MEASURING ARM OF A MULTI-COORDINATE MEASURING MACHINE

摘要

The measuring arm of a multiple coordinate measuring machine has two horizontal arm portions and a vertical arm part. The vertical part free end has a chuck for rigidly connecting a probe member to the measuring arm. The arm part and arm portions comprise pairs of parallel bender bars having rectangular cross-sectional configurations. A corrugated tube can surround the bars to increase the torsional stiffness of the measuring arm. Non-bendable bars freely project between each bender bar pair and carry at their free ends capacitor plate pairs forming differential capacitor primary elements. The outer electrode pairs fixed to the bender bars. Geometrical measurement with respect to the coordinate axes can be performed with two pendulums by movement of the measuring slides of the measuring machine carrying the measuring arm. The test signals of the primary elements are generated by bending movements of the measuring arm in the respective coordinate directions. A high degree of measuring accuracy and safe movement of the measuring arm are ensured since any contact with the measuring arm controls movement of the measuring machine.