New roughness gauges integrate on CNC machining centres
- Details
- July 17, 2017
Blum-Novotest's TC64 roughness gauge is a new product that represents a quantum leap in the field of machine integrated quality monitoring, says the company.
In the past, a reliable method of surface finish analysis could only be performed post machining with a profilometer. The operator would need to remove the part and take it to a different location for analysis and the surface to be tested had to be flat in order to get a proper reading. If during inspection a defect in the surface was found, the part would either need to be hand finished or returned to the machine for machining, in which case resetting the part to its original orientation would be difficult. If not reset correctly, new defects would be introduced into the surface finish.
Blum-Novotest's new toughness gauges were developed to solve this issue. By analyzing surface finish on the machining centre, the manufacturer is now able to identify errors in surface finish prior to part removal and he is able to do so faster and on various contoured surfaces. For example, an operator of a five axis machining centre can now scan contours in various axes simultaneously, and do so at speeds 18x faster, neither of which are possible on conventional profilometers. Surface data such as Ra, Rz, and Rmax values are also viewed in real-time via the machine’s control and data is sampled at over 1,000 hz per second while maintaining micron accurate results and repeatability.
These roughness Gauges are a first of their kind in the industry, offering integrated process control of surface finish analysis which will change the manufacturing process for many attempting to hold tight tolerances on part surface finish.