Battery Inspection - Comet Industrial X-ray

X-ray inspection in the battery industry

June 17, 2026

Lithium-ion batteries are an integral part of our daily lives. You may not see one very often, but they are used in a variety of products, such as electric cars, cellphones and power tools. As the need for more lithium-ion batteries is increasing rapidly, large-scale manufacturing facilities (a.k.a Gigafactories) are being built around the globe to keep up with this demand. X-ray inspection is a crucial step in the production line of lithium-ion batteries, as faulty batteries can become very dangerous. By conducting a thorough inspection, one can ensure that the batteries will be safe to use, which is why X-ray inspection systems are such an important tool in the battery industry.

X-ray sources suited for battery inspection

Due to a wide variety of battery types and inspection needs, various resolutions and X-ray energies are needed to meet requirements. To confirm the production quality, a sufficiently high resolution is required to find the critical level of defects, ranging from below 5 μm to about 150 μm depending on the type of battery and defect. High power X-ray sources are employed to keep up with the speed of manufacturing lines. The following Comet X-ray sources are widely used and serve the various needs in battery inspection:

Xplorer Series

The Comet Xplorer series is engineered for 24/7 industrial applications. Featuring high power density and high resolution in a compact design, these sealed tubes deliver precise imaging, easy installation, and flexible operation.

Available kV	130 kV
Resolution range	5-50 μm
Suited for	In-line inspection, production environments

MesoFocus Series

The MesoFocus X-ray tube technology is one of our newest inventions. It’s available in two kV-classes depending on your throughput and resolution needs.

Available kV	225 kV, 450 kV
Resolution range	<25-250 μm
Suited for	In-line inspection, production environments

FXE Series

With the FXE, you’ll be able to see every little detail enabling advancements in cell design and chemistry. These open microfocus X-ray tubes are suited for offline analysis. It’s the perfect fit for a detailed inspection of the constituents of a battery cell.

Available kV	160 kV, 190 kV, 225 kV
Resolution range	<0.5-100 μm
Suited for	At-line inspection, lab environments

Cell types that can be inspected

Depending on application needs, different battery cell types are used. In our everyday life, we mostly deal with cylindrical cells to power e.g., remotes and general household items. In bigger formats, and using lithium chemistry for highest energy density, cylindrical batteries are also used to power electric vehicles (EV). Batteries used in cell phones and computers (3C) have another (pouch) format adapted to their specific requirements, and so do those used in drones or RC racing cars. Cells used in Electrical Storage System (ESS) are almost exclusively prismatic cells (for their rigidity and safety features).

The three main types are show below:

Cylindrical Cells

Cylindrical cells comprise of wound electrodes (also called jelly roll) in a can made from stainless steel and/or aluminum.

Unlike other battery formats, the shape of a cylindrical cell prevents swelling, an unwanted phenomenon in batteries. They are mainly used in power tools, medical instruments, everyday household items, e-bikes and electric vehicles.

Pouch Cells

Pouch cells comprise of stacked aligned electrodes that are sealed in insulating foil.

They are lightweight and mainly used in portable devices where they are installed in a housing such as cell phones and portable computers. Furthermore because of their versatility, pouch cells are also used in drones, RC racing cars, jump starters or in energy storage systems (ESS).

Prismatic Cells

Prismatic cells comprise of one or several jelly rolls stacked into a can with rectangular base.

Because of their rigid, rectangular shape, they are well suited for stacking multiple units in a battery module. They are usually bigger than cylindrical cells and therefore contain more energy per cell. These batteries are mainly used as energy storage and in electric cars.

Why 100% inspection of batteries is crucial

Over the years, there have been many incidents of batteries catching fire or even exploding. Public attention started to rise with smartphone fires, and few years later electric vehicles came under scrutiny. The batteries that malfunction often had a defect or a weakness that went unnoticed during production.

Because defects in battery production are so relevant for the safety of the application and eventually the consumers, 100% inspection (i.e. every cell gets inspected) is targeted whenever feasible. The many possible defects can be classified into four most common defect types. All of them can be found with a suitable X-ray/CT inspection system.

Anode overhang

Overhang inspection is by far the most important. The anode and cathode edges must be uniformly positioned within certain boundaries. If they are outside of these boundaries, cell life is limited and dendrite formation can give rise to thermal runaway.

Electrode misalignment

In battery manufacturing, it’s very important that during winding/stacking, the sheets are aligned properly. If that’s not the case, bulging may occur, which can be very dangerous and even result in a battery catching fire.

Foreign particle inclusion

Foreign particles can be incorporated inside a a battery cell during production, and pose a serious risk for short-circuits and premature failure.

Cell assembly flaws

Defects can also occur during welding and sealing when assembling the cell. The batteries must be inspected for fractures, deformations, distortions, wetting and more.

Battery inspection in the production line

Depending on how fast a battery (part) should be inspected and what image quality is needed, there are different inspection methods. Generally speaking, setting up a production inspection is finding the sweet spot between inspection speed and image quality for maximal throughput and failure detection.

2D imaging with line scanners

This inspection method is the fastest, because the production line moves continuously while X-ray images get taken. The image quality is in many cases sufficient for effective anode overhang inspection.

Classic 2D imaging

Classic 2D imaging is by far most often used because it’s still very fast and provides good quality images. To get a higher resolution, the conveyor belt stops for a short amount of time when the X-ray image is taken.

Laminography «2.5D»

To get a 3D image quickly, several off-angle images are taken of a battery (part) and thus, its volume is reconstructed.

Full 3D CT

Here, the part is truly inspected from all angles, a full 360° scan. 3D CT provides the best reconstruction result but also takes the longest. Several tweaks are possible to reduce acquisition time and increase scan quality.

Why every battery production facility needs X-ray inspection

Due to the complexity of battery manufacturing and the variety of possible defects, a 100% inspection is desired. X-ray inspection is the only technique that enables to see inside of manufactured parts with sufficient speed and spatial resolution. Newest non-destructive X-ray technology allows for a 100% inspection, providing insights along the value chain of battery making, from cell components to fully battery packs. Implementing X-ray inspection in a production line is an investment into higher yields, and deliver safe and reliable batteries into end user applications.

Want to know more?

To get more information and to find out what best suits your needs, get in touch with your local sales representative.

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