JPH08314997A - Coordinate measuring system for multidimensional shape and method for teaching measurement information - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To easily automate the management or the arrangement of data by giving interchangeability to result data and a measuring instruction in a coordinate measuring system for multidimensional shape. CONSTITUTION: The system is provided with a CAD data input part 105 inputting data, a CAD graphic display part 104 displaying this CAD data, a measuring condition input part 107 and a measuring instruction input part 110 teaching the measuring instruction, a measuring condition, an estimating method, etc. The system is also provided with a measuring information preparing part 112 preparing the measuring instruction operating a measuring machine in accordance with the measuring instruction, the measuring condition and the estimating method, etc., a measuring machine instruction output part 121 outputting data which can be inputted to the measuring machine in accordance with the measuring instruction to the measuring machine, and a measured coordinated value input part 120 inputting a measured coordinated value, an estimating part 117 estimating the inputted measured coordinate value and taught measuring information, an estimation result display part 113 displaying taught measuring information and the estimated result on a picture by automatically relating them, and an estimating result output part 119 outputting the estimated result to an external device.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is based on coordinate value data at a required position of a workpiece (object to be measured) having a multidimensional shape, which is measured by a coordinate measuring machine capable of operating in multiple dimensions. The shape, such as the position, size, and geometric deviation of the object, is evaluated, and whether or not the object to be measured is correctly designed.
The present invention relates to an inspection device and a method of teaching measurement information thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Today, at the site of measurement and inspection in the manufacturing process, it is judged by using various measuring devices whether or not a manufactured work (measurement object) is made as designed. In the field of product inspection like this,
Due to its high accuracy and versatility, measurement and inspection using 2D / 3D coordinate measuring machines such as factory microscopes, universal projectors, and 3D measuring machines have become widespread.

In this coordinate measuring machine, an object to be measured is a multi-dimensional shape element such as a straight line, a circle, a cylinder, a plane, a cone, or a sphere by a contact sensor using a contactor or a non-contact sensor using light as a medium. Each time it is sampled as spatial coordinate value data and input to the electronic computer connected to the measuring instrument. In an electronic computer, the shape data is substituted into an equation representing the corresponding multidimensional shape, and the shape parameters such as position, orientation, size, and geometric deviation of the shape element are calculated by a mathematical method such as the least square method or geometric calculation. calculate.
By comparing the shape parameters obtained in this way with the numerical values written in design documents or drawings, it is determined whether or not the object to be measured is manufactured correctly.

In recent years, some of these coordinate measuring machines measure coordinate values at a predetermined position of an object to be measured by image processing technique from image data of a large number of gradations inputted by using a video camera. It is getting more and more. In the past, coordinate measuring machines based on this type of image processing used to detect coordinate values by a simple binarization process.
Due to recent technological advances, it has become possible to directly measure coordinates from image data of multiple gradations, making it possible to measure even more complex three-dimensional shapes. It has a nature.

In the coordinate measuring machine based on such image processing, unlike a microscope, it is not necessary for a person to always make a position adjustment while confirming the measuring position, and it is possible to measure a large number of measuring points automatically at one time. It is possible. In addition, since height measurement by autofocus is also possible, it is possible to measure small or soft workpieces that cannot be measured with a contact-type 3D coordinate measuring machine. It is becoming a major pillar of the field.

An electronic computer called a host computer is attached to the coordinate measuring machine as described above, and not only calculates the shape parameter of the shape to be measured from the measured coordinate values, but also the measurement conditions at the time of measurement. Generally, it also has a teaching / playback function in which measurements such as a measurement path and a measurement path are stored and repeatedly called to automatically repeat the measurement. By using this function, the measurer performs the measurement while confirming and determining the measurement condition such as the measurement condition and the measurement path at the time of the first measurement, stores the evaluation instruction and the measurement condition at that time appropriately, and The work is repeatedly performed based on this data, and automatic measurement is performed to improve the efficiency of the measurement work.

[0007]

With the recent widespread use of CAD and off-line teaching systems for coordinate measuring machines, the teaching work of measuring instructions, which is a preparatory step in the measuring work using the coordinate measuring machine, is significantly efficient. Was transformed.
However, of all the measurement work, the teaching work has only made about 30% more efficient, and the operator still has to manually organize the enormous amount of data after measurement. . Therefore, it has been desired to develop a measurement system that can truly improve the efficiency of the entire measurement work.

Further, with the spread of coordinate measuring machines using image processing, there is a strong demand for offline measuring systems for these coordinate measuring machines. However, a coordinate measuring machine that processes images does not make direct contact with an object to be measured like a three-dimensional measuring machine, but sets it in advance from image data taken by a video camera or the like. According to the measurement conditions, a method of detecting a required coordinate value by numerical processing is adopted. Especially when handling multi-gradation images, it is not possible to see the video image without a work (object to be measured), so it is possible to judge in advance whether or not an image sufficient for measurement can be obtained. There were no drawbacks. In particular,
Off-line teaching is not possible or very limited with coordinate measuring machines that process multi-gradation images because it is not possible to determine each measurement condition in advance, such as lighting conditions and the method to detect the edge of the DUT. It was said that it was possible to deal only with the parts that were specified. In addition, some of those that handle binary images have an offline teaching system, but these require thin plate-like objects to be measured, and require particularly complicated measurement conditions. Or not
Since the measurement target is a dedicated machine, a general-purpose system by image processing capable of handling an object having an arbitrary shape has not yet existed.

