- Nissan has employed AI technology to identify paint imperfections on new vehicles
- The automaker reports a 7% improvement in detecting paint defects through AI
- Nissan emphasizes that AI is designed to support human workers, not replace them
Nissan is leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance the identification of paint defects on cars manufactured at its assembly plants in the United States.
Approximately three years ago, the company introduced the AI-driven AUTIS Surface Verification System at its Smyrna, Tennessee facility, resulting in a 7% increase in defect detection rates, according to Nissan. This advanced system employs high-resolution cameras to capture 15,000 images of each vehicle as it exits the paint booth, which are then analyzed by AI software to detect any flaws in the paint finish.
“The human eye can detect 85%-95% of imperfections, but AUTIS captures over 98%,” stated Travis Fritsche, a paint process engineer at Nissan. Technicians continue to verify the potential paint defects highlighted by the system using monitors and company-issued wrist-worn smartphones. This AI assistance helps mitigate eye fatigue and provides technicians with more time to address paint-related issues, Nissan noted.
Nissan uses AI to detect paint flaws
The paint inspection process was also initially partially automated. Nissan first employed laser-equipped robots to detect paint defects back in 1985. Those early robots were capable of identifying flaws as small as 0.3 mm in just 45 seconds, whereas the AUTIS system can now spot flaws as tiny as 0.2 millimeters in under half that time, according to Nissan.
The AI-based system also creates a library of confirmed defects for future reference, which aids in enhancing its performance. Nissan adds that this library can be utilized by engineers to tackle specific issues related to paint processes for various vehicles and colors.
2024 Nissan Sentra
To date, the AUTIS system has assessed over 500,000 vehicles at the Smyrna plant, which has a production capacity exceeding 640,000 vehicles annually, as noted in a 2022 fact sheet. This paint defect detection system is also utilized at plants in Canton, Mississippi, and Aguascalientes, Mexico. Together, these three facilities produce the majority of Nissan’s current vehicle lineup, including the Altima, Frontier, Kicks, Leaf, Murano, Pathfinder, Rogue, Sentra, and Versa.
While Nissan is making strides with AI, other automakers are exploring this technology as well, primarily for enhancing infotainment systems. For instance, the upcoming 2025 Volkswagen Golf will incorporate OpenAI’s ChatGPT within its voice assistant, and its sister brand Audi is expected to follow suit. Additionally, Mercedes-Benz introduced a beta program in 2023 for ChatGPT integration and announced an AI-powered next-generation user interface at CES earlier this year.
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