Online measurement of veneer lathe checks

Abstract

The present work deals with online lathe checks measurement. It is one of the most critical defects of veneer (leading to handling difficulties, excess of glue consumption, poor veneer surface quality, etc.). It could be characterized by lathe checks depth or frequency but these indicators require tedious measurements of the veneers. The objective of this work is to get an estimation of veneer lathe check indicators from vibratory and acoustical measurements. This approach is inspired by operators who are able to adapt the lathe settings “at the noise”. Acoustic and vibratory measurements during the peeling process were performed. Several signal processing techniques giving a spectral representation of sensors measurements are compared. Finally, an analysis of spectrum is proposed to measure the average lathe check frequency of the veneer during the process.