Further, as described above, the offline teaching system for a coordinate measuring machine has only the function of teaching measurement using CAD data and producing and outputting a measurement command that can be input by the measuring machine. Is the most. It is the data processing software attached to the coordinate measuring machine that evaluates the dimensions and shape from the measured coordinate values.
Currently, the software attached to the measuring device also outputs and manages the evaluation results. This is because a very high level of technology is required to perform shape evaluation from measured coordinate values, and using the shape evaluation software attached to the measuring machine can shorten the system development period. This is because there is an advantage to say.

For this reason, various off-line teaching systems employ a method of outputting data in a type in which dimensions and shape evaluation software attached to a shape coordinate measuring machine can be directly input. However, for this reason, it is necessary to prepare an offline teaching system for each maker according to the size and shape evaluation software. In reality, many measuring machines of the same type manufactured by different manufacturers are generally installed even within one measurement site. For this reason, even when introducing an offline teaching system, it is necessary to introduce a similar function for each manufacturer as well as a measuring machine, so not only the investment cost for the user increases, but also Since there is no compatibility between the result data and the measurement instructions among these systems and measuring instruments, there is a frequent problem that the automation of data management and organization cannot be maintained.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has the above-mentioned problems in the field of measuring and evaluating the size and shape of an object to be measured, including a coordinate measuring machine by image processing which has become widespread in recent years. It is a product that was invented as a result of conducting sincerity research to solve the problem, and is a truly effective measuring device over the entire measurement work, which is confirmation of the result evaluated from measurement teaching and data organization and management. It is provided.

The first aspect of the present invention is to input CAD data which is prepared in advance in an apparatus for measuring coordinate values at required positions of a multi-dimensional object to be measured and measuring / evaluating dimensions, shapes and the like. CAD data input section, a CAD figure display section for displaying the inputted CAD data, a measurement condition input section for teaching measurement conditions for the displayed CAD figure, and a required measurement such as a measurement command and an evaluation method. According to the measurement command input unit that teaches the information, the measurement information creation unit that creates the measurement command for operating the coordinate measuring machine according to the taught measurement command, the measurement condition, the evaluation method, etc., and the created measurement command. The measuring machine command output section that outputs data that can be input to the measuring machine, the measuring coordinate value input section that inputs the measuring coordinate value measured by the measuring machine, the input measuring coordinate value and the teaching beforehand. The evaluation unit that evaluates the dimensions and shape of the object to be measured according to the contents of the measured information, and the previously taught measurement information and the evaluated results are automatically associated and displayed on the screen as numerical values or figures. A multi-dimensional coordinate measuring system having an evaluation result display unit and an evaluation result output unit for outputting the evaluated result to an external device in a predetermined format.

Further, in the above-mentioned coordinate measuring system of multi-dimensional shape, from the measurement information taught by measurement, a measurement instruction which actually requires a measurement operation by the measuring machine and an instruction for setting the measurement condition at the time of measurement. A measurement information creation unit for extracting only the measurement information, and an information conversion unit for converting the measurement information extracted by the measurement information extraction unit into a format that can be input by the measurement device, and the measurement information converted by the measurement device is provided. , Or output as a measurement command data collectively, or as a measurement machine command output unit that sends measurement commands one by one to the measurement machine, and input the data of the measured coordinate value group at a time, or Provide a measurement coordinate value input section to input measurement coordinate values one by one, and use it as an evaluation section that evaluates the size and shape of the object to be measured according to the measured coordinate values and the measurement information that has already been created. Also be Jo coordinate measuring system.

In the multidimensional coordinate measuring system, the state of the video screen at the time of actual measurement is used by using the CAD data in accordance with the measurement conditions necessary for the measurement such as the enlargement ratio of the video image and the caliper type to be set. In some cases, the coordinate measuring system has a multi-dimensional shape provided with a simulation display unit for displaying on the screen. Then, based on the gradation image data input from the video camera, the coordinate value at the required position is measured by an image processing technique, and the dimension and shape of the multi-dimensional object to be measured are measured from the coordinate value.・ In order to evaluate, in a method of teaching measurement information that uses CAD data to teach measurement instructions, measurement conditions, evaluation methods, etc. offline, measurement of the currently set video image magnification, caliper type, etc. According to the measurement conditions required for the
A method of teaching measurement information is used, in which a simulation display is performed on a screen using D data, and a measurement teaching operation such as a measurement command or a condition is performed on the display screen.

