In Search of Reading Material on Calypso Backend

[[Za...]]

Hi there,

I've been through two Calypso classes now (basic and advanced), and I feel as though I understand fairly well how to operate a CMM and to make programs. However a reoccurring problem I come across is that when a part is bad, our QA team who are all well educated aerospace engineers come at me with difficult questions about how the CMM/Calypso operates or how it measures things and every time I can't answer them I feel as though I am sabotaging the credibility of the machine in their eyes and I end up feeling very foolish.

An example of a question: I was asked how the CMM compensates for a feature being out of position when it is used to calculate the max diameter of a countersink (cone). I understand how the cone addition feature works but I don't know how to answer their question; I put in the cone and the feature to measure it at and it does it.

Another question example: I was asked how Calypso calculates the positional aspect of a surface profile measurement. I admit this is more a parsing issue of trying to figure out exactly what is meant by the question, but at the end of the day I really don't know; I built the plane and pop it into a profile characteristic and the machine does it.

In summary I'd just like to be able to explain to our QA team how different components of Calypso work on the backend; To show them how it calculates things and why. Is there any sort of documentation from Zeiss I can read up on? Or is this something I need to take a class for? I realize it will likely be very dry and involve a bunch of math but that's all okay; I like math and "boring" things, I just don't know what I don't know.

Thanks in advance!

[[Da...]]

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It could be taking Calypso expert training, I'm assuming.
Otherwise, this forum and trying on your own.
An example -> viewtopic.php?t=2987

[[Ke...]]

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Wow... engineers love to ask "simple" questions in ways that require a feaking rosetta stone, sometimes...
I'm not sure of your application, or *why* the CMM would need to "compensate" for a feature being out of position... or how it directly relates to the maximum diameter of a cone...

They probably don't want to know the actual math, if they do, I would direct them to Zeiss Support 🤣
Maybe, ask them what GD&T classes they have taken... maybe recommend some... or direct them to the standard that you are working to... or https://www.gdandtbasics.com/

When I have engineer ask difficult to answer questions (only when results are out of spec though... everyone trusts the CMM when everything is within spec 🤣 ), sometimes it helps to sit them down and show tham what is involved in the program

[[Jo...]]

I had a similar experience when I first started programming. The route I took was fairly simple. I wrote down in a little notebook every question I had and took a Zeiss Class. Curves/Freeform I think was the best taught by Nick Janak, and I just asked all the questions I had written down. Hopefully taking a class is an option. Otherwise, you can also find some stuff in the F1 help section and on the forum as well. If you're a little rusty on GD&T a class or some reading on that not a bad idea either.

[[Jo...]]

I can't locate it now, maybe it is in help files, but there was a document that explained how constructions were calculated. Example of a cone projection to plane diameter if axis was skewed etc..(what was resultant diameter) The measuring cookbook has some good info too.

[[DW...]]

First and foremost, get your employer to spend the $100 for the Zeiss CMM Cookbook, Measuring strategies for tactile coordinate metrology. It is available from the online Zeiss store. This gives you a leg to stand on when someone questions how you determined what strategy to use for your measurements. There is plenty of good information in there.

Next, read every single post on this forum. Seriously. Go back all the way. There are some geniuses around here and we are lucky they share that with the rest of us.

Get a functional understanding of GD&T. Start with YouTube. There are tons of great channels out there.

Get on the Zeiss Portal. Create a login. Go to their knowledge base section. Lots of Zeiss CMM specific content available for free.

Read the Calypso help files. Open it up and even if you don't understand all of it now, you will become familiar with the correct terms that are used when dealing with the software.

I have never taken a single in person Zeiss course, but I did do about 30 of their courses back during COVID when they had a special for like $250 for as much as you could learn in 90 days 😃

That coupled with all of the mentioned above, and you will definitely be able to speak with authority when it comes to Zeiss CMMs and Calypso.

[[Je...]]

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Dane, although that would be an outstanding way to structure the expert class, I am not sure that is how it is currently set up. Honestly, the content did not seem relevant to metrology as it occurs in a real-life manufacturing situation. It seemed more like a collection of frequently asked questions than subject matter that would make me more effective in my daily tasks.

What Zach is describing in this post is exactly the type of content that I would like to see in an expert class.

[[Je...]]

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Zach, first of all, thank you for your question. You are not alone in this experience. Many of us have dealt with similar challenges in understanding the underlying "why" of CMM processes and Calypso and the struggle of trying to communicate this information to engineers and other customers.

