Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US6502249?dq=%22Meaning-based+advertising+and+document+relevance+determination%22
Timestamp: 2013-12-08 18:49:11
Document Index: 344226551

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 102', 'art 328', 'art 102']

Patent US6502249 - Method and system for part measurement and verification - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Advanced Patent Search | Sign inAdvanced Patent SearchPatentsA system for part measurement and verification is disclosed. The system comprises a set of design criteria specifying a part and a fixture with gage blocks for positioning the part, where each of the gage blocks represents a known position. At least one probe is operable to measure the scalar values...http://www.google.com/patents/US6502249?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US6502249 - Method and system for part measurement and verificationPublication numberUS6502249 B2Publication typeGrantApplication numberUS 09/972,573Publication dateJan 7, 2003Filing dateOct 5, 2001Priority dateJul 9, 1999Fee statusPaidAlso published asDE60016097D1, DE60016097T2, EP1067359A1, EP1067359B1, US6470587, US20020016651Publication number09972573, 972573, US 6502249 B2, US 6502249B2, US-B2-6502249, US6502249 B2, US6502249B2InventorsClifton Dale Cunningham, James McKinnon Fitch, James Jeffery Howard, James Paul Koesters, Michael Alan Leenhouts, Eric Dewayne MooreOriginal AssigneeVought Aircraft Industries, Inc.Patent Citations (54), Referenced by (2), Classifications (15), Legal Events (9) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetMethod and system for part measurement and verificationUS 6502249 B2Abstract A system for part measurement and verification is disclosed. The system comprises a set of design criteria specifying a part and a fixture with gage blocks for positioning the part, where each of the gage blocks represents a known position. At least one probe is operable to measure the scalar values of the part and the gage blocks. A handheld information processor or computer is coupled to the probe for receiving the measurements and is operable to transform the measurements and compare those measurements to the design criteria to in order to verify the part.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/351,032, filed Jul. 9, 1999, by Clifton Dale Cunningham, James McKinnon Fitch, James Jeffery Howard, James Paul Koesters, Michael Alan Leenhouts and Eric Dewayne Moore and entitled �Method and System for Part Measurement and Verification�.
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to the field of quality assurance and, more specifically, to a method and system for part measurement and verification.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Parts manufacturers must inspect individual parts to ensure that they meet the appropriate design criteria. Moreover, the growing complexity of modern manufacturing technology places increasingly higher demands on industrial measurement and verification systems. Known methods of measurement and verification, however, have not been completely satisfactory with respect to accuracy, speed, and ease of use.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, a method and system for part measurement and verification are provided that substantially eliminate or reduce the disadvantages and problems associated with previously developed systems and methods.
FIG. 3C is the view 3C�3C of FIG. 3B, illustrating, in greater detail, a gage block coupled to a fixture;
FIG. 3E is the view 3E�3E of FIG. 3B, illustrating, in greater detail, a gage block and a part;
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a system block diagram of one embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a part 102 to be measured and verified is placed on a fixture 104. The part 102 may be anything, for example, the upper bonnet of an airplane fuselage or the side panel of an automobile. The fixture 104 may be, for example, a fixed assembly jig. The fixture 104 includes one or more gage blocks 106. A gage block 106 is designed to hold and position a probe 108 used to measure the part 102. The gage blocks 106 are described in more detail in connection with FIGS. 3C, 3D and 3E. The probes 108 are described in more detail in connection with FIGS. 4, 5A, and 5B. In this particular embodiment, up to six probes 108 may be used to measure the part 102. Each probe 108 performs a scalar measurement and generates an electrical signal representation of that measurement. The probes 108 are coupled by cables 110 to a field wiring assembly 112, which is described in further detail in connection with FIG. 7. A belt 114, which is described in more detail in connection with FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C, and 6D, holds the probes 108 and the field wiring assembly 112. A cable 116 couples the field wiring assembly 112 to an information processor 118. The information processor 118 can be an off-the-shelf personal computer adapted for use in the present invention. It may be a handheld computer, for example, a Telxon PTC 1194 computer with a National Instruments DAQ 500 analog-to-digital card. The information processor 118 comprises an analog digital card 120, a processor 122, a memory 124, at least one input device 126, and a display 127. The analog-to-digital card 120 converts the analog measurements received from the probes 108 to digital data. The processor 122 processes data, the memory 124 stores data, and the input device 126 is used by the user to interact with the information processor 118. Display 127 provides visual information to the user.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart demonstrating one method of measurement and verification in accordance with the present invention. The method begins with step 202, where the part 102 to be measured and verified is specified with a set of design criteria. The design criteria may be, for example, the specifications for the part, and may be part of an inspection data set (IDS), which may be, for example, a protected Microsof� Excel disk file. The design criteria may originally have been created using computer aided design software such as CATIA. The design criteria may be expressed in the part reference system, which, by way of example, may be a part for an aircraft. The design criteria may also be specified in a third reference frame, which in this example, would be the aircraft reference frame. The design criteria are stored in an information processor 118, as stated in step 204. In step 206, the part 102 is placed in a fixture 104. The fixture includes gage blocks 106, which are used to position the probes 108 that measure the part. In step 208, the position and direction of each gage block 106 is determined. The position and direction data may be expressed with respect to, for example, the fixture reference frame, and may be part of the IDS file.