In this method of teaching measurement information, the CAD
The measurement position may be positioned by calculating the video screen position in the CAD coordinate system using the graphic data. In the teaching method of measurement information, the video screen frame size for each enlargement ratio of the CAD drawing is calculated based on the video screen display range of the image processing apparatus, and the image data area and the CAD measurement target graphic area are compared. It may be performed and the enlargement ratio may be set.

Further, in the method of teaching measurement information, C
Caliper definition and CAD using AD figure data
By performing the above editing work, positioning of the caliper and setting of the caliper posture corresponding to the graphic shape may be performed by automatic calculation.

[0017]

[Operation] Unlike the conventional simple offline teaching system, the present invention is a coordinate measurement system that integrates the measurement teaching function, shape evaluation and result output function in this system. The measurement work can be made efficient over a wide range from the work preparation stage to the post-work.

Furthermore, a measurement information creating section for extracting a measurement command that actually requires a measurement operation in the measuring machine and only a command for setting the measurement condition at the time of measurement is provided, and the measuring machine command output section and the measurement coordinate value are provided. When inputting the measurement information and the measured coordinate values all at once, or using the measuring machine command output section and the measuring coordinate value input section that input one by one, this system and the measuring machine main body Since it is possible to connect and exchange data by a general-purpose and simple method, it is possible to use across different manufacturers of measuring instruments, and a low-cost and effective measurement environment for users. Can be provided.

Further, by providing a simulation display section for displaying the state of the video screen at the time of actual measurement on the screen using the CAD data, it is possible to teach the measurement conditions for the coordinate measuring machine by gradation image processing. Then, the method according to the present invention is, according to the measurement conditions, as a figure in which a video image at the time of measurement can be guessed by an operator with respect to a coordinate measuring machine using multi-gradation image processing, which has been considered to be difficult in the past. By making it displayable, it becomes possible to judge and determine various measurement conditions necessary for measurement.

In the method of teaching measurement information, the CAD
The method of calculating the video screen position in the CAD coordinate system using the graphic data can enable accurate positioning of the measurement position. Furthermore, in the method of teaching measurement information, based on the video screen display range of the image processing device,
In the method of calculating the video screen frame size for each enlargement ratio on CAD and comparing the areas, the optimum enlargement ratio can be automatically set.

The method of automatically calculating the position and orientation of the caliper by defining and editing the caliper using the CAD graphic data is a method of inputting measurement conditions and the like by interacting with the display screen. Very easy to do.

[0022]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a multidimensional coordinate measuring system according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. First, unlike the conventional simple offline teaching system, this system is characterized by an offline teaching (measurement teaching) function, a measurement command output function, a measurement control function of the measuring machine, and a dimension and shape evaluation function. Integrating the measurement result reference function and the result output function to external devices and other systems as one system,
Furthermore, by optimally reconfiguring each function, a system that efficiently and rationally supports all processes from the preparation stage of inspection work to post-processing such as data reduction is realized.

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a coordinate measuring system 125 of a multi-dimensional shape according to the present invention. In this coordinate measuring system 125, CAD data produced by the external CAD system 102 is input to the CAD data input unit 105. The CAD data input to the CAD data input unit 105 may be two-dimensional graphic data or three-dimensional shape data. From the point of view of function, three-dimensional shape data is preferable because more sophisticated processing is possible, but from the point of view of measurement, there is no problem with two-dimensional graphic data. However, in the case of a two-dimensional figure, some work (operation) for simply restoring the three-dimensional shape inside the coordinate measuring system 125 is required.

Since a method of simply restoring the two-dimensional figure into the three-dimensional shape data is a known technique, it will not be described in detail here, but an example of the method will be briefly described. Drawing elements are divided (or classified) for each drawing unit, such as front view, plan view, and arrow view.
To do. Next, the position and direction of the coordinate axes of the reference coordinate system and the enlargement ratio are set for each of the divided drawings. By doing so, each drawing divided is rearranged in the three-dimensional space of the reference coordinate system. Originally, the drawing is drawn by projecting the shape of the object to be measured according to a drawing method such as a triangle method. Therefore, any one element in the drawing or a graphic element representing the same shape in the object to be measured is divided into two. It is possible to obtain the geometrical shape, the position, and the posture on the reference coordinate shape of the original three-dimensional (object to be measured) shape by instructing from the drawn drawings.

The inputted CAD data (or the figure data simply restored in three dimensions) is converted into a data type suitable for the subsequent processing and stored in the CAD data storage unit 106 in this system. . The data type of the CAD data stored in the CAD data storage unit 106 changes variously depending on the processing method and algorithm, and is not particularly limited here.

The CAD data stored in the CAD data storage unit 106 is displayed on the display device 101 such as a CRT display by the CAD graphic display unit 104 according to the instruction of the measurer. In a three-dimensional coordinate measuring machine, a universal projector, etc., teaching (measurement teaching) work is performed directly on a CAD figure (either two-dimensional or three-dimensional) displayed on this screen.

