Challenge completedFuture-Proof Lead-Batteries: Non-Destructive Inline cell connector welding Inspection
Power the next generation of reliable vehicles. A leading battery manufacturer seeks a non-destructive, inline post-weld inspection that delivers fast, trustworthy pass/fail decisions at line speed. Help future-proof lead-acid batteries for functional-safety programs—and turn proven physics into a compact, production-ready solution with a clear path to pilot and scale.
Who can participate?
Startups, scale-ups, research labs, and industrial NDT providers with non-destructive inspection expertise (e.g., ultrasound), inline automation, and quality assurance.
Applicants must be able to validate on supplied samples and run a prototype-line pilot in the EU, with a clear path to EU Machinery Directive conformity and production integration or show when and how this will be possible in the future.
Core Question
How can we achieve accurate, inline cell connector weld OK/NOK inspection within ≤30s and a ~1×1 m footprint to support ppm-level functional-safety claims? The final cycle time is 11s per battery. For the co-development and piloting phases a ≤60s timeframe is fine.
Goals and Criteria
The solution must:
- deliver accurate OK/NOK cell connector weld classification, and this accuracy must be validated against destructive ground truth (tested on known OK/NOK samples)
- operate inline within a total cycle time of ≤30 seconds (for the co-development and piloting phases a ≤60s timeframe is fine). The final target is ≤11s per battery.
- fit into a compact ~1×1 m station
- be designed in conformity with the EU Machinery Directive
- must be production-safe and PFAS-free
- take place within the EU (all execution and pilot activities)
Ideally the solution should also:
- provide defect typing and quantification (e.g., % cold-press, inclusions) supported by fast, reliable analytics.
- include a clear automation and fixturing concept, plus a parallelization strategy (if needed) to consistently meet the production takt.
In Scope:
- Post-weld NDT preferred; in-process monitoring acceptable only if equivalent in accuracy/reliability.
Out of scope:
- Pure resistance checks; slow/expensive methods (e.g., impedance spectroscopy); post-lid/in-field tests; oversized (~3 m) equipment.