Gaging Software’s Changing Role
Summary
Gaging software helps quality operators combine and elaborate upon input data, or sensor readings, to produce a final measurement. Digital gaging’s increased efficiency enables Verisurf’s customers to now request and receive 100% inspection on jobs that “just a few short years ago would have been unrealistic,” Olson says. When using measurement and inspection software that is built on a CAD platform and supports Model-Based Definition (MBD), users can also maintain what Olson calls digital continuity, or the ‘digital twin’ or ‘virtual golden part.’ “Not only is this great for keeping all the nominal data together in one place, but also as it applies to feeding downstream applications associated with product lifecycle management and statistical process control (SPC) software,” he says. Ultimately, gaging management software increases the accuracy of records retained, provides greater visibility, and offers a wide array of analytics that can identify sources of variation in a measurement system. “Instead of being tethered to a workstation, users can venture out and examine work pieces, inspect product, and maintain their gages via tablets, cell phones, and other handheld devices,” Gasper adds.