However, in the case of a coordinate measuring machine using image processing, image data is input from a video camera, and the coordinate value is detected by numerically processing the image, so that it is like a three-dimensional coordinate measuring machine. In addition, there is a problem in that it is not guaranteed that the measurement can be reliably performed only by enlarging / reducing an arbitrary portion (a portion to be measured) of the CAD figure to a desired size. In other words, in the coordinate measuring machine using image processing, since the object to be measured must be seen through the video camera, there is a clear limitation on the "visible (measurable) area" called the screen frame size of the video camera. Therefore, no matter how large or small the image is displayed on the screen of the CRT as in the conventional offline teaching system, whether the area to be measured of the object to be measured is within the screen frame of the video camera or not. I can't judge.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the problem is solved by adding a function of displaying the video screen in simulation in the offline teaching function by using the CAD data and providing the simulation display unit 103. That is, some recent coordinate measuring machines based on image processing allow the photographing magnification to be arbitrarily set or selected. Therefore, the screen frame of the video screen is displayed on the CAD figure according to the measurement condition (described later) instructed by the measurement condition input unit 107, or as shown in FIG. 2, it is displayed in another area of the screen at the same magnification as the video screen. A portion for displaying a figure in the visible range is added as a frame 201, and teaching work is performed on the CAD figure 202 displayed inside the frame 201, whereby the above-mentioned problem is solved and an accurate measurement instruction can be performed. To do so. In particular, if the recent GC (computer graphics) technology is used, it is possible to display a shadow according to the illumination method and various measurement conditions, and it is possible to set accurate measurement conditions.

Since the processing in the simulation display unit 103 needs to be carried out in tandem with the measurement conditions (described later) set at that time, the measurement conditions stored in the measurement condition storage unit 108 and the CAD data storage unit This is done using the data stored in 106. The measurement condition input unit 107 is for inputting a measurement condition desired by a measurer using an input device such as a keyboard and a mouse.

The measurement conditions mentioned here are for a coordinate measuring machine using an image or optical detection method, and can be roughly classified into a coordinate value detection method and an illumination method. As the setting condition, the case where an image is handled is the most common, so a case where an image is handled will be described here. The simulation display unit 103, as shown in FIG.
The measurement position processing unit 30 and the caliper defining unit 40 are provided, and the caliper defining unit 40 always operates after the measurement position processing unit 30.

The measurement position processing unit 30 includes a measurement position designating unit 31,
It is composed of a pick content analysis unit 32, a display center determination unit 33, a video screen frame calculation unit 34, and a zoom processing unit 35. The caliper defining unit 40 includes a caliper selecting operation unit 41, a caliper initial setting unit 42, a caliper position determining unit 43, a caliper attitude determining unit 44, a caliper drawing unit 45, a caliper editing unit 46, a lighting condition setting unit 47, and a shape change. The operation unit 48 is used.

Then, the measuring position processing unit 30 is configured to
Based on the measurement position and enlargement ratio indicated on the drawing, C
After calculating the center coordinates of the zoom display on the CAD and the video screen frame size based on the data from the AD data storage unit 106, zoom processing is performed to draw a measurement target graphic on the display device 101 such as a CRT display. It is a thing. That is, the measurement position designating section 31 designates the enlargement ratio to designate the measurement position on the CAD drawing displayed on the display device 101 using the CRT display as shown in FIG.

The pick content analysis section 32 analyzes the CAD data and the instruction content designated by the measurement position designating section 31. If the instruction content is a graphic element (minimum unit of geometric element represented on CAD. Circle, arc, straight line, etc.), graphic element ID (identifies each graphic element on CAD)
Further, the graphic element data (for example, in the case of a straight line, the start point and the end point coordinates) is extracted from the CAD database using the graphic element ID. Also, the pick position in the CAD coordinate system is extracted. If the instruction content is other than the graphic element, only the pick position is extracted.

Further, if the analysis result in the pick content analysis unit 32 is a graphic element, the area of the graphic is calculated based on the extracted graphic specification data, and as shown in FIG. Considering the screen frame 201 in the range displayed as the screen, the comparison with the maximum allowable display size is performed. still,
If the area of the figure is equal to or larger than the allowable display size, the optimum enlargement ratio is automatically reset.

The display center determination unit 33 determines the zoom processing center of the CAD drawing. Basically, the pick position in the CAD coordinate system extracted by the pick content analysis unit 32 is the display center. Then, in the video screen frame calculation unit 34, the size of the display frame on the CAD is calculated based on the enlargement ratio designated by the measurement position designating unit 31 and the video screen display range of the image processing apparatus, and the figure of the frame 201 is calculated. Generate data.

Further, in the zoom processing section 35, the center position in the display center determining section 33 is set with the bidet as the center of the screen.
As shown in, the frame 201 in the video screen frame calculation unit 34
The zoom process is performed so that the figure is displayed on the CAD screen to the maximum extent, and the figure is displayed on the CRT display which is the display device 101. Further, in the zoom processing unit 35, by comparing the measurement target graphic data with the size of the frame 201 displayed on the video screen, a meaningless magnified display exceeding the size of the frame 201 is automatically detected, and the optimum magnification is achieved. The magnification may be reset.

