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<p id="isPasted"><a href="https://xometry.eu/en/vacuum-casting/" target="_blank">Vacuum casting</a>, also called urethane casting, is a manufacturing process used to create small quantities of high-quality plastic or metal parts. It involves creating a mould of the desired part and then injecting liquid plastic or metal into the mould under a vacuum. This creates a uniform and detailed part with an excellent surface finish and dimensional accuracy.</p><p>Let’s see what are the fundamentals of vacuum casting, its applications and its limitations.</p><h2><strong>What is vacuum casting?</strong></h2><p>Casting is a manufacturing process in which a liquid material is poured into a mould and allowed to solidify. Vacuum casting involves using a vacuum to remove air from the mould, which helps ensure that the object takes on the desired shape.</p><p>This process is often used for casting plastics and rubber parts. Vacuum casting is often used for prototype projects or small-scale production runs, as it can be faster and less expensive than other methods, such as <a href="https://xometry.eu/en/injection-moulding-technology-overview/" target="_blank">injection moulding</a>.</p><p>The main advantage of vacuum casting is that it allows for high accuracy and repeatability, making it an ideal choice for applications where precise dimensions are critical. It also allows for more intricate designs to be cast. However, vacuum casting is not suitable for all applications. For example, it cannot be used to cast materials that are sensitive to heat or pressure.</p><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699957271237-Urethane-Casting-Opaque-Elastomer-Material_4581-scaled-1-768x512.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner"><em id="isPasted">Vacuum cast part next to its silicone mould</em></span></span></span></p><h2 id="isPasted"><strong>How does vacuum casting work?</strong></h2><p>Vacuum casting, like conventional injection moulding, needs a mould tool with a cavity shaped like the finished object. In contrast to injection moulding, vacuum casting uses silicone moulds rather than hard metal ones.</p><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699957298656-Vacuum-Casting-Process.webp" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner">Illustration of the vacuum casting process (Source: ProtoZone)</span></span></span></p><h3 id="isPasted"><strong>Step 1: Create a 3D model</strong></h3><p>As with most contemporary manufacturing processes, the first step is to create a 3D model of the desired form. To get the best results, objects intended for vacuum casting should be made following injection moulding principles. Any design software such as AutoCAD, Solidworks, or CATIA can be used for this purpose.</p><h3><strong>Step 2: Create a master pattern</strong></h3><p>The 3D model is then used to draft a high quality master model. Previously, CNC machining was used to make them, but now additive manufacturing can do the job quickly. With the advent of 3D printing technology, the pattern maker’s role has become more practical and affordable. On the other hand, a cast model that can serve as the master pattern can be utilised without any further modification.</p><h3><strong>Step 3: Make the silicone mould</strong></h3><p>Following the development of the master pattern, a mould is cast. The master pattern, complete with casting cores, inserts, and gates, is hung in a casting box. The formed way is placed in a vacuum casting box, and liquid silicone is poured around it, filling in all the details. This is then put into a preheated oven at 40°C for 8-16 hours to cure. Timing is subject to variation based on the dimensions of the silicone mould.</p><p>The box and the risers come out after the silicone has dried and set. To finish, the negative form cavity of the component is exposed by delicately splitting the mould with a knife. Stickiness and surface flaws can be avoided with careful selection and application of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Release_agent" target="_blank">mould-release agent.</a></p><h3><strong>Step 4: Mixing</strong></h3><p>Before mixing, polyurethane resins used for casting are typically heated to about 40°C. To use the machine, a two-component casting resin and any desired colourant are combined in precise quantities and poured into a bowl. The mould is then placed back in place, and the pouring gates are attached to the mixing and pouring vessel.&nbsp;</p><p>Vacuum casting resins and colour pigments are thoroughly mixed and deaerated for 50-60 seconds in a vacuum during the auto-pouring process. Next, a vacuum is created in the mould, and the resin is poured inside. By eliminating the air pockets inside the tool, which would otherwise act as an obstacle to flow, vacuum technology makes it possible for gravity to do all the work in filling the mould.</p><h3><strong>Step 5: Demoulding the parts</strong></h3><p>After the resin has been poured into the mould, it is heated in a curing room until hard. Casting can be taken out of the mould when it has hardened. When the casting is complete, the gate and risers can be removed, and any last finishes performed.</p><p><span contenteditable="false" draggable="true" class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gZnQu3N5SEg?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https://www.wevolver.com" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true"></iframe></span></p><h2 id="isPasted"><strong>Technical specifications of vacuum casting</strong></h2><p>Vacuum casting is a process that uses a vacuum to remove the air from the mould. This leaves a smooth surface on the castings and results in minimal defects. It is often used for small parts and thin-walled parts. Some general specifications of the process are the following:</p><figure><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Materials</strong></td><td>A wide variety of materials can be used (plastic, rubber)</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Lead time</strong></td><td>10-20 days</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Minimum wall thickness</strong></td><td>0.75 mm, but 1.5 mm is recommended</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Quantity</strong></td><td>1-20 per mould</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Surface quality</strong></td><td>Glossy or matt</td></tr></tbody></table></figure><h2><strong>General applications of vacuum casting</strong></h2><p>Vacuum casting is a versatile process with many applications in different industries. The ability of the process to create intricate and precise components makes it an ideal choice for high-quality results.</p><ul><li><strong>Medical implants:</strong> Vacuum casting is widely used in the medical industry to fabricate complex parts and components. It can be used to make implants and prosthetics.</li><li><strong>Automotive industry</strong>: Automotive parts are often manufactured through vacuum casting due to the process’s ability to create highly detailed components. Automobile parts such as intake manifolds, exhaust systems, and body panels can benefit from the superior accuracy and repeatability of silicone vacuum casting.</li><li><strong>Food Industry</strong>: The process is often used to manufacture intricate parts for the food industry. It can create moulds, packaging components, and other complex shapes needed in food production operations.&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Aerospace components</strong>: This process can be used to fabricate precision aerospace components. Due to its superior accuracy, repeatability, and ability to create intricate detail, components such as air ducts, fuel systems, and even some parts of aeroplanes’ exteriors are often created through vacuum casting.&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Consumer goods</strong>: Vacuum casting can manufacture complex consumer goods such as toys and sporting equipment. The process can create highly precise parts that are perfect for consumer use.</li></ul><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699957360970-Copy-of-Xometry_Photos_Parts_UrethaneCasting-768x576.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner"><em id="isPasted">Vacuum cast black walkie-talkies</em></span></span></span></p><h2 id="isPasted"><strong>Advantages of vacuum casting</strong></h2><p>The vacuum casting process has a wide range of usage in the industry. In industry, it is commonly used for low-volume production of prototypes or production parts. This production process offers several advantages over other methods of <a href="https://xometry.eu/en/rapid-prototyping/" target="_blank">rapid prototyping</a> and manufacturing.</p><ul><li><strong>Fine details</strong>: One advantage of the vacuum casting process is its ability to produce parts with fine details. The mould is formed using the 3D printed master model. The 3D printing process can produce intricate details, which can be replicated in the final cast.</li><li><strong>Low cost</strong>: Another advantage of vacuum casting is its relatively low cost. Vacuum casting is much less expensive than other rapid prototyping methods, such as CNC machining. This is because it requires only a few hours to produce a mould, which can be reused multiple times. CNC machining requires costly tools and materials.</li><li><strong>Dimensional accuracy</strong>: The vacuum casting process produces parts with excellent dimensional accuracy. The parts produced via vacuum casting will fit together perfectly without needing post-processing steps such as sanding or drilling.</li><li><strong>Flexibility</strong>: It provides a high degree of design flexibility. This is because almost any geometry can be created using 3D printing. As a result, parts that would be impossible to produce using other methods can be easily made using vacuum casting.</li></ul><h2><strong>Limitations of vacuum casting</strong></h2><p>Despite all its advantages, this process has several limitations that should be considered before starting a project:</p><ul><li>The process is only suitable for specific materials</li><li>The prototype quality can be affected by the type of mould used</li><li>Shrinkage may cause parts to become too thin or too thick</li><li>The process is relatively slow, so it may not be suitable for large-scale production runs</li><li>The process is not suitable for high-temperature applications.</li></ul><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699957386500-20210428_Edit4_-ISOLAB-TECHNOLOGIES-LLC-Urethane-Cast-Carousel-copy-768x576.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner"><em id="isPasted">Coloured vacuum cast parts</em></span></span></span></p><h2 id="isPasted"><strong>Vacuum casting vs. injection moulding</strong></h2><p>Vacuum casting is an excellent option if you’re looking for a quick, easy, and cost-effective way to produce high-quality plastic parts. Injection moulding is another popular method for manufacturing plastic parts. Unlike injection moulding, vacuum casting does not require a DFM process, and thus allows to save project time.</p><p>When choosing a manufacturing process, it’s important to consider your volume requirements, tolerance needs, surface finish requirements, and lead time. Vacuum casting is an excellent choice for low-volume production runs with tight tolerances and a smooth surface finish. Injection moulding is best suited for high-volume production runs with less stringent&nbsp;<a href="https://xometry.eu/en/tolerances-in-injection-moulding/" target="_blank">tolerance requirements</a>.</p><h2><strong>Vacuum casting vs. 3D printing</strong></h2><p>The significant advantage of vacuum casting is that it can create highly detailed parts with smooth surfaces. However, the biggest downside is that it can be time-consuming, especially if you need multiple copies of your part.&nbsp;<a href="https://xometry.eu/en/3d-printing/" target="_blank">3D printing processes</a>, on the other hand, build parts layer by layer from powder or liquid plastic. One of the most significant advantages of 3D printing is that it’s much faster than vacuum casting.</p><p>If speed and cost are your top priorities, then 3D printing is likely the better option. But vacuum casting is the way to go if you need high accuracy and detail.</p><h2><strong>Source your vacuum cast parts at Xometry</strong></h2><p><a href="https://xometry.eu/en/vacuum-casting/" target="_blank">Vacuum casting</a> is a versatile and relatively quick process that can create small batches of detailed parts. It is ideal for prototypes, functional models, and marketing purposes such as exhibition pieces or sales samples.</p><p>Do you have any upcoming projects for vacuum cast parts?&nbsp;<a href="https://get.xometry.eu/?locale=en" target="_blank">Upload your CAD files</a> to Xometry’s Instant Quoting Engine and get a quote within 48 hours.</p>

This article will give you a fundamental grasp of the vacuum casting process, the suitable materials and its advantages and applications.

