Creating quality coordinate measuring machine (CMM) measurement programs takes time, and production cycles are often delayed while waiting for the measurement programs to be created. But software that works directly from model-based definitions can drastically decrease that time.

The move from 2D drawings to 3D annotated models has led to a considerable demand for automatic measurement programming in recent years. Mitutoyo America recently introduced the MiCAT Planner, an automatic measurement-program-generation software that uses 3D computer-aided design (CAD) models and product and manufacturing information to enable one-click, automated generation of measurement programs. With this software, a complex program that previously would have taken five hours to complete manually can be completed automatically in 15 minutes.

With the MiCAT Planner, aerospace, defense, and medical device manufacturers that use CMMs to gather and compare data to CAD models will realize significant savings in time and money.

 …