CRANK™ Inspection Lab
Visual Inspector Operating Manual
This manual covers the current Visual Inspector field-candidate workflow: camera-first launch, CRANK HALO™, Project / Work Record control, visual evidence capture and reopening, Watch functions, distance, retained-image inspection, external copies and evidence protection.
1 · Safety
Visual Inspector is a supplemental inspection tool — not a safety interlock.
Follow applicable laws, employer/site rules, manufacturer instructions, lockout/tagout procedures, verification of de-energization, guarding, PPE and safe-work practices.
CRANK documents and compares field conditions. It does not detect, eliminate, isolate or control hazards. A successful capture, quiet acoustic recording, normal-looking image, Watch state or calculated value is not proof that a hazardous condition does not exist.
When using Rotary Watch, apply or replace reflective timing tape only while the rotating component is stopped and safely isolated. Never reach toward moving machinery to improve a timing mark.
2 · Start
The app opens ready to inspect.
No Project / Work Record is required to make a valid capture. Unassigned evidence is retained and can be organized afterward.
3 · CRANK HALO™
The command layer stays over the inspection view.
Main ring
CAPTURE · WATCH · DISTANCE · LIGHT · VOICE · LAB
Primary families keep consistent labels and color families. The instruction card explains the selected action in context.
Attention cue
The instruction text stays stationary while a luminous wipe travels through the letters. The frame breath remains secondary. HALO does not use a long-press command.
LAB
Global families include Inspect, Record, Evidence, Work, Reports and System. Operational screens may use HALO while record lists and forms remain conventional.
Support hold
The universal stationary 5-second hold remains the CRANK Support / Speed-Shot convention and is separate from HALO navigation.
4 · Active Project / Work Record
Switch where the next evidence belongs without moving what already exists.
The operator-facing project title favors the equipment/asset name when available, so a record such as Urick Melt Furnace 1 is recognizable in the field instead of appearing only as a customer name.
5 · Capture
Retain the frame first. Work with it second.
SNAP & EDIT
Capture the retained visual frame and proceed into Visual Inspector tools for inspection, annotation and measurement work.
Quick Snap
The physical volume-key shortcut can retain a still while the live camera is active and HALO is closed. It leaves the operator in the camera workspace.
Multi-Snap
Retain an ordered set of visual frames for a sequence, area or changing condition. Mixed portrait/landscape evidence remains supported.
Unassigned capture
If no active Project / Work Record exists, CRANK keeps the evidence as UNASSIGNED rather than blocking the inspection.
6 · Evidence Library
CRANK's Evidence Library is not Android Gallery.
Open HALO → LAB → EVIDENCE → EVIDENCE LIBRARY to browse retained evidence. The library can contain Visual, Thermal, Acoustic, Vibration and Video evidence and identifies Unassigned material that still needs a Project / Work Record.
Tap retained evidence to reopen the actual inspection record whenever the evidence type supports regeneration or inspection. Selection checkboxes are used for File Manager and sharing operations.
Reorganizing evidence changes its CRANK association/metadata. It does not create a second “original.”
7 · Evidence File Manager
Fix the filing after the inspection — without losing provenance.
“Move” is organizational. It does not physically shuffle the underlying retained evidence bytes into a new consumer-media folder.
8 · Open Image / Open Set
Bring an outside picture into CRANK without launching another image app.
Use HALO → LAB → EVIDENCE → OPEN IMAGE or OPEN SET. Android's Photo Picker is used only to choose the source media. After selection, the image returns directly to CRANK and is retained for Visual Inspector work.
9 · Inspect retained image
Mark the evidence without confusing pixels with metrology.
Pins and notes
Place named/numbered inspection points and notes on areas that matter.
A/B dimension points
Place, drag, nudge and lock dimension endpoints. A loupe assists precision placement.
Operator-entered dimension
The real-world value entered by the operator remains authoritative unless CRANK has a valid calibrated measurement source.
D.E.S.I.G.N. bridge
Selected measurements can be passed toward the D.E.S.I.G.N. workflow with provenance rather than treated as anonymous geometry.
