Öhlins Racing was presented with a new FARO 8-Axis QuantumS ScanArm System.
When FARO went in search of the "Oldest Working FaroArm in Europe", the 3D metrology specialist was surprised to discover there were plenty of examples of its portable coordinate measuring machines (CMM) still going strong in the wild.
"We knew our products had significant longevity but were pleasantly surprised to see over 200 submissions for this contest,” Lars Axelsson of FARO Europe told TCT following its regional search.
The oldest was found in Sweden at Öhlins Racing, a provider of advanced suspension technology to the motorsport and automotive industries. Here, a 1993-era FARO Metrecom Arm was still kicking after dozens of years being put to work primarily measuring motorcycle and mountain bike geometries to understand chassis and installation dimensions for its suspension products.
With a few adaptations over the years coupled with in-house software developments to maximise its capabilities, the near 30-year-old arm has remained an important piece of kit for Öhlins’ measurement operations, even with a new state-of-the-art FARO arm recently installed.
“We have mounted the arm on a linear guide rail which is fixed to a vehicle lift table. It can easily be moved around the measured object, locked in a new position and zeroed against a fixed 3-point steel plate,” Tomas Andersson, Öhlins Racing elaborated. “This enables the possibility to use the original coordinate system and measure the additional points from the new arm position. These [are], of course, basic functions for modern measuring software but these improvements and adaptions have helped us a lot during the years, and with the proven quality of the arm, extended the lifetime to the present date.”
The contest saw Ohlins take delivery of a new FARO 8-Axis QuantumS ScanArm System, an 8-axis rotary scanning platform which promises a reduction in scan times by up to 40%, while maintaining accuracy, even in compact spaces.
“The new eight axis system is designed to be used in a wide spectrum of industries, one of the biggest benefits is its ruggedness and ability to be used in the production area,” Axelsson explained. “We can measure where the products are produced, even while the products are still in the production machines or when visiting a supplier and measuring parts at their facility. This is a key benefit that saves time for our customers, avoids moving components around the factory and prevents bottlenecks in the measuring room.”
The Ohlins team now plans on transferring much of its current measurement activity over to the new arm, believing the new 3D scanner and 8-axis functions will open up new possibilities to speed up measurement of products such as front forks. These components are currently probed to measure but this will allow the collection of more useful information, combined with probe measurement data for important mounting points like brake calipers.
Anticipating high-demand for the new system, Andersson adds, confidently, “The first thing we will set up before [we] even start using the new arm is a booking system since we expect it to be used and requested a lot more than the old FARO Arm.”
Commenting on the increased demand for repeatable and stable measurement processes across production lines, to ensure component quality, Axelsson concluded:
“By increasing the measurement capabilities, we can monitor the parts and the process to ensure we get the best end product in a repeatable way. Now there is a greater need to control the process instead of just the parts. Measurements of control parameters in different steps of the production can help industries identify and react to deviations in the process at a much earlier stage. This helps reduce stop time, costly rework and scrapping parts that hurt important environmental and financial targets for modern industry. FARO’s range of products and software suits this purpose perfectly.”
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