Scansonic TH6 THxDView Manual en
Scansonic TH6 THxDView Manual en
Scansonic TH6 THxDView Manual en
Notice The contents of this manual may be changed in response to changes in the
product. This shall not result in a disclosure requirement on behalf of
Scansonic MI GmbH.
Reproduction and The contents of this manual are protected by copyright. It may only be
copyright applied for the use of the product. This manual may not be reproduced by
anyone, distributed, or modified in any way without the express written
consent of Scansonic MI GmbH.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 5
8.3 Specification of parameters ..........................................................63
8.3.1 Profiles ......................................................................................63
8.3.2 System ......................................................................................64
8.4 Information area .........................................................................67
8.4.1 Measurements ............................................................................67
8.4.2 Sketch .......................................................................................68
8.5 Reports area ...............................................................................69
8.6 System State ..............................................................................70
6 TH6_THxDView_Manual
1. About this document
Both manuals
- (TH6D and TH6i – Tracking Head 6 Dimensions and
- THxDView – Graphical user interface for the TH6 system)
are parts of the technical documentation for the TH6 systems.
IMPORTANT All the functions and instructions described in this manual (TH6D
and TH6i Tracking Head 6 Dimensions) are also valid for the
THxDView manual.
This is especially true for the safety instructions in the TH6D and
TH6i - Tracking Head 6 Dimensions manual (listed in Chapter 1).
TH6_THxDView_Manual 7
8 TH6_THxDView_Manual
2. Installing THxDView
2.1 System requirements
Notice A local Java application is installed with the software. This Java
application will also be removed if you uninstall THxDView.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 9
2.3 Installing THxDView
Figure 1
Figure 2
10 TH6_THxDView_Manual
4. Click on Next to continue with the installation.
Figure 3
Figure 4
TH6_THxDView_Manual 11
Click on Install to continue the installation under the pre-
selected target directory.
Figure 5
Figure 6
12 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
Procedure for the system start The procedure for initial commissioning or re-commissioning after
(using the TH6i system as an process interruption is described here.
example)
12. Use the on/off switch to switch on the TH6i embedded PC.
The initialization may take several seconds.
The embedded PC is ready for operations when the on/off switch
is illuminated blue.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 13
Set up and operations
ss
2 1
Figure 7
14. From the top menu bar (1) in THxDView, select the connection
to a TH6i sensor in the network. Previously used connections are
restored automatically by the system.
15. Login with the User access option (2) on the menu bar.
The required password for logging in is listed in a Technical
Information document, which is part of the documentation.
17. Align the sensor head: the nominal gap to the sheet is approx.
150 mm.
14 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
18. Align the sensor head using the Sensor Image Evaluation
window. The middle line of the three measurement lines should
be on the displayed auxiliary line (4). In this first step, the
lateral alignment should be selected so that the projected lines
are in the centre and the ends of the lines have the same
5 distance to the image border. Later (after successful seam
detection), the sensor position should be corrected so that a
4
recognized or defined seam point is positioned in the middle of
the image field (see marking lines at the top and bottom of the
image border (5)).
Figure 8
Figure 9
TH6_THxDView_Manual 15
Set up and operations
23. Carry out a measurement. Based on the raw image data and the
image data evaluation, decide whether the configured camera
settings lead to an optimal evaluation.
Figure 10
16 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
28. Press Enter to apply the individual seam pattern settings. You
can also save the settings as a profile.
Figure 11
31. Press Enter to apply the calibration settings. You can also save
the settings as a profile.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 17
Set up and operations
Figure 12
35. After you have saved the parameter settings to profiles, you can
combine these profiles into a single job by selecting the System
/ Job List tab. These functions are described in detail in section
3.2.9.
This completes the TH6i system's configuration. You may now start
measuring.
18 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
Comparing the network In THxDView, the TH6 systems are managed via their serial
settings numbers and IP addresses. This allows a comparison with the
network settings of the operator PC.
Figure 13
TH6_THxDView_Manual 19
Set up and operations
Figure 14
20 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
Establishing a system After adjusting the network settings of the operator PC, the
connection manually connection can be established to the TH6 system.
Select the desired TH6 system from the Select System menu
(1).
