Study on LT Accuracy Improvement by Calibration Based on Network Measurements

Laser trackers (LT) are widely used to calibrate other machines. Nevertheless, very little is known about calibrating an LT. There are some standards that allow us to evaluate the LT performance. However, they require specialized equipment. A calibration procedure to improve the LT accuracy in an easy and fast way is presented in this paper. This method is based on network measurements where a set of reflectors were measured from different LT positions in a working environment. The methodology proposed deal with the lack of nominal data of the reflector mesh. A measurement scenario was defined, based on error parameter dependence on distances and angles, thus, obtaining those positions more sensitive to errors. The influence of the incidence angle of the laser beam on the reflector was characterized, revealing that its contribution to the LT measurement error can be up to 13 µm. Error kinematic parameters were identified to provide the optimum value of an objective function, where the reflector mesh nominal data were unknown. The calibration procedure was validated with nominal data, by measuring a set of reflectors located on a coordinate measuring machine. The findings of this study suggested that the LT accuracy can be improved up to 25%. Moreover, the method can be carried out by the LT user without requiring specialized equipment.