Determining a machine tool's capabilities before machining and subsequent post-process part inspection can greatly reduce scrap and machine downtime. Renishaw ballbars are used for pre-production tests, predictive maintenance programs, new machine prove-out, machine grading and comparison, and machine checking after "crashes."

The new QC20-W ballbar features a Renishaw-developed linear sensor and Bluetooth(r) wireless technology. The new design lets you test in three orthogonal planes through a single reference point. A single, simple hardware set up means faster testing and the ability to produce a representative volumetric measurement of positioning accuracy. The ballbar retains the principle of a simple CNC circular program and powerful software. Together, these can quickly diagnose and quantify machine positioning errors including servo mismatch, stick-slip errors, backlash, repeatability, scale mismatch, and machine geometry, as well as giving an overall circularity error value.

The system is backward compatible with the QC10 system. Ballbar lengths are identical to QC10, so all existing test routines can be carried over including test templates, CNC programs, and work and test procedures. The Ballbar20 software is also compatible with QC10 systems, enabling both old machine records to be reviewed and old test templates to be used.

http://www.designworldonline.com/articles/5601/249/Assess-Machine-Tool-Positioning-and-Servo-Control-Performance.aspx