VTube-LASER

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VTube-LASER connects to FARO ScanArms and ROMER Absolute Arms with integrated scanners to measure tube shapes and correct benders.

VTL 2.9 ROMER Plus FARO Arms.png


Quick Links



Partners and Distributors

  • FARO - FARO is a world leader in articulated arms. FARO actively promotes VTube-LASER as a preferred tube fabrication solution with FARO arms.
  • HEXAGON - HEXAGON allows Advanced Tubular to sell HEXAGON ROMER Absolute Arms as part of the VTUBE-iMC system.
  • Horn Machine Tools - HMT Benders and CSM Benders
  • UNISON - All electric benders from the UK
  • SMI- Italian line of Silver benders
  • CRIPPA - Italian benders


Compatibility With Other CAD Packages



Tutorials and Information



BENDERLINK: Linking to Benders for Bender Setup and Corrections



SOLIDWORKS Related


HEXAGON ROMER Absolute Arm Related



VTube-LASER Accessories



Performance



Diagnostics

Setup

How To Use VTube

Qualifying Tube Shapes with VTube-LASER

Diameter Cut Plane Topics


Dual Cylinder Fit Topics


Importing Data


Other "How to Use" Tutorials



VTube Related Program IDs Used for Licensing

PID Program Licensed
354 VTube-STEP
356 VTube-LASER
360 VTube-LASER Programmer


Executive Summary

VTube-LASER uses the laser scanner and/or ball probe to:

Faro edge scanning tube unison.png
  1. Measure tube, pipe, and wire shapes
  2. Qualify the shape or path of the part based on centerline tolerances
  3. Correct bending machines
  4. Reverse-engineer existing parts
  5. Print reports
  6. Quickly import and export tube data from other software
  7. Remove the need for tube fixtures and gauges to qualify parts.


Example VTube-LASER Clients and Applications

Airlines

VTube-LASER is used by British Airways to measure tube from planes for retrofit. See the FARO blog for details of the British Airways application.

VTube-LASER is also used at US-based airlines for the same purpose.

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Aerospace

VTube-LASER is used to inspect tubes for military drones. The tubes are aluminum, titanium, or inconel. Sometimes these tubes are longer than the reach of the arm, so this customer uses the VTube-LASER Leapfrog capability.

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Excavators

VTube-LASER is used to check the hydraulic lines for excavators. The tubes usually have baked-on yellow or black paint.

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Truck Frames

VTube-LASER is used to measure pre-hydroformed truck frames to adjust benders so that the pipe fits into pre-crush presses.

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Truck Fuel and Brake Lines

VTube-LASER is used to measure tube for the large truck industry. This customer replaced a MM5000 measuring center with a FARO-VTube-LASER system to adjust a bank of benders that are connected directly to VTube-LASER.

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Mining

VTube-LASER measures tubes for the mining industry. This customer measures very long large diameter pipe on the shop floor.

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Undersea Oil

VTube-LASER is used to measure tubing that surrounds undersea oil caps with hundreds of hydraulic lines.

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Some Key Features of VTube-LASER

Benefit 1 - Super Quick Project Setup

Other measurement programs are often more generic in their approach to geometry. In order to measure a tube, it is necessary to build up individual elements and create a script for the process.

Because VTube assumes that you will be measuring a tube shape, the project setup is very quick and easy - saving hundreds of steps required in other programs.

Vtube-laser xyz.jpg

Benefit 2 - Built-in Automated Process for Measuring Tubes

You don't have to guess at the order of the steps to measure a tube. When you measure a tube with VTube, the methods for gathering the information and calculating the centerline, intersection points, and bend data are preprogrammed as a series of consistent steps that never change and never have to be scripted.

VTube knows what you should give it, and it will always request that data in order using the Measure a Tube control window.

Vtube-laser measureatube control.png

Benefit 3 - Built in Feedback to Increase Confidence in the Data

VTube-LASER has special procedures that help anticipate the level of confidence you will have in the incoming data. There are series of crosschecks just for measuring tubing, both mathematical and on-screen, that allow users to know if the data is good.

For example, the Cylinder Fit Data window shows the accuracy of the centerline calculated from cylinder points by reporting the X and Y wobble deviations.

Vtube-laser cylinderfitwindow.jpg

Benefit 4 - Built-in Bender Correction

VTube-LASER knows how to correct benders - and has special menus and procedures for doing that well.

See a list of benders for communication

Vtube-laser benderlist.jpg


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