Ultra-High-Speed Scanning Technology Yields Faster Throughput

Manufacturers, retrofitting existing CMMs with Renishaw's Renscan5 system and infinite positioning REVO head, have applied the system to speed up inspection on some of the more complex, time-consuming parts.

For example, on a jet engine blisk, results consisted of 922% throughput improvement. The inspection sequence comprised nine sections scans of the airfoil profile, eight longitudinal scans of the blade, two scans of the root profile, and one scan of the annulus profile.

As a practical matter, conventional 3-axis CMMs scan at rates of 5mm/sec to 15mm/sec in order to hold accuracy. This is to avoid high acc/dec rates and rapid axis changes that can induce inertia errors, causing deterioration in measurement accuracy.

The Renscan5 enabling technology encompasses a range of breakthrough 5-axis scanning products that measure at up to 500mm and 4,000 data points per second, while virtually eliminating the measurement errors normally associated with existing 3-axis scanning systems.

A 3-D measuring device in its own right, the REVO head features two rotary axes – one in vertical plane, one in horizontal – to give infinite rotation and positioning capability. The REVO measuring head performs synchronized Y- and Z-axis motion to quickly follow changes in part geometry during inspection routines, avoiding the dynamic errors caused when moving the larger mass of a CMM structure. Where X-axis motion is required for the probing routine, Renscan5 moves the CMM at a constant velocity along a constant vector as measurements are being taken, removing the acceleration/deceleration inertia errors incurred in conventional scanning.

Renishaw Inc.
Hoffman Estates, IL
renishaw.com