Vacuum Casting: Technology Overview

<p id="isPasted">Applications now extend to process manufacturing of electronic devices, aerospace and defence, where pneumatic cylinders have provided a crucial tool for engineers. If you’re working in one of these industries, here’s all you need to know about pneumatics for clean rooms.</p><p>A clean room is a contained space where particulate contamination is intentionally reduced to a minimum. Other environmental parameters are also controlled, such as air pressure, humidity and temperature. A High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter is installed in the clean room to trap any particles sized 0.3 microns or more. In cases where even more stringent performance is required, Ultra Low Particulate Air (ULPA) filters may be used. All the air that’s supplied to a clean room will first have passed through these filters.</p><h2>Contamination</h2><p>In the sterile environment of the clean room, a dust mote is the equivalent of a boulder. Even the tiniest particle of dirt or moisture can be catastrophic. So engineers were always careful about what actuators they chose to equip a clean room. Pneumatic cylinders originally constituted sources of contamination, including tiny chunks of abraded material or particles of lubricant, aerosol or chemical vapours.</p><p>New designs developed in the 1990s solved these problems, introducing&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rowse-pneumatics.co.uk/pneumatics/pneumatic-drives" title="Pneumatic Drives" target="_blank">pneumatic cylinders</a> that largely replaced electric motors in the clean room environment. They were cleared for use in ISO 14644-1 rated clean rooms in class ISO 4, which stipulates that only 352 particles of this size are allowed in a cubic metre of air. This is about one millionth of the number of equivalent particles in ambient room air. All clean room products are now classified into grades according to ISO 14664.</p><h2>Developing Pneumatics For Clean Rooms</h2><p><img data-fr-image-pasted="true" src="https://www.rowse-pneumatics.co.uk/static/images/blog/posts/All-You-Need-To-Know-About-Pneumatics-For-Clean-Rooms-1.jpg" alt="Everything You Need To Know About Pneumatics-For-Clean-Rooms" class="fr-fic fr-dii"></p><p>Until this century, using pneumatics in an ISO 4 clean room would have been inconceivable. Electric motors were used because all their moving parts were enclosed. This meant that any random particles were contained, and there was minimal air turbulence. The breakthrough in pneumatics for clean room applications was to create an actuator that could equal or improve on this performance.</p><p>Pneumatics engineers worked to improve the design of the rodless cylinder, to eliminate features that allowed particulates to get out. These cylinders had previously contained an aluminium barrel with a slot in one side, through which dirt, dust and lubricants could escape into the surrounding atmosphere. New designs reduced these emissions and slowed down load movement, so the airflow wasn’t disturbed to stir up existing particles.</p><p>The new generation of air cylinders had the same capabilities as an electric motor, but added advanced positioning accuracy of one ten-thousandth of an inch. They still retained the traditional advantages of pneumatics, such as high speed, high force and low cost.</p><p>The new generation of air cylinders had the same capabilities as an electric motor, but added advanced positioning accuracy of one ten-thousandth of an inch. They still retained the traditional advantages of pneumatics, such as high speed, high force and low cost.</p><h2>Expanding The Application</h2><p>The improved pneumatic cylinders hit the market in the mid-1990s, and enhanced their suitability for clean rooms in three critical ways: they were cleaner, much more rigid for larger loads and provided precise positioning capabilities. This innovation kicked off an important trend in pneumatics, making air cylinders a viable alternative to stepper motors.</p><p>Today, clean room production has extended beyond semiconductor manufacturing and electronics, into many other industries. The number of pneumatic products that are suitable for use in clean rooms has also expanded considerably.</p><p><a href="https://www.rowse-pneumatics.co.uk/manufacturers/view/festo?filters=actuation_type=Pneumatic" title="Festo" target="_blank">Festo&nbsp;</a>, for example, produce a range of equipment that includes cylinders, drives, valves, grippers and all sorts of vacuum, handling and compressed air systems. Components such as sensors, compressed air regulators, filters and fittings are available in 80+ product ranges that are rated for ISO-classified clean room environments.</p><h2>Choosing Clean Room Products</h2><p>Clean rooms are rated under the ISO 14644-1 classification system, according to the cleanliness of the air inside. The standard stipulates the size and maximum number of particles that may be allowed per cubic metre of air. Clean room classes rated under this standard range from ISO1 to ISO9, where 1 is the cleanest and 9 is the most contaminated class. However, even an ISO9 clean room is less contaminated than an ordinary room. Clean room classes 7 and 8 are the most common.</p><p>The associated standard ISO 14644-14 rates any products that you wish to use inside the clean room with the correct classification for the rating of the room itself. Clean rooms are not uniformly rated, however, and varying levels of cleanliness apply to different areas. It’s possible, for example, to have a general workflow area rated in class 7, while the area directly above a workpiece needs to be rated in class 5. Clean room products are therefore classified according to where they’ll be used in the application.</p><p>When purchasing pneumatic products for use in clean rooms, be sure to match the ISO rating of the product with the ISO rating of the area in which you wish to use it. This might mean you end up with a variety of products in different classes, but that depends on the manufacturer. Festo, with whom we have an official partnership, have issued a separate clean room catalogue, which classifies all their pneumatic products according to their area of use. Although these are generally rated ISO 7, most of them can be used in class 6 and 5 environments, and some even in class 4.</p><h2>Expanding Market</h2><p>Clean rooms are now common throughout industry, wherever a manufacturing process is impacted by particulate contamination. They come in all sizes and degrees of complexity and are critical to the micro-processes required by modern technologies. You’ll find clean rooms used extensively in industries like medical device and life sciences, biotech, pharmaceuticals and semiconductor manufacturing.</p><p>They’re also used for the type of critical process manufacturing that you’ll see in nanotechnology, optics and photovoltaic engineering, plus energy, aerospace and military applications. In the last few decades, pneumatics have made significant inroads into the market for clean room rated products, providing a cheaper and more efficient solution to eradicating particulate contamination.</p>

All You Need To Know About Pneumatics For Clean Rooms

In the last century, very few industries needed a clean room, but modern technology changed all that. Microelectronics manufacturing, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical and the processing of food and beverages all demand absolute sterility.

<p id="isPasted">In the rapidly evolving landscape of industrial automation, Autoblocks stands out as a powerhouse, offering a myriad of features designed to streamline processes and enhance efficiency. Let's dive into each key aspect that makes Autoblocks a cutting-edge solution for your automation needs.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>1. Unified Communication with a Single Network Card</strong></p><p>Autoblocks simplifies communication with a single network card, fostering seamless connectivity among all stations. It's a game-changer for optimizing your automation network.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>2. Secure Remote Access with VPN Option and DIN Rail Kit</strong></p><p>Enjoy the flexibility of secure remote communication through Autoblocks' VPN access option. Coupled with a DIN Rail Kit, the system is not only robust but also versatile.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>3. Pneumatic Precision and Regulation</strong></p><p>Autoblocks ensures precision in pneumatic operations with a main air inlet, regulators, and customizable options for individual stations. Tailor your setup to meet specific needs effortlessly.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>4. Efficient Internal Valve Stack for Dynamic Operations</strong></p><p>The internal valve stack is a standout feature, prebuilt and ready to operate over Modbus for 3 and 4 axis functions. Think efficiency, think Autoblocks.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>5. Common Safety Channel for Enhanced Work Safety</strong></p><p>Safety is paramount, and Autoblocks ensures it with a prewired safety relay. The system is configurable, allowing for seamless operation in separate work areas without affecting others.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>6. Advanced Data Tracking and OPC UA Integration</strong></p><p>Autoblocks doesn't just capture data; it revolutionizes data tracking. With the capability to store locally or connect to MES, and a forthcoming cloud monitoring service, stay ahead with Autoblocks.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>7. Plug-and-Play Passive IO Blocks for Simplified Connectivity</strong></p><p>Experience convenience with pre-wired, pre-labeled blocks for each station. Autoblocks simplifies sensor and solenoid connections, providing a hassle-free automation experience.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>8. Versatile Mounting Options for Enhanced Customization</strong></p><p>Autoblocks' tables come equipped with an abundance of mounting holes on top, sides, and even in the feet. Customizing your setup has never been more straightforward.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>9. Maintenance-Friendly Design</strong></p><p>Autoblocks ensures easy access for maintenance with provisions for DIN rails, mounting, and a front-facing space for controllers, all neatly enclosed with a door.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>10. Configurable Programming for Seamless Station Interaction</strong></p><p>Programming Autoblocks is a breeze. With a handshake mechanism, stations communicate effortlessly. The system is configurable, allowing for tailored programming and communication between stations.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In conclusion, Autoblocks isn't just an automation system; it's a comprehensive solution designed to elevate your industrial processes. From efficient communication to safety features and advanced data tracking, Autoblocks has it all. Stay tuned for the latest developments, as Autoblocks continues to push the boundaries of innovation in automation technology.</p><p><br></p><p>Autoblocks goes beyond features; it's about addressing your concerns. We understand that each industry has its unique challenges, and Autoblocks is tailored to provide solutions. As always, we are here to answer any questions you might have. Your inquiries are not just welcomed; they are our priority. Reach out to us at info@autoblocks.co, and let's explore how Autoblocks can elevate your automation experience.</p>

Exploring Autoblocks and its Innovative Features!

This comprehensive insight into Autoblocks is not just a technical overview; it's the result of a meaningful discussion with one of our clients. Their questions and inquiries were the driving force behind uncovering the depth and versatility of Autoblocks.

