Give That CMM a Rest—Let the Probe do the Work

Using the motion of the head rather than the CMM axes can enable users to take point measurements faster and more accurately, the company says.

Released in 2006, the Revo measuring head was Renishaw’s answer to overcoming limitations with three-axis CMMs during scanning routines. The Revo, however, is designed for high-end applications, as one company representative put it during a brief visit to Renishaw’s booth E-5515. The “workhorse” model is the PH20 head, which brings much of the same technology to bear on touch-trigger measurement. The result, the company says, is faster point measurement with improved accuracy and repeatability. 

Like the Revo, the PH20 provides any size three-axis CMM with capability for continuous, five-axis motion. The idea is to minimize the movement of the CMM and to rely, instead, on the rotary motion of the head itself. Doing so eliminates the need to slow the machine down in order to ensure accuracy and avoid the dynamic errors that can occur with all that weight being thrown around. According to the company, the device provides an affordable way to breathe new life into virtually any CMM.