20 May is World metrology Day, a day where we celebrate the 1875 signing of the Metre Convention! This agreement is the genesis of what we now know today as metrology, and it established a worldwide uniformity of measurement. In addition, the convention set the framework for global collaboration in what has evolved into the science of measurement for industrial and commercial applications. In 2017, the theme for World metrology Day is Measurements for Transportation.
Safety, reliability and quality start with precise measurement tools and a rigorous process that engages them in your manufacturing process. Exact measurement is crucial to ensure safety and efficiency for today’s high-speed methods of transportation. When building aircraft for example, Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence produces equipment that not only inspects and verifies dimensional characteristics of airframe structures, but also to guides robotic assembly systems and improves positioning accuracy. The result is speed and confidence for advanced manufacturers that supply the aerospace industry across all levels of the supply chain.
So that’s the serious part.
We know all you expert metrologists like to have fun with your equipment also. Being in this business as long as we have here at Hexagon – you know we’ve seen our fair share of crazy stuff get measured. Now we’d like to see more from you, our customers.
To help raise awareness about metrology’s importance to our complex world, we’re asking you to send us a story of the craziest part, fixture, component or object that your Hexagon solutions have measured. Be sure to include a description of what the part is and why it was so crazy or funny. The winner will receive a Hexagon swag box filled with lots of cool stuff. Please email all submissions to us and include a photo or short video of the project if you have one and you could win a cool prize!
Keep checking this page! We will be updating this space with submissions. A winner will be chosen and notified on Friday 19 May.
UPDATED: Some of our favourite submissions to date
“We were once hired to bringout our Leica Absolute Tracker to measure the distance between speakers for an eccentric billionaire in Hillsboro, CA. He spent over $1,000,000 on this stereo system that had a custom shuttling system for his speakers on linear guides and motors.“
John
President
HS&S Machine Tool and metrology, Inc.
“While I am certain that there are many people who have measured stranger things (and I know at least one), I give the following for your amusement. Using a video probe (i.e. a camera with cross hairs) on a conventional CMM, we successfully measured an approximately 2 foot by 5 foot mylar overlay to verify the size and position of several hundred circular features. Using the same setup, we measured water-damaged corrugated patterns for one of our suppliers. The patterns were used to cut canvas in the manufacture of a custom storage cover for one of our products.
The topper, however, was measuring the straightness of a piece of piano wire, stretched between two pins, to convince an engineer that the CMM was operating properly and his part was, in fact, curved. I only wish I had some pictures to share, especially of the corrugated and the piano wire.
Al
Quality Engineer
BWI Responsible NDI Level 3
Northrop Grumman
Our friends at Exact metrology know how to celebrate Pi Day (14 March) with a little help from a ROMER Absolute Arm! Exact metrology is always working on interesting projects, including scanning a Darth Vader model and a Cincinnati Reds’ bobble head. Check out their Facebook page here for more great photos of recent scans.
