JP2001004412A - Information managing method for measuring apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To manage information concerning to a measuring apparatus easily and accurately by displaying it on the body surface of the measuring apparatus while encoding two-dimensionally. SOLUTION: Registration data 11 includes serial number and code number of a product in addition to calibration data inherent to each dial gauge obtained from a dedicated inspection apparatus. Upon receiving the registration data 11 from a keyboard, or the like, a two-dimensional code generating unit 12 generates two-dimensional code information. Based on the two-dimensional code information, a laser marking drive controller 13 controls driving of a laser marker 14 to write a two-dimensional code 3 on the dial 2 of a dial gauge 1 by means of laser light 15. Since the spot diameter of laser light 15 can be reduced extremely, it can be contained in a limited space, e.g. a margin, of the dial 2. Furthermore, since a plurality of two-dimensional codes can be written on the dial 2 and inspection results can be preserved as a record, quality of a measuring apparatus can be sustained surely.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for managing information of a measuring instrument, and more particularly to management of information including calibration data of a measuring instrument such as a micrometer, a caliper, a dial gauge or a height gauge whose displacement detection method is a mechanical type. About the method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Micrometers, calipers, and the like are devices that precisely measure dimensions such as inner diameter, outer diameter, thickness, depth, and steps.
Measuring instruments such as dial gauges and height gauges are well known, and are mainly used for measuring and inspecting dimensions of machined parts and parts molded with a mold. Measuring instruments that measure these dimensions precisely perform regular inspections once a year to once a month. In particular, special inspection equipment for dial gauges is also available on the market. Using this equipment, calibration data such as wide-range accuracy, narrow-range accuracy, adjacent error, return error, etc., is precisely measured and each time it falls within the standard. It is checked whether it is. If this periodic inspection fails, it will be repaired and adjusted or discarded as appropriate.

[0003]

Conventionally, for a measuring device such as a micrometer, a caliper, a dial gauge or a height gauge, which has a mechanical displacement detection, a dedicated inspection device is provided before a manufacturer ships these products. Inspection was carried out using each of them, and each calibration data was measured. But,
After that, these calibration data were not particularly managed and were used only for pass / fail judgment. Therefore, it is difficult to obtain the calibration data of these measuring devices once shipped from the manufacturer, and if absolutely necessary, the data has to be measured again using a dedicated inspection device.

On the other hand, micrometers, calipers, dial gauges, height gauges, and the like, in which displacement is detected electronically, have become widespread in recent years. In these electronic or digital measuring instruments, the internal electronic circuit has a storage device,
It is possible to store information such as calibration data and the date of the inspection. Therefore, it is relatively easy to manage information on the measuring device including the calibration data and the like. However, such a measurement cannot be performed by a mechanical measuring instrument conventionally used. If special calibration data needs to be recorded, complicated work such as writing in a ledger or the like must be performed.

[0005] As a method of managing information such as calibration data, a method of directly writing such information into the measuring instrument main body or creating a sticker on which the information is printed and attaching it to the measuring instrument main body may be adopted. However, in an environment where it is used by hand or exposed to oil or water, characters may disappear or the seal may be peeled off and lost. On the other hand, it has also been proposed to convert these information into a bar code and attach a printed or printed sticker to the measuring instrument body. However, there is a problem that the amount of information that can be expressed with a barcode is small, and that it is easily peeled off when printed on a sticker and attached to the main body as described above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to maintain and manage the quality of a measuring device by enabling information on the measuring device to be managed easily and reliably.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is characterized in that information relating to a measuring instrument is converted into a two-dimensional code, and the two-dimensional code is displayed on the surface of the main body of the measuring instrument. .

The present invention is characterized in that, in addition to the above-described means, the measuring device is any one of a micrometer, a caliper, a dial gauge, and a height gauge whose displacement detection method is a mechanical type.

[0009] In addition to the above means, the present invention is characterized in that the two-dimensional code is drawn on the surface of the main body of the measuring instrument by laser marking.

The present invention is characterized in that, in addition to the above means, the two-dimensional code includes calibration data of a measuring device.

[0011] Information including calibration data relating to the measuring instrument is converted into a two-dimensional code such as a QR code, and this information is managed by drawing this two-dimensional code on the surface of the main body of the measuring instrument using a laser marking device. Therefore, it is possible to easily and surely maintain the quality of the measuring device.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In all the drawings, components denoted by the same reference numerals represent the same components. FIG. 1 shows a dial gauge 1 according to the present invention. A two-dimensional code 3 called a QR code, which is commonly used in the industry, is displayed on the dial 2 of the dial gauge. The size of this two-dimensional code is about 3 mm square and is drawn in a black and white pattern. FIG. 2 shows an enlarged view of the two-dimensional code (QR code).

