Surface Texture Optical Measurement
Posted by Stockwell Pennington III | Filed under Components, Data, Design, Digital, Manufacturing
Optical Measurement and Surface Texture
Optical Measurement can be quite a confusing topic. There are so many names, terms and phrases that are specific to this area that would mean absolutely nothing to a normal person. Optical measurement is the process of measuring a component, surface or part to ascertain its size, shape, and colour and to detect any defects or imperfections.
It is used a lot in the design and manufacturing industries. It can be used to help design and build prototypes. One really great thing about using this kind of technology is that is can spot tiny imperfections that would be missed by a manual scanner or human operator.
Let’s take a quick look at some of the terminology involved in Optical measurement and surface texture and their meanings.
Data Collection: This term is used to describe the action of drawing the stylus across the relevant component and acquiring data from a transducer.
Abbott Firestone Curve: Can also be known as a Material Ratio Curve. It is a graph displaying the proportion of material that would be present after slicing through the surface at changing depths below the highest peak. Abbott Firestone Curve is often used on cylinder liners for example to check and forecast wear features.
Cut-off: In basic terms, a cut-off is a filter and is used as a means of sorting out or filtering the wavelengths of a particular component.
Evaluation Length: Evaluationlength is the length of the data that is being used for study. This will be different in most cases from the measurement length.
Gauge Resolution: Is the smallest mathematical value that the gauge can resolve a defect.
Stylus:When measuring a surface finish some means of touching the surface is required. A stylus can be likened to a gramophone needle and is used as a means of transferring information to a gauge by means of deflection.
So here are a few popular terms and their meanings. This topic doesn’t have to be so very confusing and with a little bit of training and reading up it isn’t. If you are starting to look in to this area, whether out of interest or for work reasons then the best place to start is the internet. It is a wealth of information on this topic. The next thing to do would be to see if you can visit a company that provides these technology solutions.
So this is just a simply introduction to optical measurement However, if you have any questions or queries and would like to know more always ring up and give us a call
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