Analysis of Results of Non-Contact Coordinate Measurement of a Cutting Tool Applied for Mould Machining

One of the main problems of machining of moulds is the need for an effective monitoring system of wear of cutting tools. This paper presents the results of coordinate measurements of a cutting tool which were obtained by using the non-contact measuring system based on the ACCURA II coordinate measuring machine equipped with the LineScan laser measuring probe and the Calypso metrology software. Investigations were carried out for several measurement strategies including different measurement resolutions and scanning speeds. The results of the coordinate measurements obtained by using the above-mentioned coordinate measuring system were compared to the reference data measured by means of the InfiniteFocus microscope. The measurement results were analysed by means of two software packages: Focus Inspection and Zeiss Reverse Engineering. The point clouds measured by using the LineScan probe were characterized by the selected deviation statistics equal to 4-6 μm when a good match between measurement points and the reference data was obtained. Moreover, these statistics mainly depend on the measurement resolution. The results of the performed experimental research allowed for drawing conclusions concerning the significance of the effect of the adopted measurement strategies on the results of the non-contact coordinate measurements of the selected cutting tool. The application of the non-contact coordinate measurements to the above-mentioned measurement task may contribute to the development of regeneration methods for cutting tools applied for mould manufacturing.