Filter Part Maker Heightens Quality With Fowler Gage
Fowler Trimos V-600 Height Gage
For more than 30 years, Lorch
Microwave has been producing components for the electronics
and communications industries. The company assembles and
tunes filter parts, including cavity, discreet, waveguide,
tunable, transmit, ceramic, wireless and tabular filters.
Lorch's clients include Northrop Grumman Corp., Lockheed
Martin and Honeywell.
Lorch manufactures six filter lines, the largest of which
measures 20 X 20 X 8 in., and the smallest only 0.5 X 0.5
X 0.25 in. "We take several measurements two or three
times an hour, including height, width, length and other
measurements on filter cavities," explains Jody Garber,
Lorch's machine shop manager.
Lorch's Salisbury, Maryland, headquarters houses seven
CNC machining centers, six vertical milling machines and
one CNC lathe. The site once also housed a coordinate measuring
machine; however, shop-floor operators were dissatisfied
with the instrument's results.
"We found that we needed a better way to gather data
on height, inside and outside diameters, and centerline
locations without changing probes," explains Garber.
"Our old CMM broke down frequently, was slow, difficult
to use and really didn't provide all the inspections we
needed."
Lorch was interested in a machine that could check all
filter dimensions--particularly holes of 0.02 in. and smaller--for
resonators of filter frequencies. The company also wanted
a machine that could handle tolerances from 0.0005 to 0.005
in., depending on the product being inspected.
After searching for the ideal instrument, Lorch chose
the Trimos V-600 electronic height gage from Fred V. Fowler
Co. Inc.
The Trimos V-600 operates with a hand wheel controlled
by adjustable measuring pressure. It has a full numeric
keypad and large display, plus a built-in rechargeable battery.
The gage has an accuracy of 0.0002 in., is capable of more
than 24 in. of travel and squareness of 0.00032 in.
A built-in air pump provides an air cushion to reduce
wear and fatigue. Internal and external diameter measurement
is accomplished with the floating carriage system, and the
air pump facilitates easy movement. Its rechargeable battery
can run for 100 hours on a single charge, and a direct RS-232
output ensures that the data gathered by the instrument
is SPC-ready.
In addition to its measurement capabilities, the Trimos
V-600 height gage features an electronic display that contains
several functions not normally found in gages of its type,
such as the ability to automatically calculate offsets,
slot width, grooves, internal and external diameters, and
centerlines.
The Trimos V-600 is located in Lorch's quality assurance
laboratory and is readily accessible to each machinist during
operations and final inspection. The instrument allows the
machinists to follow their individual guidelines, depending
on the lot sizes they're dealing with. "We inspect
every tenth part when we have lot sizes of 50 or more,"
explains Garber.
Garber contends that the Trimos V-600 height gage has
made it simple for Lorch to update its processes and inspection
programs. "This instrument is simple to operate and
everyone can use it," he says. "The Trimos V-600
has made a world of difference in the quality of our inspection
operations."
Fowler Trimos V-600 Height Gage
- Automatic measuring functions
- Electronic display for simplicity
- Constant measuring force
- RS-232 data output for SPC or printer
- Rechargeable battery for 100 hours of use
www.fvfowler.com
|
