Surface finish affects how well parts will perform in a vast range of applications, from engines to footwear to faucets. Many in industry tend to think of surface texture as a number—some target value to be achieved. But the reality is much more interesting and complex.

In the Surface Texture and Tribology Short Course we introduce the important concepts of surface texture measurement and analysis. The full course is available on udemy, or you can select the individual course modules of interest to you. Enter "surface roughness texture tribology" in the udemy search bar to browse the full course and modules.

In this module we introduce the concept of "filtering" which is central to surface texture analysis. Filtering means specifying the spatial wavelengths (ranging from short-wavelength roughness through longer-wavelength waviness and form) to analyze in a particular application. Misunderstandings regarding filtering have led to many quality and warranty issues.

We will show an example of surface texture analysis software and will show how the concepts of filtering are put into practice in a real-world example. We also discuss strategies for addressing specifications that do not properly call out the spatial wavelength details that are required by surface texture standards.

We wrap up this module by looking at an overview of how surface texture is specified on drawings, following the two primary standards that govern surface texture specification: ASME Y14.36-1996 and ISO 1302-2000.

The remaining modules of the Surface Texture and Tribology course build upon the fundamentals in this module, so it is recommended as a starting point. We also encourage you to consider the other modules for a more in-depth understanding of surface texture.