Figure 15
Automatic system connection You can configure THxDView so that, after a system restart, it
automatically connects using the most recently used TH6 system
connection. You must be logged in with the access level Service
(refer to section 3.2.2).
Figure 16
TH6_THxDView_Manual 21
Set up and operations
Figure 17
22 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
The Login menu can be used to log in and to change the access
level.
1
2
Figure 18
Failed user logins An error message will be displayed if you enter a wrong password.
The password can be re-entered.
Cancelling the user login The login process can be aborted at any time from the login
window.
Changing users The active user can log out using the User / Logout menu option. A
new user can then log in as described above.
Changing the access level The access level is changed similarly to the user login process. A
password is required only when changing to an access level with
higher privileges.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 23
Set up and operations
Select the menu language for the graphical user interface from
the Extras / Language menu option.
Figure 19
The default operating mode when starting the TH6 system is the
automatic mode.
The setup mode must be selected in order to change settings and
parameters.
24 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
Figure 20
1. Move the tool (e.g. torch, laser processing head) to the desired
working position.
2. Align the TH6 sensor head so that the distance in the Z direction
is 150 mm to the butt of the workpiece edges.
3. Position the TH6 sensor head so that the butt of the workpiece is
centred in the sensor image (1).
At the same time, the middle line from the three laser lines
should be close to the horizontal white line (2).
1
4. Correctly adjust the position of the TH6 sensor head so that it
outputs a sensor image similar to the one displayed in Figure
21.
2
This figure shows the example of a V-seam with the optimum
sensor position.
Figure 21
TH6_THxDView_Manual 25
Set up and operations
Figure 22
The Exposure time parameter setting is only available for the TH6i
sensor system. This parameter sets the exposure time of the grey-
image camera.
26 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
The basic structure of THxDView software is the same for all TH6
systems. The THxDView user interface for the TH6i system has
several different parameters compared to the TH6 version (refer to
section 3.2.8).
Figure 23
NOTICE Pay attention to the status bar (1) positioned over the tabs as you
are changing these parameters. The status bar shows important
information (e.g. the value range) about the currently selected
parameter (2).
Categories that include unsaved parameters are marked with an *
(3).
TH6_THxDView_Manual 27
Set up and operations
Specifying and setting Depending on the type of the input field, the parameter can be:
parameters - Selected from a drop-down box
- Enabled or disabled by checking or de-selecting a control box
- Specified with a value.
Each value that you input is only applied after you press Enter. Then
the value is transmitted to the TH6 embedded PC.
Figure 24
28 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
1 2
Figure 25
Profile: Butt joint (template) This is the template used for seam tracking on a butt joint without a
gap. Graphical guidance is provided under the Sketch tab.
Profile: Butt joint with gap This is the template used for seam tracking on a butt joint with a
(template) gap. Graphical guidance is provided under the Sketch tab.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 29
Set up and operations
Grey Peak Tolerance Level This parameter determines the sensitivity of the camera when
detecting the joint edge.
This setting depends on the surface finish and light reflection of the
workpiece.
At a very high sensitivity (level 3), the camera detects material
impurities in addition to the joint edge. These are then also
evaluated.
This parameter should be configured together with the Grey Peak P2L
Tolerance parameter. The optimal parameter setting must be
determined through testing.
The recommended procedure for tuning parameters is described in
the Grey Peak P2L Tolerance section.
Grey Peak P2L Tolerance
This parameter determines which of the detected lines are used for
evaluation when detecting the butt joint.
- Automatic level 0:
Only the strongest, clearest lines (ideally only the butt joint
itself) are evaluated.
- Automatic level 4:
Weak, indistinct lines are also evaluated.
- Fully Automatic:
The TH6i system selects the optimum settings.
This parameter should be configured together with the Grey Peak
Tolerance Level parameter.
Search area This parameter should be enabled initially (box should be checked).
Then, the area of the camera image to be used for the evaluation
can be defined. The image area of the THxDView software will then
show the defined search area as a frame.
30 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
Profile definition Multiple parameters are available for configuring your TH6 system.
These parameters are classified in four categories (Figure 26 /1):
- Weld Shape
- Camera
- Calibration
- Process Control.
