Ram Optical Instrumentation Inc. (Tempe, AZ) has signed an agreement with software manufacturer Wilcox Associates Inc. (Danville, CA) to incorporate Wilcox's PC-DMIS Vision metrology software on Ram's optical products.

PC-DMIS Vision is the optical version of the PC-DMIS software that is used on many coordinate measuring machines. The software reduces translation problems between machines, allows for off-line programming and CAD data integration.

"The partnership will provide existing Ram customers with an upgrade option," says Mark Glowacky, president of Ram.

The software is available on Ram's noncontact optical products or as retrofit for older machines. Customers have the option to upgrade the software or continue to use the existing software.

Wilcox Associates is owned by Hexagon Metrology, a company that also owns the CMM manufacturing company, Brown & Sharpe, and the metrology company, CE Johansson. Ram Optical is owned by Quality Vision International (QVI), which also owns View Engineering and Optical Gaging Products (OGP). The new software will not be available on OGP products. Recently, Hexagon bought CE Johansson from the Newport Corp., the company that also sold Ram Optical to QVI.