Exploring Autoblocks: An In-Depth Overview of Advanced Automation Features

<p>End-to-end manufacturers are companies that lead products through the entire manufacturing process, from design to customer delivery. Unlike businesses that manufacture their products with a segmented manufacturing process, end-to-end manufacturers have complete control over the different parts of production, which ultimately impacts the time, money, and effort associated with product innovation and time to market.</p><p>But what about product quality? What practices can end-to-end manufacturers adopt to increase quality and deliver high-end products to their customers? Considering that they control the entire manufacturing process, how can they judiciously use quality data from one step to enrich the next? This blog seeks to answer these questions.</p><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699491320275-Factory-of-tomorrow-End-to-end-manufacturing.v1.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner">heavy automation robot arm machine in smart factory industrial,Industry 4.0 concept image.</span></span></span></p><h2 id="isPasted">The Challenges of End-to-End Manufacturers</h2><p>Nowadays, competition is strong. Customers demand quality, and they want it delivered at a reasonable price. The market eagerly awaits the launch of new products that are both innovative and attractive. Products must function without any defects for an indefinite period while being continuously improved and updated.</p><p><a href="https://www.creaform3d.com/blog/the-challenge-of-following-the-short-cycle-time-of-mass-production-with-inline-inspection/" target="_blank">These requirements put untold pressure on manufacturers</a>, who must use all possible stratagems to increase quality, reduce costs, limit downtime, accelerate time to market, enhance innovation, and beat competition. Considering these daunting tasks, manufacturers are surely wishing the blue genie will emerge from his bottle and grant a lot of wishes.</p><p>What if the parts are large, complex, and require a long manufacturing process involving several steps? How can end-to-end manufacturers gain efficiency and limit rework in such a context?</p><p>The same challenge applies to product development processes that require several iterations, such as the design process for a composite cutting jig. How do you develop a prototype corresponding to CAD requirements while limiting the number of iterations?</p><p>The key is measuring the prototype a few times to adjust the jig and then adding or removing the missing or extra millimeters accordingly. Thus, even before the start of production, the quality boost obtained from scan data and rework is transmitted from one stage to the next, allowing end-to-end manufacturers to gain efficiency while improving quality.</p><p>This same logic applies to all manufacturing processes involving complex and expensive parts. Inspection results are sent to another stage of the process, either via a machine or a human, to correct imperfections and improve quality. After all, throwing away such valuable parts that took so long to manufacture would be unthinkable, even if they do not meet tolerances at first glance.</p><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699491346724-Assembly-line-in-a-car-factory-1536x1024.jpeg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner">Assembly line production of new car. Automated welding of car body on production line. robotic arm on car production line is working</span></span></span></p><h2 id="isPasted">Quality Control Solutions Maximizing Product Development and Manufacturing Processes</h2><p>Design and production engineers rely on top-quality control technologies and software solutions to help them maximize their product development and manufacturing processes.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.creaform3d.com/blog/learn-how-to-leverage-the-potential-of-automation/" target="_blank">Automated quality control is the solution</a> that will enable them to inspect part dimensions accurately and then transmit the acquired data to other machines so that the manufacturing process can be adjusted accordingly. The goal is to produce high-quality parts that meet customer requirements and deliver them on time, without delay or defects.</p><p>But what criteria must these solutions satisfy to guarantee end-to-end manufacturers better manufacturing and product development processes?</p><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699491383406-MetraSCAN-R-BLACK-HD_car-frame-inspection_color-map-1536x1024.webp" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><h2 id="isPasted">Quality Control Automation Tools</h2><p>Automated measuring tools must take into account the type of part being measured. A technology for measuring any part without preparation, regardless of its size, geometry, or surface finish, can be integrated into the manufacturing process at any stage without altering its flow.</p><p>By this very fact, the speed of the quality control tool must also be considered. An instrument allowing for the acquisition of innumerable measurement points quickly, such as a 3D scanner mounted on a robot, will comply with the required cycle time, even if the part’s geometry is complex and its surface difficult to measure.</p><h2>Automated Quality Control Software</h2><p>An offline simulation platform offering an environment very close to reality will be able to replicate the behavior of a real 3D scanner and give a more precise evaluation of the cycle time. In addition to the ability to program robot paths in any configuration for a large category of robots, such simulation platforms will also detect whether the robot trajectory must be modified in the event of a risk of collision.</p><p>Moreover, the chosen acquisition platform should offer an integration capacity with external metrology software, such as Polyworks or Metrolog. Thus, when the acquisition is completed, the scan data can be automatically transferred to the inspection software to improve the following steps in the manufacturing process and raise product quality.</p><p>Finally, the supplier who develops both the 3D scanners and the acquisition platform will ensure that the best possible data is generated during the acquisition and during the reconstruction of the surfaces in digital format. The algorithms will be optimized to provide the best possible resolution so that difficult surfaces and large objects can be scanned with the right level of detail.</p><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699491401783-cube-r_automated-3d-scanning-cmm_user-vxscan-r-1536x1024.webp" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><h2 id="isPasted">How to Implement Automated Quality Control Processes</h2><p>Nevertheless, implementing automated quality control processes is a long and expensive path, and choosing the best automation tools and the most suitable acquisition and simulation software platforms are just two of the many tasks ahead. So, where to start? Here are the best practices to guide you on your journey.</p><h2>Best Practices for Automated Quality Control</h2><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699491427067-Industrial-robots-1536x884.webp" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><h3 id="isPasted">#1 Do a financial analysis of the first-year savings.</h3><p>Before considering which automated quality control system could best suit your needs, you must decide which manufacturing task can be replaced by an automated solution. Consequently, you must know if the project is viable financially. Will there be savings on direct labor? Can you reduce rework and make gains by limiting the scrap rate since defects will be identified earlier in the process? Can the necessary floor space be reduced? Will the new tasks assigned to employees be more rewarding and increase retention? Can productivity be expected to increase, leading to an increase in customer satisfaction and demand?</p><p>To guide you, Creaform has prepared a&nbsp;<a href="https://tools.creaform3d.com/en/calculator/?type=marketing" target="_blank">calculator to estimate the first-year savings</a>. The results obtained will guide you on the type of solution to choose – a turnkey solution or one developed by a robot integrator.</p><h3>#2 Do a project evaluation with offline programming software.</h3><p>A simulation made in a digital twin environment will enable you to verify if the robot is large enough to scan all the surfaces properly. Following this reachability assessment, you can evaluate the cycle time and confirm whether it meets the requirements. As previously established, choosing the most realistic simulation platform will&nbsp;<a href="https://www.creaform3d.com/blog/automated-quality-control-best-practices-for-end-to-end-manufacturers/INSPECTING%20COMPLEX%20AEROSPACE%20PARTS%20WITH%20EASY-TO-USE%20METROLOGY%20SOLUTIONS" target="_blank">facilitate this task and give confidence to the people involved</a>, even those unfamiliar with robots and 3D scanning.</p><p>Following Best Practices #1 and #2, you will be able to assess whether your automated quality control project makes sense financially and virtually.</p><h3>#3 Do a technology analysis.</h3><p>Now, it is time to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.creaform3d.com/sites/default/files/assets/brochures/files/R-Series_Brochure_EN_HQ_20221026.pdf" target="_blank" data-lf-fd-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true">validate the technology</a>. When measuring an object with already known dimensions, you must determine if the solution meets the performance requirements. Do the accuracy, repeatability, and resolution conform to the specifications? What about the technology’s ability to scan difficult surfaces without preparation? Does the real cycle time correspond to the simulated one?</p><p>A good practice is first validating the performance requirements using a handheld device directly in the manufacturing environment. This way, the 3D scanning technology can be analyzed beyond its automated context simply by focusing on the technical parameters. Then, once the technology has been validated, it can be put on a robot or in a turnkey solution.</p><h3>#4 Choose the right robot integrator.</h3><p>Since automating a quality control process is often a large-scale undertaking, choosing the right partners is one of the most recommended practices. The integration of the complete solution must be flawless; even if the technology perfectly meets the requirements, the simulation is realistic, and the solution makes sense financially. Otherwise, no one wins – neither the manufacturer of the metrology equipment nor the end-to-end manufacturer nor the client.</p><p>If finding the right robot integrator turns out to be complicated, an interesting alternative for end-to-end manufacturers is to opt for a turnkey solution.</p><h3>#5 Write the business case for the complete solution.</h3><p>Here, the initial financial analysis materializes and indicates whether the return on investment (ROI) makes sense for the organization. Only then can the green light for the project be given.</p><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1699491452534-MetraSCAN-3D-R-with-casted-parts-on-turntable-1536x864.webp" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><h2 id="isPasted">Automated Quality Control: The Path to Follow for End-to-End Manufacturers 6 parts on a turntable inside a factory.</h2><p>Since they control the entire manufacturing process, end-to-end manufacturers can benefit from automated quality control by judiciously using the quality data from one step to enrich the next, especially in producing large, complex parts with difficult surfaces. In that way, they are assured greater efficiency and limited reworking, ultimately delivering products of higher quality to their customers.</p>

Assembly line production of new car. Automated welding of car body on production line. robotic arm on car production line is working

End-to-end manufacturers are companies that lead products through the entire manufacturing process, from design to customer delivery. 

Automated Quality Control Best Practices for End-to-End Manufacturers

<p id="isPasted">Imagine you’re visiting a friend abroad, and you look inside their fridge to see what would make for a great breakfast. Many of the items initially appear foreign to you, with each one encased in unfamiliar packaging and containers. Despite these visual distinctions, you begin to understand what each one is used for and pick them up as needed.</p><p>Inspired by humans' ability to handle unfamiliar objects, a group from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) designed Feature Fields for Robotic Manipulation (<a href="https://arxiv.org/abs/2308.07931" target="_blank">F3RM</a>), a system that blends 2D images with foundation model features into 3D scenes to help robots identify and grasp nearby items. F3RM can interpret open-ended language prompts from humans, making the method helpful in real-world environments that contain thousands of objects, like warehouses and households.</p><p>F3RM offers robots the ability to interpret open-ended text prompts using natural language, helping the machines manipulate objects. As a result, the machines can understand less-specific requests from humans and still complete the desired task. For example, if a user asks the robot to “pick up a tall mug,” the robot can locate and grab the item that best fits that description.</p><p>“Making robots that can actually generalize in the real world is incredibly hard,” says Ge Yang, postdoc at the National Science Foundation AI Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Fundamental Interactions and MIT CSAIL. “We really want to figure out how to do that, so with this project, we try to push for an aggressive level of generalization, from just three or four objects to anything we find in MIT’s Stata Center. We wanted to learn how to make robots as flexible as ourselves, since we can grasp and place objects even though we've never seen them before.”</p><h2><strong>Learning “what’s where by looking”</strong></h2><p>The method could assist robots with picking items in large fulfillment centers with inevitable clutter and unpredictability. In these warehouses, robots are often given a description of the inventory that they're required to identify. The robots must match the text provided to an object, regardless of variations in packaging, so that customers’ orders are shipped correctly.<br><br>For example, the fulfillment centers of major online retailers can contain millions of items, many of which a robot will have never encountered before. To operate at such a scale, robots need to understand the geometry and semantics of different items, with some being in tight spaces. With F3RM’s advanced spatial and semantic perception abilities, a robot could become more effective at locating an object, placing it in a bin, and then sending it along for packaging. Ultimately, this would help factory workers ship customers’ orders more efficiently.</p><p>“One thing that often surprises people with F3RM is that the same system also works on a room and building scale, and can be used to build simulation environments for robot learning and large maps,” says Yang. “But before we scale up this work further, we want to first make this system work really fast. This way, we can use this type of representation for more dynamic robotic control tasks, hopefully in real-time, so that robots that handle more dynamic tasks can use it for perception.”</p><p>The MIT team notes that F3RM’s ability to understand different scenes could make it useful in urban and household environments. For example, the approach could help personalized robots identify and pick up specific items. The system aids robots in grasping their surroundings — both physically and perceptively.</p><p>“Visual perception was defined by David Marr as the problem of knowing ‘what is where by looking,’” says senior author Phillip Isola, MIT associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science and CSAIL principal investigator. “Recent foundation models have gotten really good at knowing what they are looking at; they can recognize thousands of object categories and provide detailed text descriptions of images. At the same time, radiance fields have gotten really good at representing where stuff is in a scene. The combination of these two approaches can create a representation of what is where in 3D, and what our work shows is that this combination is especially useful for robotic tasks, which require manipulating objects in 3D.”</p><h2><strong>Creating a “digital twin”</strong></h2><p>F3RM begins to understand its surroundings by taking pictures on a selfie stick. The mounted camera snaps 50 images at different poses, enabling it to build a <a href="https://www.matthewtancik.com/nerf" target="_blank">neural radiance field</a> (NeRF), a deep learning method that takes 2D images to construct a 3D scene. This collage of RGB photos creates a “digital twin” of its surroundings in the form of a 360-degree representation of what’s nearby.</p><p>In addition to a highly detailed neural radiance field, F3RM also builds a feature field to augment geometry with semantic information. The system uses&nbsp;<a href="https://openai.com/research/clip" target="_blank">CLIP</a>, a vision foundation model trained on hundreds of millions of images to efficiently learn visual concepts. By reconstructing the 2D CLIP features for the images taken by the selfie stick, F3RM effectively lifts the 2D features into a 3D representation.</p><h2><strong>Keeping things open-ended</strong></h2><p>After receiving a few demonstrations, the robot applies what it knows about geometry and semantics to grasp objects it has never encountered before. Once a user submits a text query, the robot searches through the space of possible grasps to identify those most likely to succeed in picking up the object requested by the user. Each potential option is scored based on its relevance to the prompt, similarity to the demonstrations the robot has been trained on, and if it causes any collisions. The highest-scored grasp is then chosen and executed.<br><br>To demonstrate the system’s ability to interpret open-ended requests from humans, the researchers prompted the robot to pick up Baymax, a character from Disney’s “Big Hero 6.” While F3RM had never been directly trained to pick up a toy of the cartoon superhero, the robot used its spatial awareness and vision-language features from the foundation models to decide which object to grasp and how to pick it up.<br><br>F3RM also enables users to specify which object they want the robot to handle at different levels of linguistic detail. For example, if there is a metal mug and a glass mug, the user can ask the robot for the “glass mug.” If the bot sees two glass mugs and one of them is filled with coffee and the other with juice, the user can ask for the “glass mug with coffee.” The foundation model features embedded within the feature field enable this level of open-ended understanding.</p><p>“If I showed a person how to pick up a mug by the lip, they could easily transfer that knowledge to pick up objects with similar geometries such as bowls, measuring beakers, or even rolls of tape. For robots, achieving this level of adaptability has been quite challenging,” says MIT PhD student, CSAIL affiliate, and co-lead author William Shen. “F3RM combines geometric understanding with semantics from foundation models trained on internet-scale data to enable this level of aggressive generalization from just a small number of demonstrations.”<br><br>Shen and Yang wrote the paper under the supervision of Isola, with MIT professor and CSAIL principal investigator Leslie Pack Kaelbling and undergraduate students Alan Yu and Jansen Wong as co-authors. The team was supported, in part, by Amazon.com Services, the National Science Foundation, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the Office of Naval Research’s Multidisciplinary University Initiative, the Army Research Office, the MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab, and the MIT Quest for Intelligence. Their work will be presented at the 2023 Conference on Robot Learning.</p>

