CGI’s Pearl 3D scanning machines are now available through UK-based company Plastic-IT, making the measuring and inspection technology readily available for OEMs across Europe.
The complete name of US-based founding company CGI (Capture Geometry Internally) alludes to the key use for the technology, namely the 100% accurate measurement and inspection of the internal and external geometries of plastic parts.
Plastic-IT claims that for European OEMs, accessing this technology will not just provide results in terms of accuracy, but also significant savings in the time and expense involved in inspecting plastic parts. It is suitable for personnel involved in first article inspection of injection moulded parts, reverse engineering, tooling qualifications, and failure analysis.
The easiest way to understand how the technology works is to imagine a rapid prototyping machine working in reverse, instead of building a part layer by layer, slicing it layer by layer, and capturing a series of 2D images of the sliced part. The plastic components to be inspected are “potted” in a slow curing resin before the slicing process begins, and the nature of the process means that any part — however complex the internal and external geometries — can be inspected.
The process uses Spec.Check proprietary software to cross-section parts anywhere and in any geometry. The technology is also able to measure and inspect assembled components, and there are no restrictions in terms of the plastic materials and types of fillers that can be measured.
Once set in motion, the fully automated CGI 3D scanner can be left unattended, making the inspection of injection moulded parts and components faster and less expensive. It is this automation that is a key difference between the 3D scanning technology and other inspection processes, as is the 100% accuracy and repeatability of the process, claims Plastic-IT.
The difficulty or expense of using the only other technology able to produce accurate 3D data for internal geometries (CT scanning), often leads manufacturers to find ways to avoid having to measure the internals of complex plastic parts. The CGI 3D scanning technology — for the first time — makes the attainment of reliable and accurate internal inspection open to all OEMs, it being about a tenth the price of a CT scanner, and requiring much reduced operator skill than alternative measuring technologies.
When compared with the use of CMMs, the ease-of-use of the 3D scanning technology becomes obvious, says the group. Unlike CMM inspections, when using the 3D scanning technology, there is no need for a time consuming, costly, and robust inspection plan that identifies areas of potential trouble or interest. Also eliminated is the amount of educated “guess-work” about where problems are most likely to be detected before any actual inspection has taken place.
There is also no need for expensive part fixturing (which can affect the viability of measurements) before inspection. For 3D cross-sectional scanning, once potted, the part analysis produces a detailed point cloud which allows quality interrogations time and time again with no necessity for rescanning.
The CGI technology captures sharp corners, deep pockets, and internal geometry in a single scan. Its use eliminates the time-consuming requirement for post-process assembling of data to create a complete data set.
As the drive for increased inspection capability for less and less cost intensifies across industry, Plastic-IT believes that more and more OEMs will be attracted to this innovative inspection tool. The firm runs a bureau service so that potential buyers can trial the technology before committing to purchase for in-house use.