It’s certainly not news that more and more gages are being forced out onto the shop floor. Tight tolerance measurements that were once performed by a trained inspection technician are now being done right next to the machining center, most likely by the machine tool operator.
Polymers and plastics are used in nearly everything we touch every day. These materials deliver a huge diversity of performance properties that are required for many different market areas.
ECR Engines, a division of Richard Childress Racing, is in the business of extracting maximum performance from conventional, push-rod 5.87 Liter V8 engines for NASCAR competition.
Of all of the changes in ISO 9001:2015, the one that users typically mention as being the one they are most concerned about is Management Commitment (clause 5.1.1). Maybe it is because the change has been emphasized so much in communication and training.
Over the past several years we have seen the far reaching impact of cloud, mobile, IoT, and other emerging technologies on enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.
The manufacturing sector is currently saturated with Industry 4.0 (aka the Industrial Internet of Things or IIoT) hype and jargon. This is no surprise given the evidence showing that the connectivity of systems and exploitation of data can add significant value to modern manufacturing processes and supply chains.
The current trends in manufacturing can be summed up pretty much as they always have been: more for less. In other words, manufacturers always want to be able to do more with less.
Gage manufacturers and calibration laboratories often find themselves in this minefield. New gages or instruments are supplied or calibrated and immediately returned by the customer because they aren’t correct.
Socrates said, “The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” Another great mind, Ed Morse (in his keynote address at this past year’s Coordinate Metrology Society Conference), said, “Data is only as good as what you can do with it.” If you were so inclined to put these two thoughts together, you could see the current dilemma regarding Big Data.
Have you noticed that your orange juice may not just be orange juice anymore? While tasty and nutritious, simple orange juice may not always be enough for our increasingly competitive world. Maybe it has added calcium, or extra vitamins; it may even have an optimized amount of pulp for your individual needs.
Last month, we examined the supply chain. The management of this complex system is a daunting task. That’s why, with this month’s column, we will move the discussion from the system to the standard—specifically, the quality management standard, ISO 9001:2015.
Many quality professionals, including statisticians, have remained mired in their rapidly diminishing consultative roles of teaching statistical tools, analyzing data, designing experiments and performing internal consulting duties while having few leadership responsibilities and limited accountability.
The Micro-Measurements® brand of Vishay Precision Group, Inc. announced the global market introduction of a new line of free-filament wire strain gages and ceramic cements, expressly designed for extreme high-temperature environments.
Teledyne DALSA launched its Calibir GX series of long wave infrared (LWIR) cameras for industrial vision applications. Built to achieve frame rates of up to 90 fps, the shutterless and small form-factor GX series are ideal for non-destructive testing in applications that include food inspection, parts and packaging, and electronics inspection.
Vision Research introduces the Phantom® Flex4K-GS, a high-speed camera with a 35mm, 9.4-megapixel sensor and global shutter. Designed for demanding applications in the scientific research, defense and aerospace industries, it builds upon the award-winning technology of Vision Research’s Phantom digital cinema products.
Create a Lean, standardized process across all inspection equipment with Loc-N-Load™ plates and work holding from Inspection Arsenal™. Lean practitioners testify that the design reduces the most expensive waste affecting profits – defective parts, excess motion, over production, and waiting… waiting of talented people and expensive spindles!
Magnescale Ltd. of Japan has teamed up with B&R Automation of Austria to create the MG70 series of fieldbus interface modules. This new series of PLC fieldbus interface modules allow Magnescale digital gauges to connect to EtherNet/IP and PROFINET RT enabled PLCs with 100Mbps data transfer speeds.
With the continually increasing demand on framerates, bit depths, and resolution, interface standards must adapt to these changes with new ways to transfer data with increased speed and robustness.
You may not have noticed it, but there’s been a trend creeping into most of our lives. Its origins are rooted in consumer expectation. Consumers want to hold up their cell phones and snap the perfect selfie with the sun setting over the beach behind them. And they want to create panorama shots that challenge the best of wide angle lenses.
Have you heard of Line Confocal Imaging (LCI)? Perhaps not, since the technology is relatively new to the already high-tech, high-resolution 3D measurement industry. Companies like Axiom Optics are dipping their toes in the water with STIL’s line of noncontact, chromatic confocal sensors.
High bandwidth is essential when transmitting big data volumes in image processing systems. However, available interface technologies like GigE or CoaXPress are the bottleneck when talking about bandwidth. By pre-processing the image in the camera and applying data compression technologies this bottleneck can be mitigated.