Optimized Glass Thickness Measurements
Since 2003, Lumetrics has been at the forefront of glass thickness measurement, partnering with leading glass manufacturers to enhance their glass products, ranging from flat glass, multi-layer glass, glass tubing, ampoules, automotive glass, and more. Our OptiGauge systems — OptiGauge II and OptiGauge II EMS — have become the gold standard in the industry as they provide unparalleled accuracy and reliability across a wide range of glass products.
OptiGauge: Precision Measurement Redefined
The OptiGauge systems employ low-coherence interferometry to measure the thickness of various materials, including glass, plastic, tubing, silicon, and coated metals. They can be used across applications such as float glass, at the cold and hot ends, water class and other multilayer products, and tubing, during the production process and in the lab. It even expands to in-process cell phone and tablet glass slimming measurements.
With the measurement data leading to process improvements, OptiGauge can be used to increase a customer's throughput by over 30%.
OptiGauge - Multi-Layer Thickness Measurement System
| Measurement Method | Low Coherence Interferometry |
| Target Materials | Glass, Plastic, Tubing, Silicon, Coated Metals |
| Maximum # of Layers Measured | 20 |
| Thickness Measurement Range | 12μm to 35mm, depending on the Refractive Index of material |
| Accuracy (Published accuracy at temperature range 20º to 30ºC) |
±0.1μm |
| Repeatability | 0.1μm 1σ |
Applications
- Automotive and Architectural Glass: OptiGauge is used for product development, optical quality confirmation, and troubleshooting lamination issues. It can measure the glass and polymer composite layers in automotive windshields, ensuring the highest quality standards with a simple hand-held measurement probe.
- Float Glass: Real-time, accurate measurements at the hot end of float glass lines are critical for plant efficiency. OptiGauge's rapid setup, easy-to-use interface, and reliable results can help plants save on raw materials and fine-tune their production lines, resulting in significant cost savings.
- Glass Tubing: OptiGauge reduces variability and improves yields in glass tubing production. Whether it is capillary tubing or fluorescent lights, the system tracks wall thickness, ID, OD, concentricity, and other variables, providing rapid real-time adjustments to the process.
- Glass Slimming: Specialized OptiGauge systems monitor hydrofluoric glass slimming operations in real time, streamlining the traditional start-stop process needed for glass measurements and calculations. Studies show that implementing OptiGauge can increase productivity by 30% and reduce operator exposure to caustic environments.
- Glass Ampoules: OptiGauge provides accurate thickness measurements for medical glass tubing for ampoules and other medical tubing. Conventional testing techniques for these often can be destructive and subjective, for example, magnetic current testing, breaking open the ampoules to measure with micrometers, and more. Our systems focus on a range of measurements from incoming inspection of preliminary tubing to measurement after sealing.
- Optics and Glass Flats: OptiGauge can measure optics and glass flats of various sizes and shapes for optics. This capability is essential for ensuring precision and repeatability for various components such as standard optics, custom designs, and multi-lens stacks.
Find out if the OptiGauge II or OptiGauge II EMS is right for your unique application.
OptiGauge systems represent a significant advancement in glass thickness measurement, offering unmatched accuracy, versatility, and efficiency. By leveraging these innovative systems, glass manufacturers can achieve higher throughput, substantial cost savings, and enhanced product quality in many applications.
For more information on how our OptiGauge systems can transform your glass manufacturing process, contact us at sales@lumetrics.com.
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