Product News: FARO Technologies, Laser Design Develop Magnaline 240

Companies team up to boost speed and coverage with next-generation scanning technology.

Published: Thursday, May 20, 2010 - 15:24

(FARO Technologies: Minneapolis) -- Laser Design Inc. and FARO Technologies have partnered in developing a next generation scanning technology system, the Magnaline 240. This strategic partnership will allow both companies to bring their combined technologies to a wider base of innovative customers.

The Magnaline 240 combines an extra long 9.5 in. laser line probe with the 8 ft to 12 ft Quantum, Platinum, and Fusion articulated FaroArms for the most versatile 3-D laser scanning system available.

“Laser Design’s lightweight probe has a line length that is more than twice as long as the line length of an average laser probe on the market, making it an excellent choice for high-speed, noncontact 3-D scanning of medium and large objects,” says C. Martin Schuster, president of Laser Design.

The Magnaline 240 is an exceptionally high-performance, portable laser line scanning system with collection speeds starting at 75,000 data points per second. The system utilizes Laser Design’s patented carbon graphite, dual-sensor scanning technology with enhanced specularity performance that improves data quality and reduces the number of scanning passes required by capturing more geometry per pass. The lightweight, shock-resistant probe has no moving components and is not sensitive to changes in temperature, keeping the measurements and the system itself accurately calibrated.

“The Magnaline 240 is the perfect complement to our high accuracy V3 laser scanner,” notes Gary Telling, FARO’s director of product management. “Having the ability to offer the V3 and the Magnaline 240 to our customers allows them to gain rapid surface acquisition combined with extreme probing accuracy. The Magnaline 240 captures area more than twice as fast as other systems. Our customers can now spend less time collecting data and more time acting upon the information gathered.”

FARO Technologies, the world’s single source for a complete line of portable measurement solutions, spent two decades developing and improving the ergonomics, accuracy, and portability of their FaroArm systems. The FaroArm’s reach of up to 12 feet adds functionality to Laser Design’s scanning probe by allowing users to transport the portable scanner right to the part. This is a significant benefit for companies that prefer keeping parts in-house for confidentiality purposes as well as for companies whose parts are too large or too difficult to move, such as those in the automotive and aerospace industries.

Coupling the FaroArm with advanced scanning technology such as Laser Design’s laser line probe, creates a versatile and time-saving laser measurement, inspection, verification, and reverse-engineering solution for diverse industries such as automotive, aerospace, agricultural, mining, and maritime.

“The portable Magnaline 240 system can be moved around from one production area to another to provide timely verification and inspection to the parts being fabricated,” Schuster explains. “The system’s versatility also facilitates reverse engineering of legacy parts for which no CAD models exist, a common issue in many industries.”

About The Author

FARO

FARO develops and markets computer-aided coordinate measurement and imaging devices and software. FARO’s portable equipment permits high-precision 3-D measurement, imaging, and comparison of parts and compound structures within production and quality assurance processes. The devices are used for inspecting components and assemblies, production planning, 3-D documentation, as well as for investigation and reconstruction of accident sites or crime scenes, and to generate digital scans of historic sites. Principal products include the FaroArm, the FARO Laser Tracker ION, FARO Laser ScanArm, FARO Laser Scanner, FARO Gage, and the CAM2 family of advanced CAD-based measurement and reporting software.