The research objective of this Grant Opportunity for Academic Liaison with Industry (GOALI) project is to create a new, viable paradigm for machine tool calibration and geometric error compensation. Traditional calibration techniques take dense, accurate error measurements using laser interferometers over a very narrow range of the machine tool operating space. In this work laser trackers, which have reduced accuracy compared to laser interferometers, are used to take error measurements over the entire machine tool operating space, fundamentally altering the calibration problem landscape and requiring new methods for synthesizing and identifying kinematic models. Position-dependent six degree-of-freedom kinematic errors will be introduced and identified at each joint, along with quantified levels of accuracy. The constructed kinematic models will provide a foundation for the creation of new compensation methodologies for table-based and real-time systems. The new machine tool calibration and compensation tools will be combined into a holistic volumetric error analysis framework that will provide users with predictive tools capable of quantifying the tradeoffs involved when calibrating and compensating a machine tool.
The research results will generate the scientific and engineering knowledge needed to calibrate and compensate machine tools in a time-efficient manner over their entire operating space using complete, validated geometric error models. The decreased calibration costs, reduced part qualification time, and increased machine tool accuracy will allow a wide variety of products to be fabricated more cost-effectively and with superior quality, benefiting consumers, the economy, and society. This research project is a unique collaboration between Missouri University of Science and Technology, Boeing, MAG, Automated Precision Inc., and the Center for Aerospace Manufacturing Technologies. It will also provide exciting research opportunities for undergraduate students, promote learning opportunities for industrial practitioners, and broaden participation of underrepresented groups in engineering.
