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With neutron diffraction, the local stress and texture of metallic components can be analyzed non-destructively. For both, highly accurate positioning of the sample is essential, requiring the measurement at the same sample location from different directions. Current sample-positioning systems in neutron diffraction instruments combine XYZ tables and Eulerian cradles to enable the accurate six-degree-of-freedom (6DoF) handling of samples. However, these systems are not flexible enough. The choice of the rotation center and their range of motion are limited. Industrial six-axis robots have the necessary flexibility, but they lack the required absolute accuracy. This paper proposes a visual servoing system consisting of an industrial six-axis robot enhanced with a high-precision multi-camera tracking system. Its goal is to achieve an absolute positioning accuracy of better than 50μm. A digital twin integrates various data sources from the instrument and the sample in order to enable a fully automatic measurement procedure. This system is also highly relevant for other kinds of processes that require the accurate and flexible handling of objects and tools, e.g., robotic surgery or industrial printing on 3D surfaces.
A modified quenching and deformation dilatometer (TA instruments DIL 805A/D/T) is now in operation at the Heinz Maier‐Leibnitz Zentrum (MLZ, Germany) neutron center. It is customized for running neutron scattering measurements during the temperature/deformation treatment of the sample, in particular neutron diffraction (phase, texture, and lattice strain) and neutron small angle scattering. The bulk length change of dilatometer specimens is successfully combined with in situ neutron diffraction patterns for analyzing dynamic processes in metallic materials. A detailed introduction to the unique dilatometer is given and examples of recent experiments highlight the use of the added insight provided by combining diffraction and dilatometry.