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Multi-functional measurement system

  • US 5,297,055 A
  • Filed: 04/20/1990
  • Issued: 03/22/1994
  • Est. Priority Date: 04/20/1990
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A method for monitoring the operations of a machine for manufacturing bevel and hypoid gears, said machine being computer controlled and having a tool support with a spindle mounted in its front face for rotatably holding a tool for shaping teeth on a workpiece rotatably held in a work spindle mounted in the front face of a work support, said work support also having a side face and both said supports being movable relative to each other along a minimum number of operational axes, namely, three mutually orthogonal rectilinear axes and one pivot axis, said machine also having a plurality of encoder means associated with machine drive means for moving said supports, said encoder means providing respective measurement signals indicative of the positions of said supports relative to each other;

  • said method comprising the steps ofmounting a contact probe on said tool support so that a sensitive tip associated with said contact probe is movable from a withdrawn position to an extended position in which the tip projects beyond the front face of the tool support and so that a contact trigger signal is produced whenever the surface of said tip contacts another surface;

    positioning a plurality of locating points in predetermined locations on the side and front faces of said work support;

    storing sets of predetermined position signals corresponding to the relative location of each of said locating points when said tool and work supports are in each of a plurality of predetermined relative orientations;

    storing sets of instantaneous position signals provided by said encoder means and indicative of the relative location of said tool and work supports in respect to said axes whenever trigger signals are provided by said contact probe means upon contact with respective ones of said locating points;

    comparing sets of said instantaneous and predetermined position signals for each of said plurality of orientations;

    generating error signals based upon the difference between said respective signal sets; and

    controlling the operation of said machine drive means for positioning said tool and work supports in accordance with said error signals.

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