Feature Fields for Robotic Manipulation (F3RM) enables robots to interpret open-ended text prompts using natural language, helping the machines manipulate unfamiliar objects. The system’s 3D feature fields could be helpful in environments that contain thousands of objects, such as warehouses. Images courtesy of the researchers.

By blending 2D images with foundation models to build 3D feature fields, a new MIT method helps robots understand and manipulate nearby objects with open-ended language prompts.

Using language to give robots a better grasp of an open-ended world

<p dir="ltr" id="isPasted">Is the Vacuum Casting process about to become obsolete? This is not an abrupt question. Vacuum casting is a widely used and cost-effective manufacturing solution for prototyping and low-volume production. However, with the rising popularity of 3D printing, which offers rapid and flexible manufacturing capabilities, particularly for prototyping and customized production runs, the question raises: Does vacuum casting still have a place in a world that is gradually being dominated by 3D printing? Let's explore this further.</p><h2 dir="ltr">The Rise of 3D Printing</h2><p dir="ltr">Undoubtedly, 3D printing has made a significant impact across various industries. Its ability to rapidly produce complex designs, customized components, and functional prototypes has captured product developers and manufacturers, from aerospace and automotive to healthcare and more industries. As it continues to advance, 3D printing is expected to reshape supply chains and inspire further creativity in product innovation. However, there are still strengths of vacuum casting that 3D printing needs to catch up with.</p><h2 dir="ltr">The Strengths of Vacuum Casting</h2><p dir="ltr">While 3D printing has been undoubtedly revolutionizing the manufacturing industry, vacuum casting retains several critical advantages that make it a preferred choice for specific applications:</p><p dir="ltr"><strong>Material Variety:</strong> Vacuum casting allows for the use of a wide range of materials, including polyurethanes, silicones, and elastomers. This versatility makes it suitable for applications requiring specific material properties, such as transparency, medical grade, thermal resistance and multiple colors. The vacuum casting process, provided by RPWORLD, is also available for overmolding with inserts, rubber and more to meet versatile application needs.&nbsp;</p><p dir="ltr"><strong>Surface Finishes:</strong> Vacuum casting excels in replicating the master model with fine details, such as textures. This makes it ideal for creating prototypes with less post-processing, and high degree of visual and tactile requirements. Except for Stereolithography (SLA), which can produce detailed parts as well, 3D printing parts often present visible layer lines that need additional post-processing to achieve a smoother finish.</p><p dir="ltr"><strong>Low-volume Production Costs:</strong> Compared to 3D printing, vacuum casting requires silicone molds to cast each part, but these molds are more cost-effective than traditional injection molds. When the required part quantity is very low, such as dozens of parts, 3D printing offers an obvious price advantage. However, as production volume increases, the cost per part decreases, making vacuum casting the more cost-effective choice for low-volume production. This process enables the casting of multiple parts, around 20 parts in maximum, in a single mold, leading to reducing per-unit expenses.</p><p dir="ltr"><strong>Part Strength:</strong> The parts created by both 3D printing and vacuum casting can be strong. 3D printed parts can present anisotropic properties due to layering construction and may require careful attention to achieve strong layer adhesion. In contrast, vacuum casting uses polyurethane resins that offer good tensile and flexural strength. Vacuum casting parts are often featured with more consistent and homogeneous structure.</p><h2 dir="ltr">The Complementary Relationship</h2><p dir="ltr">Both vacuum casting and 3D printing technologies are utilized by product developers and engineers to capitalize on their respective strengths. Here’re the comparison of both technologies:</p><div dir="ltr" align="left"><table><tbody><tr><td style="width: 27.1671%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp;</p></td><td style="width: 29.752%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr"><strong>3D Printing</strong></p></td><td style="width: 43.0679%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Vacuum Casting</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 27.1671%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; <strong>&nbsp;Materials</strong></p></td><td style="width: 29.752%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; Metals; plastics; silicone</p></td><td style="width: 43.0679%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp;Variety of <a href="https://www.3erp.com/services/vacuum-casting/" target="_blank">polyurethane resins</a>; medical grade, thermal resistance materials; multi colors</p></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 27.1671%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp;<strong>&nbsp;Surface Finishes</strong></p></td><td style="width: 29.752%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp;Require post-processing</p></td><td style="width: 43.0679%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp;Fine details</p></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 27.1671%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp;<strong>Tooling Costs</strong></p></td><td style="width: 29.752%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp;No</p></td><td style="width: 43.0679%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp;Yes</p></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 27.1671%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; <strong>Part Strength</strong></p></td><td style="width: 29.752%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp;Structure with anisotropy</p></td><td style="width: 43.0679%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp;Strong</p></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 27.1671%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp;<strong>&nbsp;</strong><strong>Part Precision</strong></p></td><td style="width: 29.752%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp;Less precision or equal</p></td><td style="width: 43.0679%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; High precision</p></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 27.1671%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; <strong>&nbsp;Design Freedom</strong></p></td><td style="width: 29.752%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp;Super high complex &nbsp; &nbsp;geometries</p></td><td style="width: 43.0679%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp; Complex geometries</p></td></tr><tr><td style="width: 27.1671%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp; <strong>Production Speed</strong></p></td><td style="width: 29.752%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">1 day</p></td><td style="width: 43.0679%; text-align: center;"><p dir="ltr">&nbsp; &nbsp; 3-7 days</p></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr">As we can see, 3D printing offers speed and creative flexibility. It is right for rapid concept development. While vacuum casting excels in producing quality prototypes and low-volume parts with fine surface details, and can use production-grade materials. Though 3D printing continues to evolve and may incorporate the strengths of vacuum casting, these two technologies currently complement each other, and the choice should align with your project's specific needs. Our engineering experts are happy to give suggestions if you're unsure which to choose.</p><p dir="ltr">How Both Vacuum Casting and 3D Printing Shine at RPWORLD?</p><h2 dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.rpworld.com/en/resources/case-study/prototyping-and-production-support.html" target="_blank">Accelerate Medical Device Development</a> with Vacuum Casting</h2><p dir="ltr">A medical device company needed complex-structure parts within days and parts should achieve EMC effect. Find how RPWORLD uses vacuum casting, injection molding and 3D printing to meet all client’s requirements.</p><h2 dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.rpworld.com/en/resources/case-study/turnkey-of-automotive-interiors-exteriors.html" target="_blank">Turnkey Manufacturing Service for Automotive Interiors &amp; Exteriors Development</a></h2><p dir="ltr">A renowned automotive supplier needed 20 automotive parts in just 4 weeks. Find how RPWORLD rapid tooling services, including CNC machining, Vacuum Casting and more, cut development time by 50%</p>

Is the Vacuum Casting process about to become obsolete? This is not an abrupt question. Vacuum casting is a widely used and cost-effective manufacturing solution for prototyping and low-volume production.

Will Vacuum Casting Still Have a Place in the World of 3D Printing?

