We here at our company make extensive use of pictures in our asembly 
instructions. The pictures we use can come from many sources. I download 
released drawings from our engineering archives, scan sketches on a flat bed 
scanner or take a picture with a digital camera that we have from Kodak.

There are a couple of main drawbacks with using the pictures from a digital 
camera.  One is that your document size for your work instructions begin to 
get fairly large. I have some assembly intstructions where the file size is 
in excess of 1 meg. If you have as many different part numbers as I have, 
these files begin to take up a lot of space on your hard drive and network 
drive. In addition, your word processing software needs to be able to use 
these picture files in the document. Having separate directories for color 
pictures separate from the document ultimately results in confusion and 
chaos.

The second drawback is printer hardware. Obviously, the original color print 
from a color laser printer or from an ink jet printer gives the best 
possible result. If you need many copies of the same picture, copies from a 
copy machine lose both color (unless, of course,  you have a color copier) 
and resolution. If you decide that all of your copies will come from your 
laser printer, this can get to be costly since color prints from a laser 
printer cost between $0.50 and $1.00 per print !!

There is a bright side, with computer hardware getting faster, printers 
becoming cheaper, cost of disk drive space going down, etc. etc. , the 
reality of full color documentation being as economical as the current black 
and white format is creeping ever so much closer to reality. We here at 
Moog, are starting to look at the next generation of work instructions where 
the operator looks at a computer screen and plays back video of work 
instructions. Pretty neat stuff. The big problem I have with all of this is 
that the more sophisticated the work instructions get, the less and less 
time you spend hands-on with the stuff your trying to build. Instead, you 
are at your desk creating a "Hollywood" production.


Have a great holiday season.

Bill Kasprzak
Moog Inc.
716-652-2000 ext 2507

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