PRESS RELEASE - Volume Graphics

PRESS RELEASE
NEw VERSioN 2.2 of thE Ct ANALySiS SoftwARE VGStudio MAX
Heidelberg, 04. April 2011. At the Control 2011 show in May in Stuttgart, Volume Graphics will be presenting the new
features of the upcoming Version 2.2 of its CT Analysis Software VGStudio MAX (hall 3, booth 3232). Among the most
important enhancement will be the possibility to import CAD files, to analyze the orientation of fibers, an ‘unroll’ function
for curved structures and the classical pore analysis for castings according to VDG P201. Further optimizations
have been implemented to improve performance and ease of use.
VGStudio MAX 2.2 will be bringing actual and nominal data even closer together: The new version of the analysis software for
industrial computer tomography will support the direct importation of CAD models in STEP and IGES format. This will not only
increase the accuracy of actual/nominal comparisons since the calculation is no longer based on STL but on original CAD data,
but it will also simplify the analysis of complex parts consisting of several components. Possible applications are injection-molded
parts with inserts made of different types of plastic, rubber or metals, or assembled equipment or instruments.
Whenever CT data sets of such objects are to be analyzed metrologically, the various components have to be separated. In the
past, this required a lot of manual work, depending on the complexity of the assembly. Now the imported CAD data tells VGStudio
MAX in advance where the material borders or object edges are. The software uses this data to find the borders and edges within
the voxel data set. The analysis of CT models is, of course, always done on the basis of the actual scan data.
The benefit to the user are enormous time savings. Now he will have access to options for fully or semi-automatic separation of the
object components. As Christof Reinhart, CEO of Volume Graphics, says: “CAD importing of STEP and IGES files will be included
in the basic Version 2.2. license of VGStudio MAX, with no further costs to the user for this functionality.”
Making fiber orientations visible
Fiber composite materials (CFRP, GRP) are on the advance. What is true for other plastics is true for them too: they are ideally
suited for analysis by computer tomography because they are easily penetrated by x-rays. The main areas of application are the
aerospace industry, vehicle manufacturing and sports equipment production. Fiber orientation analysis may also be used for the
examination of textures, even down to individual threads in the textiles industry. The orientation of fibers is a decisive factor for the
properties of a product. Their examination is thus one of the tasks that is becoming more and more important for quality testing
laboratories.
A new tool in VGStudio MAX provides statistical analyses about the main orientation of the fibers. To achieve this, the software
looks deeply into the object. Even in datasets containing fibers which can no longer be resolved, due to factors such as the size of
the part and the fiber thickness, the main orientation can still be detected. VGStudio MAX is able to differentiate the low contrasts
within the grey value profile and use these to determine the fiber orientations.
VoLuME GRAPhiCS GMbh Wieblinger Weg 92a | 69123 Heidelberg | Phone: +49 (0) 6221 73920-60 | Fax: +49 (0) 6221 73920-88 | www.volumegraphics.com

The fiber orientation analysis available with VGStudio MAX 2.2 is a response to the increasing use of fiber composite materials.
‘Unrolling’ of curved objects
When analyzing objects which are curved in the widest sense of the word, customers often wish to ‘unroll’ the part into a plane
along a line. Background: This enables the user to display 2D slice images at right angle to the unrolling direction and then scroll
through the object. In this way you can, for example, examine the contact of thread flanks. Another example is the examination
of tire profiles (see figure).
This method also works for deformed or distorted parts where it is important to straighten rather than unroll them. A possible
application may be printed circuit boards in the electronics industry. A planar representation of the circuit paths is required for
examination. The software allows the deformations to be ‘corrected’ on screen to achieve a plane. The unrolled or straightened
part can then be conveniently displayed in a separate window of the workspace.
VGStudio MAX 2.2 allows sections curved in the widest sense of the word to be ‘unrolled’ into a plane. The image shows a violet circumferential section
of a tire profile and the unrolled image.
VoLuME GRAPhiCS GMbh Wieblinger Weg 92a | 69123 Heidelberg | Phone: +49 (0) 6221 73920-60 | Fax: +49 (0) 6221 73920-88 | www.volumegraphics.com

Classical pore analysis according to VDG P201
Following numerous requests from our customers, VGStudio MAX 2.2 will support examinations according to VDG Specification
P201. Volume Graphics has transposed the classical procedure, based on real sections of parts and microscopic examination as
described in this specification, into its software. Part of the process is, for example, the fitting of reference planes into the section
of a part or the classification of different defects. “We are using a complicated 2D algorithm which is able to handle sub-voxels for
the analysis and thus achieves very precise results”, states Christof Reinhart. “We are getting very close to the classical methods
with this: voxel-based and microscopic analyses are getting more comparable.”
A new tool in VGStudio MAX 2.2 provides porosity analyses according to VDG P201.
Higher performance and easier use
Last but not least a number of improvements of smaller details will be providing some extra performance and improved handling,
for example within the Coordinate Measurement add-on module.
One fundamental enhancement is the introduction of a more efficient data structure, reducing the memory consumption of the
software. This is an advantage for users with lower performance PCs who want to display the datasets using our viewer but who
do not want to perform their own analyses. This group often uses only standard PCs which quickly reach their limit when having
to handle large amounts of data.
High-end software made in Germany
Volume Graphics develops software for the processing of voxel data (voxel = three-dimensional pixel). The company was founded
14 years ago and today has 34 employees. The development projects of the early years have led to the development of the software
product VGStudio MAX, the leading analysis software in the area of computed tomography. The application kernel used can
handle data from the worlds of CT and CAD. Further information: www.volumegraphics.com
VoLuME GRAPhiCS GMbh Wieblinger Weg 92a | 69123 Heidelberg | Phone: +49 (0) 6221 73920-60 | Fax: +49 (0) 6221 73920-88 | www.volumegraphics.com