Therefore, since the measurement position processing unit 30 uses the CAD figure data to be measured, accurate positioning (measurement movement command generation) to the measurement position is possible, and the screen of the video camera is displayed on the CAD. You can make an accurate simulation of the visible range. Further, the caliper definition unit 40 determines the position and orientation of the selected caliper based on the graphic data poured out by the measurement position processing unit 30 to determine the shape of the caliper in an interactive form on CAD. Deformation operation is possible.

The conditions for the detection method define the specifications of a coordinate value detection area called a caliper that is unique to the image measuring machine. As shown in FIG. 6, typical caliper specifications include a caliper type such as a point caliper 204, a line caliper 205, and a rectangular caliper 206.
The number of measurement points in the caliper, the position and angle of the caliper,
There are thresholds, detection methods, directionality, etc. for edge detection. Among these specifications, the caliper type can be basically defined as a special case of the rectangular caliper as shown in FIG.

In operation of the system, it is only necessary to be able to select the type such as the above-mentioned dot, line, rectangle, etc., but it is possible to hold information as a rectangle caliper in all internal processing. Although there are some differences among the manufacturers of coordinate measuring machines, basically, almost all calipers can be represented by a rectangular caliper. For example, in the case of a point caliper, W = H = 0 may be set as a parameter, and the number of measurement points in that may be set to 1. If it is a line caliper, set W = 0 as a parameter and set the number of measurement points in that to 1
It should be done.

The type of the caliper is specified through the caliper selecting operation section 41. This identification is performed by setting the initial value of the shape parameter for each caliper in the caliper initial setting unit 42. Further, the display position determined by the display center determination unit 33 by the caliper position determination unit 43 is set as the caliper position. In the caliper attitude determination unit 44, when the caliper type selected in the selection unit in the caliper selection operation unit 41 is a caliper (a line caliper or a rectangular caliper, etc.) that has characteristics that should be set in consideration of the figure shape, the pick content The caliper posture is calculated based on the graphic specification data extracted by the analysis unit 32. As shown in FIG. 7, when the graphic element is a straight line, the direction perpendicular to the straight line is taken, and when the graphic element is a circle or a circular arc, the direction from the center to the pick position is taken as the caliper posture. If the pick content is other than a graphic element, or if it is a point caliper that does not require a posture change, posture calculation is not performed.

Based on the shape parameters determined by the caliper initial setting section 42, the position determined by the caliper position determining section, and the attitude determined by the caliper attitude determining section 44 by the caliper drawing section 45. Then, the caliper is displayed on the CRT display. Further, the caliper shape changing operation unit 48 interactively moves and changes the size of the caliper set on the CAD drawing.

This movement and change is carried out by a mark 208 for moving and a mark 2 for changing size on the caliper on the CAD drawing.
For example, a circle is drawn as 09 (see FIG. 8), and the size change mark 209 is directly moved to change the caliper size, and the movement mark 208 is moved with a mouse or the like to change the caliper change position. decide. In the movement instruction, if the analysis result in the pick content analysis unit 32 is a figure element, the figure specification data is used to determine the shortest distance point on the figure from the movement instruction position (for example, if it is a straight line, the movement instruction position A new caliper position is calculated by calculating the leg of the extended straight line), and as shown in FIG. 9, accurate positioning can always be performed on the graphic element. The caliper attitude is also recalculated at the same time.

Further, in changing the size, it is possible to change according to the shape characteristics of each caliper. In the case of a line caliper, only the height (H dimension) can be changed in both directions with respect to the center position of the caliper, and in the case of a rectangular caliper, in addition to this, the width (W dimension) can be changed. In this way, in the caliper definition unit 40, the CAD
Since the graphic data is used, it is possible to accurately position the caliper and set the attitude in consideration of the caliper characteristics versus the shape of the caliper (for example, setting the line caliper in a posture that is always perpendicular to the line segment graphic). Further, in the caliper definition, since the shape change is performed interactively on the CAD, it is easy to intuitively understand the measurement object graphic and the caliper shape.

Next is the illumination method. The details of the lighting method and method differ for each manufacturer, but basically they can be classified into three types: transmitted light, epi-illumination, and split lighting. Therefore, even if the details of the lighting method are different, a number is assigned to each of these lighting methods and each illuminator, and O is assigned to each of them.
By setting and storing the information on N / OFF and the illumination intensity in the illumination condition setting unit 47, the illumination condition at the time of image input (measurement) can be accurately and easily defined.

The processing for sequentially changing / storing the measurement conditions in accordance with the instruction of the measurer is specially performed by the measurement condition storage unit 108, and the simulation display unit 103 displays the CAD graphic screen in synchronization with the information. I do. Incidentally, when the target measuring machine is a contact type three-dimensional measuring machine, it is natural that the simulation display unit 103 and the setting of these conditions are unnecessary.

