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PneumaticComparators(Metrology)
5.8.
Airgauginghasrapidlyincreasedduringsomepasttimeduetothefollowingimportant
characteristics:
(a)Veryhighamplificationsarepossible.Itcanbeusedtomeasurediameters,length,
squareness,parallelism,concentricity,taper,centredistancebetweenholesandother
geometricconditions.
(b)Asnophysicalcontactismadeeitherwiththesettinggaugeorthepartbeing
measured,thereisnolossofaccuracybecauseofgaugewear.Forthisreason,airspindleand
airsnapgaugeslastverylong.Alsoverysoftpartswhichareeasilyscratched,canbegauged.
(c)Internaldimensionscanbereadilymeasurednotonlywithrespecttotolerance
boundariesbutalsogeometricform.Inotherwords,whilemeasuringaboreitcanreveal
completestoryofsize,taper,straightness,camberandbellmouthetc.
(d)Itisindependentofoperatorskill.
(e)Highpressureairgaugingcanbedonewithcleansingofthepartswhichhelpsto
eliminateerrorsduetodirtandforeignmatter.
(f)Gaugingpressurescanbekeptsufficientlylowtopreventpartdeflection.
(Ingeneral,highpressuregaugesaresuitableforthosepartsinwhichtolerancesare
relativelylargeandlowpressureairgaugesarepreferableforhighlyprecisework.)
(g)Dimensionalvariationsthroughoutthelengthofshaftorcylinderborecanbe
exploredforoutofroundness,taperness,concertricity,regularityandsimilarconditions.
(h)Notonlyitmeasurestheactualsize,butitcanalsobeusedtosalvageoversized
piecesforreworkortosortoutforselectiveassembly,i.e.,itissuitablebothforvariable
inspection(measurementofsize)andattributeinspection(GOandNOGO)gaugingandlimits.
(i)Thetotallifecostofthegaugingheadsinmuchless.
(j)Itisaccurate,flexible,reliable,universalandspeedydeviceforinspectingpartsin
massproduction.
(k)Itisbestsuitedforcheckingmultipledimensionsandconditionsonapartsimul
taneouslyinleastpossibletime.Itcanbeusedforpartsfrom0.5mmto900mmdiameter
havingtoleranceof0.05mmorless.Itcanbeeasilyusedforonlinemeasurementofpartsas
theyarebeingmachinedandtakecorrectiveactions.
5.8.1.

SystemsofPneumaticGauges
.Basedonthephysicalphenomenaonwhich
theoperationofpneumaticgaugesisbased,thesemaybeclassifiedas:
(i)Floworvelocitytype,(ii)Backpressuretype.
Floworvelocitytypepneumaticgaugesoperatebysensingandindicatingthemomen
taryrateofairflow.Flowcouldbesensedbyaglasstubewithtaperedbore,mountedovera
graduatedscale.Insidetheboreafloatisliftedbytheairflow.
Velocityofairinvelocitytypepneumaticgaugescanalsobesensedbysensingthe
velocitydifferentiali.e.,differentialpressureacrossaventurichamber.Suchsystemshave

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Fig.5.32.Freeflowairgauge.
quickresponse.Thesepermituseoflargeclearancebetweennozzleandobjectsurface,
resultinginreducedwearofthegaugingmembers.Thereislessairconsumption.Magnifica
tionoftheorderof500to5000timesispossible.
5.8.1.1.

FreeFlowAirGauges(Floworvelocitytype).
Inthiscasethecompressedair
afterthefilteringandpressurereducingunitflowsthroughataperedglasstubecontaininga
smallmetalfloatandthenthroughaplastictubetothegaugeheadhavingtwodiametrically
opposedorificesforairescapementintoatmosphere(ReferFig.5.32).Thepositionofthetube
isdependentupontheamountofairflowingthroughthegaugehead,whichinturnis
dependentupontheclearancebetweentheboretobemeasuredandthegaugehead.Fig.5.34
showsacurvebetweentheairflowandtheclearancebetweenthepartandtheorificeingauge
head.

