Patent ID: 8112173

Claim:
A position ensuring system for correcting an error in a five-axis machine tool having, in addition to X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis, an A-axis for pivoting of a spindle head and a C-axis for rotation of a table, thereby ensuring the position of the spindle head in oblique machining of inclined holes in a workpiece, said system comprising: an A-axis calibration system which measures a displacement angle, which is an error between a target value and a measured value of the pivot angle of the spindle head about the A-axis as the spindle head is pivoted to meet the inclination angle of an inclined hole to be machined in a workpiece, and corrects the pivot angle about the A-axis in such a manner that the displacement angle as measured with the corrected pivot angle as a target value fall within a tolerable range, before initiating machining of the workpiece, the measurement of displacement angle being carried out for all the inclined holes to be machined by execution of a measurement program prepared based on data on the shapes, including the inclination angles and the directions, of the inclined holes to be machined; a corrected data storage device which stores the corrected pivot angle about the A-axis for each of the inclined holes to be machined; and an A-axis control system which reads out the corrected pivot angle about the A-axis for each inclined hole upon executing a machining program for the workpiece by means of an NC apparatus, and uses the corrected pivot angle about the A-axis to pivot the spindle head when executing oblique machining of the inclined hole; wherein the A-axis calibration system comprises: a spherical calibration gage the coordinates of the center of which are known; a probe mounted to the front end of the spindle head and having a terminal for contact with the spherical surface of the calibration gage; a position detector which detects a contact point between the terminal of the probe and the spherical surface of the calibration gage as the terminal is brought into contact with the spherical surface from an arbitrary direction; and an arithmetic unit which calculates the coordinates of a measured center of the spherical calibration gage from the positions of a plurality of contact points between the terminal of the probe and the spherical surface of the calibration gage as the terminal is brought into contact with the spherical surface from a plurality of directions, the positions of the contact points being measured in accordance with predetermined measurement procedures while keeping the spindle head in a tilted position at such a tilt angle about the A-axis that meets the inclination angle of each of the inclined holes to be machined, and calculates the displacement angle about the A-axis based on the calculated coordinates of the measured center of the spherical calibration gage and on said known coordinates of the center of the spherical calibration gage.