A key distinction between Rockwell testers and the Brinell, Vickers and Knoop testers is that the latter three use optical technology, while Rockwell does not—which generally makes it less costly, makes testing quick and easy, and the surface finish of the specimen is not critical. 

As applications continue to demand more of engineering materials and as the stakes for life expectancy of finished products continue to rise, testing is anticipated to play an ever more important role in product development and quality control processes.

By their nature, microhardness testers are delicate instruments. Extremely light forces must be accurately applied, and the resultant impressions must be precisely measured under high magnification.

Many new products entering the market today are based on new materials and processes. These new materials are playing increasingly important roles—supporting innovation and boosting competitiveness in technology driven industries.

The QV-400 Series of Vickers testers are suitable for hardness analysis of metallic specimens in metallography laboratories or production environments.