When I first starting facing this challenge years ago, I felt anxiety, and I doubted about my own abilities. Looking back now, I am encouraged by my growth. I'm surprisingly thankful that I had to answer engineers about things like how Calypso calculates position deviation of the max diameter of a cone and how the position aspect of a profile characteristic for a plane is evaluated. These questions forced me to seek out answers. They forced me to understand. It made me better as a programmer and metrologist. I learned to utilize the resources around me. The answers are not all found in the same source. The Calypso manual, although somewhat helpful, is truly lacking compared to manuals for competitor software. It's antiquated and washed out by poor german to english translation, and it simply isn't written as a teaching resource. However, it can be useful alongside other strategies like:

• Learn to not view your engineers' questions as threats but as opportunities. It's okay to not know the answer. Learn to respond with, "I don't fully understand this right now, but I'm going to do my best to find the answer."

• ★ ★ ★ If you have a ZeissCare Agreement, use your already paid-for access to Application Specialists on the Zeiss Hotline. They are an absolutely wonderful team of knowledgeable, patient individuals who have helped me more in my career than they will ever know. They are not only there to help when Calypso "breaks." They exist to answer the very questions your engineers are challenging you with. Often, if they are not able to fully answer a question during a support call, they get help from other Zeiss resources and follow-up with more info.
  
  I am not exaggerating when I say that the Zeiss Application Specialists are the biggest reason that I have remained a loyal Zeiss customer for over a decade. Jeff Penrod and his team are the best in the industry at providing aftercare metrology support. They are truly priceless and underappreciated. I wish I could quantify in $$$ the wins they've provided not just for me, but for my customers.

• Continue to learn about GD&T and it's proper usage per the ASME and ISO standards. My favorite educational resources for GD&T are provided by an organization called GD&T Basics (aka Engineer Essentials) https://www.gdandtbasics.com/

• Reach out to your former Zeiss training course instructors. I am still in contact with mine, and although they are by no means obligated, they often are more than happy to field an occasional question.

• Use this forum. The programmers here are true measuring heros, and they've been in the trenches facing similar issues to what you described. One improvement / growth area that I would like to see in the format of this forum is a way to easily ask a question, even very simple ones, in a way that is more like an in-person conversation, or perhaps like a discord server. Basically, like a quick call-and-response. For example "Where's the option to do [blank] operation again? I can't seem to remember." The search function on this forum is woeful, but you can use the Google search option of site:forums.zeiss.com [search terms] in Google to get better results.

Keep learning about your CMM, Calypso and your company's processes, and thanks again for sharing about this.

[[Ow...]]

To get the latest and greatest answers, the hot-line is definitely your best bet.
I’ve been working with Calypso for 20 years and in manufacturing for almost 40 and I have a lot of documentation covering all kinds of Calypso things but, it could be obsolete.

In the simplest of definitions, Experience = mistakes and the more experience you have, the better you become.

Calypso along with all other CMM and measurement software’s are constantly evolving to improve and keep up with GD&T evaluations as well as computer changes.
Computerization and GD&T characteristics like Profile make it difficult and time consuming but, even for the simpler stuff, I would recommend learning the manual ways (micrometers, indicators, linear gages, sine-bars, etc,) of double-checking everything as it will help you become more comfortable in what you’re reporting on the CMM.

Below is a small sample of the changes noted in the 136-page 2023 versions release notes and in just this very small sample, you can see that you’ll always be challenged.


...............................................................................................
2023:
Optimization of the bore pattern best fit:
The use of a second cylinder as a reference for the bore pattern best fit
can lead to deviations that are greater than expected. The use of a circle
avoids this problem.

Better results for curve best fit:
From CALYPSO 7.4.04, the curve best fit based on nominal values fre-
quently leads to better results.

New standard value for curve outliers:
From CALYPSO 7.4, Curve: Outliers Based on Measurement Points
is set to On is by default for new measurement plans under Resources
➝ Compatibility Settings… ➝ …for this Measurement Plan.

Versioning of old measurement plans:
Unversioned files are deleted for measurement plans up to CALYPSO
7.2. To avoid this, the old measurement plan must be versioned directly
in CALYPSO 7.4 after it is opened.
Morphological filter does not work properly
with freeform surfaces:
The use of morphological filters does not work properly with freeform
surfaces We recommend not using this filter for the time being.

[[Ri...]]

