As a partner in the European DISCO2030 project, InPhoTech is integrating fibre-optic sensors into advanced manufactured components. Publicly reported demonstrations include distributed measurements with 1 cm spatial resolution and temperature gradients up to 500°C.
InPhoTech is helping bring sensing capabilities into the heart of advanced industrial components through DISCO2030, a Horizon Europe project coordinated by the Technical University of Munich (TUM).
The consortium brings together European research organisations and industry to explore ways of joining dissimilar materials and manufacturing lighter, more functional components. Its industrial use cases span space propulsion, marine engines and cryogenic hydrogen systems.
InPhoTech joined DISCO2030 in June 2024, contributing expertise in speciality optical fibres and distributed sensing. Its work aims to integrate optical fibres directly into metal and composite structures so that temperature and strain can be measured within the component itself.
The project has publicly reported successful proof-of-concept sensing in metal and composite components. Distributed measurements reached a spatial resolution of 1 cm, and temperature gradients were monitored up to 500°C. The consortium also confirmed the achievement of its milestone for integrating and evaluating fibre-optic sensors in representative components.
These results demonstrate a promising direction for future structural health monitoring: components that provide information about their condition from the inside, rather than relying exclusively on external inspection.
Building on InPhoTech’s earlier work in MULTI-FUN, DISCO2030 brings this approach into a broader European programme for advanced multi-material manufacturing and industrial applications.
Further reading
- DISCO2030 consortium | From Research to Impact
- DISCO2030 consortium | InPhoTech joins the project
- European Commission | DISCO2030 project information
DISCO2030 is funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe, Grant Agreement No 101091860. Views and opinions expressed are those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission can be held responsible for them.