― WHAT'S "FraD"?
Image Analysis of Metal Fracture Surfaces using AI
Failure accidents in automobiles, airplanes, and power plants can cause serious human and property damage. If such an accident occurs, a prompt investigation to determine the cause is required to prevent recurrence. For the investigation, observation of the cross-sectional surface where the failure occurred is extremely important. It even constitutes a field of study, called fractography.*1
*1 Fractography is an analysis to obtain information on the cause and mechanism of fracture by observing the fractured surface of a damaged object, or a method to do so.
In fractography, magnified observation using a scanning electron microscope is a very powerful tool. The fracture modes, identified from electron micrographs, are useful in determining the cause of the fracture. However, determining the fracture mode requires a high level of expertise, and, in recent years, the shortage of human resources with such expertise has become a serious problem in industry. Therefore, we have developed a system that automatically identifies fracture modes by applying deep learning, a technology that has been making remarkable progress.