Workpiece Inspection via Partial Data Sampling
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Solution Overview
Problem
The inspection of workpieces often faces challenges due to incomplete data sets caused by geometry limitations, physical constraints, and defects, making it difficult to ensure compliance with defined tolerances without measuring the entire surface of every workpiece.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that acquire partial measurement data from a batch of workpieces, compose an inspection data set, and compare it to a reference data set defining tolerances, allowing for acceptance or rejection based on the comparison, using a processing unit and data acquisition systems like CMM or imaging systems, without requiring precise alignment of the workpieces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If complete surface measurement of every workpiece is performed, then measurement precision and tolerance compliance are improved, but inspection time and productivity are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by measuring only a subset of workpieces (e.g., 10-20% sampling) rather than completing full surface measurements of every workpiece. The inspection system collects partial measurement data from selected workpieces in a batch, composes an inspection data set, and makes acceptance decisions based on this partial data, thereby significantly reducing inspection time while maintaining adequate tolerance compliance assessment
Solution Approach 2:
The inspection process is segmented into discrete steps: acquiring partial measurement data from selected workpieces, composing an inspection data set from this partial data, comparing against reference data sets defining tolerances, and making batch acceptance decisions. This segmentation allows the system to achieve productivity improvements through selective sampling while maintaining measurement precision for the sampled items
2Productivity
If partial measurement data from multiple workpieces is composed into an inspection data set, then productivity is improved through reduced measurement requirements, but measurement precision may deteriorate due to incomplete data
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges partial measurement data from multiple individual workpieces to compose a collective inspection data set. By combining data from several sampled workpieces, the system achieves a more representative inspection data set than single-workpiece partial data would provide, balancing productivity gains from reduced measurement with adequate precision through data aggregation
Solution Approach 2:
The inspection system uses feedback from the composed inspection data set to make batch acceptance decisions. The system compares the inspection data set against reference data sets defining tolerances, and this feedback loop allows adjustment of sampling strategies and acceptance criteria to maintain measurement precision while maximizing productivity benefits
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems and devices for inspecting workpieces are described. The method comprises acquiring partial measurement data from a plurality of workpieces associated with a batch of workpieces; composing an inspection data set from the partial measurement data; comparing the inspection data set to a reference data set defining tolerances for the workpieces; and accepting and rejecting the batch of workpieces based on the comparing of the inspection data set to the reference data set.