In each of these categories, you can set the associated parameters
and save them as a profile.
Profile template definition There are standard profile templates available in the THxDView
software (Figure 26/1). Each of these templates contains specific
parameter fields.
For example, there is the weld (seam) shape (Figure 26). The
template for a seam shape contains settings for all the necessary
parameters.
The profile templates (2) cannot be assigned to a job.
Figure 26
Job definition A job is composed of four user-created profiles. These four profiles
correspond to the four categories mentioned above.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 31
Set up and operations
Creating a profile
1
3
2
Figure 27
s 1. In the Profiles tab, select a Category (1) (e.g. Weld shape) for
which you will specify parameters.
2. From the Profile drop-down box (2), select a template (in this
example, the butt joint (template)).
3. Enter the parameters according to your process requirements.
4. Click on the Save icon (3) to save your profile (3). The prompt
for a profile name then opens.
Figure 28
32 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
Figure 29
The saved profiles are then incorporated in the Profile drop-down list
in the appropriate category.
Figure 30
TH6_THxDView_Manual 33
Set up and operations
Jobs from profiles The saved profiles can be combined into jobs. All saved jobs are
listed in the System tab in a job list. If needed, a job can be
selected from this list and run.
Figure 31
The job name is specified by the user. The system assigns a unique
number to each job to which it is saved on the TH6 embedded PC.
For the automated processing, the machine controller invokes the
desired job using the job number. This job is then loaded to the TH6
embedded PC and executed. The job can be changed by the
machine controller during an active measurement.
Creating a job The Job list (in the System tab) is used to create jobs (Figure 32).
IMPORTANT Make sure that you remember to save your jobs. Jobs that are not
saved will be lost if the TH6 system restarts or if there is a power
outage.
A job must always contain four profiles (one from each category) or
it cannot be saved.
34 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Set up and operations
3 4
1
Figure 32
TH6_THxDView_Manual 35
Set up and operations
Figure 33
The job selected for your processing work is shown in the System
State section.
Figure 34
Changing a job The job name and selected profiles can be changed from the job
list.
1. Click on the job that you want to change.
2. Make the necessary changes.
3. Save your changes.
36 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Backing up and restoring data
Backing up your data You should back up the data on your TH6D system routinely so
that it can be recovered in the event of data loss.
Make sure that the backup is not interrupted (do not switch off
the PC or pull out the USB flash drive during the backup).
Restoring the data The following conditions are necessary to ensure that your data can
be properly restored:
4. The data must be restored onto the TH6D embedded PC using
the same operating system as used during the backup.
5. The restoration of data using the operator PC must run under
the same Josy software version as used for the backup.
6. The system automatically restarts when the data restore is
complete. This restart must not be circumvented or aborted.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 37
Backing up and restoring data
Backing up data with Open the menu option: Extras > Backup
THxDView
Figure 35
Specify the location and file name of the backup file and confirm by
pressing Save.
Figure 36
38 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Backing up and restoring data
IMPORTANT Read Chapter 4.1 Important notice to ensure that the data
restore functions smoothly.
Pay attention to any THxDView error messages displayed during
the file restore process (e.g. Figure 37).
Figure 37
TH6_THxDView_Manual 39
Backing up and restoring data
Figure 38
40 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Backing up and restoring data
Restoring the data 1. Open the menu option: Extras > Restore.
2. The data (profiles) which can be restored are displayed. Select the
desired Profile.
Figure 39
Figure 40
TH6_THxDView_Manual 41
Backing up and restoring data
Each TH6D embedded PC that is being used can save a backup file
onto a USB flash drive.
This backup is carried out automatically as soon as a USB flash
drive is inserted into any USB port. A rising double tone signals the
start of the backup process; a descending double tone then signals
the completion of the backup.
A scansonic directory is created for the data backup on the USB
flash drive. A sub-directory is created in this directory with a name
such as USBLOG_20140908_121620. The name of this sub-
directory indicates the day and the time of the backup: e.g.
08.09.2014 at 12:16:20. Thus, the backup indicates to the precise
second when it was created.
