A depth gage could be as simple as marks on a piece of tape, a line on a ruler, or tape on a drill. Fortunately, of course, modern gages take the guesswork out of measurement, providing a range of simple or high-tech options depending on the job.
Luminator Technology Group is a family of brands that manufacture passenger information signs, lighting, and display solutions for bus, rail, and aerospace industries. Based in Plano, Texas, Luminator serves a broad customer base in North America and throughout the world.
Each day, facilities across the globe turn to nondestructive testing (NDT) to verify the reliability of parts or materials without causing damage. One of the most popular of these methods is magnetic particle inspection (MPI)—a form of NDT that uses magnetism to detect surface and near-surface defects, cracks, seams or stress points in ferromagnetic materials before parts and materials are placed into service.
A major milestone in Digital NDT was reached this February— the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) E07.11 subcommittee published the new ASTM standard E3147-18 on DICONDE Interoperability. This new standard should help further establish DICONDE in Digital NDT environments and increase the benefits of its use.
On April 20, three days after a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 experienced an engine failure due to a fractured fan blade, resulting in the death of a passenger, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency airworthiness directive that requires operators of CFM56-7B engines with more than 30,000 flight cycles to perform a one-time ultrasonic inspection of all 24 fan blades to detect cracking.
Learn more about the entire 3D printing process from powder characterization to determining the best tests to qualify parts for the aerospace industry.
The aerospace industry is increasingly adopting metal additive manufacturing for both flight safety-critical aircraft parts and non-critical flight parts. The approach offers a shorter development cycle, which means products can be developed quicker and design changes easily incorporated.
I was a group quality manager for an engineering company that made aero-engine parts. As part of the culture change program, I gave a presentation on examples of aircraft crashes and causes. A poorly machined blisk that caused an in-flight turbine failure, an oil-pipe with a thin wall in one area that cracked and leaked causing a fire, and an incident I personally saw, the crash of a military helicopter in Germany which was due to a series of quality failures.
The push for increased fuel efficiencies has pushed the aerospace industry to develop stronger and lighter materials while simultaneously increasing component longevity. In turn, these new designs, materials, and processes require verification.
Choosing the right inspection system for your application can be a daunting task. For industrial applications three types of inspection systems are generally used. This guide describes these systems, their common applications along with pros and cons.
Breaking new ground in production to be one step ahead—such is the ambition of numerous companies. In light of the additive manufacturing trend, this may be possible. Dr. Marcin Bauza, Dr. Claus Hermannstädter, and Dr. Robert Zarnetta explain how to support pioneering entrepreneurs in their efforts.
Traditional nondestructive inspections are performed much the same for additive parts, but there are some new limitations introduced by the AM methods.
Additive manufacturing (AM) is one of the hottest and most revolutionary processes to come along in many years. The thought of popping a design into a machine and having a functional part come out the other side was science fiction a generation ago. We are nowhere near the Star Trek replicators, but we are closing that gap.
Aerospace is leading the way in the IIoT, with a heightened focus on additive manufacturing, the digital thread, and lightning-fast 3D measurement and inspection technologies.
The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the growing network of physical objects that are embedded with sensors to enable connection with each other and exchange of data.
Form is a relatively easy thing to measure in many senses. In the simplest manner, form measurement involves a probe or stylus being moved along an ideal circular or linear path to gather data on the probe movements relative to that ideal geometry.
Failure modes and effects analysis is an effective method.
July 8, 2018
At the individual level, failure isn’t always a welcome event but it is recognized as a path to growth, innovation, and change. Prior to engaging in a particular endeavor, you can look at potential areas of failure and examine possible consequences. If the activity doesn’t involve death, divorce, or disaster—and with a little internal and external encouragement—you will go for it.
Like many others, the word trend has evolved and changed in meaning over time. Some 400 years ago trend meant “to run or bend in a certain direction” and pertained to natural occurrences like rivers, coastlines and mountain ranges.
The Coordinate Metrology Society launched the first Level-One Certification for 3D portable measurement professionals five years ago. Since that time, the organization has consistently rolled out additional assessments to support the industry.
Metrology is the science of measurement and these skills are vital across all major growth sectors of the global economies, enabling innovation, jobs, and industry sustainability.
A few customers are requesting that reports show the actual lab humidity during calibration of their equipment. I realize that this can be a critical consideration for some types of calibration but when it comes to fixed limit gages, I have never heard the rationale for such a request other than it’s what their customer expects.
First introduced in the 1980s, smart cameras or “smart sensors” combine lenses, embedded sensor, processors, interfaces and software together into small, all-in-one vision systems.
Many people find vision challenging, and complex vision systems certainly can be overwhelming. But vision is a powerful tool for automated quality control, and in many cases, inspections that previously required costly, complex vision systems—or multiple photelectric sensors—can now be completed with an economical but capable vision sensor.
Today’s innovative landscape is introducing sophisticated technologies for vision guided robotics (VGR) at a rapid pace, expanding robot functionality for diverse markets. Next-generation imaging systems, combined with the availability of more compact, highly efficient and less expensive robots, sensors and technologies, are allowing the implementation of robotic solutions for a wider range of applications, especially for small- to mid-size manufacturers.
Human visual perception is the ultimate standard of quality for any lighting or display product that’s intended to be viewed by humans. From flat screen TVs to smart phones, light bulbs to traffic signals, stadium jumbotrons to VR goggles, the GPS in your car to the cockpit instruments of a jet plane, what human users perceive—and any defects they notice—is the defining factor in device quality.
Hexagon AB introduced the Leica BLK3D – a compact 3D handheld imager that improves productivity by enabling immediate and precise 3D measurements from any image it captures.
Marposs Corp. has expanded its MIDA VTS visual tool setter family with the addition of the VTS WF45 and WF85 wide field versions suited for non-contact measuring and verifying “double-sided”, larger diameter tools. Relying upon LED technology, the wide field versions can perform both profile and surface integrity inspection of the entire tool front to back, identifying any minor faults in the work tool that could affect workpiece integrity.
Creaform has launched Creaform ACADEMIA™, its completely new academic suite of 3D measurement solutions designed especially for the academic market. Creaform ACADEMIA offers a didactic suite for forward-thinking teachers and researchers, who are looking to inspire, collaborate and push the innovation envelope forward using latest industry technologies.
Being based on a common technological platform, all Skyline Scanners share the same technical characteristics of scanning speed, performances, strength, reliability and ergonomics.
Fujitsu Glovia, Inc. has released Glovia G2 V3.5.0, which expands upon its manufacturing planning and execution experience gained over more than 30 years. The new release provides a number of enhancements to the company’s manufacturing ERP software, along with three new applications.