Case Study: Ford achieves error-free car body quality assurance with ifm efector PMD Profiler

Ford cuts loading errors to 0.2 per thousand with ifm efector

Ford faced a challenge in its Valencia plant ensuring a small, flat reinforcing sheet was correctly positioned and that only one sheet was loaded during the assembly of the Kuga. Conventional sensors and camera systems were unable to reliably perform this task due to installation constraints, fluctuating lighting, and the part's diminutive size. The vendor, ifm efector, addressed this with its PMD Profiler line scanner.

ifm efector's solution used the PMD Profiler to project a laser line and create a height profile of the target area, detecting even the smallest deviations with 500µm accuracy. This ensured correct part placement and prevented double-sheet loading. The implementation was highly successful, reducing the error rate to just 0.2 per thousand units and effectively minimizing production downtime.

Ford