Helps users collaborate and evaluate product quality from CT and other Non-Destructive Testing Technologies
Heidelberg, GERMANY, April 17, 2024—The widespread digitation of manufacturing is enabling companies to make products faster. As a result, the physical inspection of finished goods, based on CT and other industrial product-scanning technologies, has taken on even more importance. As the digital product-development pathway has become increasingly sophisticated, ease-of-use of the accompanying scan-data-based, quality-assurance software is key to its successful application in aerospace, automotive, electronic, medical, and other industries.
The newest release of Volume Graphics’ advanced non-destructive evaluation software suite responds to this ease-of-use need. With enhanced data-interpretation, collaboration and presentation capabilities, the software enables users to more easily refine, integrate and share their product-manufacturing-quality results and initiatives.
The underlying architecture of the suite (which includes VGSTUDIO MAX, VGSTUDIO, VGMETROLOGY, VGinLINE, and myVGL) harnesses sophisticated algorithms developed over decades, incorporates greater automation, and now includes customized, deep-learning tools. The latest updates enable even the non-expert user to quickly and effectively apply these powerful resources to quality evaluation throughout the product lifecycle—and collaborate with the experts in a common language.
Here are some of the highlights of the latest release:
· Interactive Reports and PNG format for easier sharing
Image 1. New, intuitive HTML-format reports enable users at all levels or expertise to better understand the results of scan-data analyses. Image courtesy of Volume Graphics
Sharing scan data results and reports is a vital part of moving a manufacturing organization forward on the journey towards optimal product quality. Reporting needs to flow from engineers to managers—who may not have run any analyses themselves but want to understand when and/or where a particular pore or crack occurred, and why an accept or reject call was made or a design change implemented. New in 2024.1 is a highly intuitive HTML report functionality [see Image 1] that supports 3D interactive part or result views. Self-contained documents are now easily accessible with any Chromium-based browser like Edge or Chrome, so that analyses can be interactively viewed at any stage of the quality-assurance process.
Image 2. Users can show and share results more easily with new PNG formatting in Version 2024.1. Image courtesy of Volume Graphics
Along with this, a new PNG export functionality [see Image 2] requested by users is available. When using PNG as a storage or data-exchange format, all images produced by Volume Graphics analyses can now be copied and pasted directly into almost any kind of media, without the need for additional file conversions. This change provides for much more powerful visualizations, reports and presentations—and a faster workflow for importing or exporting volume data.
· Linear sizes for metrology
Linear functionality is valuable for users concerned with geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T). The common abbreviations used to indicate linear sizes are now visually represented directly within report graphics [see image 3]. This simplifies standard conform measurements by providing direct support for modifier symbols—and empowers easier evaluations for many size features such as two-point measurements (LP), envelope requirement (E), and global modifier symbols like (GG).
Image 3. On-screen callouts of industry-standard abbreviations makes it easier to perform GD&T evaluations based on scan data to determine product quality. Image courtesy of Volume Graphics
· PIA Updates – of particular interest to the casting industry [Image 4]
Updates in Volume Graphics’ porosity inclusion analysis (PIA) capabilities make it even easier for casters to meet industry-compliance requirements P 202 and P 203. Multiple regions of interest can be evaluated to determine whether they are in tolerance, or not—with instant, color-coded viewing of tolerance states.
Image 4. Porosity inclusion analysis (PIA) results are color-coded to show whether pores in a manufactured part are within (or beyond) industry tolerance standards. Image courtesy of Volume Graphics
A complete listing of all updates of Volume Graphics 2024.1 is available here.
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About Volume Graphics and Hexagon
Volume Graphics GmbH has been developing software for non-destructive testing based on industrial computed tomography (CT) for over 20 years. Customers around the world, e.g., from the automotive, aerospace, and electronics industries, use Volume Graphics software for quality assurance in product development and production. In addition to its headquarters in Heidelberg, the company has branches in the USA, Japan, Singapore, and China. Learn more at www.volumegraphics.com and follow us @volume_graphics.
Since 2020, Volume Graphics has been part of Hexagon. Hexagon is a global leader in sensor, software and autonomous solutions. We are putting data to work to boost efficiency, productivity, and quality across industrial, manufacturing, infrastructure, safety, and mobility applications. Our technologies are shaping urban and production ecosystems to become increasingly connected and autonomous – ensuring a scalable, sustainable future.
