Coordinate Measuring Probe With Rotor Decouples Precision From Platform
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coordinate measuring machines (CMMs) face challenges in achieving high precision while maintaining fast motion, as extreme precision requirements increase bulk, mass, and cost, and long calibrations complicate ease of use, especially when measuring large spans or high-speed movements.
Innovation Solution
A contact probe with a calibrated ball attached to a rotor, allowing rotation around a vertical axis, enables precise scanning of a circular path on a workpiece's surface without moving the positioning platform, combined with actuators that provide multi-axis displacement sensitivity and adjustable inclination, enabling precise coordinate measurement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If extreme precision requirements are imposed on the positioning platform to achieve high measurement precision, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity, bulk, mass, and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the measurement function into two independent parts: the positioning platform (which provides coarse positioning and large travel range) and the probe assembly with rotor (which provides fine measurement precision). By segmenting these functions, the platform does not need to achieve extreme precision, while the probe can maintain high accuracy through its dedicated actuators and rotation mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The rotor acts as an intermediary between the positioning platform and the contact probe. It decouples the platform's positioning errors from the measurement process by providing a separate, precise rotation and positioning mechanism for the probe itself, allowing high-precision measurement without requiring the entire platform to be extremely precise.
2Measurement precision
If the positioning platform is made more precise and stable, then measurement precision is improved, but the speed of movement and productivity deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates high-speed positioning (handled by the platform with large travel range) from high-precision measurement (handled by the probe and rotor). This allows the platform to move quickly without compromising measurement accuracy, as the precise measurement is achieved by the probe's local positioning and rotation capabilities rather than platform precision.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the measuring span is increased to measure large objects, then adaptability is improved, but measurement precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system adds a rotational dimension through the rotor mechanism. This allows the probe to measure points across a large span by rotating around the vertical axis while maintaining precise measurement capability at each location. The combination of platform translation (for large span) and rotor rotation (for precise local measurement) enables both large measuring span and high precision.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5~6
AI summary
A measuring method and system involving a measuring coordinate probe, which can be moved precisely, by appropriate actuators, with respect to a positioning platform (60) on which the probe is mounted; and whose position relative capable to said positioning platform (60) can be measured, by suitable encoders (780).The invention can be carried out with probes, actuators and encoders of different nature. The actuators (730) preferably allow the motion of the probe according to two or more independent degrees of freedom, so that the probe itself can be moved in a plane, or in a three-dimensional region of space, and its orientation can be chosen, within some suitable limits. The method and system of the invention provide very exact local measurement, even if the platform (60) does not deliver the very best precision