Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT
Producing work pieces with tight tolerances is the most important challenge tool machine users pose to manufacturers. However, time-consuming preparation and temperature variations in the production environment frequently cause deformations of the entire machine structure. As a result, the work piece quality declines, which can lead to a large amount of waste. Until now, the only solutions were cumbersome and expensive, ranging from temperature conditioning through complex control structures to air conditioning entire work halls.
A new, structurally integrated sensor system from the Fraunhofer IPT can help to compensate for thermo-elastic influences on machines and ensure lasting thermal stability in a way that is measurably more cost-effective and energy efficient.
Process-parallel correction of TCP displacement
Conventional solutions measure temperature differences and derive the TCP (tool center point) displacement indirectly. The Fraunhofer IPT’s novel system takes the direct route and avoids model-specific information loss. We can directly measure the distortion of the machine structure parallel to the process and calculate the TCP dislocation from it.
Representation of the thermal behavior of the machine structure
With the help of kinematic and geometric relationships between the machine subsystems, not only can the TCP dislocation be derived – the thermal behavior of the entire machine structure can also be visualized. Machine operators and designers receive information about the thermo-elastic behavior and relationships between all subcomponents.
The sensor system can be adapted individually to your milling machine, lathe or grinding machine as well as fitted to special machines and multi-machine systems.
Our services
- Complete plug and play solution (hardware, software, assembly and start-up)
- Fast integration as a retrofitted solution without changing the construction of your machine
- Direct measurement of local deformations of machine structure
- Calculation of TCP (tool center point) dislocation with minimized modeling effort
- Real-time-capable process-parallel correction of thermos-elastic errors through targeted movement of the feed axes