Two lots of steel pass inspection for surface roughness. Yet, when we paint a panel from each lot, one looks great, and the other…does not. How can it be, when we made sure the roughness was the same? The answer is in the surface texture spatial wavelengths.
In this brief animation we look at surface texture as a spectrum of spatial wavelengths. We can use cutoff wavelengths to examine different ranges within that spectrum to spot differences in the surface texture that we might miss if we only track the overall average roughness. When we can see the differences, we can take steps to control them. And that’s the key to a smooth finish.