As a reader of these blogs, you’ll probably know that in the world of measurement we care a great deal about terms like accuracy and precision. So, you’ll have to forgive the following, unvalidated (and thus somewhat out-of-character) claim. It’s this: no one likes visiting the dentist. Seriously. There’s enough anecdotal evidence to suggest that...Continue Reading

In our recent series, we’ve devoted a blog to explaining and understanding each of the key terms used in measurement technology (terms like true value, accuracy, precision, etc.) In this final instalment, we’ll investigate the term “tolerance”. Unlikely a way as it sounds to start a blog about a key aspect of measurement systems, the...Continue Reading

Think of healthcare and the medical industry and three words will likely spring quickly to mind as being of foremost importance: precision, quality, and safety. A fourth term, while perhaps less immediately obvious to the layman, underpins them all: accurate measurement. It applies especially to the production of medical instruments. Stethoscopes; ophthalmoscopes, needles, speculums; most...Continue Reading

Building cars is a complex process in which the role of machine tooling is central. Let’s take a closer look at how and why that’s the case. Broadly, automotive manufacturing involves seven steps. These are: Obtaining and then working/reworking the raw materials from which the car is madeThe design (body and engineering) of the carThe...Continue Reading

We started this series with a close look at the meanings of traceability and true value. The definition of the latter touched on the concept of “accuracy”, but which nevertheless, as we explained, is not quite the same thing. So now, let’s dig a little deeper into what we mean by accuracy in the context...Continue Reading

What is true value? It is defined as the actual physical weight/length/width or other measurable parameter of a specific object – for example, the length of a piece of string or the weight of a rock[1]. All objects have a true value because all have exact properties that can (in theory) be measured. Thus, when...Continue Reading

The Conoptica team is heading to Germany, to attend EMO Hannover from 18-23rd September.  It’s the biggest trade fair in the field of industrial production technology, and one of the year’s best opportunities to catch up with the latest trends and developments in the field, particularly important because modernization is driving the industry ahead at...Continue Reading

In measurement, traceability is critical because to have any real value, measurement systems must provide results that have traceable accuracy. What does that mean? Measuring up Let’s consider a question: why do we measure things? The correct answer is that we do so because measurements allow us to compare one thing to another: taller or...Continue Reading

Let’s start this blog with the basics. The foundational question is “what is calibration”? After we’ve answered that, we can move on to considering calibration specifically in the context of machine tools. Then, we’ll look at a particular example of machine tool calibration, camera-based measurement. This will show us how the field of calibration is...Continue Reading

Customized software for your machine tools? No problem. New software enables precision measurement of plunge milling tools. Influence our roadmap for custom enhancements At Conoptica, we follow a rigorous roadmap that delivers updates and innovations for our customers. Occasionally, we’re asked to produce custom variants to accommodate new requirements – and that’s just what we’ve...Continue Reading