Automated Glass Lathes (continued)
The software analyzes all the information recorded during the acquisition, finds correlations between the actions made by the glassblower and the thermographic and dimensional information then automatically generates a production program. Corrections can be made directly in the program to improve the quality or the production speed. Salems said the process provides results within a a few hours for one application.
"As a glassblower works on a manual lathe, he is actually working in closed loop," Sadems said. "He carries out an operation, looks at the effect of this operation on the glass and consequently decides about his next action. The effect analyzed can be linked to the viscosity of the glass or its shape. This method allows the glassblower to adapt to variations in his working environment (dimensions of tubing, flame power) in order to produce the same final result from various working conditions.
"Sadems thermographically controlled lathes are roughly working on the same principle," the company said. "The embedded thermographic camera continuously measures the temperature profile and the dimensions of the working glass at locations defined by the program and adapt the programmed actions according to the result of these measurements. Taking into account that the machine is able to perform these measurement with a far greater accuracy than a glass blower, the final result is also more accurate and repetitive. We can expect tolerances up to ±0.05 mm."