Pinpoint Laser News

Happy New Year!

The newest edition of Straight to the Point is here. If you are interested in receiving a copy, please do not hesitate to contact our editor, Cindy Lord, at clord@pinlaser.com. She will be happy to send you a copy.

Manufacturing equipment often has rotating parts that support and guide tooling or the work piece itself. Alignment of this equipment and particularly machines with opposing spindles is important to their accurate and efficient operation.

A lathe with its chuck, tool holder, and tailstock is a prime example of a machine that operates best when all moving parts are for tight alignment. Pinpoint Laser Systems’ alignment equipment is a fast and convenient way to align spindles and lathes. The Microgage Spindle Alignment Kit combines the precision and versatility of the Laser Microgage with fixturing and computer interface to diagnose and align spindles, lathes, tool holders, chucks, tailstocks, and other precision rotating machinery. Measurements of concentricity, offsets, parallelism and other parameters can be made over distances of a few inches to 80 feet!

Spindle Alignment works by placing a Cylindrical Microgage Laser into the chuck or spindle and the laser’s beam projects outward along the rotating centerline. A Microgage Receiver is secured into an opposing spindle or to a tool holder and receives the light coming from the laser. As the chuck or spindle is turned and the tool holder moved the relative position of the laser beam to the Microgage receiver will move if misalignments are present. The receiver is connected to a handheld Microgage Display and precise readings of 0.0001 inch or less are given as parts of the machine are turned or moved. Readings are recorded manually or with a laptop running Pinpoint’s Capture Software.

Spindle alignment software computes runout, concentricity errors, offsets, parallelism errors, and other valuable information needed to bring machinery back into optimal alignment.

For more information on the Microgage Spindle Alignment kit, please contact Pinpoint.

For over a decade, Pinpoint has been working with customers to solve roll and web alignment problems. Out of this effort we have developed and refined a line of laser alignment products that provide a precise and efficient means of checking machinery. These products are easy to set up and simple to use by plant or production personnel, right on their own factory floor. Much of the guesswork and subjectivity of traditional alignment techniques are eliminated because the Laser Microgage now delivers precise, quantitative data to correct machinery flaws. Many manufacturing facilities operate equipment that contains rollers, idlers, press drums, and web handling systems. Material passes over and around these rollers for coating, forming, cutting, laminating, and other processes. The alignment of these rolls and web systems are important for the increased efficiency operation of this equipment, as well as to improve productivity and reduce production downtime.

An example is a laminating system in which a substrate such as pliable plastic or metallic foil is treated, coated, and dried as it passes through a complex system of rollers on the process line. If the rolls and idlers that transport this material are misaligned, the material will not track properly and wander off the machine resulting in downtime and wasted material. Some plastic materials are highly compliant and will spring back; however, other materials such as copper foil, Kevlar films, and metalized substrates are less forgiving, and if stretched across misaligned rollers may be permanently deformed and will not regain their original or intended shape. For these reasons, the alignment of roll systems is very important and a laser alignment system is an ideal tool for this task.

Roll alignment has two basic components: roll straightness and parallelism in both the vertical and horizontal directions. Straightness is simply a measure of each individual roll in a system to see if it is worn, damaged, sagging, or deflecting under its own weight.

Checking roll parallelism in the vertical orientation can be done by either of two methods: laser leveling or adjustment with a machinist’s level. Pinpoint offers solutions for both of these approaches.

This roll alignment tool is simply placed on top of a roller and an adjustment made by turning a small knurled knob to zero the device. A digital micrometer displays the leveling error to a precision of 0.001 inch and this tool can be used for comparing or repositioning rolls in the vertical orientation.

The Pinpoint Roll Adjuster is easy and precise to use in all roll alignment projects.

Roll position in the horizontal plane is equally important and the Laser Microgage is combined with the 90-Line beam bender. The 90-Line forms a precise right angle laser beam and this new reference beam can be swung through a full circle to locate and measure the position of rollers in a production system. Measurements at each roller’s end are taken and the difference between these readings is calculated to map the position of every roller in the horizontal plane. If rollers need adjustment, the Microgage system can be used in place to monitor the adjustment and verify that the new roll position is correct.

The Laser Microgage is an ideal way to make quick, precise and quantitative measurements over a large machine with many rollers. With minimal practice, the laser measuring and alignment process becomes very quick, allowing plant personnel to optimize their roll and web systems on a regular basis and ultimately reduce machine wear, breakdowns, and lost production time.

For more information on roll and web alignment, please contact our engineering group

At the beginning of Mory Creighton’s career he noticed that a lot of manufacturing companies were experiencing costly downtime due to machinery being out of alignment. With that thought in mind, he founded Pinpoint Laser Systems®, Inc., in 1992.

Pinpoint has grown steadily and has become a leading manufacturer of precision laser measuring and alignment products for many industries. Our innovative products — found in factories throughout the United States and all over the world — help companies improve manufacturing efficiency, reduce downtime, and increase profitability. Since 1992 Pinpoint has offered a broad line of easy-to-use products that incorporate lasers, optics, electronics, and solidly built mechanical features. Customers in industries as diverse as semiconductors and pet food use these products for both routine and complex measuring and alignment tasks. Our patented products deliver measuring resolution of 0.0001 inch and work over ranges of 100 feet to provide accurate information on machinery straightness, linearity, flatness, parallelism, squareness, bore alignment, and much more. Pinpoint’s measuring equipment is actively used in the aerospace industry, in machine shops, paper and steel mills, shipbuilding facilities, extrusion plants, and electronic assembly facilities. We have also developed a number of specialized alignment systems for robotic applications, medical scanning devices, and other applications.

Our headquarters and state-of-the-art manufacturing facility are located in Newburyport, Massachusetts. The company’s dedicated staff provides a wealth of experience in system design, mechanics, optics, electronics, software development, manufacturing, product testing, and system support. In addition, the company maintains close ties to many local companies and resources in the technology-rich Route 128 and I-495 eastern Massachusetts region.