Next, the measurement command input unit 110, in accordance with the measurer's instructions, evaluates the dimensions and shapes, the conditions for evaluation associated therewith, and the movement path of the sensor (contactor, optical sensor, video camera, etc.). Instruct and change information related to measurement and evaluation. The measurement command input here is temporarily stored in the measurement command storage unit 111, and when the measurement command is finalized, it is combined with the measurement conditions stored in the measurement condition storage unit 108, and all the measurement commands are required. Is reconfigured by the measurement information creating unit 112 as “measurement information” including the information of, and is sorted and stored in the measurement information storage unit 115. Therefore, the measurement information created and stored here serves as reference data for each subsequent process, as if it includes all the information necessary for performing the measurement.

There are various methods and formats for teaching the measurement command, but since these are already known techniques,
Although a detailed description of the method or method is omitted, as an example, a desired item is selected from the table of measurement / evaluation commands displayed on the screen, and then a graphic element to be measured is designated from the screen. Then, specify the required number of measurement points and positions, evaluation method, measurement conditions, etc., and when the necessary instructions are confirmed, assign numbers or arbitrary names to the measurement items and superimpose them on any position on the CAD drawing. To display or
There is a method such as displaying in a list of measurement items. In addition, when performing geometric calculation between items for which measurement has already been instructed,
It is possible to easily specify the item number or name displayed on the screen with a mouse or the like.

As described above, offline teaching,
The function as a system is incorporated in the coordinate measuring system 125. However, the offline teaching function alone merely prepares for the measurement work. Therefore, in the system of the present embodiment, the measurement control function of the measuring machine and the dimension and shape evaluation function are also incorporated into the system, so that the measurement operation itself can be executed. However, in order to realize the features mentioned here across differences among manufacturers of measuring machines, it was impossible to implement them simply by incorporating an evaluation function and a control function.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the following method is adopted and devised in order to realize this feature. First off-line
The contents of the measurement information that has been taught (measurement teaching) will be classified into three types. For measurement / evaluation, an instruction to actually operate the measuring machine to capture the measurement points (measurement coordinate values) and an instruction to evaluate the required shape (for example, point, straight line, plane, circle, etc.) from the captured measurement points, The shape data once evaluated can be roughly divided into commands for evaluating a new shape by geometric calculation or the like.

In the measurement / evaluation software attached to the conventional coordinate measuring machine, there are dozens to hundreds of types of these commands, and each command is identified by a number or name, and the measurement command is issued. It is defined as (information). The problem here is that the type, number and function of this command, the method of identification, the format of teaching data, etc. vary depending on the manufacturer of the measuring machine and the product, so even if offline
Even if a teaching system can be developed, the reality is that it must be a system dedicated to the target measuring machine.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, as a method for solving this problem, a method of actually executing the measuring machine to fetch the measurement point among the instructions roughly classified above and a method of separately processing the instruction Was developed and adopted. That is, the method is as shown in FIG.
As shown in 0, first, only the command for actually performing the measurement work is extracted from the created measurement information (301) (3
03), based on the instructions and measurement conditions specified in the measurement information, the data is converted into a format that can be input by the target measuring instrument (305) .This data conversion is performed by the measurement information storage unit. Based on the information stored in 115, the measurement information conversion unit 1
I'm going at 18.

The data converted by the measurement information conversion unit 118 is used to output to the measuring machine in real time from the measuring machine command output unit 112 (306) to drive the measuring machine, or the measuring machine command output unit Data is transferred from 112 as measurement command data (307), and only measured measurement coordinate values are loaded into the measurement coordinate value input section 120 in a batch system (307) or in real time to the measurement coordinate value input section 120 of this system ( 306), the evaluation of dimensions and shapes (304) and the subsequent data reduction work are all performed in this system.

As a result of investigating the measuring machines of each maker, most of the differences in the teaching data depend on the evaluation function of the dimensions and the shape, the geometric calculation, etc. Turned out to make little difference. Therefore, by incorporating the dimensions and shape evaluation function into this system and making it work as a device that measures only the original coordinate values in the measuring machine, it is possible to make a measuring system compatible with measuring machines of all manufacturers. It is a thing.

Furthermore, in the conventional offline teaching system, only the teaching instruction of the measurement instruction can be performed offline, but in the present embodiment, not only the offline teaching, but the converted measurement instruction is sequentially measured. By sending the measurement coordinates to the device 124, and successively reading the measured coordinate values from the measuring device 124, online measurement and offline measurement can coexist, and the user can freely use them according to his or her situation.

As a method of passing the converted data to the measuring machine 124, if the present system and the software attached to the measuring machine operate on the same computer, the necessary measurement instructions are collected on a disk / disk. The batch method (307) of passing as a file etc. may be used, but when operating on another computer, there is also a method of passing data via external storage such as a floppy disk, etc. Also, it can be passed by real time communication. If so, the measuring machine 124
It is also possible to implement it as a real-time measuring machine by transferring the measuring machine 124 to the measuring machine 124 and driving the measuring machine 124 to input the measurement coordinate values one by one.

