Laser Tracker Testing

Laser trackers have become popular measuring tools for users needing to make precision
measurements of items that are simply too large to be handled by Coordinate Measuring
Machines (CMMs). Fundamentally, a laser tracker is a polar coordinate measuring system
it makes measurements in terms of two angles (horizontal and vertical) and a distance (radius).
As with any metrology tool, a laser tracker needs to be calibrated and its performance verified.
NPL is setting up a service for the calibration and verification of laser trackers. This will include:
laser wavelength calibration
calibration/check of air sensors (pressure, temperature)
performance verification to ASME B89.4.19 - 2006 or similar standards.
As well as the tests specified in ASME B89, NPL also plans to conduct additional testing as
suggested in a recent NIST publication [1] in order to fully test the vertical encoder eccentricities
and horizontal and vertical encoder scale errors. In addition, NPL will also
be performing Network Testing [2] which will be used to derive values for the residual
tracker errors.

Laser tracker geometric alignment errors Testing laser trackers to B89

Specification standard ASME B89.4.19-2006
h h
h Performance Evaluation of Laser-Based
Spherical Coordinate Measurement
Systems, prescribes a series of tests
for evaluating the performance of
laser trackers:

v
f
v v
O
Range test
e
1D length up to 72 % of range
Transit axis offset, e Mirror offset, f Beam offset, Ox & Oy
tests the interferometer
and ADM accuracy.
h h
Volumetric
System tests
c
Single length
v i
artefact measured
at different
h (Top view) v distances/
v orientations
l
(35 tests)
Mirror tilt, c Transit axis tilt, i Beam axis tilt, lx & ly
Horizontal
0 90 90 Vertical
Ey

Ky Right/Left
diagonals
0
E
h Ex
90
K
v Kx
0
j Two-face tests
Front and back face
measurements using
length artefacts (36 tests).

Horizontal encoder eccentricity, Ex & Ey Vertical encoder eccentricity, Kx & Ky Vertical index offset, j Additional tests
(NIST recommended)
Laser trackers are subject to alignment errors due to manufacturing tolerances Recent work by NIST has shown
and design constraints - the number and configuration of the errors is dependant that the standard B89 tests are
on the mechanical design. In a steered-mirror design, there can be up to nine not sensitive to vertical encoder
alignment errors, as shown above, in addition to birdbath distance, and encoder eccentricity in z, or encoder scale
scale errors. Incomplete compensation for these errors can lead to loss of errors (vertical and horizontal).
measurement accuracy when operating the tracker. [3] By repeating some of the B89
tests with the artefact placed
asymmetrically, NPL will be
Testing laser trackers using a bundled network able to detect these remaining
error components.
An alternative to the B89 tests
is to measure a series of fixed
Limitation
target locations using the
laser tracker, with the tracker Overall, the B89 tests compare
positioned sequentially at the performance of the laser
a number of stations. After tracker with the MPE specified
measuring the targets from all by the manufacturer. The
stations, the resulting network result is a Pass or Fail.
of data is bundle adjusted, No further information is
effectively determining the relative tracker locations by constraining the set of reported as to the uncertainties
measured target locations. If sufficient tracker stations are used for the bundle, of the instrument or the
the system contains redundant data, which may then be used to assess tracker residual errors in the
measurement uncertainties. By careful design of the target network locations, the error mapping.
network of data can be interrogated to solve for parameters of the tracker error
8772/1109

model. In this way, the residual error parameters such as offset and tilt errors can
be determined in addition to the angle and distance measurement uncertainties
Queens Printer and Controller of HMSO, 2009.

of the tracker.

[1] J. Res. Natl. Inst. Stand. Technol. 114 21-35 (2009)

[2] S. Sandwith, LVMC 2007
[3] R. Loser & S. Kyle, Boeing Large Scale Optical Metrology Seminar, 1999