FIG. 3A illustrates a perspective view of one embodiment of a part 102 coupled to a fixture 104. In this example, the part 102 is the upper bonnet of an airplane fuselage. The fixture 104 is a floor assembly jig. FIG. 3B illustrates an underside view of the part 102 and fixture 104 of FIG. 3A. The figure shows three groups of three gage blocks 106 a-106 i coupled to a fixture rib 302 near the forward edge of the part and two gage blocks 106 j and 106 k coupled to a fixture rib 304 near the forward comer of the panel. The gage blocks 106 a-106 k position the probes that are used to measure the part 102. FIG. 3C is a view along the line 3C�3C of FIG. 3B illustrating, in greater detail, gage blocks 106 a-106 i and a fixture rib 302. Three groups of three gage blocks 106 a-106 i are coupled to the fixture rib 302. FIG. 3D presents an enlarged view of a probe 108 coupled to the gage block 106 e of FIG. 3C. The probe 108 may be, for example, a TP107-EP100 probe, manufactured by MP Components. The TP107-EP100 probe is a single axis device used to locate and measure the stringer centerline 310. The measurements collected from this probe represent the linear deviation of the stringer centerline from a known reference point.
FIG. 3E is the view along the line 3E�3E of FIG. 3B illustrating, in greater detail, gage blocks 106 j and 106 k and a part 102. The probes 108 and 109 are coupled to gage blocks 106 j and 106 k, respectively, coupled to fixture rib 304. The probes 108 and 109 may be, for example, 200-SB probes, manufactured by Linear Measurements Instruments (LMI). The 200-SB probe is a single axis device used to measure linear displacement and has a range of approximately 10 mm. The probe is positioned to measure a feature location using a gage block, coupled to a bracket and a bushing. The probes 108 and 109 are coupled to brackets 320 and 322, respectively, and bushings 324 and 326, respectively. The brackets may be, for example, LMI 264 brackets. The index bushings may be, for example, LMI 1261 index bushings, which are standard ⅜ inch diameter threaded bushings. One probe 108 measures the edge of part 328, and the other probe 109 measures the molding line 330 of the part.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart demonstrating one method of measurement analysis and verification in accordance with the present invention. An embodiment of this method may be written in Visual Basic 5.0 designed for Microsof� Windows. An embodiment may provide a graphical interface that provides the user with a display with which the user may interact (for example, receive or input information) with the system during a step in the method. The method begins with step 901, where the user selects to create a new measurement job, open an existing measurement job, send a measurement job, print a measurement job, or exit the program. If the user selects to create a new job (step 902), then the method proceeds to step 904, where the user selects an IDS file. An IDS file, which may be, for example, a protected Microsof� Excel file, is specific to a particular fixture 104 and a particular part 102. An IDS file may contain: (1) the three-dimensional position and direction of each gage block 106 with respect to, for example, the fixture reference system (the XYZ coordinate system); (2) part datum criteria, which are the nominal positions of the part datum in the part reference system (the X′Y′Z′ coordinate system); (3) part feature criteria, which are the desired positions of the part features expressed in the aircraft reference system (the X″Y″Z″ coordinate system); (4) transformation equations from the X′Y′Z′ coordinate system to the X″Y″Z″ coordinate system; and (5) the analysis case for each feature position, which describes how each feature is to be analyzed, based on the type of the feature (e.g., hole, surface). After the user selects the IDS file, the process proceeds to step 905. If the user selects to open an existing measurement job (step 908), the method proceeds to step 910, where the user is presented with a list of existing jobs. Once the user opens an existing job, the method proceeds to step 905. If the user selects to send a measurement job, print a measurement job, or exit the program (step 912), the method proceeds to step 913, where the user may complete the selected action.
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