<p id="isPasted">The premise at that time was that design engineers might be moving away from pneumatics, but that pneumatics could continue to grow as an industry if approached in the right manner.</p><p>The recommendation was for a seamless integration of pneumatics and automation, that would rely heavily on IIoT adoption and more compact, efficient machines. The presenter, Donna Ritson of DDR Communications, outlined how pneumatics might continue to advance using smart technologies and data collection. Pneumatic applications would require effective data gathering and manipulation, remote servicing, preventive maintenance, more efficient machines – and much more – in order to increase their level of intelligence.</p><p>The goal was to achieve a greater level of automation so that pneumatic and automation systems work together. This would require intuitive and interactive HMIs: as factories become more automated, they have less skilled labour. What operators there were would want simpler machines that were more intuitive. The idea was that the machinery itself should provide the initiative for preventive maintenance, by setting off alerts and alarms for the operator. Smarter sensors would be installed to tell workers when a component is wearing out and what adjustments or responses needed to be made.</p><h2>Pneumatic And Automation Systems Working In Harmony</h2><p>Since the 2018 conference, the automation industry has made&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rowse-automation.co.uk/blog/post/what-is-industrial-automation" target="_blank" title="What Is Industrial Automation?">great advances</a> in digital transformation. The idea of pneumatics becoming outdated has itself become obsolete thanks to the integration of evolving pneumatic technologies. These include control valves that incorporate sensors, wireless technology and industrial network interfaces.</p><p>Complex digital control features offer access to smarter, actionable information that significantly improves the efficiency of automation applications. Plug-in valves and manifolds were also created, which meant that all the solenoid valve connections which were previously linked separately to the PLC could be achieved using a single cable. Integrating&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rowse.co.uk/blog/post/what-is-iiot" title="What Is IIoT?" target="_blank">IIoT technology</a> means that pneumatic valve systems now incorporate much more advanced electronic features, providing pneumatic-driven actuators and applications with a whole new level of precision control.</p><p>Valve system control modules for pneumatic positioning applications are able to incorporate proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controllers, which can automatically monitor and adjust control functions. Such high-tech pneumatic capabilities allow greater precision in end-point motion accuracy. Used in conjunction with a PLC, they also have the capacity to switch in real time from position control to force control. Motion sequences for very advanced automation tasks can be accurately fine-tuned, increasing reliability, repeatability and product throughput.</p><p>Automation systems continue to evolve into a more sophisticated, connected partnership with pneumatic applications. Industrial network communications were established via fieldbus connectivity, increasing the control capabilities of a PLC. As well as controlling valves, the newer PLCs can also monitor sensors and other connected devices. Instead of several local I/O cards, they are able to exchange I/O data via a single communication cable.</p><h2>Evolution Of Smart Pneumatics</h2><p>As the automation platforms became smarter and more sophisticated, so did&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rowse-pneumatics.co.uk/blog/post/what-is-smart-pneumatics" target="_blank" title="What Is Smart Pneumatics?">pneumatics</a>. Design engineers began to incorporate both I/O capability and fieldbus interfaces into pneumatic valve manifolds. These provided complete pneumatic valve packages, far more versatile than previous discrete components and engineered to be easily integrated into advanced automated systems.</p><p>A further step forward in valve technology came with the integration of electro-pneumatic control capabilities into the valve manifold. This greatly enhanced their versatility and performance capabilities. New technologies also allowed more accurate control of proportional regulators using digital signals. Fieldbus connectivity integrated into these devices was also able to optimise the force and pressure requirements in any given production system.</p><h2>Why It’s Important</h2><p>In the 2018 survey, manufacturers wanted pneumatic components that were more robust, durable and energy-efficient, as well as easily and reliably available. They asked for smoother and more user-friendly pneumatic systems that would increase motion and speeds and offer better precision. And with all that, they wanted pneumatic components that were easier to maintain, more compact and, most of all, repetitive.</p><p>Ritson noted in her presentation that all these pneumatic technologies had already been developed in 2018. For example, cylinder-mounted and linear slide sensors were already designed with continuous position sensing and supported rapid maintenance and replacement. But what was more interesting from the point of view of the survey, was the gap between the perception of the end users and reality.</p><p>Although the technological capabilities already existed, one of the biggest challenges for suppliers was to educate the industry about its existence. Many end users were not aware that the technology was available and consequently had failed to invest in these advanced solutions. Ritson concluded that more companies needed to connect the capabilities of pneumatics and automation systems working together and install smarter machines in their facilities.</p><h2>This Is The Future Of Manufacturing</h2><p>One of the primary objectives of digital transformation in manufacturing in particular, and the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rowse-automation.co.uk/blog/post/what-is-industry-4" target="_blank" title="What Is Industry 4.0?">IIoT in general</a>, is the collection of actionable information. In manufacturing, it provides more sophisticated and optimised control, step by step throughout the production process. For example, pneumatic valve systems with built-in intelligence offer new opportunities for such precision monitoring and control.</p><p>A well-designed predictive maintenance system integrated into a valve can capture and use minutely accurate information that will optimise and prolong the working life of pneumatic applications. If the system determines that a component is in imminent danger of failure, it may even implement an automated requisition for a replacement before that actually happens.</p><h2>More Productive, Cleaner And Energy-Efficient</h2><p>As pneumatic components become smarter, they’re able to generate many more data points to improve the production systems in which they’re used. These data points include usage statistics, diagnostics and lifetime data, which can be used to maximise uptime in production systems, control their energy consumption and make systems run more efficiently.</p><p>The advanced level of control achieved by combining pressure and directional controls greatly increases the versatility of pneumatics. It also enhances its value for a much greater range of automation applications. Smart pneumatics provides more precise, efficient and optimised control for automated applications in the manufacturing process.</p><p>When pneumatics and automation work together, factories become more productive, cleaner and energy-efficient.</p>

How Pneumatic and Automation Systems Work Together

Five years ago – a long time in technological terms – “The Evolution of Advanced Automation” was discussed in a presentation at the Industry & Economic Outlook Conference in the United States, held by the National Fire Protection Association.

<p dir="ltr" id="isPasted">In engineering, quality control ensures the reliability, safety, and consistency of products and processes. As industries evolve, the demand for continual improvement becomes paramount, not just to stay competitive but also to guarantee the highest standards of safety and reliability. In this dynamic landscape, the introduction of Edge AI emerges as a transformative solution, poised to revolutionize quality control mechanisms.</p><p dir="ltr">Quality control, especially in engineering environments, is not just about maintaining standards; it's about elevating them. The competitive nature of today's industries necessitates a relentless pursuit of perfection. Traditional methods, while effective, often need more agility and real-time responsiveness than modern manufacturing and production environments require. This is where the need for continual improvement and innovation comes into play.</p><p dir="ltr">Edge AI, a technology that emphasizes processing data at its origin rather than relying on a centralized data center, presents a sophisticated advancement in quality control. By integrating AI capabilities directly into devices and systems on the manufacturing floor, Edge AI facilitates real-time analysis, immediate feedback, and rapid decision-making. Such capabilities are not just enhancements; they are transformational, enabling businesses to detect anomalies, predict issues, and ensure optimal quality at unprecedented speeds.</p><p dir="ltr">Drawing insights from various industry studies and advancements, it's evident that Edge AI's integration into quality control processes offers a promising avenue for industries to stay ahead, ensuring both competitiveness and unparalleled quality standards.</p><p dir="ltr">Let's delve deeper!</p><p dir="ltr"><span contenteditable="false" draggable="true" class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable"><iframe width="540" height="600" src="https://c8056756.sibforms.com/serve/MUIFAMyA6BGksOUPEokHuBnEmZRHhYgJ4RXb4BV0gvzN98ymNIvQdTcBFQnRVfviT6yZSFW_R2g1hENBu7p7Afnyv9Kt0unAAbfFU5mMQhBwI-8hQnKf2r1mmRKhUgDLmtk8bpVSZ7kZGpleCPqtYRv8_kkvODL7F4neGLNGgdpFDm9pPzoYpwbQkc0BU5GVOFoq8CSmD0DDvDjG" frameborder="0" scrolling="auto" allowfullscreen="" style="display: block;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;max-width: 100%;" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true"></iframe></span><br></p><h2 dir="ltr">The Imperative of Quality Control in Engineering</h2><p dir="ltr">Quality control has traditionally been a reactive process, heavily reliant on post-production inspections and tests. Traditional methods, while foundational, have their limitations:</p><p dir="ltr">Traditional Quality Control Systems: Historically, quality assurance has been downstream-focused, emphasizing production and testing. This approach, often characterized by repetitive design-prototype-test cycles, can be likened to a trial-and-error method. Such methods might only sometimes yield optimal designs, leading to increased costs, extended cycle times, and potential compromises in customer quality.&nbsp;</p><p dir="ltr">The traditional system operates on the premise that as long as a product is within specification limits, it meets customer requirements. However, the business implications of a product being "barely within specification limits" and "right on target" are vastly different.</p><p dir="ltr">Financial and Operational Implications: Inadequate quality control can have severe financial repercussions. Products that don't meet quality standards can lead to recalls, warranty claims, and loss of customer trust. Operationally, inadequate quality control can result in increased wastage, rework, and delays in production schedules.</p><p dir="ltr">Evolving Standards and Expectations: With the rapid advancements in technology and globalization, industry standards are continually evolving. Customers today are more informed and have higher expectations. They demand products that are functional but also safe, durable, and innovative. This drives the need for more robust and proactive quality control processes.