Here’s a cool tool we just got at work yesterday. While out of the price range for a DIY, or a pro for that matter, maybe someday affordable. It’s used for picking up coordinates (measuring) and creating a CAD file of any 2D or 3D object. It pivots on 6 axis’s, so it can get out of it’s own way. Is completely portable, (made of carbon fiber) Just trace the part by holding the arm in your hand. Accurate to .001″. Paid $50K. Ouch!
Jon
Replies
Oh the toys on some body else's money!!!
Yeah, but I heard we might get free hats.
Jon
Don't take one unless it's forum certified.
Might be a trick.
Can it measure in cubits?
1 cubit = 19.2 inches.
~Peter
a friend of mine in the tool & die trade (you've probably all used some products he's worked on- especially if you ever brush your teeth or take a shower- ok, maybe all of you haven't) has told me about these. he's an old-school, pick up a saw/rasp/file and a block of material, type of pattern and model maker who is constantly at odds with the computer dependent "designers" in the company. if they can't make it on a cad program, they can't make it, period. my friend, on the other hand, works stuff out the old-fashioned way, with a beautiful eye and hand for complex curves which would be virtually impossible to envision, let alone describe, on a computer, then uses a digitizer to reverse engineer his designs into a program for the edm and cnc machines. he's a whiz with that stuff.
m
"a friend of mine in the tool & die trade...he's an old-school...constantly at odds with the computer dependent "designers" in the company. if they can't make it on a cad program, they can't make it, period. my friend, on the other hand, works stuff out the old-fashioned way, with a beautiful eye and hand for complex curves which would be virtually impossible to envision, let alone describe, on a computer, then uses a digitizer to reverse engineer his designs into a program for the edm and cnc machines. he's a whiz with that stuff."
Mitch,
I agree that there is no CAD substitute for interaction with what one is working on and and doing the work by hand. Lots of interaction between the ALL the senses. One of the reasons we bought the digitizer.
But, as anyone who has mastered high end CAD, and done it by hand, CAD (/CAM/CAE) is way, way, way, more efficient from an overall project perspective. Any shape can be designed on it if you know what you are doing.
It is still just a tool though, just like a rasp or a plane. I'm lucky enough to have access to. and know how to use all. So I know which works best when. We USED TO have a lot of people like your friend working at our company. Hope they all found other jobs in other trades.
BTW, here's a link to the company I work for. A pic of me is buried somewhere in it.
http://www.jppattern.com/
"Any shape can be designed on it if you know what you are doing."
well sure, in theory. but in practice try digitally describing with a stylus, mouse and keyboard a 3-d curving crease, which doubles as your mold part line, that fades- with constantly varying radii in 3-d- into a convex and concave, fair curved surface. for example, a hand-held shower head with finger grooves down the sides. what my friend, Dave, can do in a day or two with hand tools and a block of remboard and bondo (and 30 years experience) would take much longer on a computer- and having seen a number of "before and after" models (computer generated prototypes that Dave then worked his magic on), as an artist I can say there's just no comparison in the aesthetics of the end product, either. another problem he runs into on a regular basis is so-called "industrial designers" that don't know jack$hit about tooling and injection molding, so he has a very secure niche in the company altering their designs so that they can actually be produced, in volume, at a reasonable cost (but I digress).
yes, modern industry needs both design practices, but from what I'm hearing from Dave and a few other people, in recent years things were becoming far too computer dependent and are only starting to come back to a happy medium. the capabilities of computers were oversold. the question is- are enough people being trained in the art and skills of handwork to fill those spots?
too bad you're so far away- my company will be having a fair amount of new tooling made in the next year or so for improvements on our product.
m
it's all still totally dependent on the talent, eye and skill of the designer/engineer. the concept of garbage in, garbage out, has not changed.
"another problem he runs into on a regular basis is so-called "industrial designers" that don't know jack$hit about tooling and injection molding, so he has a very secure niche in the company altering their designs.........from what I'm hearing ....in recent years things were becoming far too computer dependent and are only starting to come back to a happy medium. the capabilities of computers were oversold....are enough people being trained in the art and skills of handwork to fill those spots?"
Mitch,
I think the problem is that the old timers for whatever reason, are unwilling/unable to learn the new technology. In a big company there may still be enough work for people like your friend Dave to do. Smaller ones like mine can't afford to keep on full timers like that on the staff that don't know the CAD/CAM/CAE stuff, as it is how 95% of stuff is done.
I'm the oldest person in my company that can do both and I'm 39. I however started in the late seventies before all that, but also had exposure to CAD at an early age. We do still have 2 old timers who do just hand work, but keeping them busy is a chore.
You are correct that often it's quicker/better to do something by hand. Again, one reason we bought the digitizer. You are also correct about having a very secure niche, especially if you know both.
Jon
dave actually does know the cad/cam stuff pretty well (btw- he's only 46 or 47 yrs old, not some old geezer, but started in a high school tech program, then spent a couple years in gunsmithing school where he really learned how to use hand tools. when he is of a mind to, is one of the very finest custom gunmakers on the planet).
i did look around your company's website and i think the biggest difference between your operation and the mega-corp he works for is the product mix. assuming your website is a fair representation of what you guys do, it would appear the vast majority of the work is military and/or industrial, whereas dave works almost exclusively in household consumer items. his work naturally has as its primary focus how something looks to retail customers and feels in their hands, so therefore requires a lot of finish detail shaping. making a shower head or electric toothbrush work is one thing, making it sell is another. on the other hand, while some of the parts shown on your site are unquestionably very demanding from a technical and mechanical standpoint, by the looks of it there's usually not a lot of concern about how smooth and graceful the part of a pump or motor is. in the latter, form must follow function. in the former, form IS pretty much the primary function.
i guess if i was building cars i'd expect most of the engine parts and running gear to be pretty much right off the computer, and stuff like the doorhandles, shift knob, dash board, controls, even body panels, etc, to be "massaged" with some hand finish work in their tooling.
it all fascinates the heck out of me. i can't do anything with a computer, but i can use a file or chisel like concert violinist uses a bow. sometimes my "real job" is hand engraving of rich men's toys, but i've done custom graphite edm electrodes for logos and all kinds of other things over the years. i just love making "stuff" or sometimes just learning how other stuff is made.
m
"dave actually does know the cad/cam stuff pretty well (btw- he's only 46 or 47 yrs old, not some old geezer,"
Mitch,
Our old timers are about that age or just slightly older. There just seems to be a lack for embracing new technology with them. Not to put them down, 'cause they really are great at what they do, but defiantly have difficulty mastering (or even learning) the new stuff. The way things are done now, in the end it all has to wind up one way or the other on a CAD file. Even if, like you pointed out, it has to be "reverse engineered."
You are correct in to noticing we do, do some military contacting. Still no threat from that going to China for us.
Jon
For that much, you oughta be showing it with a Makita-type Babe!
Excellence is its own reward!
Piffin,
What is a... "a Makita-type Babe," Never saw any women in their tool ads. Though maybe it was just me and my bad eyesight, and I was just looking at the tools. LOL
Jon
Found this one even if it is on the other end of the spectrum.