Information at our fingertips

Citation

Loughlin, C. (2000), "Information at our fingertips", Sensor Review, Vol. 20 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/sr.2000.08720daa.001

Information at our fingertips

Information at our fingertips

Our theme this month is "Surface inspection and texture", and as with most sensor-related topics I never fail to be surprised by the great variety of techniques and fundamental principles that can be used. This to me is what makes sensor technology so interesting. You may think you know all there is to know about how to measure a particular property, but then someone comes up with a totally fresh approach with its own particular set of advantages and disadvantages. And then someone else will come up with a whole range of applications that were never considered by the original inventor.

In this issue alone we cover visual inspection, magnetic imaging, eddy current sensing, sonic and ultrasonic imaging and Fourier transform optical imaging. Had space permitted we could also have included thermal imaging, electron scanning and a whole host of contact and non-contact stylus-related systems.

Texture is particularly difficult to quantify. Measures of surface roughness just scratch the surface of a host of descriptors that can include statistical height distributions, Fourier transforms and pattern distributions. Texture is already a very important subject and I consider it will only become more so as customers demand the "look and feel" that attracts them. However, texture may have hidden depths that go far beyond the aesthetics and feel good factor of a leatherette finish.

If you can precisely define a texture then you can measure it and use it to distinguish not only between good and bad products, but also between one product and another. Become even more sophisticated and you can do away with barcodes and permanently tag your products with a covert code that does not detract from its appearance.

In this issue we have a fascinating article on DNA tagging (Sleat, pp. 282-6) that describes a technology which is currently restricted to the analytical laboratory, but which may well be developed into an online inspection system. Perhaps the science of surface texture analysis will be developed to the point that it can also be used to identify manufactured components uniquely? Some forms of texture coding have been around for years. For example, many bank notes are deliberately textured with very fine thickness variations as an anti-counterfeiting precaution, and we all carry our own personal identity tag on the tips of our fingers.

Clive Loughlin