, then process monitoring is enabled, but the high temperatures prevent observation of components and conveyor belt
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs image capture and digital fingerprint generation after the brazing process completes, rather than attempting to observe during the high-temperature brazing itself. The camera captures images of the coil slabs in a cooler state post-brazing, allowing for reliable defect detection without the obstruction caused by high temperatures during the brazing process.
3Adaptability or versatility
If additional fittings and tubing are added to the apparatus, then functional requirements are met, but tracking and identification becomes complicated by obscured sections
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the component identification into distinct features and uses algorithms to recognize and track these features even when partially obscured. The digital fingerprint system captures and processes multiple visual features of the coil slabs, allowing the system to identify components based on their unique visual characteristics rather than requiring unobstructed views of entire components.
Data Source
AI summary
A system is configured to receive video footage of evaporator coil slabs after they exit an automated coil brazer. The system is further configured to convert the video footage to greyscale and isolate frames from the greyscale video footage. Each frame comprises an image of a different evaporator coil slab. The system is further configured to generate a first digital fingerprint comprising a binary feature vector for each point in a first subset of feature points from the first frame, and generate a second digital fingerprint comprising a binary feature vector for each point in a second subset of feature points from the second frame.