| SMX Laser Tracker |
Machine Alignment
Machinery Calibration
CMM
Leveling
Part Inspection
"TRACKING" SOLUTIONS TO TODAY'S NEEDS WITH TOMORROW’S TECHNOLOGY…
There is an ever-increasing need for industry today to be more accurate, more precise, and faster than ever before, just to keep up. This often requires better equipment and methods than were satisfactory in the past. Many companies that have not opted to keep pace with our changing world have often found themselves out in a cold and desolate market, watching the competition pass them by, and taking their clientele along with them. To many it may seem that it is hopeless or to difficult to stay ahead of the game, but consider the cost of falling too far behind and maybe even completely out of the race! The truth is that it takes more effort to swim against the current than it does to build a boat.
With these rapidly changing needs of production and repair in today’s high-tech world, it’s reassuring to know that there are solutions to the complex issues and ever more demanding needs of business today. The Laser Tracker is one of these solutions. It allows us to look at the real world with digital accuracy, virtual nominal perfection, and powerful simplicity. When you need to save time, overcome physical measuring impossibilities, go from "looking good on paper" to reality, or you need to digitize a real object into the virtual world, the Tracker will bridge the gap.
Some functions include:
Machine tool and process equipment alignments, calibration, diagnosis, wear trending, and geometry.
Complex surface analysis of
Tooling layout, assembly, and diagnosis. (Multi-frame vantage comparisons)
Multiple set-up machining of single or multiple parts.
Collation of data taken from different positions, temperatures, and time span to establish trending or conditional changes in position, size, alignment, or wear. Hot/cold, loaded/unloaded alignment condition information, soft foot/structural integrity checks in real time.
Align equipment to gravity vector
Eliminates other less accurate and more time consuming ways of large part inspection and alignment.
Unlimited size measuring capability, using strategic relocation techniques.
Overcomes previous physical measurement, and engineering barriers. Do things that were previously impossible.
At Prime Machine, Inc. in Salt Lake City, Utah, our philosophy is to keep stepping in the right direction. It became apparent that for us to compete, we needed an advantage, something that would set us apart. We have large machining capabilities with excellent craftsmen, yet it was difficult to break into the aerospace tooling market. In the quality audits the same question always arose, how do you insure your parts are dimensionally correct? It was this requirement to verify dimensional accuracy of large parts, which led us on a search.
The cost of a co-ordinate measuring machine (CMM) large enough to measure 5 to 30+ foot parts was prohibitive to our budget. Additionally, resetting the part on a CMM added significant time and expense. The real value was in making components right the first time and knowing the part was accurate. Proving the machine tools accuracy was the solution. The machine could both make the part and inspect it.
Our search for a method of proving machine tool accuracy began by looking at laser systems. Then we discovered the power of the SMX Laser Tracker. The Laser Tracker could calibrate the machine and inspect the parts right on the machine with incredible accuracy and portability, not only in the shop, but out in the field. It could do onsite data collection to determine mating part condition and profile, as well as assembly and alignment conditions. The following are some of the ways we have utilized the Tracker:
Certification of our machine tools. Verify all machine, line and encoder
compensation, along with machine geometry. (Specifically some of the manual machines where
ball bar testing can not be utilized, the laser works very well.)
Using SMX Insight Visual Pro software we best fit a mold for the X34 space plane to 3D CAD model to determine if mold could be used in as is condition after being shipped across the country, for lay up of graphite fiber wing skin. After establishing the deviation condition of the mold, we were able to anchor and manipulate it to minimize the actual error, to the CAD model it was created from.
Leveled our granite surface inspection table using a
Inspected large gearbox bores for parallelism and distortion after the box sustained a major crash. The box was inspected in place, which saved the cost of removing, sending to shop, and setting up on a machine tool for inspection.
Installed a custom filament-winding machine. The tracker was used to position surfaces and locate components accurately.
Used the data collected by the Tracker to reverse engineer a high-speed
centrifugal compressor impeller. Down loaded data to Unigraphics version
CAD system to develop CNC-machining
programs.
Inspect condition and profile of 20’ Babbitt mill bearing on 24’ V.T.L., for match machining the mating surface to existing bearing profile.
Oriented field machining boring bar to a gear box output shaft located 30 feet from area requiring machining, which needed to be in line.
Measured forward and aft rocket motor adapter rings after machining to verify true position, surface flatness and feature dimensions.
Check alignment and shell condition of ball/rod mills and rotary kilns and dryers while in operation to determine action necessary to correct problems.
Align steam barrel and internal components in Delaval steam turbine, inspect case condition for bearing and seal alignments, and splitline flatness.
The Tracker has been a big step in the right direction. Improvements in shop accuracy, increased Customer confidence and shop efficiencies. All these projects have been accomplished within six months of purchasing the tracker. The rapid collection of data with the ability to quickly graphically represent the data is impressive and exciting. I am sure we will find many more uses for the Tracker.
After witnessing the Tracker work and realizing its potential to quickly resolve dimensional or geometric questions, our Customers, Vendors, and ourselves are intrigued to see how many ways it can make our work easier, faster, and more precise. Being able to link the real world to the virtual world is no small issue. It gives us a way to accomplish design and manufacturing feats that before now would have seemed impossible or just too difficult to attempt by conventional means. Together with powerful electronic solids modeling and machining practices, we can do what until now may have been considered science fiction or just plain magic.
PRECISION LAYOUT OF BASEPLATE FOR HEAT EXCHANGER
INSPECTING RADIUS AND CYLINDRICALITY OF REPAIRED MILL BEARING SHOE
To learn more about the Laser Tracker go to
www.lasertracker.com