Other than OEM training and I have been through Calypso, PCDMIS and MCOSMOS prior to dedicating my career to Calypso.
Seminars, what I have learned in the roughly 13 seminars is monumental compared to OEM training. This is where I found real world advise, techniques and methods. I used to have audio recordings, many went bad after setting for a decade or so.
Be aware, some of these seminars were around $2500 others as low as $500. Which doesn't include travel expenses.
I paid for all but two seminars and I don't regret it.

[[Je...]]

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Look in the following locations for all included manuals with CALYPSO installation:
For 7.6 and earlier; C:\Program Files (x86)\Zeiss\CALYPSO 7.6\userinfo\manuals\en-US
For 7.8 and beyond; C:\Program Files\Zeiss\CALYPSO 7.8\userinfo\manuals\en-US

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This is GREAT advice. Plan your questions for your trainer during a class. Ask publicly. You probably aren't the only one that is curiuos. ZEISS AEs are always eager to help and answer questions.

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Thank you for the kind words Jeff. I am overjoyed to hear such high regard for the SW Help Desk team. The AEs you mention are extremely diligent and eager to help as much as possible. The level of knowledge, care, expertise, and patience of the SW Help Desk and all ZEISS AEs continues to astound me on a daily basis.


A few additional sources I would like to point out.

• Please visit the ZEISS Portal Knowledge Base https://portal.zeiss.com/knowledge-base. It is a VAST wealth of knowledge created entirely by US ZEISS AEs (the majority by the SW Help Desk team). It is also constantly growing with added content daily. Currently this is only available to US customers but serious efforts are in place to grant access globally.

• Visit the ZEISS Academy https://portal.zeiss.com/iqr-academy/overview and EXPLORE the content. There are numerous free tutorial videos on setup/configuration of CALYPSO, sensors, racks etc as well as E-Learnings to gain additional training on specific topics (Personally I am a huge fan of the PCM E-Learning)

• Training, training training. I cannot stress enough how important Basic, Advanced, Curve and PiWeb training are to the dedicated programmer and frequent operator. I can assure you, you will learn things you have overlooked 1000's of times. I have yet to meet a customer that didn't have an "AHA!" moment when a feature was revealed they didn't know existed. Curve alone is an absolute must, this module is extremely powerful and not autodidact friendly to put it mildly.

• Reiterating: Post your questions, curiosities, findings and discoveries here in the FORUM! This is a fantastic location to get the attention of fellow metrologists that may have developed their own strategies for unique challenges.

• Never stop: I am continually humbled and learn something new every single day. There is too much to know in CALYPSO alone for any 10 experienced programmers to learn. I can promise you, if you think you know it all, you haven't scratched the surface.

• Learn GD&T backwards and forwards and manual measurement methods (plate checks). To be a good metrologist, you must be able to show that your methods are valid and demonstratable to the operator/machinist producing the component. Often machinists and process engineers will question the CMM results because they do not understand it. You must show that YOU know what you are doing and they should trust YOU. The CMM is just a tool.

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I would add to this one point. Rather than reaching out to former trainers directly, please request a support ticket. You can certainly mention that you would like to reach that specific trainer and our CIC team will relay that request. But in the event that the trainer is actively engaged in a training class or out of office for any reason, I would like to ensure your questions are handled promptly and not delayed without response. I also advise using the Portal Service Request system over CIC email/phone contact. This allows you to upload more information (we do appreciate screenshots, videos, etc) and see status/history of the tickets directly in the Portal. You can create Error Reports and save them for later if they are requested but those are not necessary to submit (files are large). A screenshot of the error message is usually enough to get a good understanding of the problem.

Regarding the original topic of how to handle questions and doubts, especially when it surrounds a characteristic that is reported as non-conforming (no one questions the report when its all "green" right?) is to ask questions and approach the problem as a team/partner. Do not accuse or place blame on the machinist. I've very rarely seen a machinist turn in a part to quality for approval knowing it is non-conforming if they produced measurements to show a moderate level of confidence. Returning a failed part to the machinist is an exercise in personality management and proper approach will build trust. "I get different results than you have. Can you show me how you got there so we can find where the problem is?" will get a wildly different response than "Your bores are oversize, out of round, and out of position". This is akin to calling them a liar and typically the source of friction between manufacturing and quality. A good metrologist knows that Quality should be a resource to manufacturing rather than a pitfall and bottleneck.

When engineering teams start asking questions about evaluation, best-fitting, positional reporting, datum structure etc, here is a great place to point them: Knowledge Base - Search: CALYPSO: Evaluation Algorithms (I can't post any more links, sorry). Point them to training courses as well. Get their buy in on the software you are using so they can ask informed questions.

[[Ma...]]

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