Normally, the dial 2 and the scale 4 in FIG. 1 are made of aluminum, and are coated with a white resin (paint) to improve the visibility of black characters and scales drawn on the surface. When the white resin is peeled off by a laser emitted from a laser marking device, the aluminum surface of the base is exposed, and the intensity of reflected light is different (that is, the contrast is different), so that the aluminum portion looks black.
Therefore, it is possible to draw the scales on the scale plate 4, the characters (including the company name logo, etc.) and the two-dimensional code 3 on the dial plate 2 in a single manufacturing process using a laser marking device. Further, by replacing the material of the dial 2 and the scale plate 4 with, for example, aluminum nitride, it is possible to further enhance the contrast and improve the visibility.

When reading the two-dimensional code 3, an image is first taken by a camera and input to an image processing device.
This image can then be processed and converted to a binary image, and subsequently the image can be read by decoding software to read information. Therefore, in order to accurately read the two-dimensional code without error, it is preferable that the contrast of the image be as high as possible. For this reason, when drawing a two-dimensional code on a non-white base such as a printed circuit board, apply a white paint in advance and then draw it with black paint, or use a two-dimensional code on a white base. Is affixed with a printed sticker.

The dial 2 and the scale 4 of the dial gauge 1 are originally coated with white resin to improve the visibility of the characters and the scale drawn thereon, so that the contrast is improved again. There is an advantage that no special device is required. In addition, since the scale on the scale plate 4 and the two-dimensional code 3 on the dial 2 can be drawn at a time by the laser marking device, it is not necessary to add or reassemble a new setup in the manufacturing process. It can be performed without changing the process as it is. However, the information that can be included in the two-dimensional code 3 in this case is the serial number of the product. Or product code No. Or, it does not include calibration data that is obtained only after the product is completed, such as the date of manufacture.

FIG. 3 shows an inspection device 10 dedicated to a dial gauge.
Is shown. The inspection device 10 includes a displacement detection device 5 and a data processing device 6 for analyzing an output signal of the displacement detection device 5, and can measure calibration data of the dial gauge 1 such as wide range accuracy, narrow range accuracy, adjacent error, return error, and the like. Even in a normal use environment, accuracy gradually deteriorates due to wear and distortion of gears and sliding parts. Therefore, it is indispensable to regularly measure and manage the calibration data of the dial gauge from the viewpoint of maintaining the quality of products such as mechanical parts inspected and measured by the dial gauge.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show error diagrams obtained as a result of inspecting the dial gauge with the inspection device 10. FIG. The horizontal axis indicates the amount of movement of the spindle of the displacement detection device provided with a precision feed screw for pushing and displacing the dial gauge spindle, and the vertical axis indicates the value indicated by the dial gauge needle and the value output by the displacement detection device 5. This shows the difference from Here, this difference is regarded as a measurement error of the dial gauge.

The lower fold line in the error diagram is a value measured while gradually displacing the spindle in the direction of pushing (going line), and the upper fold line is measured while displacing the spindle in the drawing direction. Values (return diagram) are shown. The maximum value of the difference between the forward diagram and the return diagram is generally called a return error. Also, as shown in FIG. 7, the difference between the maximum value and the minimum value of the error in the line diagram is referred to as wide-range accuracy. In addition, as shown in FIG. 8, a narrow range (going) accuracy and a narrow range adjacent error are defined from a going line diagram and a returning line diagram for one rotation or less.

In addition to the calibration data unique to each dial gauge obtained from the above-described inspection apparatus 10, the inspection date, the name of the person in charge of the inspection, and the serial number of the product. , Product code No. Alternatively, the registration data 11 including the date of manufacture is drawn on the dial 2 of the dial gauge 1 in the form of a two-dimensional code 3 using the laser marking device 14. That is, the registration data 11 is input from a keyboard or the like to the two-dimensional code generator 12.
Enter Usually, the two-dimensional code generation device 12 includes a commercially available personal computer and two-dimensional code generation software. Next, the two-dimensional code information is input from the two-dimensional code generation device 12 to the laser marking drive control device 13. This laser marking drive control device 13
The laser marking device 14 is driven and controlled based on the input two-dimensional code information, and the two-dimensional code 3 is drawn on the dial 2 of the dial gauge 1 by the laser beam 15.