Next, the measured coordinate values are input and temporarily stored in the present system, and the evaluation unit 117 performs an evaluation calculation of predetermined dimensions and shapes according to the measurement information already created.
I decided to execute (304). Then, the result evaluated by the evaluation unit 117 is stored in the evaluation result storage unit 114 (302) and used at the time of referring to the result later. The feature here is that the evaluation calculation is performed directly using the measurement information created in advance,
This is because the conventional offline teaching system does not require complicated internal calculation such as associating the result evaluated by the measuring machine body with the measurement information.

The dimensions and shape are evaluated, and the evaluation result storage unit
The result stored in 114 is displayed on the CRT screen by the evaluation result display unit 113 according to the instruction operation of the measurer. On this occasion,
Since the measurement information already created and the results are associated with each other, it is possible to immediately refer to the desired evaluation result by simply specifying the number or name of the measurement item to be referred. Further, not only the numbers and names but also CAD figures are associated with each other when teaching measurement, so that the measured figure elements can be picked up with a mouse or the like.
The result can be referred to immediately. That is, conventionally, all humans manually perform the work of organizing the numerical values (paper output or screen display) output from the measuring machine in association with the measurement points. Therefore, this work itself requires a huge amount of time and labor, and in some cases, it may reach 50 to 60% of the total measurement work time. In contrast to this conventional organization, the significance of automating this work is extremely great as in the present embodiment, and since the organization work such as association is not necessary at all by this function, a significant work time is saved. It became possible to shorten.

Next, it is necessary to output or store the evaluation results of the dimensions and shapes obtained by the measurement to other software or device other than the paper or screen display. At this time, according to the method instructed on the display of the evaluation result,
The evaluation result conversion unit 116 converts the data into a predetermined data format. If the output target has been decided, this conversion procedure may be prepared and installed as dedicated software in advance, but a mechanism that allows the measurer to freely set the conversion procedure by himself is included, and the range of use can be set. There is also a way to make it expandable.

The evaluation result output unit 119 performs processing for outputting the converted result data to the external storage device 122 (eg, magnetic storage device, communication device, etc.) or another device 123. For example,
In recent computers, an OS (basic software) capable of starting a plurality of software at the same time is also popular. OS in this
There are cases where the device itself has this function, but in that case too, it is often more efficient to output the evaluation results as they are, rather than outputting the evaluation results as they are.

The above is the coordinate measuring system 12 according to the present embodiment.
6 is a description of an example in 5. Although not particularly described in the present embodiment, the input CAD data, measurement information, measurement coordinate values, and evaluation results are stored / stored outside the system.
It also has a function to call. It is desirable that the coordinate measuring system 125 of these multidimensional shapes be configured by an electronic computer.

[0061]

According to the present invention as set forth in claim 1, the multi-dimensional coordinate measuring system has a function for evaluating dimensions and shape and a function for referring and outputting evaluation results, which makes it possible for a manufacturer of a measuring machine. Since it is possible to connect to many measurements with the same system without being affected by differences,
Investment in CAD / CAM in the design / manufacturing process can be kept low.

Furthermore, the invention according to claim 2 can be connected to various two-dimensional / three-dimensional coordinate measuring machines regardless of the manufacturers of the measuring machines. By unifying the functions and the output result data, it becomes possible to easily realize the integrated management and the data base of the inspection result data, which has been extremely difficult in the past.

Further, according to the third aspect of the present invention, it is also possible to prepare teaching data using CAD data and perform integrated management of inspection result data even for a coordinate measuring machine that handles gradation images. . The invention according to claim 4 makes it possible to prepare teaching data off-line using CAD data even for a coordinate measuring machine that handles a gradation image, which has been difficult in the past. It was possible to carry out the preparatory work for the measurement in advance without the need.

Further, in the invention described in claim 5, the measuring position can be set easily and accurately without the object to be measured. Further, in the invention according to the sixth aspect, the operation of inputting the measurement conditions becomes easy and accurate by making the enlargement magnification suitable. Further, in the invention according to claim 7, the setting of the measurement location can be performed very easily.

