Tutorial - Sofia Catalucci

Sofia Catalucci

Precision Manufacturing Group, Department of Industrial Engineering
Università degli Studi di Padova

In the age of Industry 4.0, the use of highly precise and fast inspection solutions in manufacturing has become critical. More specifically, the measurement of complex, freeform shaped parts presenting non-standard geometries, prevalent in sectors such as aerospace, automotive, biomedical, and environmental is shifting traditional contact measuring methods towards an increased use of non-contact, optical approaches. Optical techniques such as laser-based and structured light scanning offer significant advantages in terms of speed and flexibility compared to contact methods, and their ability to capture detailed surface information without physical contact is paramount, making them ideal for the inspection of delicate parts. Despite their advantages, optical technologies do not provide highly accurate results compared to tactile ones, which in turn perform at slower measurement rates and can be limited by the complexity of part geometries. During this tutorial, a variety of cutting-edge contact and optical measurement technologies available at the Geometrical and Industrial Metrology laboratory in Padova will be showcased. Attendees will gain insights of functionality and application of the proposed instruments. The focus of the demonstration will be the measurement of freeform shaped parts relevant for the agriculture and forestry communities. Through a series of practical examples, participants will have the opportunity to learn both the advantages and limitations of each category of instruments, understanding how these technologies can be employed, and highlighting scenarios where one method may outperform the other or where a hybrid approach could be beneficial. Overall, the tutorial aims to highlight the importance of metrology in supporting industries, with a particular emphasis on improving outcomes for agriculture and forestry applications.

Dr Sofia Catalucci is a Research Fellow at the Department of Industrial Engineering (DII), Università degli Studi di Padova. As a former member of the Manufacturing Metrology Team (MMT) at the University of Nottingham (UK) from Oct 2017 till Dec 2022, she obtained her PhD in Manufacturing Engineering titled “Automated assessment of measurement performance in optical coordinate metrology” and spent the following years working in the same group with a Postdoctoral position dedicated to the development of in-process optical sensing in metrological applications. Her activities focussed in the development of knowledge-driven algorithmic point cloud processing solutions and identification of quality metrics in optical coordinate metrology for application in flexible manufacturing environments. She is currently an Associate member of MMT and continues to support PhD students as external academic supervisor. After her experience abroad, since March 2023 she is part of the Precision Manufacturing Group at Padova. Her work focuses in the development of trustworthy Digital-Metrological Twins for machine vision systems and emerging measurement technologies in digital manufacturing applications. She is currently co-supervising PhD and Master students in Mechanical Engineering and she is the lecturer of the course Quality and Manufacturing Engineering to the second cycle degree in Materials Engineering.