Fig.5.33.Zeroandmagnificationadjustment
inflowtypepneumaticcomparator.

Fig.5.34.Characteristicofairflow
versusclearanceofflow.
Theflowvelocitytypepneumaticcomparatorwithzeroadjustmentandmagnification
adjustmentisshowninFig.5.33.Magnificationcanbechangedbypassingsomeoftheair
supply,usingascrewattheinlettothetaperedglasstube.Thefloatcanbezeroedbyableed
valveinstalledatthetopofthetube.Sizeismeasuredbythevelocityofairinataperedglass
tubewhichismeasuredbytheheightofthefloatintube.
Thestraightportionofthecurveisutilizedforthemeasuringrange.Itprovideshigh
amplification(10:1)andthuswithinthelinearrange,itispossibletoreadaccuratelyupto
micronsdependinguponscalelength,orclassifythesizesquicklyandaccurately.The
amplificationcanbechangedbyquickchangeoftube,floatandscale.Airgaugeamplification
andrangearebasedonthetoolingandinstrumentstandardsofmanufacturer.Theamplifica
tionandinstrumentareselectedbyconsideringthetotaltolerancespreadandchoosingthe
instrumentthatcoverstherange.About50to100mmofcolumnisusuallyallowedforthe
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actualtolerancespread.
Inthegauginghead,theairescapementorificesarerecessedbelowitscylindrical
surfacesothattheorificesnevercontactthepartbeinggauged.Thusthesurfacewearwillnot
affecttheaccuracytillitisworndowntoorificelevel.Alsotheorientationofgaugeortheway
operatorholdsthegaugeisofnoconsequenceandsamereadingswillbeobtainedforgiven
diameter.Onthegauge,knobsarealsoprovidedforadjustingfloatpositionandcalibration.
Airgaugeissetbyplacingmastersformaximumandminimumtolerancesonspindle
alternativelyandadjustingthefloatpositionforeachmasterbyturningtheknurledknobsat
thebaseoftheinstrument.
Freeflowcolumntypegaugesareusuallyassembledtogethersidebysideandthus
multipleinterrelatedreadingscanbeseenataglance.Thisisthebigadvantageofairgauging
thatthemultipledimensionsandconditionscanbeinspectedwithgreatease,accuracyand
speed.
Pneumaticcircuitscanbearrangedtodeterminedimensionaldifferencesliketaper
(comprisingthediameterofboreatdifferentpointsalongapart),borecentredistanceandalso
toselectpartstoassembletopredeterminedclearancesorinterferencefits.
5.8.1.2.

BackPressureGauges.
Thebasicprincipleandthetheoryofpneumatic
gauginginthebackpressuregaugesisdescribedbelow.(ReferFig.5.35)
Airfromaconstantpressuresource
flowstotheatmospherethroughtwoorifices
OcandOminseries.
Pisthepressureupstreamofthefirst
orificeandpisthepressurebetweenthetwo
orifices,bothmeasuredwithreferenceto
theatmosphericpressureasdatum.

Fig.5.35.Theoryofpneumaticgauging.
TherelationshipbetweenpandPwilldependupontherelativesizesofthetwoorifices:
pbeingequaltoPwhenOmisblockedandtendstozeroasOmisincreasedindefinitely.LetC
bethegeometricalareaofOeandMthatofOm.
ThenifpandCarekeptconstantwhileMisvaried,therelationshipbetweenthe
dimensionlessquantitiesp/PandMICisofthetypeshowninFig.5.36.
(Thegeneralformofthiscurveisquitewellpredictedbyananalysisemploying
Bernoulisequationforflowofacompressiblefluid.)
Weareinterestedinlinearportionofthiscurve.
Fordesignpurposeswefollowanempiricalapproachwhichisbasedonanexperimental
studyatN.P.L.(London)oftherelationshipbetweenpressuresandorificesareas.
Thecharacteristicsofp/PandMICaredeterminedexperimentallyforpressureP
varyingfrom2to75poundspersq.inch(0.13to5kg/cm2)andinspectionofanyoneofthese
showsthatwithintherange0.6p/Pto0.8p/P,thecurveapproximatestoastraightline,the
equationforwhichmavbewrittenas

