Precision Measuring Tools: The Rise of Digital Metrology and Data

Inspection data—when collected in a consistent manner—offers a wealth of information on the manufacturing process, allowing operators to be proactive rather than reactive and head off a variety of quality problems before they can rear their ugly heads. We speak with one of the major players in the industry about how to leverage data within metrology.

It’s all well and good to inspect machined or fabricated parts, but if the only thing you do with the results is swap out a cutting tool or make a machine offset, you’re missing out on a valuable continuous improvement tool.

If you’re already doing statistical process control, or “SPC,” you may be wondering if that is enough. Good question. Statistical process control is an excellent way to spot quality trends, reduce operating costs and avoid product defects. By all means, keep doing it, but then ask yourself whether you’re doing it in the most efficient way possible.

Chances are good that you’re not.

How Digital Precision Measuring Tools Are Improving Metrology

Patrick Sullivan, strategic distribution sales specialist at Mitutoyo America Corp., explains that even the most tech-savvy shops sometimes come up short on their data collection methods, preferring to write measurements down on paper or type them into Excel rather than use an automated metrology data management system.

The result is inconsistent, missing or sometimes inaccurate data, plus time lost manually entering this information.

Today’s makers of metrology equipment offer many options that help better ensure quality information is captured and shared automatically—much of it wireless. Mitutoyo, for example, recently updated its transmitter design, moving to a more streamlined version that Sullivan suggests is more hand tool-friendly than the old system.

“We also offer Zigbee, a low-power wireless communication protocol that provides a far more robust signal than Bluetooth,” he says. 

Not ready for wireless? That’s cool. Wired measurement tools are perfectly fine as well, Sullivan notes, although there’s no arguing the importance of having a fast, secure wireless network in any shop interested in adopting an Industry 4.0 mentality.

However you transmit the information, though, what’s most important is to start collecting relevant metrology data (automatically) and then use it to improve your manufacturing processes.

Go deeper. Learn more about metrology. Read “Where Metrology Meets Today’s Precision Manufacturing.”

The Metrology Software and Precision Data Tools to Go with the Talent

You’ll need software. Mitutoyo’s MeasurLink system offers a variety of metrology-related modules, according to Sullivan.

“Of course we have SPC capabilities, but there are also ‘Gage R&R’ and ‘Gage Management’ modules, there’s one called ‘Process Manager,’ a ‘Process Analyzer’ module, and another for real-time data acquisition,” says Sullivan. “This last one is quite popular because it allows the customer to guide users through the measuring process out on the shop floor with pictures and video, which helps assure they’re using the proper technique.”

There are also dashboards available in the modules, which help make it easy to understand the data, as well as robust reporting capabilities, Sullivan explains.

You’ll also need a database server to store the data. Considering the relatively low cost of computer hardware these days, this is hardly a concern, even to the most cash-strapped of shops.

Perhaps best of all, a system like this can then be integrated with a company’s ERP software, providing for simplified data exchange as well as seamless visibility to metrology-related activities.

View the Mitutoyo SPC U-Wave Receiver for use with U-Wave Wireless System for SPC Data Transfer & Calipers

The Top Digital Metrology Software Options Available Today

As Sullivan is quick to point out, the company’s MeasurLink software accepts most competing hardware signals. Note: Mitutoyo isn’t the only game in automated-metrology town.

Starrett, Hexagon (Tesa Technology), Mahr and most providers in this space offer data-capable measurement tools, the hardware needed to collect the data and the software systems to analyze it. There’s no reason to avoid the automated data collection opportunity if you’re already married to another brand.

With that in mind, however, each provider has their own take on the technology, so it’s a good idea to evaluate all available options before committing to one or the other. Whatever the provider, these systems allow users on the shop floor to simply push a button on their caliper, micrometer, bore gage or travel indicator and have the measurement transmitted to a data collection point.

Once there, it can be analyzed in real time for whatever trends or dimensions are most relevant to your operations. No more stopping to write something down, no more spreadsheets and no more missed opportunities.

Quality visual inspection matters, too. See how in “Up Close with Metrology Equipment: Vision Inspection Systems.”

The Value of SPC and Metrology: Count the Reasons

“There’s a reason why our cars and trucks are much better now than they were a couple of decades ago,” Sullivan notes. “It’s because the automotive industry has been using SPC for years and years to improve their processes. The same goes for aerospace, energy, medical.”

Not only does automated data collection and management improve part quality, but it also reduces risk. If there’s ever a product failure, for example, they’re now able to go back and prove that their processes were under control and that they met the customer’s specifications, he explains.

It’s also about costs. Sullivan points to one recent success story with an oil and gas customer who came to Mitutoyo one year after implementing their system.

“They told us they’d saved more than $1 million on labor costs and machine time alone, not including the productivity improvement they’d made by utilizing the data,” he says. “That’s just one example of the tremendous gains that are available to customers willing to pursue an automated data collection strategy, which is why we’ve seen so much activity in this area of late.”