Quality Assurance for Hairpins
Geometrical inspection and non-contact digitization
Ensuring quality and reliability of highly sensitive hairpins
Dimensional integrity and proper positioning
Electric vehicle production involves bending wires into the shape of a hairpin. These hairpins consist of a rectangular copper wire and are coated with an insulating layer. Since they are highly susceptible to deformation and their ends are difficult to weld, it is necessary to inspect the dimensions and positions of hairpins during the stator assembly process.
Key quality challenges for hairpins
Geometrical inspection and coating quality
Hairpin production
Each hairpin has a flexible structure and is coated with a sensitive lacquer layer. These characteristics create challenges for reliable tactile inspection. An automated ZEISS coordinate measuring machine equipped with a confocal light sensor or a laser triangulation optical sensor is one option for accurately measuring the hairpin shape and lacquer thickness.
Non-contact digitization of sensitive structures
Hairpin production
Optical measuring devices are ideal for quality control of hairpins, which contain extremely touch-sensitive wires. In addition, hairpin geometry and position can only be verified with full-field 3D data. The optical 3D measuring machine offers one-click capture of the free-form 3D coordinates of individual hairpins and the entire stator. The software then provides a clear display of the high-resolution quality information within seconds.
Bending design quality of hairpins
Hairpin digitization
Hairpin design is not defined by a CAD model alone, but is instead developed in numerous loops through bending parameter configuration. CAD models must be scanned and produced so as to evaluate finished hairpins in relation to a master pin. Fringe projection and laser triangulation generate high-resolution point clouds of the hairpins, which ZEISS REVERSE ENGINEERING software then quickly turns into high-quality CAD models.