In the latest episode of Metrology Stories, Nico from Eleven Dynamics sits down with industry pioneer Raimund Loser to explore the future of metrology. The conversation, conducted in German at Eleven Dynamics’ office in Rosenheim, offers a fascinating glimpse into both practical challenges and visionary ideas shaping the next decade of measurement technology. For our English-speaking audience, here’s an exclusive look at the episode’s most compelling insights, straight from the source.
A central theme of the discussion was the unstoppable rise of automation in industrial metrology. Reflecting on decades of experience, Raimund highlighted how automation has shifted from niche innovation to market standard:
“At the beginning, when we first started with the 6DoF solutions, automation was way in the background. Meanwhile, after 10 or 15 years, more than half of the sales have something to do with automation.”
The driver behind this shift? Scarcity of skilled labor and the need for fewer people to operate increasingly complex systems. As Raimund explains:
“The challenge is always finding enough personnel who can handle the technology. So, the idea is that fewer people should be able to run more processes.”
Raimund also shared “moonshot” concepts he’s eager to see realized, some of which he began developing before his retirement. One is a real-time end effector mounted on a robot, designed to correct the robot’s inherent path inaccuracies in real-time:
“If you attached a small hexapod to the end of a robot arm and mounted the sensor or tool on it, you could dynamically compensate for the robot’s poor path and ensure it stays precisely on target.”
Another intriguing idea is the “patch camera,” capable of scanning large parts—like turbine components with numerous tiny cooling holes—in high detail:
“The idea was a camera that could take a section image, analyze it, and then move on, so you could oversee a large part. But the challenge is you’d need a chip that can capture the entire scene and calculate 3D coordinates of the features all in one go. And that chip doesn’t really exist yet.”
Raimund and Nico also discussed the evolution of laser trackers and how their fundamental measurement principles might change. Traditionally, trackers follow a moving retroreflector. But Raimund envisions a reverse setup:
“Imagine placing an active receiver somewhere and having the laser tracker merely emit the beam. Then you’d move the receiver around, and the reflections would go back to fixed mirrors. Essentially, you’d have an indoor GPS-like system with active reflectors guiding the measurements.”
Such a system could revolutionize how large spaces are measured, freeing the tracker from having to physically follow each target.
Despite advances in robotic precision, Raimund remains skeptical that robots alone will achieve the accuracy needed for autonomous metrology:
“I don’t believe robots will ever be precise enough on their own. They’d already be more precise if it were that simple. Robots have inherent limitations—mass inertia, mechanical tolerances, rails that bend even if they’re very rigid.”
Instead, he sees the future in combining affordable robots with high-precision final corrections from trackers or sensors.
Pushing metrology into new frontiers, Raimund described how physical limitations still define what’s possible—like the fact that walls stop most measurement systems:
“At the moment, the wall is the problem. I can measure up to it, but not beyond it. If we ever discover a physical principle to measure through materials, that would open entirely new possibilities.”
Interestingly, Raimund recounted his work on the James Webb Space Telescope, where they adapted measurement technology to function through a vacuum chamber’s window—a reminder that even in space, metrology finds critical applications.
Perhaps one of the most delightful insights from the episode was Raimund’s perspective on where true innovation comes from:
“The most creative moments happen during coffee breaks. When different departments—electronics, physics, mechanics—come together, you start chatting. Sometimes someone casually mentions a problem, and another person offers a quick suggestion that saves hours of work.”
As he emphasized, true breakthroughs rarely emerge from formal brainstorming sessions alone. They spring from curiosity, conversation, and moments of unexpected inspiration.
As the episode concluded, Raimund offered a reminder that technological progress never truly stops:
“It just keeps going. Let’s see what else I’ll experience. I hope for a long time yet.”
At Eleven Dynamics, we share that hope—and the conviction that the coming decade will bring breakthroughs we can barely imagine today.
Listen to Episode 3 with Raimund Loser at:
