Process and apparatus for inspecting a high volume material jointing operation
AssigneeComau S.p.A.
InventorsVelibor Kilibarda, He Wang, Martin Kinsella
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of sequentially performing a plurality of jointing operations includes positioning an automated device to form a mechanical joint into a workpiece and forming a mechanical joint into the workpiece. Once the mechanical joint is formed, the workpiece is scanned to generate data indicating the surface geometry of the workpiece at a location including the mechanical joint. One or more geometric features of the surface geometry are identified, and if the identified geometric features are within respective predetermined specification thresholds, the automated device is repositioned to form a subsequent mechanical joint into the workpiece.
Claims16
A method for inspecting a jointing process, the method comprising the steps of:
- automatically scanning with a sensor connected to a programmable mechanical joint forming device a workpiece in an area including a formed mechanical joint;
- generating surface geometry data of the workpiece in the area including the formed mechanical joint;
- determining from the surface geometry data the positional X,Y location of the formed mechanical joint relative to the workpiece;
- and
- determining a coordinate positional X,Y locational variance between the determined formed mechanical joint positional X,Y location and a predetermined nominal positional X,Y location of the mechanical joint.
A method for inspecting a jointing process, the method comprising the steps of:
- moving one of a workpiece or an automated programmable mechanical joint forming device having a sensor to a predetermined nominal positional location relative to one another where a mechanical joint is to be formed;
- stopping the one of the workpiece or programmable mechanical joint forming device at the predetermined nominal positional location;
- forming the mechanical joint with the joint forming device;
- scanning with the sensor the workpiece in an area including the formed mechanical joint;
- generating surface geometry data of the workpiece in the area including the formed mechanical joint;
- determining from the surface geometry data one of:
- a presence of the formed mechanical joint in the workpiece;
- a positional X,Y location of the formed mechanical joint, or
- a height of the formed mechanical joint relative to the workpiece;
- comparing the determined one of the presence, positional X,Y location or height of the formed mechanical joint to predetermined conditions stored in a memory device;
- determining whether the formed mechanical joint is a pass inspection condition or a failed inspection condition;
- and
- moving the one of the workpiece or the joint forming device to a next nominal positional location where a next mechanical joint is to be formed on a pass inspection condition of the formed mechanical joint.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.