Integration of Inline Computed Tomography into Industry 4.0 Architectures using OPC UA

Inline Computed Tomography (CT) is a powerful non-destructive testing method that enables high-resolution internal inspection of components directly within production environments. While CT has traditionally been used in offline quality assurance, the integration of Industry 4.0 principles opens new opportunities for automation, data connectivity, and adaptive process control. The system presented in this work represents a novel approach to integrating Inline CT into digital production workflows. The concept and its implementation are currently in development within the nexAMo project, which aims to establish a Smart Factory utilizing a modular matrix production system. In this context, the presented OPC UA based architecture enables seamless communication between high-level control systems (HLCS) and the CT environment, supporting fully automated order handling, scan planning, and result management. A key feature of the system is its flexibility: it can process theoretically unknown parts by automatically deriving all necessary X-ray parameters and trajectories from the provided CAD geometry, material information, and defined regions of interest. This allows Inline CT to adapt dynamically to varying inspection tasks without manual reconfiguration. By combining standardized OPC UA communication, automated order management, and intelligent parameter and trajectory generation, the presented approach lays the foundation for scalable, high-throughput, and adaptive Inline CT as a core component of Industry 4.0 manufacturing environments.