Round-the-Clock CMM Precision Proves Essential to - Carl Zeiss SMT

Round-the-Clock CMM Precision Proves
Essential to Company Success
Annette Smith
38
Running five shifts, supporting
four different product lines and
processing more than 20,000 parts
per month requires not only detailed
planning, but also reliable inspection
technology. For Dietmar Ingensiep,
Group Leader of the Common Rail
Division at Robert Bosch Corporation,
consistent output of accurate data is
essential for ensuring uninterrupted
manufacturing processes and
producing high-quality products.
In 001, when Ingensiep took over
the department, one of the major
bottlenecks he noticed was the
extensive time needed to develop new
coordinate measuring machine (CMM)
programs. Now, four years later,
with the help of dependable CMM
technology and user-friendly software,
this is no longer a concern.
Bosch purchased a UC 550 and
an ECLIPSE CMM from Carl Zeiss in
1989 to support the ABS production.
Over the years, as more product lines
were added, they also increased their
inspection capacity by adding two
CONTURA and four PRISMO CMMs –
equipped with VAST sensor technology
and CALYPSO CAD-based software.
VAST sensor technology allows highspeed
multi-point measurement of size,
form, and position; an important factor
when inspecting a wide range of parts.
The key benefits of CALYPSO include
its off-line programming capability and
easy creation of measuring programs.
Almost 7,000 to 9,000 jobs are
processed per month in two metrology
labs. With a standard job consisting
of three components, Bosch inspects
about 1,000 to 7,000 parts. That
kind of volume requires not only quick
Fig 1:
The flange, a common rail component, is part if the high pressure pump, supplying the common rail system with pressurized diesel fuel
turn around time, but also machine
reliability. “The CMMs are essential to
our success,” says Ingensiep. “Certain
production areas rely on CMM data
to adjust their machines. If the data is
incorrect, it would not be noticed until
it hits the assembly line, which would
be too late and could cause production
to shut down. So for me, reliability and
speed are a must.“
Bosch is dedicated to meeting
customer requirements one hundred
percent. But when it comes to
metrology, the customer is not the
driving force. “There is nobody that
has more influence than our internal
customers,” says Ingensiep. “We are
constantly challenged, for example, by
our product development department.
It is not only the accuracy, it is the fact
that the parts are getting smaller and
smaller. We are always pushing the
envelope in all aspects of product design
and therefore each of the CMMs. Our
customers expect a product that works
flawlessly and it is our job to design,
measure and produce it.” For Bosch,
this also implies investing in the latest
technologies.
With several product lines
manufacturing the same products
at different locations world wide,
accurate and correlating part quality is
a priority. Bosch solved this problem by
establishing compatible manufacturing
conditions in each facility. This means
that not only the same measuring
equipment has to be purchased, but
also the same production machines.
Before installing CALYPSO CADbased
software from Carl Zeiss, Bosch’s
in-house programming resources were
limited due to the lengthy process of
learning the programming language.
They had to mostly depend on external
companies to write programs. Because
of their lack of product knowledge,
several iterations were necessary
before programs were ready. This was
not only time consuming, but it also
Innovation SPECIAL Metrology 8, 006

Fig. 2:
For Dietmar Ingensiep, Group Leader of the common rail division, reliability and speed are essential to ensure
an uninterrupted manufacturing process
resulted in high costs driven by an
ever-changing environment requiring
frequent program modifications.
With CALYPSO, programs can now
be written off-line, while the CMMs
continue measuring production parts.
The short learning curve of the software
also allowed Bosch to train several of
their quality personnel within just a
couple of months. By increasing their
on-site knowledge pool, Bosch is now
able to implement software program
modifications immediately, making
parts inspection a more efficient
process.
Annette Smith,
Marketing Carl Zeiss Minneapolis, USA
BOSCH
Robert Bosch Corporation,
part of the Bosch Group
automotive technology business,
manufactures OEM components
for customers such as Ford, GM
and DaimlerChrysler. This includes
anti-lock breaking systems, fuel
injection and diesel injection
systems such as common rail
and unit injector. At their plant
in Charleston, South Carolina,
eight CMMs from Carl Zeiss work
non-stop to keep the production
running.
Innovation SPECIAL Metrology 8, 006 39