US4966460A — Laser gauging of rotary cutting tools

Claim 1

Independent Claim 198 words

Apparatus for gauging a rotary cutting tool while rotating in the spindle of a machine tool, comprising: a transmitter for producing a scanning laser beam movable perpendicularly of itself in a scanning plane through a predetermined scanning range at a predetermined velocity and with a scanning frequency which is a substantial mixed number multiple of the rotational frequency of the tool chosen to rotate the image of the tool slowly relative to the scanning frequency, a light-sensing receiver positioned to detect the impingement of the moving laser beam thereupon, means for positioning said transmitter and receiver on opposite sides of the spindle axis and with the cutting tool breaking the scanning plane within said scanning range, means for slowly moving the cutting tool axially through the scanning plane to assure the exposure of the cutting tip of the cutter to the scanning beam, and means for measuring the minimum elapsed time of the sensed impingement of the scanning laser upon the receiver during multiple successive scans of the laser beam between an edge of the scanning range and the nearest encountered point of said tool as a measure of the distance between said edge and said nearest point.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 198 words

Apparatus for gauging a rotary cutting tool while rotating in the spindle of a machine tool, comprising: a transmitter for producing a scanning laser beam movable perpendicularly of itself in a scanning plane through a predetermined scanning range at a predetermined velocity and with a scanning frequency which is a substantial mixed number multiple of the rotational frequency of the tool chosen to rotate the image of the tool slowly relative to the scanning frequency, a light-sensing receiver positioned to detect the impingement of the moving laser beam thereupon, means for positioning said transmitter and receiver on opposite sides of the spindle axis and with the cutting tool breaking the scanning plane within said scanning range, means for slowly moving the cutting tool axially through the scanning plane to assure the exposure of the cutting tip of the cutter to the scanning beam, and means for measuring the minimum elapsed time of the sensed impingement of the scanning laser upon the receiver during multiple successive scans of the laser beam between an edge of the scanning range and the nearest encountered point of said tool as a measure of the distance between said edge and said nearest point.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 79 words

The apparatus of claim 1 employed to gauge the cutting diameter of said cutting tool wherein the cutting diameter of the tool is less than said scanning range, said scanning plane is positioned normal to the spindle axis and coincident with the plane of rotation of the cutting tool at its maximum cutting diameter, and the elapsed time measured occurs between each edge of the scanning range and said cutting tool, as a measure of the maximum cutting diameter.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 37 words

The apparatus of claim 2 employed for gauging the swing of the cutting point of a boring tool, wherein said maximum diameter is the diameter of the plane of rotation of the cutting point of the tool.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 28 words

The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the edges of said scanning range are predetermined by two spaced obstructions in the path of the laser beam to the receiver.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 136 words

The apparatus of claim 1 further adapted to gauge the diameter of the cutting path of a boring tool whose cutting point is carried by a tool bar mounted in a radially-adjustable slide movable to a cutting path diameter greater than the predetermined scanning range of the laser beam, said bar having at its free end a reference pin projecting parallel to the spindle axis with its center aligned with the cutting point on a diameter of the spindle being axially movable by the tool bar into the scanning plane at a turning radius enabling it to turn within said scanning range, said reference pin having a known radial distance from said cutting point whereby the lasermeasured diameter of the path of the reference pin becomes an indirect measure of the diameter of the cutting path.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 45 words

The apparatus of claim 1 employed for gauging the axial location of the tip of a cutting tool wherein said scanning plane is parallel to the axis of the spindle and said laser beam scans from said edge to the tip of the cutting tool.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 25 words

The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said transmitter and receiver are rotatable to position said scanning plane perpendicular or parallel, respectively, to said spindle axis.

Claim 9

Independent Claim 156 words

The method of gauging a cutting tool in the spindle of a machine tool while the cutting tool is rotating, comprising the steps of rotating the spindle at desired cutting speed, positioning the rotating tool within the predetermined scanning range of a laser beam movable perpendicularly of itself in a scanning plane at a predetermined velocity with a scanning frequency which bears a mixed number ratio to the rotational speed of the tool, chosen to rotate the image of the tool slowly relative to the scanning frequency, slowly moving the cutting tool axially through the scanning plane to assure the exposure of the cutting tip of the cutter to the scanning beam, and measuring the minimum elapsed time for the traverse of the laser beam between an edge of its predetermined range and the nearest point of the tool during multiple successive scans as a measurement of the distance between said edge and said nearest point.

Claim 10

Independent Claim 156 words

The method of gauging a cutting tool in the spindle of a machine tool while the cutting tool is rotating, comprising the steps of rotating the spindle at desired cutting speed, positioning the rotating tool within the predetermined scanning range of a laser beam movable perpendicularly of itself in a scanning plane at a predetermined velocity with a scanning frequency which bears a mixed number ratio to the rotational speed of the tool, chosen to rotate the image of the tool slowly relative to the scanning frequency, slowly moving the cutting tool axially through the scanning plane to assure the exposure of the cutting tip of the cutter to the scanning beam, and measuring the minimum elapsed time for the traverse of the laser beam between an edge of its predetermined range and the nearest point of the tool during multiple successive scans as a measurement of the distance between said edge and said nearest point.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 72 words

The method of claim 8 applied to measure the diameter of the cutting path of a cutting tool wherein the scanning plane is positioned normal to the spindle axis at the maximum cutting diameter of the cutting tool, and the said minimum elapsed time measured is that which occurs upon the traverse of the laser beam between each edge of the predetermined range and the cutting tool at said maximum cutting diameter.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 31 words

The method of claim 9 applied to measure the diameter of a boring tool wherein said maximum diameter is the diameter of the path of the cutting point of the tool.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 193 words

The method of claim 9 applied to the measurement of the diameter of the cutting path of a boring tool which is adjustable to a cutting diameter greater than said scanning range by radial movement of the boring bar relative to the spindle axis, comprising the preliminary steps of providing the boring bar at its free end with a reference pin projecting therefrom parallel to the axis of the spindle and beyond the cutting plane of the tool point with the axis of said pin and the tool point aligned on a diameter of the machine spindle, and measuring the distance between said tool point and said reference pin along said spindle diameter before rotating the spindle at desired boring speed, then positioning the rotating tool to cause only the reference pin to penetrate said scanning plane while rotating the tool and measuring the diameter of the path of the reference pin as specified for measuring the diameter of cutting path of the tool of claim 9, and summing twice said measured tool-point-to-reference-pin distance with the diameter of the path of the reference pin to obtain the rotational diameter of the tool point.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 99 words

The method of claim 11 wherein said tool-point-to-reference-pin distance is also laser-measured separately by positioning the boring bar to position both the tool point and the reference pin within said scanning range and said scanning plane of the laser beam with the tool point at or near dead center, and oscillating the spindle slowly through a limited arc to both sides of dead center during multiple successive scans of the laser beam while measuring the maximum elapsed time for the traverse of the laser beam between the tool point and reference pin as a measure of the tool-point-to-reference-pin distance.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	1993-10-29	1994-04-30	1994-10-30	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	1997-10-29	1998-04-30	1998-10-30	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	2001-10-29	2002-04-30	2002-10-30	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Laser gauging of rotary cutting tools

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