Virtual Optimisation of CAI Process Parameters for the Sculptured Surface Inspection

One of the key elements of digital manufacturing (including design-planning-production-inspection value chain) is a simulation i.e. virtual modelling of all processes that belong to the manufacturing chain. Simulations are frequently used to optimise some of the processes of digital manufacturing, in order to improve quality of the process itself and its output. This paper presents simulated, virtual experimentation performed in order to estimate the effect of computer aided inspection (CAI) parameters on quality of the measuring process for a sculptured surface inspection, using response surface methodology (RSM). The virtual experimentation is performed using PLM software (module for CMM programming) based on 3D CAD model of the sculptured surface part. The most important CAI parameters in measuring sculptured surfaces are adopted as control factors: number of control sections, number of measuring points in the control sections, and measuring point's distribution along the control sections. The quality of a measuring process is presented by the measuring accuracy and the measuring time, which are adopted as responses from the experiment. Using RSM, the effects of CAI parameters on the observed response characteristics are assessed; then, the optimal setting of CAI parameters is selected aiming to improve CAI process quality, i.e. to maximise the measuring accuracy and minimise the measuring time.