Abstract
Calibrating the ADM Laser tracker needs long linear distances. For such distances, the room temperature is a significant factor. Even though the calibration room’s temperature is controlled within ±2 degrees C, actual temperature and temperature variation in one end of the room can be different from another because of uneven air flow in the room. Controlling the air temperature and air flow along the rail can be costly for a laboratory. Thermally compensating the ADM distance for a laser traveling over a range of 50m is not easy with just one temperature sensor. On the other hand, multiple temperature sensors placed along the ADM beam path further complicates ADM distance error compensation. Existing processes for calibrating ADM laser trackers involve time consuming practices, manual redundancies and large footprints that inhibit an efficient process for sending laser trackers back into the field where they can be utilized by the end user. API has developed the new ADM calibration Rail to overcome the challenge of temperature control along the ADM laser beam path using common path[1] theory to eliminate any drift from beams or data collections. The new method is automated to collect data for a long distance. An XD Laser is used as a reference for ADM calibration for better accuracy.
Cite this paper
John Gross, David L. Linville, Yongwoo Park, Nay Lin, Yuanqun Liu. Automated Precision Inc. (API), Rockville, MD. Presented at the Coordinate Metrology Systems Conference 2018, Reno, Nevada, July 23-27, 2018. Coordinate Metrology Society, reference CMS-2018-007.