Bullet signature measurement with chromatic confocal sensor

A new, non-contact, three-dimensional (3D) bullet signature measuring system based on a chromatic confocal sensor is developed. The system is composed of a precision rotary table and a chromatic confocal sensor. The measurement uncertainty of the system is less than 1 µm. When measuring the surface topography of the object, the sensor acquires wavelength information reflected from the object instead of intensity information. This advantage is very suitable to bullet signature measurements. The chromatic confocal sensor works in the point measuring mode and can acquire data continuously with high speed. One round section measurement on the bullet body takes less than 1 minute.