LMI Technologies has announced the launch of their new Photon Optical Inspection System.
The system uses LMI's Line Confocal and Laser Profiler sensor technology to scan material surfaces at submicron precision. "Photon uses high-precision encoders, vibration-free movement, and automated stitching software to scan challenging material –– at large fields of view –– in a variety of offline and at-line quality inspection applications, as well as laboratory and R&D processes."
Key highlights
- Fast and non-destructive
- Automated stitching of 3D scans
- Ready to go: supplied with all necessary accessories
- Submicron precision
The Photon Optical Inspection System comes with a vacuum table, industrial PC loaded with motion path planning and standard inspection software, display, keyboard, mouse, joystick and calibration block. Included in the system's surface characterisation capabilities are functions such as: part alignment, automatic feature detection and profile extraction, multi-coordinate measurement, Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T), surface roughness analysis, and more.
The Photon system's main advantage over a measurement solution such as a CMM is that it is a non-contact system. Marketed as faster than a CMM and at roughly half the price, it can be used "to implement first-article or random part inspection in a fast, non-destructive way." The Photon system's software also generates metrology reports for its measurements with the same requirements as those generated by similar technologies.
LMI's patented line confocal sensor technology that powers Photon promises to deliver high-precision 2D/3D surface characterisation of multi-layered, transparent/translucent, and curved-edge materials. The software is also capable of automatically stitching 3D images in the X, Y, and Z axes, meaning the operator does not need to manage or synchronise multiple scans.
On the applications for the Photon system, LMI says it is "designed to help customers improve product quality and reduce manufacturing errors through offline and at-line quality control applications and laboratory and R&D processes in EV battery, consumer electronics, medical seal, and semiconductor manufacturing."