Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division has introduced a new laser scanner for coordinate measuring machines (CMMs). Designed for manufacturers looking for a cost-effective option for efficient surface measurement and high throughput, the new HP-L-10.10 LITE laser scanner captures the complete surface data of a part in a fraction of the time compared to measuring many points or lines with tactile measurement methods.
Patryk Wroclawski, Hexagon’s non-contact sensors product manager, said: “When launching the standard-setting HP-L-10.10 CMM laser scanner in 2021, we knew many manufacturers wanted to increase their inspection efficiency and throughput but did not necessarily require that scanner’s full feature set of capabilities. The HP-L-10.10 LITE is our answer to this need; and while this might be our entry-level scanner, it is a high-speed and accurate device that delivers big productivity improvements across multiple measurement applications.”
The scanner is based on Hexagon’s latest cross-platform laser line scanning technology and uses the same ‘Shine’ (systematic high-intelligence noise elimination) technology as the flagship HP-L-10.10, allowing it to collect quickly and accurately ‘clean 3-D measurement data’ from almost any surface material and finish. Furthermore, fast point cloud creation at up to 240,000 points per second acquisition rate and a 120Hz frame rate allows the HP-L-10.10 LITE to scan surfaces quickly; and its probing form error of just 14µm is said to be ‘strong performance’ for laser scanning on a CMM.
The HP-L-10.10 LITE is designed for use with a wide range of applications and measurement surfaces, including: shape measurements of sheet-metal parts, moulds, or castings; colour mapping for quick quality insights over a complete surface; and capturing point clouds to create meshes for reverse engineering applications. Moreover, when equipped with this scanner, a CMM becomes a multisensor machine that can handle most measurement tasks; and when an HP-L-10.10 LITE is combined with tactile probing, it enables manufacturers to ‘balance the requirements for accuracy with the demand for higher throughput in a single part program’.
In conclusion, Hexagon said: “The scanner is ideal for manufacturers looking to economically add rapid point cloud measurement to their metrology toolkit and who do not require the full speed, finer accuracy or the additional collaborative capabilities of the flagship HP-L-10.10.”