Though buzzier than ever in 2019, 3D printing has existed for at least 35 years, beginning with the invention of stereolithography in 1984 and accelerating with the development of fused deposition modeling in 1988. More recently, however, additive manufacturing for series production, paired with an uptick in lower-cost metal 3D printers, has elevated the industrial 3D printing industry to previously unreachable heights.

Quality control managers have the delicate task of verifying and guaranteeing that manufacturied parts meet customers' requirements, specifications and tolerances.

The Automate Show brought thousands of robots to Chicago this week. The robots were serving ice cream and beer, playing music, and in one case, boxing. They were wowing attendees with their speed and service, musical skills (the KUKA ones wore bows for their performance), and fight demos. Machine vision and image analysis was also on display.

Until recently, most consumer electronics from different companies were designed to be incompatible with one another. This has led to the average person realizing, to varying degrees, that they live in an Apple, Google, or Amazon-dominated household.

Picture a plant floor that is updating operators, managers and even other plants about potential machine problems. It would connect one machine to another and one system to the next. In order to maintain the highest quality, the systems would monitor any data that seems out of order or check on the line in process.

Designed to meet the cleanliness requirements of modern industry, the OLYMPUS CIX100 cleanliness inspector is a turnkey system for counting, analyzing and classifying micron-sized contaminants down to 2.5 µm.

The new model 1110 Lightmeter from AEMC is designed to record light intensity of incandescent, fluorescent and LED sources. It is battery powered, compact, lightweight, and simple-to-use with direct access to all functions. 

Peratech launched its QTC®-based EDGE force-sensing solution that delivers User Experience (UX) differentiation and functionality for smartphones, wearables, and tablets.

The Marposs Grindline laser measuring system for on-line gauging of parts produced by centerless grinding machines such as pins, shock rods, steering racks or other parts needing a single diameter check prevents machining of out-of-tolerance pieces to reduce scrap, save time and help companies achieve zero-defect production.