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Fig.5.36.Characteristiccurveofpneumaticgauge.
ExaminationofthefamilyofcurvesshowsthatconstantA,theinterceptonthep/Paxisis
closelyconstantovertherangeofpressuresinvestigatedandforpracticalpurposes,thevalue
ofA=1.10canbeadoptedforanyvalueofPlikelytobeused.
TheslobebofstraightportioncharacteristicsishowevernotindependentofP,its
numericalvaluedecreasesasPincreasesandthelimitingvaluesfoundintheinvestigation
areasunder:
b=0.6whenP=0.13kg/cm2
b=0.4whenP=5kg/cm2.
5.8.1.3.

Areaofescapeorifice.
When
theclearancebetweenthesurfaceandthe
nozzlefaceiszero,noairescapesfromthe
nozzleandtheareaoftheescapeorificeiszero.
Whentheclearancebetweenthesur
faceandthenozzlefaceisverylarge,thearea
oftheescapeorificeis^d2,wheredisthe
diameterofthenozzle.
Betweentheseextremes,especially
wheretheclearanceissmallandwhereair
gaugingcanbeemployed,theareaofthe
escapeorificeisndl,thatis,theareaofthe
curvedsurfaceofthecylindershownin
Fig.5.38.
5.8.1.4.

Rangeoflinearmeasurement.
Thecondition0.6<p/P<0.8definesa
sectionofthecharacteristicswhichex
perimentalinvestigationhasshowntobe
lineartowithin1%.

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Fig.5.37.Experimentallydetermined
characteristicsfordifferentoperatingpressures.

Fig.5.38.Areaoftheescapeorifice.

Fig.5.39.Rangeoflinearmeasurement.
5.8.1.5.PneumaticSensitivity,i.e.howpvariesbyvariationofM.

5.8.1.6.

Changingsensitivity(Magnification).
Aplotofpressureagainstescape
orificeareaforanumberofdifferentsizesofcontrolorificewillshowthatsensitivityincreases
asthediameterofthecontrolorificedecreases,i.e.,forsmallcontrolorificesthechangein
pressureisgreaterforagivenchangeinescapeorificearea.Utilisingthisproperty,itis
possibletosetpreciselythesensitivity(magnification)byincorporatingavariablecontrol
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orifice.
5.8.1.7.

OverallMagnification.
Inapracticalpneumaticmeasuringapparatusthe
areaMwillbeassociatedwiththemeasuringheadandchangeinMwillbetheresultofa
changeinthedimensionwhichis
beingmeasurede.g.achangeinthe
separationLbetweennozzleand
surface(Fig.5.40).
Theoverallmagnificationof
theapparatus,i.e.theratioofthe
linearmovementofthepointeror
indexofthepressuremeasuringin
strumenttothechangeinthe

Fig.5.40.VariationofMw.r.t.L.

Thisconditionrequiresthemeasuringheadtobecorrectlydesigned.Thefinalescape
mentoftheairfromthenozzletotheatmosphereistakenasbeingthroughanareaofthe
curvedsurfaceofthecylinderoflengthLanddiameterD,whereListheseparationbetween
thenozzlesurfaceandthesurfacetobegaugedandDistheinternaldiameterofthenozzle.

5.8.1.8.

