Where humans shall stay miles ahead of machines is in the arena of thinking 360 degrees. Despite the best of efforts, this is one aspect where into the present humans still stay ahead of machines. But where machines do a much better job is at collecting, collating and analyzing humongous volumes of data to come up with insights hitherto unavailable to us. Along with that, machines can quickly spot variances right at their origins and give out the right signals to their operators in real-time- something a human can never do with speed and efficiency. Over the years with the digitization of information, collecting humongous volumes of data became a possibility. Add to this the right software and what you got was ready-made data which showed implications and possibilities right at the touch of a button (or shall we say, the click of a mouse!)
This was carried forward with advancements in computers to such an extent that computers even started to mimic the way humans think and react to situations. Things as simple as writing letters in MS Word became easier as the software could predict favorite words and phrases and even the tone of the letter with the least of prodding. This makes the task of searching for words and phrases that bit easier, and the quality of the product (letters in this case) much better than before. How this has come about is due to the ability of machines these days to collect vast quantities of information and analyze patterns under the scope of the activity (communication in this case).
Artificial Intelligence of Gear Inspection
This analysis of information in the industry is called analytics and what it gives rise to is AI or Artificial Intelligence where machines over a period of time, mimic the human mind and think of the possible next step from available alternatives. What this does to every activity is to make things easier, faster and more efficient. With machines needing lesser intervention from the human element due to the introduction of IoT-like initiatives, independent decisions by machines themselves are now more than a possibility. With further advancements where this leads us is towards faster, more precise and focused decision making. For humans, this is especially useful as they can now concentrate their energies away from mundane activities and into that activity that needs their support, like formulating and implementing strategies, looking at alternatives within strategies and concentrating on their proper implementation.
In the world of gear inspection too analytics have started to play a major role be it in the case of in-process inspection or pre-delivery inspection. Advancement in software means gear inspection platforms can now store information about all the inspection that has ever taken place, analyze every item inspected against stored data, and information right there in real-time if variances are observed. This may seem predictable but with AI the difference would be the speed of analysis despite the volumes of work involved as also the parameters on which inspections shall take place. For parameters, there is a new kid on the block which promises to change thing completely.
This, the future in the field of gear inspection shall take the activity to the next level which shall see the faithful old rolling systems being coupled with high-precision non-contact 3D lasers which can observe and measure gears from any and every angle to gauge if every parameter is being met or not.
With a real-time display of data and process information, one can know of the manufacturing process in real-time with the facility to do tool correction in real-time so that output can be very close to what is expected. With CalibroMeasure’s RollSmart and DobSmart, Gear rolling and DOB inspection equipment for in-process, one can track where the process is going in real-time. The process trend is plotted in real-time and is displayed. Moreover, it can give smart warnings the way an analytical human can give like- The value of DFCE is suddenly increased by 20Microns than the last reading. This reduces the dependence on skilled humans. It also calculates and gives readymade correction factors to be fed to hobbing or grinding machines based on the inspection data. Currently, this is done manually. It also saves important data like the time of the last correction factor that was fed. It helps in analyzing the hob life. All the data required which is essential for analytics is also readily available with these products.
In sum, what analytics and AI shall accomplish is higher precision in real-time to reduce waste, reduce tool run-offs, while making the quality much better than the present. With RollSMart and DobSmart, the gear industry can take a leap towards Smart manufacturing.
