Optical system for the measurement of the surface topography of additively manufactured parts
Optical system for the measurement of the surface topography of additively manufactured parts publication
Narcís Vilar 1, Roger Artigas 1, Carlos Bermudez 1, Adam Thompson 2, Lewis Newton 2, Richard K Leach 2, Marti Duocastella 3, Guillem Carles 1
1Sensofar-Tech, S.L, (Spain)
2University of Nottingham, (United Kingdom)
3University of Barcelona, (Spain)
Measurement Science and Technology, Volume 33, Number 10, Metrology for Additive Manufacturing
Citation Narcís Vilar et al 2022 Meas. Sci. Technol. 33 104001 DOI 10.1088/1361-6501/ac7c5c
Abstract
Additive manufacturing is now regularly used for customised fabrication of parts with complex shapes and geometries. However, the large range of relevant scales, high slopes, step-like transitions, undercuts, alternation between dark and overly bright regions and other complex features present on the surfaces, in particular of metal additive parts, represent a significant challenge for current optical measurement technologies. Measuring surfaces with such complex features requires high numerical aperture optics, and state-of-the-art systems commonly include optics that can only reliably acquire surface topographies over a small field of view, typically tens or hundreds of micrometers. Such measurements are often insufficient for practical applications. Here, we present an optical system that features a large numerical aperture (>0.3) and a wide field of view (2.9 x 2.9) mm, capable of measuring additive manufacturing parts in a single measurement, without the need for lateral stitching to increase the field of view. The proposed system exhibits optical properties that provide facility for large-field, high-resolution measurement of industrially-produced additively manufactured parts.
