A survey by McKinsey showed that in manufacturing, approximately 749 billion hours are worked each year around the world. Of these, about 60% (478 billion hours) could be automated or at least semi-automated with existing technology.
Thomson Mathew, Anca’s software product manager, says: “To remain competitive in tool manufacturing, more and more businesses are looking towards automation or semi-automation. Taking the time to set up the infrastructure smartly is delivering significant business advantages, such as improved productivity, better access to machine data and lower production costs.
“Anca has an extensive range of products and features that enable our customers to run smart factories,” he adds. “One of these is our iView measuring system, which can measure the ground tool in its original set-up inside the grinding machine. This feature has been further enhanced with a camera bracket design that allows operators to visually inspect and perform the manual measurement of tool parameters.”
Cutting-tool manufacturers use iView to take an image of the ground tool using the camera and then compare the data with an ideal overlay profile generated by the iView software, without having to take the tool out of the grinder. This capability means faster set-up time and better accuracy, as the ground tool is checked against the tool requirements in one clamping.
Anca’s iView is accurate to 0.002 mm, allowing the accurate comparison and measurement of the actual cutting tool against the profile. The technology automatically compensates the tool; based on the overlay and profile error, it is adjusted and re-ground. This process also eliminates any accuracy loss that can occur when tools are transferred between grinding and measuring machines.
A single iView camera can be used across multiple machines in Anca’s MX, TX and GX/FastGrind range. The latest bracket assembly, which is suitable for new and retrofit applications, allows the iView camera to be mounted horizontally, inside machine.
