Insaco, Inc. specializes in manufacturing of parts made of ultra hard materials to extremely tight tolerances. It has done precision machining and polishing of ceramic, sapphire, glass and quartz parts since 1947 and over time has developed the capability to grind and polish spherical radius parts on both inside and outside diameters to optical finishes.
To maintain its position as recognized leader in precision manufacturing and to continually meet the high-volume, high-accuracy demands of its customers, Insaco has invested in state-of-the-art machining and metrology systems. Among its recent purchases is a new Talymaster multi-part, multi-feature precision measurement system from AMETEK Taylor Hobson.
Insaco previously standardized around Taylor Hobson roundness machines for its operations and has relied on a Talyrond 585 for its roundness, flatness, cylindricity, and straightness requirements. However, with critical, high-volume applications requiring 100% part inspection, Insaco had to find a way to increase its metrology throughput. Insaco then turned to the new Talymaster with its fully automated parts inspection capabilities as the ideal solution.
The Talymaster allows precision part measurement of entire part batches, cutting inspection time from six to just three hours. More importantly, the system is fully automated. It frees up an operator during the batch run time. Insaco frequently loads a tray of parts for inspection into the Talymaster at the end of the day and returns the next morning to collect the completed measurements.
“We originally looked at another Talyrond instrument to help meet our production needs,” comments Brian Scheetz, Inspection Supervisor for Insaco. “When Taylor Hobson presented the Talymaster with its automated parts inspection processing capabilities, we knew it was exactly what we were looking for. I was able to immediately reduce the amount of time I spend in front of the equipment loading and unloading parts. Now, I just load one tray and go to work on other tasks, while the Talymaster completes the inspection work for me.”
Based on the proven Talyrond 500 Series of ultra precision measurement tools, the Talymaster is a fully capable roundness, surface finish and contour analysis instrument with an ultraprecise XY stage and a powerful proprietary production software package. The Talymaster enables the full inspection of parts of varying sizes and types in a single operation, increasing throughput and removing inspection room bottlenecks.
Multiple parts can be loaded onto a single pallet with each individual location having an explicit measurement sequence and analysis. The Talymaster features high-precision in-line encoders and linear scales on all axis that allow the device to easily measure smaller parts such as bearings or hydraulic parts. Taylor Hobson’s “Follow Mode” also allows for the measurement of non-round, eccentric parts.
For complex parts with multiple offset measurements, the instrument offers the distinct advantage of measuring various offset features and gathering associated data with each of those traces simultaneously, opening the door to measuring multiple featured parts with just a single set up.
Taylor Hobson’s Pallet software allows machine operators to easily set up a program for one part and to then apply it across an entire batch of parts. Alternatively, Pallet software allows operators to program multiple, non-similar parts as well.
The Pallet software not only sets up the machine for multi-part measurement cycles but allows the operator to monitor and track the quality of each part in the batch. As each part is measured, an intuitive progress bar keeps the operator informed as to how many parts have been measured and whether or not a part has passed or failed it’s tolerance specification.`
The software further allows the operator to select a part that has failed and re-run it without stopping and restarting the batch. The operator also can select a part to re-run in the middle of a measurement. The instrument will then carry out measurements on the remaining parts in the batch and return seamlessly to the part that needed further analysis.
The Talymaster significantly reduces cycle times. After measuring a part, it will move on to the next one, while the Pallet software analyzes the previous measurement, cutting out analysis cycle time between parts entirely. The versatile tool measures parts using a grid format that follows a “snaking” pattern during part-to-part measurement further reducing cycle time by minimizing travel distance.
The flexibility and adaptability of the Talymaster allows the fully automated machine to fit seamlessly within any production environment. The Talymaster can lighten the load on other roundness machines freeing up both operators and equipment for other tasks. An operator can simply load a tray of parts onto the Talymaster, hit the “Go” button and leave.
Taylor Hobson is a pioneer in the development of ultra precision instruments. It operates at the highest levels of accuracy within the field of surface and form metrology. It provides contact and non-contact measurement solutions to the most demanding applications on a global basis with a worldwide infrastructure to support our clients, wherever they may be
Taylor Hobson is s a unit of AMETEK, Inc, a leading global manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices. For more information, visit www.taylor-hobson.com.
