Compare Editions/Features

• Instrument Interfaces – Direct data collection of more than 100 different instruments prevent transposition and importing errors. Simultaneous operation of multiple sensors, whether independent, slaved or polled, has been a hallmark of SA since inception.
  
  
• Spatial Transforms – Fitting to nominal data, whether point to point, point to surface or cloud to surface is our forte. Want to mix point based and surface based fitting? Look into relationship fitting. Comparing measurements while moving? Want to animate CAD and see interspatial relationships between components? Consider transformation tracking. Analyzing fits or transforms statically or dynamically is at the very heart of what SA offers.
  
  
• Geometry Comparison, Build, Evaluation and Analysis – Looking for a simple way to report size, position and orientation of features? You’ve found the right tool.
  
  
• Traceability and Uncertainty – Measurements in SA are treated in a very traceable manner as instrument observations. Tracing the calculation of a go/no-go decision back through measurement to CAD comparison, temperature compensation and alignment is enabled by the way data is stored in SA. Additionally, NIST standard testing results and PTB accreditation assure our customers of our attention to detail.
  
  
• Bundling Instrument Observations – Theodolite networks are part of our world, and bundling is spoken here. In addition to classical bundling of 2-D instruments, 3-D instruments can be included in the same bundle, or networks may be bundled separately and then combined, either classically or with advanced capabilities of USMN.
  
  
• Dynamic Reporting – The newest addition to SA’s numerous reporting options, dynamic reporting automatically updates as data is collected, allowing predefinition of reports before taking measurements. Callout views, vector groups, relationships, point groups are just some of the many elements that may be position on the new WYSIWYG report editor.
  
  
• Automation – In addition to guided inspection (no programming required) for Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing, SA also offers a complete automation platform. Programs may be created in SA’s native programming language, Measurement Plan, as well as other languages (such as Microsoft C++, C# and Visual Basic) using the SA Software Developer Kit, SA SDK.
  
  
• SA Unified Spatial Metrology Network (USMN) – Brings answers to your measurement uncertainty issues in an easy to use and understand environment. Many large‐scale measurement processes require more than a single measurement instrument. Examples include commercial airplane production and shipbuilding. These applications necessitate either a combination of various measurement devices or the relocation of a single instrument throughout the measurement volume in order to acquire the necessary data.
  
  Users often combine measurement systems by tying individual measurement systems together based on common reference points, and then assume they are still working within the instruments published uncertainty. Alternatively, many users apply heuristics to determine the uncertainty as they progress along a chain of measurements. These methods provide very poor approximations of uncertainty in all but the most simplistic cases. Even in cases where only a single placement of an instrument is used, its measurements are typically tied in to a reference coordinate system. The uncertainty from this tie‐in process is often ignored.
  
  USMN can provide answers to these questions:
  
  1. What is the uncertainty of my instruments in the real‐world?
  2. What is the effect of uncertainty propagation on the quality of my measurements?
  3. How can I make optimal use of my measurements to minimize uncertainty?
  4. Ok, it’s nice to know the uncertainty of a point, but I’m fitting a sphere. What is the uncertainty of my fit?
  5. What about my hidden point bar?
• SA STD CAD Exchange – allows import and export of standard CAD Formats such as: IGES, STEP, VDA, SAT, etc.
  
  
• SA GDT w/Feature Checking – This feature of SA supports the engineer’s ability to read and implement GD&T design from CAD drawings. The GD&T design gives the measurements relativity, and once those points are known, the data can be arranged. SA allows the technician to encode CAD with annotations indicating curvature, diameter or true position. In SA, you go measure then validate the code’s pass or failure. The feature checks assign and validate measurements, and you can also generate reports. Another feature is that in addition to process flow, manual creation is allowed with imported CAD files that need to be annotated. So it is not only compatible with GD&T notations, a user can create them on files when necessary, making it easier to implement GD&T.
  
  With SA, engineers and mechanical technicians can more easily implement and integrate GD&T into their daily work, using the tools it provides, as well as work on their own customized annotations. GD&T has been around for the past 36 years, and it will continue to change the industry and the way that measurement is conveyed.
  
