Global vehicle manufacturer

From operator to AI-driven visual quality inspection

The Challenge

In the customer's production, a manual 100% inspection of metal gears was previously carried out. This meant that operators had to visually inspect the products as part of the production process. The global vehicle manufacturer wanted to automate this step and needed a solution that could replace the manual visual inspection with a flexible and AI-driven inspection. The goal was to reduce staffing requirements for the inspection process while integrating the inspection into the production flow.

The Solution: AI, Camera, and Robot Combined

Gimic has developed a solution where the camera is mounted on a robot with a rotary unit. This provides significant freedom of movement and makes it possible to position the camera around the gear to inspect the surfaces that need to be checked. The images are analyzed by Gimic's AI models based on the quality criteria defined for the inspection. The combination of the robot's flexibility, the camera's image acquisition, and the AI models' analysis allows the previously operator-based inspection to be carried out automatically. The first solution was ordered in 2024 and delivered in 2025. In 2026, the customer placed an additional two orders, one of which concerns an installation at a manufacturing facility in the US. The customer's decision to proceed with further installations demonstrates how the solution can be scaled from an initial implementation to additional production environments and markets.

The Challenge

The Solution: AI, Camera, and Robot Combined

Results

From operator to AI-driven inspection

A previously manual inspection step for the gears is now performed automatically using a camera, robot, and AI.

Reduced staffing requirements

The need for operator time for the visual overall inspection decreases when the inspection is performed automatically.

Flexible quality inspection

The camera can be positioned around the gear, providing great flexibility in how the product's various surfaces are inspected.

From Swedish factory to international rollout

Following the first order in 2024, the customer placed two follow-up orders in 2026, one of which is for the USA.

When AI takes over a manual inspection step

The project demonstrates how AI-driven visual inspection can replace a step that previously required an operator's presence. By combining AI-based image analysis with a flexible robotic solution, quality control can become an integrated part of the production flow. For the customer, this means a reduced need for operator time and a higher degree of automation in the specific step handled by Gimic. The fact that the solution is now being scaled internationally also highlights the potential of developing a solution in one factory and subsequently implementing the technology across more of the customer's production facilities.