ResponseSpeed.
Forabackpressuresystemthespeedofresponseisnotas
fastasforfreeflowtype,becausesometimeisrequiredforthepressuretobuildup.Thespeed
ofresponsebecomesofconcernwhenthegaugingheadisseparatedfromindicatinginstrument
bylongdistance.
Apneumaticmeasuringsystemwillnotcorrectlymeasuredisplacementsoffrequency
greaterthanabout2cycles/second,becauseofitsslowspeedofresponse.Theresponseis
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considerablyslowercomparedtotheelectricalsystembecauseofthefollowingreasons.
Betweenthecontrolorificeandthemeasuringhead,thereexistsaclosedvolumeassociated
withthemeasuringinstrumentusedtomeasurethepressurep.Adimensionalchange,e.g.,a
displacementofthesurfacealterstheflowsochangingthepressurep.Thetimeneededto
establishthenewvalueofpdependsonthetotalvolumeandontherateofairflowintoand
outofit.ThelatterinturndependsupontheoperatingpressurePandthesizeofthecontrol
orificeandorificeinthemeasuringhead.Theseorificesarerelatedinsizeanddeterminethe
pneumaticsensitivity,thesmallerorifices(correspondingtothehighermagnification),having
amorerestrictiveeffectontheairflowandsoslowingtheresponse.
Ithasbeenexaminedtheoreticallyandexperimentallythatresponseisslowedbyusing
alargeoperatingpressurePandalargevolume,butbythesehighsensitivity(magnification)
isobtained.Inanypracticalpneumaticmeasuringsystem,theoverallresponsewillbe
influencedbydynamiccharacteristicsofthepressuremeasuringdevice.Thusitfollowsthat
theuseofalowoperatingpressurewillnotimprovetheoverallresponseifalowpressure
measuringdeviceofslowresponseisusedtomeasurethepressurechanges.Highsensitivity
willinevitablybeassociatedwithslowresponseandtheonlyfactorlefttothedesigneristhe
volume,whichshouldbemadeassmallaspossibleforquickresponse.
Sincegaugeisalwayslocatedatsomedistancefromthecontrolunit,theeffectof
variationsinthegaugingpositiondoesnotreachthecontrolunitinstantaneously,thoughthe
sizevariationsoftheobjectwillpromptlyaffecttheairflowatnozzles.Thetimegapbetween
thesensingandindicationisknownasresponsetimewhichdependsupon:Lengthofairline
betweenthenozzlesandindicator,(ii)typeofgaugesystem,and(Hi)thedesignofcontrolunit.
Responseincaseofflowtypepneumaticgaugesisrelativelyquick.Responseincaseofback
pressuregaugesisslow,thecompressibilityofairalsocontributingtothedelayedtransmission
ofthevariationssensedatthenozzles.
Responsetimeofbackpressuretypepneumaticgaugescanbeimprovedbyutilising
followingdevices:
(i)Usingfilledsystempressuregauge,therebyreducingvolumeofair.
(ii)Restrictingtheunimpededescapeofairthroughtheorificeswhenthegauginghead
isnotinoperation,byusingaspringchargedcoversleevearoundthegaugehead.
(iii)Counteractingtheunrestrictedairescapebyanauxiliaryairsupplyrelaywhose
operationautomaticallydiscontinuesassoonasaspecificbackpressuredevelopsduringthe
actualgaugingprocess.
(iv)Usingahighspeedrelaytocompensateforadditionstothevolumeoftheinstrument
system.
5.8.1.9.

ZeroSetting.
Itisaccomplishedbymeansofableedvalveandconsistsin
adjustingtheindicatingelementofthegaugetothatmarkingonthescalewhichwasselected
tosignalcoincidentwiththenominallimitsizerepresentedbyasettingmaster.
5.8.1.10.