Figure 41
To restore from a USB flash drive, the data must first be copied to
the operator PC's hard drive. The USB transfer rate (when copying
from the USB drive to the file system on the TH6D embedded PC)
may be too slow.
Only USB 3.0 would provide a sufficiently fast data transfer rate.
The USB ports on the current TH6D embedded PC (EPC 1) do not
support USB 3.0.
42 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Backing up and restoring data
Figure 42
A created profile can be saved to the local hard drive and loaded on
demand on a different system.
Two files – a profile file and a log file (refer to Figure 43) – are
always created by the backup saving process. Only the profile file
can be used for restoring or transferring to another TH6D embedded
PC.
profile file
log file
Figure 43
TH6_THxDView_Manual 43
Backing up and restoring data
Backing up the profile Access level User or higher allows you to save profiles.
Figure 44
Figure 45
44 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Backing up and restoring data
Loading a profile For the User access level, only the profiles of the same, local TH6D
embedded PC and the local software version can be restored.
Otherwise, the error message EPC not the same is displayed and
the profile will not be loaded.
The Service and Administrator access levels do not have this
restriction. The profile can be loaded after you acknowledge an alert
message.
The Report section of the window confirms that the profile has been
loaded successfully (2).
Figure 46
TH6_THxDView_Manual 45
Entering commands in THxDView
Entering commands Open the input window with the menu option: Extras > EPC
Info.
Figure 47
TH6_THxDView_Manual 47
Errors, warnings, and information
TH6_THxDView_Manual 49
Errors, warnings, and information
50 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Errors, warnings, and information
TH6_THxDView_Manual 51
Errors, warnings, and information
52 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Errors, warnings, and information
TH6_THxDView_Manual 53
Switching off the system – ending operations
3. Use the on/off switch to switch off the TH6 embedded PC.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 55
Description of the THxDView user interface
2 3 4
5 6
7 8
Figure 49
TH6_THxDView_Manual 57
Description of the THxDView user interface
Menu bar (1) The main menu options are shown here (e.g. user login or
establishing a connection).
Image section (2) The display mode can be changed in this section of the window.
The display of Raw data shows the results from the preliminary
evaluation of both cameras.
The Evaluation tab shows the results of the analysed raw data.
Specification of parameters (3) The main tabs Profiles and System are located in this section.
In the Profiles tab, parameters for configuring seam detection are
specified in four profiles.
In the System tab, parameters concerning the overall system can
be specified (e.g. the selection of the machine interface).
Information area (4) The Measurements (as shown in the screen shot) or helpful
Sketches for individual parameters can be displayed.
Above: The graphics help for the selected template (Profile field,
with the Butt joint template shown here).
Figure 50
Report area (5) Events, errors and warnings are issued in this section of the
window.
System State area (6) The status of the TH6 system is displayed in this area (e.g.
connection status and selected job).
58 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Description of the THxDView user interface
Figure 51:
Figure 52
Login The user must log in before working with THxDView. There are
various access levels with different access rights. A password is
required.
Help The Help menu option allows you to view the system's help
information.
Select system The Select system option allows you to manage the sensor systems,
and to connect or disconnect to a TH6 system. If multiple TH6
systems are visible on the network, they will be displayed here. It is
not possible to connect THxDView simultaneously with multiple TH6
systems.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 59
Description of the THxDView user interface
Figure 53
The display of the raw data shows the camera images after a pre-
evaluation. For the TH6i system, the recorded images from both
cameras are used for this pre-evaluation.
The white lines indicate the edges of the workpiece. The yellow dots
indicate where a seam has been detected (seam point = SP).
The measuring lines are projected from the TH6 sensor head out
towards the camera's field of view. Since the camera in the TH6
sensor head is protected against extraneous light by a narrow-band
optical filter, only those areas of the workpiece surface which are
illuminated by the measuring lines are visible.
The coordinates for the Raw data sensor image are defined as
follows:
- ΔX = gap between the laser lines
- ΔY = direction lateral to x
- ΔZ = height
60 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Description of the THxDView user interface
SP
+z
-z
+y -y
Figure 54
The Evaluation tab shows the results of the analysed raw data. This
information helps the user to position the sensor head at the butt
joint (lateral and vertical position).
