Laser Measurement of parallelism between guidelines on a machine tool, explained by Nico Janssen.

Nico explains the principle of laser based parallelism measurements with our ProLIne system in theory and on a real machine bed.
Parallelism measurement on a lathe with the ProLine 300 system.
Furthermore we measure the straightness of teach guideline.
The complete measurement takes less than 20min!
The squareness accuracy is better than 5µm/m!
Status Pro has been developing and manufacturing machine measurement and alignment instrumentation since 1995. Through close teamwork with our customers, suppliers and service
rofessionals we continue to improve our equipment. Making recision instrumentation that’s easy to use is our first priority. Our customers are typically machine manufacturers, assembly, repair, service and quality control professionals. We pursue long-term customer
relationships; to support this we often customise our software and mechanical adaption according to specific customer requirements. We also offer a broad range of support services like Instrumentation Rental, repair and calibration services.
Video made by:
Status Pro Maschinenemesstechnik GmbH
44866 Bochum
Germany
Phone: [phone]
Web: www.statuspro.com

[@GusLandy]

Danke Niko! I've been thinking about this for a while. We, regular mortals don't have the money to buy expensive German tools. However, take the two guides and go far away from a white wall (say 100 meters) or a few meters in enough if you go back an forth between the slides and the wall to look at the spot with a magnifier. Use a bubble level and place the guides in the same plane, roughly horizontal and parallel to the wall. Use a laser pointer taped to the level and aiming at the wall. Slide the level/pointer group around making sure to keep the spot on the same vertical on the wall. Any small difference in parallelism will be converted into a large change in height of the laser spot on the wall. You got the idea, I bet you can measure 1/100 degrees if you have a good laser (let's say your error will be 1 mm at 10 meters or better if the spot stays small). The limit is the spot size, so a gas laser will be much better than a diode. Tschuss!

[@StatusProGmbH]

Dear Gus, thanks for the comment. You are right that there are other possibilities to measure the parallelism of machines. What we present here is the way to measure high precision machines where we talk about µm. We measure tool machinery, CMM's and roll parallelism with this principle. Along a guideline there are offset errors (X and Y) and angular errors (Pitch, Roll and Yaw). Furthermore, we measure the positioning error with our µLine system. So for example if you see a deviation of the laserspot on a wall, 100m away, it is not clear if there is an small angular error on the guideline or a large offset error. Both will effect the laserpoint in the same way. The most common way is here to measure the distance of the guidelines with a bracket which is fixed on the sliding table on one guideline and measure the distance to the second guideline with a simple dial gauge. Additional you have to use a digital spirit level for the height and one for the roll error. This method is also not 100% free of errors because a angular deviation of the guideline also effects the reading of the dial gauge. Furthermore this principle will fail if the distance of the guidelines is too large (gantry machines). Beside the sale we also offer our service and rental systems.

[@GusLandy]

@@StatusProGmbH Nico, do you guys sell these measuring systems? I live in the Denver area, so there are quite a few mechanical shops. Do you think I can use some of your equipment and do business with local shops, like measurements for various machines? Or maybe I can represent you. I am a very sharp guy. Thanks.

[@StatusProGmbH]

@@GusLandy Dear Gus, sorry for my last comment, I forgot to mention that this is not Nico, my name is Bernd Koschinski. Right now we are looking for new distributors in the US. We provide service, offer rental systems (in the EU) and we sell our systems worldwide, mostly to our distrobutors. It would be nice to receive your mailadress and we can talk about your and our ideas for a partnership. Just use [e-mail] and I will answer immediately. Regards Bernd

[@GusLandy]

@@StatusProGmbH I've just sent you an email with my Skype handle. I am currently transitioning to a new phone carrier so Skype is the best option if we need to chat. I am 8 hours behind Germany but my time window is very wide. Best regards, George

[@StatusProGmbH]

@@GusLandy Dear Gus, I checked the inbox of our mail accounts but unfortunately there was no mail. Can you maybe try it again and use [e-mail] (instead of the .de). Best regards Bernd