Nondestructive testing of large components can be time consuming and requires several people to work quickly to minimize the impact of testing on the large component manufacturing process. Because the current methods rely on a manual inspection process, it is inefficient and expensive.
One application that illustrates these challenges is the inspection of wind turbine blades during manufacturing. Two areas of the blade that require particular attention are the spar caps and shear web bonding, and both areas are inspected using ultrasonic testing (UT).