Tactile-optical 3D sensor applying image processing

The tactile-optical probe (so-called fiber probe) is a well-known probe in micro-coordinate metrology. It consists of an optical fiber with a probing element at its end. This probing element is adjusted in the imaging plane of the optical system of an optical coordinate measuring machine (CMM). It can be illuminated through the fiber by a LED. The position of the probe is directly detected by image processing algorithms available in every modern optical CMM and not by deflections at the fixation of the probing shaft. Therefore, the probing shaft can be very thin and flexible. This facilitates the measurement with very small probing forces and the realization of very small probing elements (diameter: down to 10 μm). A limitation of this method is that at present the probe does not have full 3D measurement capability. At the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), several arrangements and measurement principles for a full 3D tactile-optical probe have been implemented and tested successfully in cooperation with Werth-Messtechnik, Giessen, Germany. This contribution provides an overview of the results of these activities.