THIS PAPER DISCUSSES A PROPOSED SYSTEM TO MONITOR AND STATISTICALLY CONTROL THE NORMAL AGING OF THE ABRASIVE WATERJET CONTAINMENT NOZZLE. THE SYSTEM USED MACHINE VISION TO PERIODICALLY EXAMINE THE KERF WIDTH (CUT WIDTH) OF A TEST SPECIMEN CUT WITH THE ABRASIVE WATERJET. THE RESULTING MEASUREMENT IS COMPARED TO THE EXPECTED KERF WIDTH WHICH IS PREDICATED AS A FUNCTION OF NOZZLE AGE USING EQUATIONS DEVELOPED FROM EARLIER EMPIRICAL WORK.