</p><p dir="ltr">The limitations of traditional quality control methods and the changing landscape of customer expectations underscore the need for innovative solutions. As industries strive for perfection, there's a pressing demand for methods that are reactive but also proactive, predictive, and efficient.</p><h2 dir="ltr">The Advent of Edge AI in Quality Control</h2><p dir="ltr">As traditional methods have inherent limitations, the industry is turning to innovative solutions such as Edge AI.</p><p dir="ltr">Edge AI refers to deploying artificial intelligence algorithms directly on the devices where data is generated rather than processing this data in a centralized cloud-based system. This proximity to the data source facilitates real-time data processing, ensuring swift responses and immediate insights.</p><h3 dir="ltr">Addressing Traditional Limitations</h3><p dir="ltr">Traditional quality control methods, while foundational, often lag in real-time responsiveness and agility. Edge AI, with its on-device processing capabilities, addresses these gaps. By analyzing data at the source, it eliminates the latency associated with transmitting data to a central server for processing. This not only speeds up the quality control process but also enhances its accuracy and efficiency.</p><h3 dir="ltr">Benefits of Edge AI in Quality Control</h3><p dir="ltr">Real-time Anomaly Detection: With Edge AI, anomalies in the manufacturing or production process can be detected in real-time, allowing immediate corrective actions.</p><p dir="ltr">Predictive Maintenance: Edge AI can predict equipment failures before they occur, ensuring uninterrupted operations and reducing downtime.</p><p dir="ltr">Reduced Operational Costs: By processing data locally, Edge AI reduces the need for data transmission and cloud storage, leading to potentially significant cost savings. Additionally, the efficiency gains from real-time insights and predictive maintenance further contribute to operational cost reductions.</p><p dir="ltr">Integrating Edge AI into quality control processes signifies a monumental shift from reactive to proactive quality assurance. As industries continue to evolve, technologies like Edge AI will play a pivotal role in ensuring that quality remains at the forefront of all operations.</p><h2 dir="ltr">Spotlight on Edge Impulse</h2><p dir="ltr">In the rapidly evolving domain of Edge AI, Edge Impulse stands out as a pioneering platform, offering a comprehensive suite of tools and capabilities tailored for deploying machine learning models on edge devices.</p><p dir="ltr">Edge Impulse is a cutting-edge platform designed to simplify creating and deploying AI models on edge devices. By providing a user-friendly interface, Edge Impulse allows engineers and developers to harness the power of AI without the complexities often associated with traditional machine learning workflows. One of the standout features of Edge Impulse is its ability to streamline the deployment of machine learning models directly on edge devices.&nbsp;</p><h3 dir="ltr">Key Features of Edge Impulse</h3><p dir="ltr">Data Collection: Edge Impulse Studio offers a data acquisition tool that allows users to upload datasets, facilitating the training and validation of machine learning models.</p><p dir="ltr">Model Training: The platform provides various tools and algorithms, including the YOLOv5 object detection model, which can be optimized for resource-constrained devices.</p><p dir="ltr">Deployment: After training, Edge Impulse facilitates the deployment of the model on edge devices, such as the <a href="https://www.renesas.com/us/en/products/microcontrollers-microprocessors/rz-mpus/rzv2l-evkit-smarc-som-evaluation-kit-rzv2l-mpu-ai-accelerator" target="_blank">Renesas RZ/V2L Evaluation Board</a>, ensuring seamless integration and real-time performance.</p><p dir="ltr">Edge Impulse's capabilities extend beyond just quality control in manufacturing. Its versatile platform can be adapted to various applications, making it a valuable tool for industries aiming to leverage the benefits of Edge AI.</p><h2 dir="ltr">Edge Impulse in Action: A Case Study</h2><p dir="ltr">Quality inspections are pivotal in ascertaining that products meet the required standards and specifications. A case study involving Edge Impulse offers a deep dive into how cutting-edge technology can elevate these inspections, ensuring optimal product quality.</p><p dir="ltr">The Challenge: Manufacturers often grapple with establishing a comprehensive inspection procedure encompassing all facets of a product's quality. Traditional methods, while effective, may only sometimes offer the agility and real-time responsiveness required in modern manufacturing environments. The challenge lies in seamlessly integrating the inspection process into the existing workflow without causing disruptions, all while maintaining consistent quality across batches.</p><p dir="ltr">The Edge Impulse Solution: Solomon Githu, an engineer, envisioned a <a href="https://www.hackster.io/sologithu/product-inspection-with-renesas-rz-v2l-and-edge-impulse-cf0700" target="_blank">solution</a> that would seamlessly integrate into existing processes and autonomously discern product quality. He conceptualized an inspection device employing computer vision and machine learning to inspect products as they traverse an assembly line swiftly.&nbsp;</p><p dir="ltr">The objective was clear: the device should autonomously determine product quality in milliseconds.</p><p dir="ltr">To bring this vision to life, Githu leveraged the <a href="https://edgeimpulse.com/product" target="_blank">Edge Impulse Studio</a>. The platform's web-based interface replaced the complexities of traditional machine learning with a user-friendly, point-and-click experience. Using an object detection algorithm, the system was trained to inspect products and discern their quality rapidly. The training involved a dataset comprising both high-quality products and those with defects.</p><p dir="ltr">To ensure real-time responsiveness, Githu employed the <a href="https://www.renesas.com/us/en/products/microcontrollers-microprocessors/rz-mpus/rzv2l-evkit-smarc-som-evaluation-kit-rzv2l-mpu-ai-accelerator" target="_blank">Renesas RZ/V2L Evaluation Board</a>, specifically designed for computer vision and machine learning applications. Paired with a <a href="https://coral.ai/products/camera/" target="_blank">Google Coral camera</a>, the system was equipped to inspect products and make real-time determinations visually.</p><p dir="ltr">Outcomes: The system was tested using a custom-built miniature conveyor belt, with printed images of products (in this case, submersible pump impellers) moving along it. The camera, positioned above, relayed real-time visuals to a custom web application, which then displayed the products and maintained a count of the good and defective items it detected. The results were compelling: the system showcased high accuracy, aligning with the impressive performance metrics observed during model training and testing.</p><p dir="ltr">Conclusion: This case study underscores the transformative potential of Edge Impulse in the realm of quality control. By harnessing the power of Edge AI, manufacturers can elevate their quality inspection processes, ensuring that products not only meet but exceed the desired quality standards.</p><h2 dir="ltr">The Road Ahead</h2><p dir="ltr">Integrating Edge AI into quality control processes has showcased transformative results in various engineering domains. As industries continue to evolve and the demand for real-time, efficient, and accurate quality control mechanisms grows, the potential for further integration of Edge AI becomes even more pronounced.</p><p dir="ltr"><strong>Potential Across Engineering Domains:&nbsp;</strong>While the manufacturing sector has been an early adopter of Edge AI for quality control, other engineering domains, such as civil engineering, electronics, and aerospace, could benefit immensely from this technology. The ability to process data in real-time at the source can lead to enhanced structural integrity checks, real-time monitoring of electronic components, and swift anomaly detection in aerospace systems.</p><p dir="ltr"><strong>Scalability and Adaptability of Edge Impulse:</strong> Platforms like Edge Impulse are designed with scalability and adaptability in mind. Whether adapting to different data types, integrating with various edge devices, or scaling to handle vast amounts of data, Edge Impulse ensures that diverse quality control requirements across industries are met precisely. The platform's capabilities, such as data collection, model training, and deployment, can be tailored to suit specific industry needs, making it a versatile tool for quality control.</p><p dir="ltr"><strong>Meeting Diverse Quality Control Requirements:</strong> As industries diversify and products become more complex, the quality control requirements also evolve. Edge AI platforms, with their adaptability, can cater to these diverse needs, ensuring that quality control is not just about meeting standards but setting new benchmarks.</p><h2 dir="ltr">Conclusion</h2><p dir="ltr">Integrating Edge AI into quality control processes signifies a significant stride in the engineering domain. Platforms like Edge Impulse have showcased the capability to enhance these processes, offering real-time data processing and decision-making at the source. Such advancements are not just about improving efficiency but also about ensuring consistent and high-quality outputs.</p><p dir="ltr">Edge Impulse, in particular, has demonstrated its prowess in facilitating the deployment of machine learning models on edge devices. It is a valuable tool for industries aiming to improve quality control mechanisms. Its capabilities, ranging from data collection to model training and deployment, are tailored to meet the specific needs of various industries, ensuring adaptability and scalability.</p><p dir="ltr">For engineering firms, the message is clear: the future of quality control lies in harnessing the power of Edge AI. By exploring and adopting solutions like Edge Impulse, firms can position themselves at the forefront of technological advancements, ensuring they meet the evolving standards of quality and efficiency in the industry.</p><p dir="ltr"><span contenteditable="false" draggable="true" class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable"><iframe width="540" height="600" src="https://c8056756.sibforms.com/serve/MUIFAMyA6BGksOUPEokHuBnEmZRHhYgJ4RXb4BV0gvzN98ymNIvQdTcBFQnRVfviT6yZSFW_R2g1hENBu7p7Afnyv9Kt0unAAbfFU5mMQhBwI-8hQnKf2r1mmRKhUgDLmtk8bpVSZ7kZGpleCPqtYRv8_kkvODL7F4neGLNGgdpFDm9pPzoYpwbQkc0BU5GVOFoq8CSmD0DDvDjG" frameborder="0" scrolling="auto" allowfullscreen="" style="display: block;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;max-width: 100%;" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true"></iframe></span><br></p><h2 dir="ltr">References</h2><ol><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://metrology.news/re-imagining-manufacturing-quality-with-ai-and-edge-computing/" target="_blank">Re-imagining Manufacturing Quality with AI and Edge Computing</a></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://edgeimpulse.com/blog/elevating-quality-standards-with-ai" target="_blank">Elevating Quality Standards with AI</a></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.griddynamics.com/events/quality-control-manufacturing-webinar-q3-2022" target="_blank">Quality 4.0: Reimagining AI and Quality Control Automation for Smart Manufacturing</a></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://developer.ibm.com/articles/enabling-distributed-ai-with-edge-computing/" target="_blank">Enabling Distributed AI for Quality Inspection in Manufacturing with Edge Computing</a></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><a href="https://edgeimpulse.com/blog/elevating-quality-standards-with-ai" target="_blank">https://edgeimpulse.com/blog/elevating-quality-standards-with-ai</a></p></li></ol>

