Fast-acquisition, robot-mounted, 3D X-ray inspection, with longitudinal failure-analysis for Digital Twins.

Adaptix have proven their medical devices can inspect authentic aerospace parts to the required industry standard via a previous ATI grant. Inspecting these smaller parts via systems built for healthcare doesn't serve the typical large aerospace parts. Adaptix wants to scale-up their capability to image large aerospace parts (such as wings/doors/skins) while maintaining the required resolution of seeing typical failure modes in the composite. This scale-up while maintaining fidelity is a significant innovation challenge.

The ability to determine failures in composite materials in the early, dry-preform phase of manufacture for the aero industry continues to be a challenge, but is highly desirable. Fast-acquisition inspection at dry-preform (where other methods currently can't inspect) via Adaptix' novel _Digital Tomosynthesis_ unlocks new manufacturing methods with significant financial and environmental impact. This will then hasten the desired greater incorporation of such composite material in the manufacture of aircraft and engines.

Using technology developed for a different discipline, this innovative research will deploy low-power, robot-mounted, 3D X-ray inspection on real world composites. In doing so, this research will also explore longitudinal analysis of end-of-life parts, to feed back in to the manufacturing process. With such digital information, this work will contribute to work in NDE 4.0 and Digital Twins.

The value of this project innovation has the backing or aerospace manufacturing primes, Airbus, Spirit AeroSystems, GKN and Dowty Propellers (a GE company).