Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] DIY CMM ??

In a message dated 05/05/2000 7:33:29 AM Hawaiian Standard Time,
mmueller@... writes:

<< So has anyone built one that would be fairly accurate in the .001"
to .0005" range.
My parts are normally in the envelope of no bigger than 18" x 18" x
18". >>

Ironically, Your CMM and a gantry mill big enough to do a 18 inch cube would
have to be very massive and rigid to hold .0005". I think a more realistic
range would be +- .002. I have tried to probe on a 3 axis DRO equipped
Bridgeport. Not really good for more than a few dozen hits. Talk about
cranking. The neatest system I've used is a Renishaw probe used as a joy
stick. By grabbing the probe, one drags the stylus over the part. The cnc
floats the gantry over the part as though you were moving a manual machine.
Of course, it is recording position info as you go. If this system could be
duplicated in a lower (much lower) cost version, you could build a medium
duty gantry mill / CMM combo machine. Kill two birds with one stone.

Just a thought.

Peter
THRD, Inc.