Figure 55:
The measurement is not active. The measuring lines captured by
the camera are displayed in red.
Figure 55
TH6_THxDView_Manual 61
Description of the THxDView user interface
Figure 56
Figure 57
62 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Description of the THxDView user interface
In this area, all the parameters for optimum seam detection are set.
The following tabs are available:
- Profiles
- System
Figure 58
8.3.1 Profiles
Figure 59
Weld Shape THxDView has various templates for different weld shapes (seam
patterns) in the Weld Shape category. The user can select a
template that matches their particular application. The parameter
settings for the selected template can then be used to create the
customer-specific seam pattern profile. This profile can then be
saved.
Weld shape templates Pre-defined weld shape profiles are marked with the word Template
in their profile names. Saved customized profiles contain the name
of the template on which they were based.
Seam pattern (weld shape) templates cannot be changed. After the
system is restarted, any specified parameters are reset to their
default values.
Camera The Camera tab allows you to select a template which contains
specific parameters for configuring the camera imaging in the TH6
sensor head. It is also possible to create custom profiles by
changing the parameters in the existing templates.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 63
Description of the THxDView user interface
Calibration The position of the sensor in relation to the tool is specified in the
Calibration tab. The calibration is important for calculating the
correct values for the look-ahead compensation.
The actual calibration procedure is dependent on the machine
interface. Due to the large number of possible machine interfaces, a
precise description of the calibration is not part of this
documentation.
Process Control The Process Control tab allows you to select a template which
contains specific parameters for the machine-dependent process
control of the TH6 sensor head. By changing the parameters in the
pre-designed templates, it is also possible to create custom profiles.
The parameters and parameter functions in the Process Control tab
depend on the selected machine interface.
8.3.2 System
Figure 60
Job List In the Job List tab, the saved profiles can be grouped into jobs. A
job must always have four profiles (one from each category).
These are then saved on the TH6 embedded PC. The required job is
retrieved by the facility controller. This is achieved using the job
number assigned by the sequence program.
64 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Description of the THxDView user interface
Figure 61
Machine Interface
The Machine Interface tab is used to select which machine interface
is connected to the TH6 system. This selection must be specified
because each interface provides different machine-dependent
parameters.
Figure 62
TH6_THxDView_Manual 65
Description of the THxDView user interface
Configuration In the Configuration tab, settings for the Sensor Image Evaluation
can be configured.
- When dealing with strong process lighting or other disturbances,
the problematic image areas can be hidden by limiting the
camera image. The image boundaries (min, max) are specified
by entering the corresponding pixel coordinates for the image
width (x) and image height (y). Any image contents not within
the specified range are not considered by the evaluation
algorithm and do not appear in the Evaluation image area.
Figure 63
Figure 64
66 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Description of the THxDView user interface
Figure 65
8.4.1 Measurements
Figure 66
TH6_THxDView_Manual 67
Description of the THxDView user interface
8.4.2 Sketch
Figure 67
68 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Description of the THxDView user interface
Figure 68
Figure 69
Events / Information
Figure 70
TH6_THxDView_Manual 69
Description of the THxDView user interface
Figure 71
Connection
The colour changes and status information are shown below this
button, depending on the system's connection state.
Figures 72
- Connection successful
- Displays the connected TH6 embedded PC
Operating mode
The colour and words under the button indicate the operating mode.
Figure 73
Automatic mode
- By default, automatic mode is enabled when THxDView is
started up.
- Operations are carried out automatically by the facility
controller.
70 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Description of the THxDView user interface
Setup Mode
- System parameters are set via THxDView
- System functions and parameters can be changed manually.
- Measurements are displayed within THxDView
Measuring
The colour and words under the button indicate the status of the
measurement.
Figure 74
- Measurement is activated
It is only possible to manually activate/deactivate the measuring
process while in setup mode. The status display also serves as a
button for this function.
TH6_THxDView_Manual 71
Description of the THxDView user interface
Job
The colour and text specify the status of the active job. This status
is visible in automatic mode and setup mode.
Figure 75
- Job is active
- Displays the active job compilation
- Manual mode
72 TH6_THxDView_Manual
Description of the THxDView user interface
TH6_THxDView_Manual 73