DatumControl.
Ifmeansbeprovidedtochangethepressureinthecavity
(betweencontrolorificeandmeasuringorifice)usingavariablebleedtoatmosphere,adatum
orzerocanbeprovidedwhichvariesthepressurepwhentheescapeorificearearemains
fixed.Thisadditiontoacircuitprovidesmeansofaccommodatingsmalldifferenceswhich
inevitablyoccurinthemanufactureofgaugeheads.Limiteduseofadatumcontrolintheform
ofableedtoatmospherehasaninsignificanteffectonlinearity.
However,thissystemdependshighlyuponthepressureregulatortomaintainthe
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supplypressurewithinveryclosepressurelimits.Thusthepressureregulatorisacritical
componentinthiscircuit.Thisproblemisovercomeindifferentialbackpressurecircuitin

Fig.5.41.Practicalbackpressurecircuit.
whichaccuracyismaintainedregardlessofsomevariationintheregulatorperformancewhich
controlssupplypressure.Fig.5.42showsapracticalflowresponsivesystemwhichisin
commonuse.Thissystememploysvariableorificesforsensitivityanddatumcontrol.

Fig.5.42.Practicalflowresponsivesystem.

Fig.5.43.Plugforpneumaticcomparator.
5.8.1.11.Am

plificationAdjustment.
Thispermitsdifferentrangeofgaugeindica
tionsonsamescalelengthandiscarriedoutwithaprecisionvalveofthecontrolunit.Both
zerosettingandamplificationadjustmentshouldbecheckedfromtimetotimedependingupon
experience.
5.8.1.12.

JetRecession.
Ithasalreadybeenseenthatwhenthesurfacebeingmeasured
isveryclosetothenozzleface,equalincrementsofchangeinclearancedonotproduceequal
incrementsofpressurechange.Thesystemisnotlinearundertheseconditions.
Becauseofthisthefacesofthejetsonairpluggaugesaregroundbelowthebody
diameteroftheplugasshownFig.5.43.Thisgrindingbackiscalledjetrecessionanditisthe
meansbywhichthenonlinearportionatthehighpressure(lowflow),endofthepres
sure/clearancecurvesisavoided.
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5.8.1.13.

MeasurementofBore.[ReferFig.5.44(a)and(6)]
Intheabovediscussionwehaveas
sumedajetseparationofthenozzlefromthe
flatsurface.Thisisalsoapplicabletomeasure
mentofbore,whereLismodifiedas:
L=Lx+L2,LxRadialgapforonejet
andL2=Radialgapforotherjet.
TheoreticallyLishouldbeequaltoL2,
butevenifL\*L2thebackpressurewouldbe
closelyequaltothatcorrespondingtothecon
ditionL1=L2=L/2.Thisisabigadvantageas
operatorneednotbeverymeticulousabout
orientationofthemeasuringheadinthebore,
andthusthereadingsfromoperatorto
operatorwillbeuniformastheydonotdepend
uponahighdegreeofoperatorskillorsenseof
feel.
5.8.1.14.

MeasuringHeadsMeasuringheadsfallundertwocategories,
viz.directhead[Fig.5.45(a)and
(6)1,andindirectorcontacthead[Fig.5.45(c)
and(d)].Taperednosetypedirecthead[Fig.
5.45(a)]isquitepopularasitpermitseasy
accessinconstrictedmeasuringconditions.
Theratiooflanddiameter(overalldiameterat
taperedsmallend)comparedtojetdiameteris
twiceinsize.Biggerratiowouldaffecttheescapementofairandthecharacteristicsofthe
system.
HeadatFig.5.45(b)providesgoodprotectiontothenozzleduetoincorporationofguard
ringandescapementholes.Inthecaseofindirectmeasuringheads,thejetisprotectedfrom
accidentaldamage.Thesizeofairescapementiscontrolledbyaneedlevalveorflatplate[Fig.
5.45(c)and(d)respectively]whichmoveduetomovementofmeasuringplunger.Bychanging
thetaperofneedlevalve,therangeofmeasurementcanbechanged.Parabolicneedleprovides
linearresponse.Fig.5.45(e)showsthepluggaugeusedformeasurementofdiameter,lobing,
taperetc.Themeasuringsideismadesomewhatsmallerthantheboresothatitentersmuch
moreconveniently.
5.8.2.

