A multinational analytical instrument manufacturer was referred to INOV for help with the opto-mechanical and optical production portions of a handheld RAMAN spectrometer. INOV was included in early design meetings and worked closely with the lens designer on a workable design.

INOV leveraged it’s deep industry contacts of optical material suppliers and lens manufacturers, selecting glass types and obtaining valuable feedback from lens manufacturers as the design progressed. INOV also worked closely with the detector manufacture to ensure the optical design meshed perfectly with the correct linear array. INOV finalized the optical design, only when the sensitivity analysis and tolerance analysis showed it was a production ready design at a reasonable cost, using standard precision manufacturing methods. INOV then proceeded to create an opto-mechanical concept for mounting all lenses and the optical engine itself – with cost and the required level of precision being paramount. INOV worked hand-in-hand with the industrial design team on the overall packaging of the laser source and optical spectrometer core.  Attention to detail was paid to the relationships between the optical core, the overall housing, shock-mounting, circuit board locations and thermal management.

The product went into production successfully without the need for redesign or modification of parts. It is INOV’s belief that through the leveraging of modern design tools and simulation capabilities in both the optical and mechanical areas, it is possible to do the job right the first time. This is always cheaper and faster in the long run, than doing a “rush job” that is less than perfect, and then having to do it over again, since details were missed the first time.  Doing thing over is costly in both time and money.

The customer was so impressed at how smooth the precision product went into production, that they returned to INOV the following year for help designing a LIBS version of a handheld spectrometer. The LIBS spectrometer had its unique design challenges, which were all overcome, and another successful product was launched by the customer with INOV’s contracted help!