Compensating for systematic errors in 5-axis NC machining

The errors introduced during 5-axis machining are higher than the intrinsic repeatability of the machine tool. It is possible to identify such systematic errors and compensate for them, thus achieving higher performance. A group of systematic errors can be compensated for directly in the inverse kinematics equations. Other systematic errors can be combined and compensated for through the total differentials of the inverse kinematics relations. A new general approach on how to compensate for the systematic errors based on the closed loop volumetric error relations is presented. The errors due to the 5-axis toolpath generation in current CAD/CAM and CNC are analyzed in detail. A new strategy for measurement and compensation is presented.