M-ray technology safely measures thickness or basis-weight (grammage) without using radiation. It fits easily into production lines and uses millimeter waves similar to cell phone signals. This ensures fast, accurate, and reliable results, improving efficiency and product quality.
The concept behind the technology is simple. A sensor at the top transmits an electromagnetic millimeter wave that passes through the material being measured (1), then reverses direction when hitting the reflector underneath (2), passing through the material once again, and finally being captured by another sensor head at the bottom. (3) The measurement system tracks the time required by the wave to pass through the material, enabling us to deduce information about the material's physical state, such as thickness or basis-weight (grammage).
Our M-Ray technology can also measure moisture and water-based coatings. A sensor sends electromagnetic waves through the material, and a receiver below captures these waves. If the receiver detects weaker waves, it indicates higher moisture or a thicker coating.
The measuring distance of M-Rays supports fast, accurate, and high-standoff measurements. Protecting the material from scratches, allowing measurement of very thick materials, and preventing sensor damage from fluttering production lines or overheated materials. M-Ray technology can be used as part of a turnkey measuring solution, integrating single or multiple sensors. It has been developed to measure thickness, basis-weight, and anomalies of flat non-metallic structures, including non-wovens, coated textiles, plastic films and sheets, synthetic foams, mineral wools, and rubber.
Compared to competing technologies, which are often based on nuclear technology, Hammer-IMS is not tied to expensive and rare earth materials. Thanks to the purely electronic nature of M-Ray technology, we benefit from the size and performance advances described in Moore’s law. This is what makes our measuring solutions future-proof, offering unmatched cost versus performance ratios.
