KEYENCE Portable CMM Provides Machine Shop With Rapid Inspection Resource

Brian Wadey, President of Prototype Design Labs, established the company in 2017, following a career as a Senior Prototype Design Engineer and CNC programmer in sectors such as medical, aerospace and education.

Niche opportunity

“我形成了原型设计实验室，为西雅图地区提供了一个不断增长的研究界，这些社区往往努力寻找能够满足他们苛刻要求的机器商店”explains Wadey.“Initially, many of the parts we manufactured were for biology and cell research systems. Since then, however, we’ve added Xometry work into our mix.”

Xometry is a major, US-based marketplace for on-demand industrial prototypes and production parts. Among the keys to being successful, being a Xometry supplier means moving from design to finished component as quickly as possible. Suppliers such as Prototype Design Labs visit a ‘job board’, where Xometry’s algorithm posts jobs based on which partners have the right equipment and experience to complete the work successfully in the required lead time. Partners receive notifications that a new job is available and the first to accept gets the work.

“主要工作wi之前我必须解决的问题th companies such as Xometry was the need for a high-level inspection resource,”says Wadey.“我熟悉传统的CMMS，但我被简单，易于操作，紧凑的脚印和来自Keyence的简单性，易用性，紧凑的足迹和价格。一旦我看到它，我就知道这正是我需要的。“

Simplicity and speed

With no CNC programming and no moving parts, the KEYENCE XM Series is suitable for use by anyone, anywhere in the facility including the shop floor. The XM Series provides the ease of calipers, but the capabilities of a CMM. The XM features a handheld, free-angle probe, to allow measurement from any position. It also boasts on-screen tutorials, temperature compensation, and 3D CAD comparison and export functions. Optical technology enables freedom of approach with touch-to-measure operability. The XM utilizes augmented reality to overlay the 3D image on the probe-mounted camera image, simultaneously displaying measurement information on a live image of the part. This feature allows users without any previous CMM experience to intuitively understand the measurement process.
在加工操作之后，原型设计实验室使用其关键XM系列来进行关键测量，并确定公司数控机床上可能需要调整。此功能增加了显着的价值，因为它允许业务更快地完成零件并实现更快的周转时间。反过来，Wadey可以采取更多的工作，更有效地利用他的生产设备。

“XM提供了许多援助制造和检查的选项，”he states.“这是一个很好的入门级选择，非常易于操作，并随时随地进行自我指导。此外，我们可以为批量生产创建可重复的CMM程序，并使用增强图片生成报告，显示如何完成检查。我们还可以使用其他keyence XM用户共享CMM程序。“