Wireless ballbar product has volumetric testing capability
Staff
General DPN
Renishaw has announced the launch of a successor to its QC10 ballbar system, a tool for the assessment of machine tool positioning and servo control performance.
The QC20-W ballbar features a Renishaw developed linear sensor and Bluetooth wireless technology. The design is said to offer benefits in ease of use and enhanced durability and allows the QC20-W to be used for testing even in “closed door” manufacturing, where access for wiring can raise safety and procedural issues.
The design also allows testing in 3 orthogonal planes through a single reference point. A single hardware set up is also said to mean quicker testing and the ability to produce a representative volumetric measurement of positioning accuracy.
The QC20-W ballbar retains the principle of a simple CNC circular program, and powerful software, the company says. Together, these can quickly diagnose and quantify machine positioning errors including, servo mismatch, stick-slip errors, backlash, repeatability, scale mismatch and machine geometry as well as giving an overall circularity error value.
The QC20-W kit is supplied in a redesigned, robust system case, which includes spaces for the most popular accessories.
Ballbar lengths are identical to QC10, so all existing test routines can be carried over including test templates, CNC programs, and work and test procedures. Only minimal training is required when upgrading, focusing on familiarization with the new features. The Ballbar20 software is also compatible with QC10 systems as the test file format is unchanged. As a result both old and new machine records can be reviewed using the same software.
www.renishaw.com/qc20
