Sensors solutions for increased measuring accuracy and flexibility

BSH Hausgeräte GmbH is one of the world’s leading companies in the home appliances sector. The company’s aim is to improve the quality of life and the consumer is at the center of all of BSH’s developments. In user experience labs set up specifically for this purpose, BSH repeatedly puts prototypes - in all phases of development - and finished products through their paces in real-life conditions.

Driven by the individual needs of customers all over the world, one of the facilities was established in Wroclaw, Poland, in 2015 with the production of cooking and refrigeration/freezing appliances running at full steam from September 2017.

BSH chose Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence as a partner for metrology due to their global presence and proven reliability at other BSH facilities around the world.

BSH production is constantly supported by coordinate measuring machines (CMMs) from Hexagon that were purchased at the very first stage during the setup of a metrology laboratory. One of BSH’s priorities is quality, so the professional metrology lab was set up to include an entrance lock with double door. Together with the lab temperature and humidity control system, this maintains steady state climate conditions to keep measurement variability under control, which in turn allows for production processes to be kept under control. The lab contains machines to measure individual components, assemblies and final products throughout the whole production process.

Wide sensor portfolio for different measurement requirements

One of the reasons BSH chose Hexagon as a supplier was due to the wide sensor portfolio for data collection. The variety of products and different measurement requirements call for a range of sensors from Hexagon that can be used with the CMM’s, including touch trigger probes, a HP-L-10.6 laser scanner, a HP-C-VE vision sensor and others in future.

Laser scanning as flexible measurement solution for various components

The HP-L 10.6T laser scanner is utilised to measure components made of steel and plastic, and of different colours and refl ectivity. Thanks to the Automatic Laser Power Control feature, the laser scanner automatically sets the laser power for each individual point, resulting in the most complete and accurate point cloud possible. The feature to change the laser scanner line width is used not only to adapt to the width of a measured feature but also to help solve assembly issues and to deliver accurate data for reverse engineering by changing the point cloud density when needed. Laser scanning, or digitisation, of the component’s full surface enables automatic geometry and feature extraction that in turn allows for GD&T control checks embedded in the measurement plan. Controlling and ensuring the quality of each component within an assembly guarantees that they will work kinematically as designed.

Instant access to all measurement data for various departments thanks to Q-DAS statistical analysis software

BSH factory measurement strategies call for the use of jigs and fixtures to control and maintain the component alignment. The factory is equipped with user-controlled automatic storage facilities that hold the jigs and fixtures dedicated to the particular part and measurement required. PC-DMIS is the world’s most popular dimensional metrology software and is able to control and interface with all the sensor technologies required for the particular measurement task. All the measurement data is stored and managed within Q-DAS statistical analysis software from Hexagon. Q-DAS ensures all the different company departments have instant access to the measurement data they need. This ‘digital thread’ eliminates paper report, helping save time, resources, and ultimately the environment.