Ultra-light and ultra-accurate portable coordinate measurement machine
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A portable coordinate measurement machine (CMM) comprising:
- a manually-positionable articulated arm having first and second ends, the articulated arm including a plurality of arm segments and a plurality of rotary joints, the first end including a connector configured to connect to a measurement probe and the second end including a base;
wherein at least one of the rotary joints includes;
first and second bearings;
a shaft that engages an inner diameter of the first bearing and an inner diameter of the second bearing, the shaft configured to rotate about an axis of rotation of the first bearing and the second bearing;
a housing having at least one port that engages at least one of an outer diameter of the first bearing and an outer diameter of the second bearing;
at least one transducer configured to output an angle signal corresponding to an angle of rotation of the shaft relative to the housing about the axis of rotation;
a rotary damping mechanism configured to provide controlled damping of rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation; and
a circuit operably connected to the at least one transducer and configured to output a speed signal corresponding to the speed of the rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A portable coordinate measurement machine (CMM) comprises an articulated arm having first and second ends, the articulated arm including a plurality of arm segments and a plurality of rotary joints, the first end configured to connect to a measurement probe and the second end configured to connect to a base. At least one of the rotary joints includes a shaft configured to rotate about an axis of rotation of the at least one of the rotary joints, and a rotary damping mechanism configured to provide controlled damping of rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A portable coordinate measurement machine (CMM) comprising:
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a manually-positionable articulated arm having first and second ends, the articulated arm including a plurality of arm segments and a plurality of rotary joints, the first end including a connector configured to connect to a measurement probe and the second end including a base; wherein at least one of the rotary joints includes; first and second bearings; a shaft that engages an inner diameter of the first bearing and an inner diameter of the second bearing, the shaft configured to rotate about an axis of rotation of the first bearing and the second bearing; a housing having at least one port that engages at least one of an outer diameter of the first bearing and an outer diameter of the second bearing; at least one transducer configured to output an angle signal corresponding to an angle of rotation of the shaft relative to the housing about the axis of rotation; a rotary damping mechanism configured to provide controlled damping of rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation; and a circuit operably connected to the at least one transducer and configured to output a speed signal corresponding to the speed of the rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A portable coordinate measurement machine (CMM) comprising:
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an articulated arm having first and second ends, the articulated arm including a plurality of arm segments and a plurality of rotary joints, the first end configured to connect to a measurement probe and the second end configured to connect to a base; wherein at least one of the rotary joints includes; first and second bearings; a shaft configured to rotate about an axis of rotation of the first bearing and the second bearing; a housing having at least one port that engages at least one of an outer diameter of the first bearing and an outer diameter of the second bearing; a rotary damper operably coupled to the shaft and the housing and configured to provide controlled damping of rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation; at least one transducer configured to output an angle signal corresponding to an angle of rotation of the shaft relative to the housing about the axis of rotation; and a circuit operably connected to at least one transducer and configured to output a speed signal corresponding to the speed of the rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation based on the angle signal and time, the circuit further configured to compare the speed signal to a predetermined speed threshold to determine whether the rotational movement occurred at excessive speed or as a result of excessive torque. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12)
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13. A portable coordinate measurement machine (CMM) comprising:
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an articulated arm having first and second ends, the articulated arm including a plurality of arm segments and a plurality of rotary joints, the first end configured to connect to a measurement probe and the second end configured to connect to a base; wherein at least one of the rotary joints includes; at least one bearing; a shaft configured to rotate about an axis of rotation of the at least one bearing; a housing having at least one port that engages an outer diameter of the at least one bearing; rotary damping built into the at least one of the rotary joints; at least one transducer configured to output an angle signal corresponding to an angle of rotation of the shaft relative to the housing about the axis of rotation; and a circuit operably connected to at least one transducer and configured to output a speed signal corresponding to the speed of the rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation based on the angle signal and time, the circuit further configured to compare the speed signal to a predetermined speed threshold to determine whether the rotational movement occurred at excessive speed or as a result of excessive torque. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16)
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17. A portable coordinate measurement machine (CMM) comprising:
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an articulated arm having first and second ends, the articulated arm including a plurality of arm segments and a plurality of rotary joints, the first end configured to connect to a measurement probe and the second end configured to connect to a base; wherein at least one of the rotary joints includes; a shaft configured to rotate about an axis of rotation of the at least one of the rotary joints; a rotary damping mechanism configured to provide controlled damping of rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation; at least one transducer configured to output an angle signal corresponding to an angle of rotation of the shaft relative to the housing about the axis of rotation; and a circuit operably connected to at least one transducer and configured to output a speed signal corresponding to the speed of the rotational movement of the shaft about the axis of rotation based on the angle signal and time, the circuit further configured to compare the speed signal to a predetermined speed threshold to determine whether the rotational movement occurred at excessive speed or as a result of excessive torque.
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Specification