Accurately Meeting Necessity: Mitutoyo’s Lineup Additions for the 2019 EMO
One of the most revered fairs in the metalworking industry, this year’s EMO in Hannover was definitely not one to be missed. As one of the world’s most premier places to showcase innovations for this field, as a global leader in metrology instruments Japanese company Mitutoyo chose this as their stage to exhibit their new solutions.
Catching the eye of those who attended the fair, the Mitutoyo booth had many new machines and services with a particular few that really stood out. Close to the centre of Hall 6, Mitutoyo set up their newest CMMs for all to view. This selection was made up of two of the CRYSTA APEX Vs and the MiSTAR 555 with its distinctively new design. All of which were simultaneously sending data to two separate FIELD systems that were at the fair, one on Mitutoyo’s booth and the other across the fair on FANUC’s.
The two CRYSTA Apex V coordinate measuring machines were the 574 and 7106 models. The significance of the details in their names is what sets them apart, specifically the measuring range. The 574 stands for 500mm, 700mm and 400mm. And of course, this means that the 7106 would have an X-axis of 700mm, a Y-axis of 1000mm and a Z-axis of 600mm. However, these dimensions aren’t what drew the crowds in, that would be it’s new Smart Measuring System feature, or “SMS”.
The Smart Measuring System is what allows these machines monitoring of the operation status and a visualisation of the measurement data produced. This combines those two, the status monitor, analysis of measurement data via MeasurLink and a condition monitor which is used to check the state of the machine in real-time. Because of this feature, it was possible to then hook up the machines to the FANUC FIELD systems, feeding the data from multiple machines to a single readout that can be anywhere in the world.
Regarding the visibly different MiSTAR 555, this easily stuck out on the Mitutoyo booth. With its three-sided open architecture, it makes use of a horizontal-arm to significantly ease the task of moving workpieces on and off the measuring table. Between this new body shape and size, it can measure large pieces while reducing the space needed to operate it by about 70% when compared to a conventional moving bridge model. Even so, after the new design drew in the attendees this is when they got to see what makes the MiSTAR a particularly exceptional little machine. With a contamination resistance that is over two times greater than the conventional machines thanks to the newly developed absolute scale, it is the perfect addition to any workshop.
Mitutoyo’s plan for the EMO didn’t just stop there, throughout the six-day exhibition they also had presentations on some pretty spectacular software. These covered both the Smart Factory and the all-new MiCAT Planner.
Especially popular, the MiCAT Planner presentations always captured the attention of people passing by the stand. What made it so noticeable were three things, automatic measuring program generation, the efficiency of these measuring programs and its consistent quality, regardless of a user’s competence. Since measuring today requires an abundance of data due to the ever-growing significance of quality assurance, diversification of products and accelerated product lifecycles, it makes sense to use a software anyone can operate and at the same time streamline production efficiency. To top it all off, the MiCAT Planner Pay-per-Use system was also highlighted in the presentation. As a premiere for Europe during the 2019 EMO, Mitutoyo introduced this all-new concept making the software very affordable. Instead of purchasing the software for a large sum, now users have the option to pay only when using it. Each individual will, of course, use the latest and most powerful version of the MiCAT Planner, this is done so after acquiring the starter kit consisting of the software, a dongle with 10 units, a CAD data to “Step” translator, and free in-depth training.
Overall, it was a very successful trade fair for the Japanese precision instrument manufacturer Mitutoyo. Being approached by many fair-goers to help find possible solutions to their work complications, the specialists at the booth were overjoyed to provide support. As always, the EMO in Hannover was an amazing exhibition filled with many great professionals and companies alike.
