Portable coordinate measurement machine
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A portable coordinate measurement machine (CMM) for measuring the position of an object in a selected volume, comprising:
- a manually positionable articulated arm having opposed first and second ends, said arm including a plurality of joints;
a measurement probe attached to a first end of said articulated arm;
an electronic circuit which receives the position signals from transducers in said arm and provides a digital coordinate corresponding to the position of the probe in a selected volume; and
wherein at least one of said joints further comprise;
a periodic pattern of a measurable characteristic;
at least two read heads spaced from and in communication with said pattern; and
said pattern and said at least two read heads being positioned within said joint so as to be rotatable with respect to each other;
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A portable coordinate measurement machine comprises an articulated arm having jointed arm segments. The arm includes joint assemblies which include at least two read heads in communication with a periodic pattern of a measurable characteristic, the pattern and read heads being positioned within the joint so as to be rotatable with respect to each other.
191 Citations
37 Claims
-
1. A portable coordinate measurement machine (CMM) for measuring the position of an object in a selected volume, comprising:
-
a manually positionable articulated arm having opposed first and second ends, said arm including a plurality of joints;
a measurement probe attached to a first end of said articulated arm;
an electronic circuit which receives the position signals from transducers in said arm and provides a digital coordinate corresponding to the position of the probe in a selected volume; and
wherein at least one of said joints further comprise;
a periodic pattern of a measurable characteristic;
at least two read heads spaced from and in communication with said pattern; and
said pattern and said at least two read heads being positioned within said joint so as to be rotatable with respect to each other;
- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
-
-
30. The CMM of claim 42 wherein:
-
said pattern is stationary with respect to said read heads; and
said two reads heads are rotatable with respect to said pattern.
-
Specification