Grinder tool-measurement system

Nov. 10, 2005
CNC tool and cutter grinder machine manufacturer Anca has developed a compact tool-measurement system that the company says gives machine operators a detailed look at tools while they are clamped and ready to be re-formed and sharpened.

CNC tool and cutter grinder machine manufacturer Anca has developed a compact tool-measurement system that the company says gives machine operators a detailed look at tools while they are clamped and ready to be re-formed and sharpened.

Anca says its iView system finds problems with cutting tools and adjusts grinders without removing the tool from the machine. The system combines computer vision and software that works with a grinding machine's operating software.

The system's camera takes an image of a ground tool and compares that image to an ideal overlay shape generated by the iView software or from imported files. Tolerances can be specified and graphically displayed over the tool image, and data is fed into the machine's grinding cycle for automatic compensation. The system measures three-point angles and performs threepoint radius and two-point distance measurements. There are two magnifications available for the iView.

Anca says one iView system handles up to four grinding machines.