Gantry vs Crawler: Factory Cell or Field Platform

Author: RAS Thermal Co., Ltd. · Updated 2026-10-07

TL;DR Where it works: MIS-100 Gantry in the moulding station, ISS-200 Crawler on a blade in the field. Scan speed: MIS-100 Gantry 500 mm/s on flat production geometry, ISS-200 Crawler 300 mm/s on the curved surface. Environment: MIS-100 Gantry shop conditions, ISS-200 Crawler IP67 and NEMA 4X, minus 20 °C. Trigger: MIS-100 Gantry within 30 min of infusion, ISS-200 Crawler after a storm or on a campaign schedule.

The gantry and the crawler run the same ultrasonic methods, and they are built for two different places. The gantry lives in the production line and the crawler climbs the blade in the field. Choosing between them is a question of which stage is being covered rather than of which machine is better.

The dimensions that decide

Dimension	MIS-100 Gantry	ISS-200 Crawler
Where it works	in the moulding station	on a blade in the field
Scan speed	500 mm/s on flat production geometry	300 mm/s on the curved surface
Environment	shop conditions	IP67 and NEMA 4X, minus 20 °C
Trigger	within 30 min of infusion	after a storm or on a campaign schedule

Which way the call goes

The two platforms answer two cadences. The gantry fits the moulding station, scanning a spar cap within 30 minutes of infusion and pushing results to the MES so a rework instruction reaches the operator in under 60 seconds. The crawler answers a field cadence, tracking the curve at 300 mm/s on a blade that has been in service for years, sealed to IP67 and NEMA 4X for a marine site. Running one platform across both stages would mean either a shop machine carried into salt fog or a field machine doing a job a fixed cell does faster, and neither is the right fit. The two share the probe interface and the analysis software, so the data ends up in one place even though the machines live apart.

How to choose between them

Run these checks in order. By Step 5 the choice follows from the geometry and the threshold rather than from habit.

Fix the acceptance threshold. Start from the threshold the zone carries, not from the method you happen to own. IEC 61400-5 Section 11 asks for volumetric detection of indications 6 mm and larger in the laminate plane, and DNV-ST-0126 tightens the leading edge to 3 mm, so the threshold is set before the probe is chosen.
Read the geometry off the drawing. Measure the thickness and the curvature the probe has to travel. A spar cap up to 80 mm of unidirectional laminate and a root transition of changing radius are two different scan problems, and the radius decides how the array is coupled.
Choose the modality pair. Pick modules by defect geometry, not by habit. PAUT images planar separations that lie parallel to the plies, TOFD catches volumetric clusters whatever their orientation, and running both on a 256-channel system puts the two mechanisms in one pass.
Automate the scan path. Put the probe on an encoder-driven carriage and let the path, not the technician, set coverage. A 600 mm spar cap falls to one longitudinal pass at 500 mm/s on a linear array, where a single-element probe needs 20 parallel passes and runs about five times longer.
Lock the evidence chain. Write the coverage map, the daily calibration and the indication log to the blade serial while the scan is running. It is the difference between a 3-day type-certification audit and a 3-hour document review, and it is what ISO 9712 qualification is there to sign.

The numbers below are drawn from the equipment records and field campaigns this site already publishes, not from a generic catalogue.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which system suits factory blade inspection?

The gantry. It runs at 500 mm/s on production geometry inside the moulding station, scans a cap within 30 minutes of infusion, and pushes results to the MES so rework reaches the operator in under 60 seconds.

Which suits in-service blade inspection?

The crawler. It tracks the curved surface at 300 mm/s, is sealed to IP67 and NEMA 4X for salt fog and rated to minus 20 °C, and runs on a blade after a storm or on a campaign schedule.

Can one platform do both jobs?

Not well. A shop machine carried into salt fog and a field machine doing a fixed-cell job are both compromises, so the two machines are kept apart and share the probe interface and the analysis software instead.

Do the two platforms share data?

Yes. Both use the same probe interface and analysis layer, so results from the gantry and the crawler land in one dataset per blade serial rather than in two incompatible folders.

Bottom line: The gantry covers the moulding station at 500 mm/s and the crawler covers the field at 300 mm/s through salt fog, and each is built for its cadence. Keep the two machines apart and share the data, because one platform stretched over both stages fits neither.