초록 ▼

An automated machining process for machining of an obstructed passage (5) of an article (1) includes the steps of deriving the position and orientation of the passage (5) from automated processing of images of the passage (5) and additional information from a distance measurement device and saving p

An automated machining process for machining of an obstructed passage (5) of an article (1) includes the steps of deriving the position and orientation of the passage (5) from automated processing of images of the passage (5) and additional information from a distance measurement device and saving positions and orientations of the passage (5) as local coordinates with respect to a reference coordinate system attached to the material that surrounds the passage (5). The saved positions and orientations of the passage (5) are used for subsequent removal of unwanted material from the obstructed passage (5).

대표청구항 ▼

What is claimed is: 1. A process for automated machining of an obstructed passage of an article, the process comprising: establishing a local reference coordinate system using characteristic features of the article that are unaffected by subsequent machining; obtaining over a plurality of angles th

What is claimed is: 1. A process for automated machining of an obstructed passage of an article, the process comprising: establishing a local reference coordinate system using characteristic features of the article that are unaffected by subsequent machining; obtaining over a plurality of angles thee-dimensional position and orientation data of the passage as local coordinates with respect to the reference coordinate system, using an automated scanning vision system and a distance measurement device; saving position and orientation data of the passage; and removing obstructing material from the passage using the saved position and orientation data of the passage. 2. A process according to claim 1 comprising: establishing a local tangential surface plane using a touch probe, an eddy current sensor, an optical triangulation sensor, a conoscopic sensor, an interferometer, an optical distance measurement device, or combinations thereof; and wherein obtaining comprises obtaining the position data of the passage from the intersection of the axis of the passage with the local tangential surface plane. 3. A process according to claim 1, wherein corners, rims, side surfaces, grooves, or combinations thereof, are used to establish the local reference coordinate system. 4. A process according to claim 1, wherein removing obstructing material comprises removing by laser evaporation using a high power Q-switched laser or precision drilling solid state laser. 5. A process according to claim 1, wherein removing obstructing material comprises removing with a Q-switched ND-YAG laser having a power intensity in the range from 2*107 to 5*108 W/cm2. 6. A process according to claim 1, wherein removing obstructing material comprises removing by water jet drilling. 7. A process according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the position and orientation data of the passage comprises obtaining with a first robot or CNC-system, and removing obstructing material comprises removing with a second robot or CNC-system, different from the first robot or CNC-system. 8. A process according to claim 1, wherein obtaining the position and orientation data of the passage comprises obtaining with a first robot or CNC-system, and removing obstructing material comprises removing with said first robot or CNC-system. 9. A process according to claim 1, further comprising: establishing an error map using a reference article; and compensating for residual deviations between position data indicated by the robot and the actual, absolute position data. 10. A process according to claim 1, further comprising: deriving the orientation of the passage from the thee-dimensional position and orientation data of the passage; and determining the optimal alignment with the passage with image analysis tools. 11. A process according to claim 1, wherein the article is a superalloy turbine component having cooling passages, and further comprising: recoating the turbine component prior to said establishing a local reference coordinate system. 12. A process for automated machining of an obstructed passage of an article, the process comprising: establishing a local reference coordinate system using characteristic features of the article that are unaffected by subsequent machining; determining a local tangential surface using a distance measurement device; taking at a plurality of angles images of the obstructed passage using a scanning vision system and determining the passage axis using image analysis tools; obtaining position data from the intersection of the passage axis with the local tangential surface as local coordinates with respect to the reference coordinate system; saving position and passage axis data of the passage; and removing obstructing material from the passage using the saved position and axis data of the passage. 13. A process according to claim 12, wherein determining a local tangential surface comprises determining with a touch probe, an eddy current sensor, an optical triangulation sensor, a conoscopic sensor, an interferometer, an optical distance measurement device, or combinations thereof. 14. A process according to claim 12, wherein corners, rims, side surfaces, grooves, or combinations thereof, are used to establish the local reference coordinate system. 15. A process according to claim 12, wherein removing obstructing material comprises removing by laser evaporation using a high power Q-switched laser or precision drilling solid state laser. 16. A process according to claim 12, wherein removing obstructing material comprises removing with a Q-switched ND-YAG laser having a power intensity in the range from 2*107 to 5*108 W/cm2. 17. A process according to claim 12, wherein removing obstructing material comprises removing by water jet drilling. 18. A process according to claim 12, wherein obtaining the position and determining axis data of the passage comprise obtaining with a first robot or CNC-system, and removing obstructing material comprises removing with a second robot or CNC-system different from the first robot or CNC-system. 19. A process according to claim 12, wherein obtaining the position and determining axis data of the passage comprise obtaining with a first robot or CNC-system, and removing obstructing material comprises removing with said first robot or CNC-system. 20. A process according to claim 12, further comprising: establishing an error map using a reference article; and compensating for residual deviations between position data indicated by the robot and the actual, absolute position data. 21. A process according to claim 12, further comprising: deriving the orientation of the passage from the axis and orientation data of the passage; and determining the optimal alignment with the passage with image analysis tools. 22. A process according to claim 12, wherein the article is a superalloy turbine component having cooling passages, and further comprising: recoating the turbine component prior to said establishing a local reference coordinate system.