Enthusiastic response to new wheel inspection system from YXLON

Following intensive test operation during production involving more than 250,000 inspected wheels, YXLON has officially launched the new WI26 G wheel inspection system with ADR and the new YXLON Panel 460 detector on the market in the course of its Wheel Symposium 2016. The design for the new WI26 G has been geared for speed, inspection decision-making at its best, and minimum maintenance requirements. “With this wheel inspection system we are able to double our production throughput,” is the enthusiastic commentary from Chris Puhlmann at Borbet Solingen about the concept’s success. At less than 20 seconds of inspection time per standard wheel, an annual throughput of 1.5 million inspected wheels is being applied as the basis. Which makes the WI26 G the fastest X-ray system in its class.

WI26 G is equipped with the new YXLON Panel 460, a detector that supplies what is currently the best image quality for reliable inspection decisions. What’s more, due to the extremely large active area the number of projections per inspection run is reduced, equivalent to a savings in real time. The innovative manipulation concept using grippers increases the speed of inspection even further. The efficient wheel feed and discharge via a new type of loadlock and transfer construction design ensures complete shielding against radiation and implements wheel identification directly during insertion. At the same time, the ingenious mechanics minimize unnecessary wear & tear, while automatic calibration programs dispense with frequent program adjustments. Aligned to work with a wide range of wheel sizes and weights, the WI26 G is excellently suited for mixed operation and remains operable even in the event of an expanded product portfolio.

The prototype for the WI26 G had already been presented to customers a year ago at the YXLON Wheel Symposium 2015 in order to integrate ideas and suggestions from the circle of application users directly into advanced development. Even then the feedback was consistently positive: the new concept met with wide-scale approval. The prototype was subsequently able to prove itself during an intensive test run in ongoing production. Its successor has meanwhile benefited from an inflow of further optimizations. As a result of the great interest shown, this year’s customer event had to be upscaled to include five dates where the most well-known wheel producers had the opportunity to become acquainted with the system in detail and engage in a vigorous exchange of opinions regarding the different topics revolving around wheel inspection. Visitors who were now able to appraise the further developments performed on the WI26 G as well as interested parties who had not been familiar with the system before eagerly expressed their enthusiasm at the wheel symposium.