Abstract: The advent of Automated Fiber Placement (AFP) systems have aided the rapid manufacturing of composite aerospace structures. One of the challenges that AFP systems present is the uniformity of the deposited prepreg tape layers, which are prone to laps, gaps, overlaps and twists. The current detection modus operandi involves halting fabrication and performing a time consuming visual inspection of each tape layer. Typical AFP systems use a quartz lamp to heat the base layer to make the surface t…