The size of the two-dimensional code 3 is not restricted, and the two-dimensional code 3 can be used as long as it is large or small as long as it does not hinder reading. Therefore, when the two-dimensional code 3 is drawn by the laser marking device 14, the spot diameter of the laser beam 15 can be made extremely small, so that drawing can be performed with a size of 3 mm square or less. Therefore, it can be accommodated in a limited space such as the margin of the dial 2. Further, if the size is made sufficiently small, a plurality of two-dimensional codes 3 can be drawn on the dial 2, and the results can be left as a history every time an inspection measurement such as a periodic inspection is performed. Therefore, the quality of the measuring device can be maintained and managed more reliably.

In the above embodiment, the two-dimensional code 3
Is the QR code used in the industry as a standard (see Fig. 2)
However, a two-dimensional code such as a data code, a vericode, or a maxi code standardized in the industry may be used. Further, a plurality of these two-dimensional codes may be used in combination.

The two-dimensional code 3 displayed somewhere on the main body of the measuring instrument is read out at the time of a periodic inspection once a year or once a month, and the calibration data recorded therein and the new periodic data are read. Compare with the calibration data obtained in the inspection. If the accuracy gradually degrades and falls outside the permissible range at each periodic inspection, make repairs and adjustments as appropriate. Or, if it has deteriorated to such an extent that repair adjustment is not effective, dispose of it and replace it with a new one. Also, if the accuracy deteriorates rapidly, it is necessary to check whether there is any problem in the use environment. If the calibration data obtained in the periodic inspection is converted into a two-dimensional code and displayed as a history somewhere on the measuring device body, the quality of the measuring device can be maintained easily and reliably.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and can be modified without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the description has been made only for the dial gauge, but as shown in FIG.
It is also possible to draw the two-dimensional code 3 on the back of one U-shaped frame and on the back of the slider of the caliper 22 shown in FIG.

Alternatively, the quality can be maintained by drawing the two-dimensional code on a measuring reference tool such as a height gauge, a lever type dial gauge, or a block gauge, for example, or other measuring tools. Especially in the case of a block gauge made of white ceramics,
Since the drawing of the dimension value by the laser marking has already been performed, the present invention can be implemented without adding a new setup to the manufacturing process. For example, if information such as flatness, parallelism, and surface roughness of each block gauge is converted into a two-dimensional code and drawn on the surface of the block gauge, it is possible to easily and reliably maintain the quality of the block gauge. .

Further, in the above embodiment, the displacement detection method of the object measuring device has been described as being limited to the mechanical type, but the electronic type, for example, the capacitance type, the photoelectric type, or the like. The present invention can be implemented by a magnetic type, an induction type, and the like. That is, it can be used for a digital micrometer, a digital caliper, a digital dial gauge, a digital height gauge, and the like. That is, similarly to the above-described embodiment, it is also possible to convert the information including the calibration data relating to each of these electronic measuring devices into a two-dimensional code and directly draw the information on the surface of the main body of these measuring devices with a laser marking device. It is also possible to print on a sticker or the like and affix it to a measuring instrument.

[0026]

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily and surely manage information relating to a measuring instrument, and to maintain and manage the quality of the measuring instrument.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a dial gauge embodying the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an embodiment of a two-dimensional code according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an inspection device dedicated to a dial gauge.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a two-dimensional code drawing system.

FIG. 5 is a micrometer embodying the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a vernier caliper embodying the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a graph showing an error diagram of a dial gauge.

FIG. 8 is a graph showing a part of an error diagram of a dial gauge.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Dial gauge 2 Dial 3 2D code 4 Scale plate 5 Displacement detector 6 Data processor 10 Inspection device 11 Registration data 12 2D code generator 13 Laser marking drive controller 14 Laser marking device 15 Laser beam 21 Micrometer 22 Caliper

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Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A method for managing information on a measuring instrument, comprising: converting information on the measuring instrument into a two-dimensional code; and displaying the two-dimensional code on the surface of the main body of the measuring instrument. 2. The information management method according to claim 1, wherein the measuring device is any one of a micrometer, a caliper, a dial gauge, and a height gauge whose displacement detection method is a mechanical type. . 3. The information management method for measuring equipment according to claim 1, wherein the two-dimensional code is drawn on the surface of the main body of the measuring equipment by laser marking. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the two-dimensional code includes calibration data of the measuring device.