Geretsried, June 15, 2020
spectro2profiler: New Color & 3D Topography Analyzer
BYK-Gardner, worldwide partner of the automotive, paint and plastic industries for quality control of color, appearance and physical properties, is announcing a revolutionary new instrument to measure color and gloss, as well as analyzing the 3D topography of the surface texture – spectro2profiler.
Our visual quality perception is influenced by color, gloss and the surface structure. The visual rating makes an overall judgement by taking all 3 parameters into consideration. Up to now, grain or surface structure could only be judged visually or with high sophisticated microscopes. This has changed with the new spectro2profiler. Like our total visual judgement, the new spectro2profiler measures all 3 parameters simultaneously in a robust, portable tool.
The spectro2profiler uses a circumferential illumination at 45° with 0° viewing. The proven, innovative BYK LED technology guarantees an outstanding performance. Short-term, long-term and temperature stability are unsurpassed in the industry. The extra-large measurement spot with homogenous illumination guarantees highly repeatable and representative readings. All together highest accuracy and inter-instrument agreement are ensured and allow you the use of digital standards – the key for global color management.
“Brand new is the 3D-structure analysis”, explains Dr. Christopher Groh, R&D Project Manager at BYK-Gardner. He elaborates further: “The spectro2profiler takes multiple images under different illumination directions to estimate surface curvature. As a result, you get objective measures for cell size (mm²) and perceived cell amplitude (P-µm). Different grain types can be easily differentiated – ideal for design and new supplier approval.”
Additionally, the new spectro2profiler provides a 2D camera-based reflectivity measurement for structured surfaces. The perceived depth of a leather-like surface is dependent on the reflection behavior on the hills and valleys. Therefore, a 2D reflectivity measurement is aligned with the 3D image data to separate the reflection of hills and valleys. The new measurement parameter, reflectivity contrast Rc, is an ideal measure for production QC of injection or slush molded parts. To compare historical data, the instrument also measures traditional 60° gloss according to international standards.
The spectro2profiler can be used to objectively analyze structures of different applications by using specific algorithms: leather-like for injection or slush molded parts - coarse paint for powder coatings - fine for plastic parts or fine textured paint.
The large color touchscreen with an icon-based menu ensures an intuitive operation as known from your smartphone. An integrated camera shows a live preview of the measurement spot. This prevents false readings on imperfections or scratches.
Color, gloss and 3D topography data are efficiently analyzed with the software smart-chart.
A powerful standard management is included which allows defining Pass/Fail tolerances for all three parameters. Measurement results are simultaneously displayed in a data table and a variety of graphs highlighting the samples being out of specification. The 2D/3D analysis is supported with color coded images to visualize the measurement data for ease of interpretation.
spectro2profiler – Supports you through Ups and Downs to achieve Color and Grain harmony!
More information is available from BYK-Gardner GmbH, P.O. Box 970, 82534 Geretsried, Germany: By fax: +49-8171-3493-140, the free service no. 0-800-gardner (0-800-4273637) or on the internet at https://www.byk-instruments.com.
About BYK
BYK is one of the world’s leading suppliers in the field of additives and measuring instruments. Additives are chemical substances which, when used in small quantities, improve product properties such as scratch resistance or surface gloss. Manufacturing processes are also optimized by the addition of additives.
The coatings, inks, and plastics industries are among the main consumers of BYK additives. Yet with the production of oil and gas, the manufacture of care products, the production of adhesives and sealants, and construction chemistry, too, BYK additives improve the product characteristics and production processes. Testing and measuring instruments from BYK can effectively evaluate the quality of color, gloss, and appearance as well as the physical properties of paint, plastic, and paper products and are an important part of quality control.
As a globally operating specialty chemicals company, BYK has production sites in Germany (Wesel, Kempen, Moosburg, Schkopau and Geretsried), in the Netherlands (Deventer, Njiverdal and Denekamp), in Great Britain (Widnes), in the US (Wallingford, Chester, Gonzales, Louisville, Earth City and Pompano Beach) and in China (Tongling).
Today the company employs more than 2,300 people worldwide and forms part of the ALTANA Group.
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