Signature Image Processing (SIP)

It is a technology used to analyze the electrical data collected through a welding process. This data is usually collected through robotic or automated welding processes. Automated welding plants are used in almost 50% of the manufactured products in the developed countries.

Certain conditions are necessary for welding to be acceptable and little variation in it can become the cause of rejection. There was a need of a reliable system that could detect welding fault in real time. SIP is a system that can identify the smallest of faults in the welding process. Powerful computers make this real time computing happen and help in optimizing the welding process.

The use of SIP has increased significantly in the automotive industry and it has resulted in the improved quality and safety of the vehicles. The automatic welding system can eliminate the need to rework and recall a product and manufacturers can reduce the number of humans in the work place and can save more on labor costs.

SIP was developed for arc welding with the assistance and help of the grant given by Australian government. This system has a front end interface and software and gives accurate results as it only depends on the electrical signals received. It can survive in any industrial welding environment and is easy to use and install as well.

GM Holden was the first purchaser and user of the technology. Significant improvements were made in this system depending on the feedback received from GM Holden and these improvements increased the commercial value of this system. The improvements were made in algorithms and the system was optimized to achieve accurate fault detection. The interface and installation is simple but the mathematics involved in the working of SIP is complex and the technology has been adopted and appreciated by the world’s top auto manufacturers.