Revolutionizing Engineering Quality Control: The Transformative Power of Edge AI

Edge AI: A Paradigm Shift in Quality Control

<p id="isPasted">Parts with a smooth surface finish are often required in 3D printing. This characteristic may be a functional requirement for the end-use of a part or an aesthetic requirement. Applications in which smoothness may be a functional requirement include mating parts, moving parts, stress/load-bearing surfaces, etc.&nbsp;</p><p>Although <a href="https://xometry.eu/en/3d-printing/" target="_blank">3D printing</a> is usually a layer-by-layer process, additive manufacturing technologies are capable of printing relatively smooth surfaces. However, the smoothness of finished 3D printed parts depends on the printing process, the material, the post-processing operations and other secondary factors that will be related in this article.</p><h2>3D printing technologies with a smooth surface finish</h2><p>Because of the layer by layer printing involved in FDM printing and the diameter of the nozzle, FDM doesn’t always produce a very smooth surface finish. However, modern industrial FDM machines are capable of much finer surfaces. SLS, MJF, and DMLS produce a grainy surface as a result of the powdery nature of the raw materials used in these technologies. Regardless of 3D printing technology, a smooth surface can always be achieved in printed parts, using post-processing operations.</p><p>There are several 3D printing technologies capable of producing smooth as-printed parts. Those are explored below.</p><h3>SLA 3D printing</h3><p><a href="https://xometry.eu/en/sla-3d-printing/" target="_blank">Stereolithography 3D printing</a> produces parts with the highest accuracy and smoothest surface finish among all 3D printing technologies. Although it is a layer-by-layer process, the raw material is usually in resin form and solidifies to give a smooth surface.</p><h3>Polyjet 3D printing</h3><p>Like SLA, <a href="https://xometry.eu/en/polyjet-3d-printing/" target="_blank">Polyjet</a> prints photopolymers. Most Polyjet parts are ready to use as-printed in terms of look and feel. The main reason for this smoothness is the combination of ultra-thin layer printing and high-quality resin.</p><h3>Carbon DLS</h3><p><a href="https://xometry.eu/en/carbon-dls/" target="_blank">Carbon DLS</a> uses resin materials like polyurethane. The surface finish of the 3D part produced with this method is as smooth as glass. This process produces impeccable parts that can replace prototypes from MJF or SLS. In addition to a high-quality surface finish, Carbon DLS produces external and internal details perfectly.</p><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1698746916062-Surface-finish-comparison-FDM-SLA-MJF-768x535.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner"><em id="isPasted">Comparison of 3D printed parts: FDM (left), SLA (center) and MJF (right)</em></span></span></span></p><h2 id="isPasted">3D printing materials with a smooth surface</h2><p>Material consideration for smoothness typically goes together with printing process consideration, as, in most cases, the process is a far more significant factor. Thermoplastics, thermosetting resins, photopolymers, and polyurethane are typically <a href="https://xometry.eu/en/3d-printing-materials-selection-guide/" target="_blank">3D printing materials</a> with a smooth surface finish.</p><p>But it is important to note that smoothness is rarely the only criteria for selecting materials. Other considerations like strength, heat resistance and accuracy are also considered.</p><h2>Improving smoothness with post-processing</h2><p>Post-processing is the most effective way of guaranteeing a smooth surface finish in 3D printing. In most cases, post-processing can be used to achieve smoothness in a part, irrespective of the material or the technology with which it was printed.</p><p>There are various post-processing methods that are not all suitable for all parts. Part geometry and material are the two biggest factors that influence post-processing techniques. Note that the different methods will deliver different textures and appearances.</p><h3>Bead Blasting</h3><p>The bead blasting technique involves spraying a pressurized stream of tiny beads of media (plastic or glass) from a nozzle onto the surface of the part. This removes the layer lines leaving a smooth finish. In addition, the end product resembles a uniform matte finish. Bead blasting is done in a closed chamber. Plastic bead blasting is more common for 3D printed parts. The finishing technique works with most FDM-printed parts and materials.</p><p>The plastic media is usually made up of finely reground thermoplastic particles; the abrasiveness can vary from harsh to mild. Another popular material used in bead blasting is baking soda.</p><p>One of the advantages of bead blasting over sanding is speed. The process takes about 5 to 10 min for a part. However, the duration will depend on the part size. Another advantage of bead blasting is the preservation of the part’s dimensions.</p><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1698746942304-MJF-Nylon-PA12-parts-comparison-as-printed-vs-bead-blasted.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner"><em id="isPasted">Comparison of MJF Nylon PA12 parts: as printed (left) vs. bead blasted (right)</em></span></span></span></p><h3 id="isPasted">Vapour Smoothing</h3><p>The industrial vapour smoothing device operates through a multistage process. It lowers the pressure within the sealed chambers containing the 3D printed parts. Then, a heated tray at the bottom receives the pumped solvent, turning it into vapour.</p><p>An air-circulation system pulls the resulting vapour and circulates it around the surface of the part, causing condensation on the surface. This melts away the surface of the printed part, leaving a smooth surface. The precise control of the airflow and temperature allows for desired results without over smoothing.</p><p>This process takes about three hours to completely smoothen the printed part regardless of the quantity or size. Also, safety is paramount as the chamber must be locked during operation to create a vacuum. The condensed and unused solvent drops to the bottom of the tank for reuse.</p><p>Vapour smoothing can cater for parts made with ASA, ABS, and other high-impact polystyrenes. However, polycarbonate and other polymers that melt under the solvent can get smoothened. Acetone is an example of a solvent that works in vapour smoothing.</p><p>Vapour smoothing is commonly applied in consumer products. The process does not significantly impact the dimensional accuracy of the 3D-printed part. Furthermore, the parts could be made ready for coating or filming with bead blasting.</p><p>A disadvantage of vapour smoothing is its lack of versatility. The process cannot accommodate more materials like sanding or bead blasting.</p><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1698746960694-MJF-Nylon-PA12-parts-comparison-as-printed-vs-black-spay-painted-and-vapour-fused.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner"><em id="isPasted">Comparison of MJF Nylon PA12 parts: as printed (left) vs. black spray painted and vapour fused (right)</em></span></span></span></p><h3 id="isPasted">Tumble Finishing</h3><p>The tumble finishing technique, also known as tumbling or rumbling, is usually used on relatively small parts. Some of the most common, large tumblers are capable of finishing parts of 400 x 120 x 120 mm or 200 x 200 x 200 mm. It is very effective for parts that contain a high percentage of metal powder.</p><p>In just an hour of polishing, the smoothness of metallic prints can be exponentially increased. The tumbling process uses a horizontal barrel filled with parts, media, water, or any other materials. A vibrator rotates the barrel, causing the media (stones) to continuously brush the parts and progressively smoothen them.</p><p><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 768px;"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1698746979997-MJF-Nylon-PA12-parts-comparison-as-printed-vs-tumbled.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-inner"><em id="isPasted">Comparison of SLS Nylon PA11 parts: as printed (left) vs. tumbled finished (right)</em></span></span></span></p><h3 id="isPasted">Sanding and polishing</h3><p>Sanding is the process of progressively removing a very thin layer of material to expose a smoother one underneath. A rough surface simply means that some points on the surface are more elevated than others. Sanding is the process of evening out the surface using relatively rough materials such as sanders or grinders.</p><p>It can be carried out by hand or with the use of belt sanders and is done progressively. Sanding is most often paired with polishing.</p><p>One of the shortcomings of sanding is the difficulty in smoothening small, intricate geometries. Also, sanding may also affect a part’s dimensions. When very tight tolerances are required from the 3D parts, sanding may not be the best option. Consideration must be made during part design concerning the amount of material that will be removed by sanding.</p><h3>Comparison of post-processing options for a smooth surface finish in 3D printing</h3><p><span contenteditable="false" draggable="true" class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jahPZSOILrc?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0&amp;enablejsapi=1&amp;origin=https://www.wevolver.com" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true"></iframe></span></p><figure id="isPasted"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Post-processing</strong></td><td><strong>Suitable 3D printing technology</strong></td><td><strong>Advantages</strong></td><td><strong>Considerations</strong></td></tr><tr><td>Bead Blasting</td><td>SLS, MJF</td><td>• Preservation of the part’s dimensions</td><td>• Requires the use of extra materials</td></tr><tr><td>Vapour Smoothing</td><td>MJF, SLS</td><td>• Shiny surface</td><td>• Lack of versatility</td></tr><tr><td>Tumble Finishing</td><td>DMLS, SLS, MJF</td><td>• Good for small parts</td><td>• Size limitations for large parts exist<br>• Time-consuming</td></tr><tr><td>Sanding and polishing</td><td>FDM, DMLS</td><td>• Good for bumpy rough surfaces<br>• Polishing can produce a shiny surface</td><td>• Affects the part’s dimension<br>• Not suited for parts with high tolerances<br>• Not suited for parts with intricate geometries</td></tr></tbody></table></figure><h2>Factors affecting part smooth surface during printing</h2><p>The following are some of the factors that influence the smoothness of a 3D printed part during printing.</p><h3>Extrusion Rate</h3><p>This factor applies to only printing technologies that print via extrusion, such as FDM. Over extrusion could occur if the printer extrudes excess material than is needed. The resulting print will have each layer projecting from the surface as irregular forms. A simple remedy to this is to adjust the extrusion rate. The same goes for under extrusion.</p><h3>Material Overheat</h3><p>When printing with FDM technology, the heating temperature and the cooling rate play vital roles in the surface quality of printed parts. It is important to achieve the appropriate balance between them. Remember the printed plastic can form different shapes before it cools. Always set the printer to the appropriate temperature for the material being printed.</p><h3>Ghosting/ Rippling</h3><p>The defect caused by this appears as waves on the surface of the printed part. It occurs when the printer is moving at a faster pace than it can handle the vibrations from the moving parts. This defect is most common in FDM printing where the machine vibrates as the nozzle deposits material.</p><p>To avoid this, keep your moving motors well lubricated and balance any shaky parts.</p><h2>Conclusion</h2><p>Achieving smoothness in 3D printed parts depends on various factors. These include printing technology, materials, and printing techniques. In most cases, the desired surface smoothness can be achieved using post-processing operations.</p><p>Xometry Europe offers fast, reliable, and highly accurate&nbsp;<a href="https://xometry.eu/en/3d-printing/" target="_blank">3D printing services</a> with these technologies and materials. Through our&nbsp;<a href="https://my.xometry.eu/quote?locale=en" target="_blank">Instant Quoting Engine</a> and our network of over 2,000 manufacturers, we ensure that you experience a seamless part production process, from quoting to doorstep delivery.</p>

In this article, we will explore the factors that affect the smoothness of 3D printed parts and how you can achieve high levels of smoothness.

How to Get a Smooth Surface With 3D Printing

<p id="isPasted">In the rapidly evolving landscape of industrial automation, innovation is the driving force that propels businesses towards greater efficiency, flexibility, and competitiveness. Nestled at the forefront of this technological advancement is Autoblocks, a Modular Automation "Block"-based system that promises to redefine the way we approach automation. This article explores Autoblocks, shedding light on its core components, its exceptional value, and its ability to transform the world of robotics and automation.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Building Blocks of Autoblocks:</strong></p><p>&nbsp;At the heart of Autoblocks, we find a trio of essential components:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Base Blocks:</strong> These form the foundational cornerstone of the Autoblocks system. Base Blocks are the masters of control, overseeing safety, power, communication, and serving as the structural nucleus of your automation setup.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Motion Blocks:</strong> If Base Blocks provide the foundation, Motion Blocks add the dynamism. These blocks introduce and manage the various process steps, breathing life into your automation system.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Application Kits: </strong>To supercharge your automation solution, Autoblocks offers Application Kits. These kits are akin to power-ups, granting your automation the specific capabilities it needs, whether it's soldering, screw driving, inspection, or more.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>The Power of Autoblocks:</strong></p><p>&nbsp;Autoblocks boasts a formidable arsenal of features and benefits, making it a game-changer in the realm of automation. Here's why Autoblocks is generating a buzz:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Bridging the Gap</strong>: Autoblocks serves as a powerful bridge, connecting stand-alone robots with integrated systems. It eradicates the challenges posed by compatibility issues and ensures a seamless, frictionless transition.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Simplified Integration:</strong> One of Autoblocks' remarkable strengths is its ability to streamline integration. It reduces the complexities and challenges associated with feeder sales and system setup, making the entire process more efficient and user-friendly.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Universal Platform:</strong> Think of Autoblocks as a universal platform, much like UR+. It opens doors to a multitude of accessories, including vision systems, dispensers, screwdrivers, soldering equipment, PNP devices, feeders, induction systems, and more. The possibilities are limitless.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Unmatched Value:</strong>&nbsp;</p><p>Autoblocks not only stands as a testament to innovation but also unlocks unmatched value for your automation needs. Here's how it achieves this:</p><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Epson Robots' Competitive Edge:</strong> Epson Robots are renowned as one of the world's most competitive industrial robot brands. However, they have been limited by the complexities of integration and programming. Autoblocks dismantles these barriers, allowing Epson Robots to reach their full potential.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>World's Best Value:</strong> The journey begins with the T3, where Epson provides unbeatable value. It's a testament to the commitment to delivering cost-effective, top-tier solutions.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>IntelliFlex:</strong> Autoblocks integrates seamlessly with IntelliFlex, one of the most capable parts feeder/vision systems in the world. This ensures a comprehensive solution for your automation needs, all within a unified programming environment.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Bringing it All Together:</strong> Autoblocks is the glue that binds robots, vision systems, and feeders together, creating a cohesive and harmonious automation ecosystem.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Turn Block: The Powerhouse Indexing Table</strong></p><p>Within the Autoblocks ecosystem, the Turn Block stands as the world's most potent indexing table. It features a powerful UL/CE control panel with a user-friendly touch HMI interface, providing you with complete control over power, safety, communication, and motion engagement. The Turn Block is designed to seamlessly integrate with Epson T3, ensuring a "plug &amp; play" experience. It also effortlessly interfaces with IntelliFlex via T3, simplifying setup and operation. What's more, the Turn Block eliminates the need for complex programming, relying instead on a configuration-based setup, reducing the learning curve and getting you up and running in no time.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Turn Block's capabilities extend to handling parts up to approximately 12 cubic inches, and its robust steel machine plate understructure ensures stability and durability, even in the most demanding industrial settings. Autoblocks' dedication to safety is reflected in the "plug &amp; play" safety features, including light curtains, door switches, and a light tower.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Empowering Manual Loading and Data Tracking:</strong>&nbsp;</p><p>The Part Tracking feature enables manual loading, offering a level of flexibility not often found in automation systems. Moreover, Autoblocks excels in data tracking, providing valuable insights into your processes, allowing you to make informed decisions and optimizations.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In conclusion, Autoblocks is poised to disrupt the world of automation by simplifying integration, expanding the possibilities for industrial robots, and providing unmatched value. With its innovative components, including Base Blocks, Motion Blocks, and Application Kits, Autoblocks is a powerful solution to bridge the gap between various automation components and engineered systems. The Turn Block, with its user-friendly control panel and "plug &amp; play" capabilities, adds an extra layer of efficiency to the system. Whether you're a manufacturer looking to enhance your operations or an automation enthusiast seeking a simplified yet powerful solution, Autoblocks has the potential to revolutionize the way you approach automation. It's a testament to the relentless pursuit of innovation in the world of robotics and automation.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Autoblocks is not just a solution; it's a transformation waiting to happen in your industrial automation journey.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>For more information about Autoblocks and how it can benefit your automation needs, please contact info@autoblocks.co</p>

This article explores Autoblocks, shedding light on its core components, its exceptional value, and its ability to transform the world of robotics and automation.