As described above, it becomes possible to easily teach the measuring machine, and to greatly automate and improve the efficiency of the current inspection work, which requires a large part of manual work. It produces a great effect that cannot be achieved by a simple offline teaching system.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing an embodiment of a coordinate measuring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a video screen simulation display in a coordinate measuring machine by image processing of the coordinate measuring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing details of a simulation display unit of the coordinate measuring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 CAD in the coordinate measuring system according to the present invention
The figure which shows the example of a display of a figure.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a display example of a CAD figure when a frame is added in the coordinate measuring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing types of calipers in the coordinate measuring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a display example of a caliper in the coordinate measuring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a caliper changing operation in the coordinate measuring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a caliper changing operation in the coordinate measuring system according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 shows a functional block diagram of a method for enabling connection to any coordinate measuring machine from measurement information of a coordinate measuring system according to the invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

30 measurement position processing unit 31 measurement position instruction unit 32 pick content analysis unit 33 display center determination unit 34 video screen frame calculation unit 35 zoom processing unit 40 caliper definition unit 41 caliper selection operation unit 42 caliper initial setting unit 43 caliper position determination unit 44 Caliper posture determining unit 45 Caliper drawing unit 46 Caliper editing unit 47 Lighting condition setting unit 48 Shape change operating unit 101 Display device 102 CAD system 103 Simulation display unit 104 CAD figure display unit 105 CAD data input unit 106 CAD data storage unit 107 Measurement condition Input unit 108 Measurement condition storage unit 109 Measurement command storage unit 110 Measurement command input unit 111 Measurement command storage unit 112 Measurement information creation unit 113 Evaluation result display unit 114 Evaluation result storage unit 115 Measurement information storage unit 116 Evaluation Result conversion unit 117 Evaluation unit 118 Measurement information conversion unit 119 Evaluation result output unit 120 Measurement coordinate value input unit 121 Measuring machine command output unit 122 External storage device 123 Other device 124 Measuring machine 125 Coordinate measuring system 201 Frame 202 Graphic 204 Point caliper 205 wire caliper 206 rectangular caliper

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A CAD data input unit for inputting CAD data prepared in advance, in a device for measuring coordinate values at a required position of a multi-dimensionally measured object and measuring / evaluating dimensions, shapes and the like. And a CAD figure display section for displaying the inputted CAD data, a measurement condition input section for teaching and inputting measurement conditions for the displayed CAD figure, and a teaching input for necessary measurement information such as measurement commands and evaluation methods. Measurement command input section, a measurement information creation section that creates a measurement command for operating the coordinate measuring machine according to the taught measurement command, measurement conditions, evaluation method, etc., and a measurement device that complies with the created measurement command. Command output section that outputs the data that can be input to the measuring instrument, the measurement coordinate value input section that inputs the measurement coordinate value measured by the measurement instrument, the input measurement coordinate value and the instruction in advance. The evaluation unit that evaluates the dimensions and shape of the object to be measured according to the contents of the measured information, and the measured information that was previously taught and the evaluated result are automatically associated and displayed on the screen as numerical values or figures. A multi-dimensional coordinate measuring system, comprising: an evaluation result display unit and an evaluation result output unit that outputs the evaluated result to an external device in a predetermined format. 2. The coordinate measuring system according to claim 1, wherein a measurement command that actually requires a measurement operation in a measuring machine and a command that sets a measurement condition at the time of measurement from the taught measurement information. A measurement information creating unit that extracts only the measurement information, and a measurement information converting unit that converts the measurement information extracted and created by the measurement information creating unit into a format that can be input by the measuring device is provided. Either output the measurement command data to the measurement device all at once, or send the measurement commands to the measurement device one by one, and input the data of the measured coordinate value group collectively, or , The measurement coordinate value input section for inputting the measured coordinate values one by one, and the evaluation section for evaluating the size and shape of the object to be measured according to the measured coordinate values and the measurement information already created. A multi-dimensional shape coordinate measurement system characterized by. 3. The coordinate measuring system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the CAD data is used, and according to the measurement conditions necessary for the measurement, such as the set magnification of the video image and the caliper type. A multi-dimensional coordinate measuring system having a simulation display unit for displaying the state of a video screen during actual measurement on the screen. 4. A coordinate value at a required position is measured by an image processing technique on the basis of gradation image data input from a video camera, and the dimension or shape of a multi-dimensional object to be measured is calculated from the coordinate value. In order to measure / evaluate, etc., the measurement information teaching method that uses CAD data to teach measurement instructions, measurement conditions, and evaluation methods off-line, such as the enlargement ratio of the video image currently set and the caliper type. According to the measurement conditions required for measurement, the state of the video screen at the time of actual measurement is simulated and displayed on the screen using CAD data, and measurement teaching operations such as measurement commands and conditions are performed on the display screen. And a method for teaching measurement information. 5. The method for teaching measurement information according to claim 4, wherein the CAD graphic data is used to calculate the video screen position in the CAD coordinate system to position the measurement position. Method of teaching measurement information to be performed. 6. The method of teaching measurement information according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the CA is based on a video screen display range of the image processing apparatus.
A method of teaching measurement information, characterized in that the video screen frame size is calculated for each enlargement ratio of the D drawing, the image data region is compared with the CAD measurement target graphic region, and the enlargement ratio is set. 7. The method for teaching measurement information according to claim 4, wherein the CAD graphic data is used to define the caliper and CA.
A method for teaching measurement information, characterized in that the caliper is positioned and the caliper posture corresponding to the figure shape is automatically calculated by performing an editing operation on D.