10 · Distance
CRANK shows a distance only when it has a defensible basis.
| State | Meaning | Operator interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| DEPTH / measured | A supported depth source such as Camera2 depth/DEPTH16 produced usable local samples. | Treat as device-derived measurement evidence within the hardware/scene limits. |
| CALIBRATED / approximate | A persistent camera/source calibration supports a focus-based approximation. | Use as an explicitly approximate field aid, not precision metrology. |
| UNAVAILABLE | No credible depth or calibration path is available. | CRANK refuses to invent an RGB-camera distance. |
11 · Watch
Watch a defined condition instead of staring at the screen.
Watch functions use a selected region, settle time, persistence, hysteresis and cooldown logic to reduce false events. When Watch retains an automatic evidence burst, the retained images are evidence; the live preview itself is not.
Motion Watch
Answers: Did something meaningfully move or change in this zone?
Flow Watch
Answers: Is visible material/product/process motion present through this zone?
DISARM stops monitoring but can retain the selected watch zone for reuse. CLEAR WATCH / CLEAR ZONE removes the selected zone.
12 · Rotary Watch
Use a defined reflective timing strip.
Never place, refresh or adjust timing tape on a moving rotating component.
CRANK can count clean timing-mark returns and derive an estimated RPM only after repeated valid intervals. If camera sampling, blur, lighting or acquisition quality does not support a credible result, RPM is withheld rather than guessed.
13 · External copies
Export a copy — do not expose the evidence vault.
Open retained Visual Inspector evidence to use the external-copy controls.
COPY TO GALLERY
Creates a new consumer JPEG in Pictures/CRANK Inspection Lab/Visual Exports. This copy may be edited, messaged or deleted without deleting the retained CRANK original.
SHARE COPY
Creates a temporary read-only derived copy through CRANK's FileProvider and opens Android's share workflow. The retained original stays unchanged.
Canonical CRANK visual/video/audio evidence is classified away from ordinary consumer Gallery/Photos handling. CRANK remains the intended browser for the retained evidence library.
14 · Storage + evidence protection
Retain evidence without letting the phone become the file manager.
Canonical Inspection Lab evidence remains under the CRANK Inspection Lab evidence structure and is reopened by CRANK using retained package paths/names. On startup, the evidence guard reclassifies older CRANK image/video/audio rows that were previously presented to consumer media apps. The guard does not delete, move, recompress or rewrite the underlying files.
Long manual recordings use storage fences that reserve room for safe finalization. The purpose is to stop/save usable evidence before storage exhaustion can damage the recording or the device.
15 · Voice
Voice commands control CRANK — never the machinery.
Where supported, local voice commands provide hands-free control of app actions. A voice command may tell CRANK to capture, navigate or change an app state. It must not be interpreted as machine-control authority.
16 · About + Support
Know the build. Preserve the problem.
The live Visual Inspector header always exposes the running version/build. ABOUT opens as an in-place translucent overlay so the camera workspace is not displaced. The universal stationary 5-second Support hold remains available under the Dingfelder app support convention.
Support Recorder is separate from normal inspection recording. It is designed to capture a reproducible app problem, stop/save the recording, then hand the retained support evidence into a Support Ticket workflow.
17 · Troubleshooting
Common field questions.
| What you see | What it means / what to do |
|---|---|
| ACTIVE PROJECT shows NONE SELECTED | Tap the header and select/create the correct Project / Work Record. Capture is still allowed while unassigned. |
| Evidence is under the wrong project | Open Evidence Library, select the evidence, choose MOVE SELECTED, and assign the correct Project / Work Record. |
| Need a CRANK image in normal Gallery | Open the retained visual evidence and use COPY TO GALLERY. Do not browse/delete the raw evidence location with consumer media tools. |
| Rotary Watch stays red | Confirm one reflective timing strip is present, the gate crosses its path, focus/lighting are adequate and the camera is stable. Do not approach moving machinery to fix the tape. |
| RPM does not appear | The timing mark may be detected while the sampling intervals are still insufficient or unreliable. CRANK intentionally withholds unsupported RPM. |
| Motion Watch is disarmed but the rectangle remains | DISARM stops monitoring. Use CLEAR WATCH / CLEAR ZONE to remove the reusable ROI. |
| Distance unavailable | The phone/scene does not currently provide a supported depth or calibrated approximation. CRANK will not invent a distance. |
| Need to confirm installed build | Read the version/build in the live Visual Inspector header; no trip to a separate About screen is required. |
This manual follows the current field-candidate architecture and will be revised as validation and release review close. It does not represent Google Play or third-party approval. FLIR® and FLIR ONE® are trademarks of their respective owner.