  
• SA Measurement Plan – Measurement Plan (MP) and Templates form a powerful process control and programming environment for SA users. It allows administrators and users to program or script complex operations for production use. By using SA’s MPs, operators can script repetitive or automated metrology tasks. These plans can vary from simple utilities constructed in just a few minutes to comprehensive inspection plans that provide go/no go type automation and drive other machinery such as robots or CNC machines.
  
  
• SA Relationship Fitting – Relationship optimization is a new type of spatial transformation capability that can be added to SA. Relationship optimization simultaneously best‐fits the distance between objects (e.g., measured points) and known geometric shapes (e.g., points, lines, planes, and surfaces.) The user is able to weight each relationship individually relative to its importance to the part/tool performance requirements.
  
  Summary of Benefits:
  
  1. Improve results over traditional processes.
  2. Reduce the amount of tolerance information vs. the OTP process.
  3. Preparation, Setup, and Flow time are minimized
  4. Using CAD Geometry in Relationships improves part and trend analysis.
  5. Using part tolerances instead of tooling tolerances enables significant cost savings.
• SA Transformation Tracking – Trans‐Track extends SA's metrology integration to support dynamic 6D tracking of assembly components with multiple online measurement instrument technologies. Often in assembly applications, it is necessary to track the position and orientations (i.e., transformation) of one object relative to another in real‐time. Trans‐Track monitors a network of measurement systems inputs against nominal references and uses the delta to guide an assembly process or verify that a final assembly configuration meets the required tolerances. The assembly process is shown in real‐time within SA's graphical environment.
  
  Individual point(s) relationships (or geometries) on the moving object are continuously evaluated relative to other non‐moving objects so that individual sub‐component assembly may be controlled. This is particularly useful for aligning bolt holes, pipe interfaces, and other mating components.
  
  
• SA Reverse Design ‐ provides a complete solution for feature extraction and analysis. By directly coupling the data collection to the surface creation SA's RD feature delivers accurate 3D polygonal models with basic geometric shape creations. Visualize, recreate, and re‐design your critical components for manufacturing and graphical production applications.
  
  
• SA Robot Cal – SpatialAnalyzer Robot Cal refines the robot’s kinematic model by analyzing the differences between commanded end‐effector positions (joint poses) and surveyed actual end‐effector positions.
  
  SA’s calibration module is capable of calibrating any serial manipulator. SA’s Robot Cal allows the user to describe the nominal kinematics of the robot, create its D& H ( Denavit‐Hartenberg ) parameter table, and determine how to map the joint angles from the controller to the D&H angle convention. It measures a series of tool points using SA and any instrument, and stores the robot’s joint angles corresponding to each pose, it then loads the joint data into the SA calibration module, runs the calibration, and applies the modified D&H kinematic values to the robot controller’s kinematic model.
  
  
• SA Pipe Fitting – Spatial Analyzer’s Pipe Fitting Relationships solve difficult pipe fitting, cut and alignment jobs. Optimally setting reference rings on individual components ensures cuts, milling and welding operations are secure and delivers joints within process capabilities. This provides a consistent solution for optimally cutting and orienting sections together. Getting fittings optimally aligned and cut correctly saves critical time and project resources. Pipe Relationships take measurements of the components and the system constraints and return the optimal orientation for each section, coupling, fitting, and reference structure. SA’s core measurement and analysis functionality enables teams to build/validate each component into place. Nominal component locations can be imported from CAD or formed directly from measurements of each component. Each system component is setup independently within an SA Collection. Organizing the system within collections helps keep the process of setting and solving pipe relationships easier to manage.
  
  
• SpatialAnalyzer Software Development Kit‐SDK – The SpatialAnalyzer SDK provides a means by which to write custom applications that utilize Measurement Plan functionality within Visual C++ and VB.Net. Once the SDK engine has been added to the development environment, Measurement Plan steps can be executed within the programming language.