Revolutionizing Automation with Autoblocks: Bridging the Gap and Unlocking Unmatched Value

Autonomous Mobile Robots employed for material handling; Credits: Teradyne

This article offers an in-depth view of AMR robots, their underlying technology, and applications crucial in today's rapidly evolving technological landscape.

Understanding AMR Robots: A Comprehensive Guide

<p id="isPasted">In a groundbreaking partnership that promises to reshape the landscape of automated assembly, Autoblocks and ASG have joined forces, ushering in a new era of efficiency and precision. This collaboration brings together the expertise of two industry leaders, with Autoblocks' cutting-edge platform seamlessly integrated with ASG's revolutionary Auto Feed System. The result? A game-changing fusion of innovation that empowers businesses to create customized automated assembly machines in a matter of minutes.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>ASG, short for Assembly Solutions Group, has been at the forefront of automation technology for years. Their Auto Feed System is renowned for its precision, reliability, and advanced features. By integrating this system with Autoblocks, the possibilities for automated assembly have expanded like never before.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Efficiency Meets Precision</strong></p><p>The partnership between Autoblocks and ASG is all about achieving the perfect balance between efficiency and precision. With the Autoblocks Platform and ASG's Auto Feed System, businesses can create assembly machines that not only work faster but also with an unprecedented level of accuracy.</p><p>Imagine a scenario where a task that once took hours of manual labor can now be completed in a fraction of the time, without compromising on quality. This is the promise that Autoblocks and ASG bring to the table, and it's a game-changer for industries that rely on automated assembly processes.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Customized Solutions at Your Fingertips</strong></p><p>One of the standout features of this collaboration is the ease with which businesses can customize their automated assembly machines. Autoblocks' user-friendly interface empowers users to design machines tailored to their specific needs. Whether it's for the electronics, automotive, or any other industry, the flexibility offered is unparalleled.</p><p>Thanks to this partnership, businesses can create automated assembly systems that are precisely tuned to their requirements, ensuring a perfect fit for their unique processes. The days of settling for one-size-fits-all solutions are over.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Setting the New Standard for Innovation</strong></p><p>The combination of Autoblocks and ASG is not just a partnership; it's a commitment to pushing the boundaries of what's possible in automated assembly. The result is a synergy that elevates the automation game to a whole new level.</p><p>Whether you're seeking to streamline your production line, reduce manual labor, or improve the quality and consistency of your products, Autoblocks and ASG are your partners in innovation.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Exploring the Future of Assembly</strong></p><p>To get a glimpse of what the future of assembly looks like, visit our website and explore the incredible partnership between Autoblocks and ASG. This collaboration promises to change the way industries approach automation, making it more accessible, customizable, and efficient than ever before.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Don't miss the opportunity to be a part of this exciting revolution in automated assembly. Autoblocks and ASG are here to help your business reach new heights by setting a new standard for innovation in the world of assembly. The future is now, and it's waiting for you to be a part of it.</p>

Autoblocks and ASG Partner Up for Automated Assembly!

Autoblocks and ASG have joined forces, ushering in a new era of efficiency and precision.

Revolutionizing Automation: Autoblocks and ASG Unite for Automated Assembly

<p id="isPasted"><strong>In today’s world, a high level of precision and fast delivery times are crucial to the production of individual components. Online Manufacturer </strong><a href="http://www.facturee.de" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>FACTUREE</strong></a><strong> is meeting these new requirements with its wide range of manufacturing services, quick response times and on-time delivery. To benefit from this cutting-edge procurement process, leading engineering company Parker Hannifin commissioned FACTUREE to produce special turned and milled parts for mounting devices in their engineering department. The move enables the company to efficiently drive its own digital transformation without being affected by capacity bottlenecks and disproportionate personnel involvement.</strong></p><p>In many companies, the procurement of turned and milled parts is a very complex process due to operational structures and special requirements. Material, processing, execution and delivery time are essential and time- and cost-intensive factors that must be well planned and usually involve many different resources such as personnel and costs.</p><h2>Parker Hannifin opts for efficient purchasing of components</h2><p>As a leading supplier in its industry, Parker Hannifin relies on short procurement times and precision workmanship for the components it needs.<br>The engineering company, founded in 1917 with headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, is considered a global leader in the manufacture of motion and control technologies. Parker Hannifin, which has been operating in Germany since 1962, specialises in hydraulics, pneumatics, electromechanics, filtration, connection technology, refrigeration/air conditioning, sealing technology, aerospace and EMI shielding.</p><p>Daniel Scharnowski, test bench engineer at Parker Hannifin, explains: “Until November 2019, these components were still being manufactured in Germany at our prototype department. Up to 80% of our trainees were involved in the process, which the company felt was a problem. That’s why we decided to outsource the production of the parts to an online manufacturer. We hope that the end-to-end digitisation and automation of the ordering process resulting from this advanced approach to procuring turned and milled parts via an online network will lead to greater efficiency. When combined with high quality, this should give us a competitive advantage”.</p><p>After an evaluation phase, Parker Hannifin chose FACTUREE, a brand of Berlin- based company cwmk GmbH. “We obviously wanted to avoid the often time- consuming search for new manufacturers, different contacts when concluding contracts, missed delivery deadlines, etc. Online manufacturer FACTUREE won us over with a quick quote and a relatively short delivery time. Ultimately, their fast response time and wide range of manufacturing services were the deciding factors”, explains Scharnowski.</p><h2><strong>Components for mounting devices produced in a complex process</strong></h2><p>Parker Hannifin first commissioned FACTUREE in November 2019 to produce special components for mounting devices in their engineering department. FACTUREE proved the perfect choice, with its extensive production network of over 500 manufacturing partners in the fields of CNC machining and surface technology. It has over 6,000 CNC machines at its disposal at any given time. All partners comply with the requirements of an ISO 9001-certified, data-driven quality management system.</p><p>The components were manufactured using sophisticated turning and milling methods, with extremely narrow tolerances and, in some cases, additional fits. The complex manufacturing process also involved special surface treatments. The surfaces were first copper-plated, then nickel-plated in a subsequent step, before being partially polished and laser engraved.</p><h2><strong>Delivery earlier than expected</strong></h2><p>Daniel Scharnowski sums up: “Despite the complex manufacturing process involving high quantities and tight delivery deadlines, FACTUREE was actually able to deliver the components before the agreed delivery date. The speed at which orders were processed and the personal customer service also impressed us. We therefore look forward to strengthening our working relationship with FACTUREE”.</p>

Leading motion and control technology manufacturer benefits from short delivery times, unrestricted capacity and high-quality components

Fast and precise: Parker Hannifin relies on state-of-the-art Online Manufacturing of turned and milled parts

A view of a factory cleanroom featuring scientists wearing protective equipment

A Comprehensive Guide to These Essential Environments for High-Precision Manufacturing and Research, Highlighting the Applications, Maintenance and Cleaning Practices

Cleanroom: A Comprehensive Guide to Design, Standards, and Applications

<p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1696242989890-ezgif-4-f4e1826464.gif" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><div data-id="9908f31" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="heading.default" id="isPasted"><h2>What is SLS (Selective Laser Sintering)</h2></div><div data-id="69b735e" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="text-editor.default"><p>If you are not a 3D printing expert by now, there are a few things to mention when it comes to <strong>Selective Laser Sintering</strong> (SLS). SLS is a 3D printing technology that uses a laser to selectively fuse or sinter powdered materials, typically thermoplastics such as nylon, elastomer, or polypropylene, into a solid object layer by layer. It can also work with composite materials like metal-filled or glass-filled polymers or metals. We covered the SLS process in great detail in <a href="https://sintratec.com/demystifying-the-selective-laser-sintering-process/" target="_blank">another article</a>.</p><div data-id="371df47" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="heading.default" id="isPasted"><h2>SLS compared to other technologies</h2></div><div data-id="a4a60e8" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="text-editor.default"><p>In contrast, other 3D printing technologies like FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) or SLA (Stereolithography) use different approaches, such as extruding molten material or curing liquid resin with light, to create objects. These technologies may have limitations in terms of the types of materials they can use. Another benefit SLS provides is the fact that you don&rsquo;t need support structures during the printing process because the unsintered powder acts as a self-supporting medium. This eliminates the need for additional support material that needs to be removed later, as is the case with other technologies like FDM or SLA.</p><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1696243025824-OtherTechnologies-Extruder.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1696243033399-OtherTechnologies-Supports.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><div data-id="3a43b80" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="heading.default" id="isPasted"><h2><br>SLS just for big companies?</h2></div><div data-id="6dc3d0e" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="text-editor.default"><p>When talking about SLS it is always about the high cost and the large size of the printers. However, manufacturers like Sintratec offer professional small to medium-sized machines at a much more affordable price range. The systems are designed for rapid prototyping and permit fast iterations in the development process without relying on external manufacturers. This speeds up the product development cycle, reduces lead times, and allows for faster testing and refinement of ideas.</p><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1696243059984-fast_iteration.jpg" style="width: 300px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><div data-id="a231e79" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="heading.default" id="isPasted"><h2>What makes SLS economical</h2></div><div data-id="e771f5b" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="text-editor.default"><p>Compared to traditional manufacturing processes, more compact SLS printers can be cost-effective for small businesses. It eliminates the need for expensive molds or tooling, reducing upfront costs. Additionally, producing parts on demand reduces inventory costs and minimizes waste, as only the required amount of material for the parts is used with up to 90% being recyclable (depending on the material).</p><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1696243074252-Refresh-TPE.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p><div data-id="cc8e3ff" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="heading.default" id="isPasted"><h2>Flexibility for your production</h2></div><div data-id="1ad1d78" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="text-editor.default"><p>SLS 3D printers are not limited to prototyping &ndash; they can also be an interesting option for small-scale production runs. This is especially beneficial for print service bureaus that require low-volume manufacturing, and businesses that offer customized or niche products, as well as just-in-time production. By having an SLS machine in-house, you can significantly reduce lead times for manufacturing. You will gain more control over your designs, minimizing the risk of information leakage, increasing control over the production process, and being able to respond quickly to customer demands or market changes.&nbsp;</p><div data-id="0fb6ac4" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="heading.default" id="isPasted"><h2>Empowering Small Businesses</h2></div><div data-id="b26d750" data-element_type="widget" data-widget_type="text-editor.default"><p>It&rsquo;s important to note that SLS 3D printers typically require a higher initial investment compared to other types of 3D printers, and there may be ongoing costs associated with materials, maintenance, and machine operation. However, considering the advantages mentioned above, an SLS 3D system can be a valuable asset for your business seeking to enhance its manufacturing capabilities and stay competitive in today&rsquo;s market.</p><p><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1696243127983-SLS-Parts.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"></p></div></div></div></div></div></div>

When it comes to Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), there are often barriers that prevent companies and users from venturing into this technology. In this article, we want to showcase the benefits of SLS and why this 3D printing process can be especially suitable for small businesses.

manufacturing systems

ORGANIZATIONS.

SHAPING THE INDUSTRY.

Rowse

RPWORLD

READY Robotics

polySpectra

SINTRATEC