MICRO METROLOGY | CASE STUDY
3D MEASUREMENT OF THE
Real Edge Contour
<< Figure 1: Measurement of form and roughness.
InfiniteFocus, by Alicona, is a high resolution optical 3D measurement system. Users
measure form and roughness with only one system.
OTEC applies the system to traceably and
repeatably measure the complex geometries of deburred, ground, smoothed and polished
components. >>
G
lobally, OTEC offers innovative drag finishing machines for high precision surface finish. For cutting edge measurement, OTEC applies high resolution measurement
solutions of Alicona. The higher quality of measurement opens up a wider range of applications to measure deburred, ground, smoothed and polished surfaces.
Recently OTEC Präzisionsfinish GmbH, known as a leading supplier of mass finishing machines, has decided to replace its current optical measuring system for edge measurement with Alicona metrology. OTEC's general manager Soran Jota explains the changeover to the new supplier of high resolution optical 3D measurement systems as followed: “The main reason to go for Alicona systems for edge measurement is the higher quality of the measurements. We now achieve a higher resolution, a higher accuracy and a wider range of applications.” In the first place, OTEC uses Alicona’s optical 3D measurement system InfiniteFocus to measure deburred, ground, smoothed and polished components. In addition to edge measurement, OTEC is also planning to use the Alicona product range in other areas.
Traceable 3D measurement of radius, chipping and roughness Based on the technology of Focus-Variation for both profile based and areal surface measurement, InfiniteFocus is used to verify dimensional tolerances in the field of cutting edge preparation. OTEC applies the system to traceably and repeatably measure the
complex geometries of deburred, ground, smoothed and polished components. Measurements include radii, rake, wedge and clearance angle as well as chipping along the edge. “In order to produce a defined edge shape in the µm-range, a highly precise 3D measurement technique is required. The high measurement quality offered by Focus-Variation was the decisive factor for us to continue cutting edge measurement with using Alicona systems. Today, we achieve a higher resolution and a higher accuracy,” said OTEC.
Measurement of real edge contour One of the most distinctive advantages enabled by InfiniteFocus is the measurement of the ‘real’ edge contour. The common approach for measuring edges has been to simply fit a radius into a relatively large section of the edge itself. However, the application work of Alicona has shown that the true edge is rather elliptic than an ideal radius. To measure an elliptic shape requires a significantly higher lateral and vertical resolution than commonly thought. With a vertical resolution down to 10 nm Alicona enables a fit of elliptic shapes into the edge region, leading to a more detailed reproduction of its geometry.
In addition to measuring edge radii, angles and chipping in cutting edge preparation, OTEC uses InfiniteFocus for process development and process monitoring. It is analysed in detail how only slightly changed machining parameters can affect the performance of tools for the customer. This is achieved through
34 | commercial micro manufacturing international Vol 6 No.6
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