In its effort to boost new technologies and as the leader in the international CAD/CAM market, Lantek has developed “Touch&Play” a Lantek Inside module encompassing more than 35 years of experience from Lantek in the sheet metal processing industry and new augmented reality technologies.
Although Lantek Inside is not a new product, Lantek has been working on it for over 4 years and offers machinery manufacturers a software solution to include in their controls, with significant advantages, among which are the ability to edit machined parts right at the machine, generate newly machined parts, add or remove parts, etc. This gives the end operator more versatility to maximize the use of the materials and execution times, thus reducing the response time, because changes can be made at the machine without having to go back to the office to make these adjustments. Apart from reducing the generation of unnecessary documentation, since all the information about the machined parts is in the software, we can forget printing the trays. The direct connection between the office software and the plant software allows the operators to have the information on the work to perform as soon as the work is generated.
As if all of these advantages were not enough, Lantek has gone one step further in the development of new technologies, adding “Touch & Play” functionality to this versatile product. With “Touch&Play,” reusing leftover parts with complex geometries, something usually complicated, becomes trivial thanks to the new augmented reality system.
A camera installed in the machine will show a live image of the leftover part to use; and, by means of an intuitive interface, the desired parts may be positioned on the sheet. The system shows the parts virtually positioned on the actual sheet, which allows the operator to avoid holes or damaged areas.
The system provides the option to import parts from previous machining processes, optimizing the user’s response to the usual production needs to redo damaged or lost parts by using any previously generated small leftover pieces without intermediate procedures, such as sheet alignment and measuring, thus significantly streamlining production processes.
Thanks to this new functionality, Lantek Inside has become a powerful ally to reduce costs and improve efficiency. Lantek has positioned itself once again as a spearhead in global technological innovation.
In today’s competitive manufacturing landscape, businesses that can leverage data to drive insights and decision-making have a clear advantage. Data-driven smart manufacturing is the use of data and analytics to improve all aspects of the manufacturing process, from product design and development to production and quality control.
It’s the new manufacturing paradigm developed thanks to the possibilities offered by connectivity and the cloud. An increasing number of companies are offering their software associated with Cloud Manufacturing, such as ERP, CRM, MES.
In the same way that the heart pumps blood in different ways according to the requirements of the body, the MES gives the production manager the ability to adapt to the pace and characteristics of the company, its customers and its production plants.