1. A nondestructive in-process inspection method for automated composite material layup, comprising the steps of: generating a first control signal to control a digital infrared camera; sending the first control signal to the digital infrared camera; digitally imaging an infrared spectral radiance of an area of a surface of a composite material; and sending an image data frame to an image analyzer, the image analyzer performing the steps of: accessing a region of interest (ROI) table, the ROI table including information associated with the composite material and a fabrication process; defining a region of interest (ROI) associated with the surface of the composite material in response to information accessed from the ROI table, wherein the ROI includes an underlying edge of composite material based on the information accessed from the ROI table; determining a threshold value associated with the region of interest, and analyzing the image data frame to compare a gray level value to the threshold value.