NDE 4.0: The Fourth Revolution in Non-Destructive Testing: Interfaces, Connectivity, Feedback, New Markets, and Integration into the Digital Factory

Historians divide the Industrial Revolution into three phases: the invention of the steam engine (mechanization), electricity (mass production), and the microelectronic revolution (automation). A similar development took place in non-destructive material testing: tools such as lenses and stethoscopes made it possible to sharpen the human senses; the transformation of waves makes the invisible visible, thereby offering a “glimpse” into components; and finally, automation, digitization, and reconstruction. Throughout industrial development, NDT has played a key role in ensuring the quality—and thus the success—of manufactured goods.

The industry is now speaking of a fourth revolution: the informatization, digitization, and networking of industrial production. As has always been the case, NDT will be crucial to the success of this fourth revolution, as it provides the data foundation needed for feedback in a networked production environment.

For NDT, this will lead to a transformation. Inspection results must be made available to a networked production environment in a way that allows them to be evaluated for feedback loops; testability must be taken into account in the design; and the reliability of inspection findings will become increasingly important.

This publication outlines concepts for how NDT can be integrated into Industry 4.0 environments.The Industry 4.0 Reference Architecture Model (RAMI 4.0) enables the localization of a digital component; the Industry 4.0 management shell serves as the interface between Industry 4.0 communication and the physical device. OPC-UA is the communication protocol currently establishing itself as the standard; DICONDE is a communication protocol and data format for test and metadata; AutomationML is a data format for plant planning data; and the Industrial Data Space Initiative ensures data sovereignty.