SolexPneumaticGauge.(Fig.5.46).
Thisinstrumentisproducedcommercially
bySolexAirGaugesLtd.Thisisgenerallydesignedforinternalmeasurement,butwith
suitablemeasuringheaditcanbeusedforexternalgaugingalso.
Itisobviousfromtheequationforsensitivitythatinorderthatsensitivity(magnifica
tion)remainsconstant,thesupplypressurePmustbeconstant.
Thusitisnecessarytohaveasimplepressureregulatorwhichmaycontrolthepressure
ofairfromthenormalsupplyline,andifnecessarythepressuremightbereducedalso.The
arrangementusedinSolexgaugeistopassthehighpressureairafterfiltering,throughaflow
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valve.Thereisatankinwhichwaterisfilleduptoacertainlevelandadiptubeisimmersed
intoituptoadepthcorrespondingtoairpressurerequired.InFig.5.46,itisrepresentedby
H.Sinceairissentathigherpressurethanrequiredone,someairwillleakoutfromthedig

tubeandbubbleoutofwaterandtheair
movingtowardscontrolorificewillbeat
desiredconstantpressureH.
Nowadaysdiaphragmtype
pressureregulatorsarereadilyavail
ableinthemarketandtheyarebetter
forregulatingthepressurethanthe
abovedevice.Theairatreducedpres
surethenpassesthroughthecontrol
orificeandescapesfromthemeasuring
jets.Thebackpressureinthecircuitis
indicatedbytheheadofwaterdisplaced
inthemanometertube.Thetubeis
graduatedlinearlytoshowchangesin
pressureresultingfromchangesinin
ternaldiameteroftheworkmeasured.
Thisinstrumentiscapableofmeasur
ingtotheaccuracyofmicrons.
ItisveryobviousfromFig.5.46
thatthediameterbeingmeasuredat
anyinstantiscorrespondingtothepor
tionagainsttwojets.Nowtofindthe
concentricity(roundnessofanyjobat
anysection),theworkpiecemaybe
revolvedaroundmeasuringgauge.Ifno
changeinreadingisthere,thenitis
perfectlyroundhole.Similarlythe
diametercanbenoteddownatseveral
placesalongthelengthofboreandthus
taperingofholeisdetermined.This
methodis,therefore,bestsuitedfor
measuringroundnessandtapernessof
cylinderboresandgunbarrelbores.
Byhavingsuitablemeasuring
headthiscanbeusedforexternalgaug
ing,andheadinthiscasewillbeas

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(a),(6)Directheads(c)Forwardhead
(d)Reversehead(e)Pluggauge.
Fig.5.45.Measuringheads.

Fig.5.46.SolexAirGauge.
showninFig.5.47.Thiscanbestrevealanylobingeffect
also.Itisalsopossibletohavearrangementtomeasure
thelengthofslipgaugebyhavingtheflattableandone
jetatthetop.
5.8.2.1.

OverallMagnificationandRange.
FromequationdpIdM=0.40P/Mc,thepneumaticsen
sitivityofapneumaticmeasuringapparatuscanbe
increasedbyincreasingtheoperatingpressureP,but
controlledbythelengthofscaleofpressuremeasuring
instrumentcorrespondingtopressurechangesfrom0to
P.Ifthisscalelengthistoremainofconvenientmag
nitude,increasingtheoperatingpressureisnota
suitablemethodforimprovingtheoverallmagnification.Theonlyeffectivemethodfor
obtainingthehighermagnificationis,therefore,toreduceaverageseparationbetweennozzle
andsurface,whichatthesametime,ofcourse,reducestherangeoflinearmeasurement.
5.8.2.2.

Limitationsofempiricalapproach.
Fromtheviewpointofairflow,the
effectiveareaofanorificeisnotusuallyidenticalwithitsgeometricalarea.Iftwoorificesare
madebyproducingholesofidenticalgeometricalareaintwothindiscs,theireffectiveareas
maybeappreciablydifferentasaresultofedgeeffectsontheairflowarisingattheperipheries
oftheorifices.Againtherelationshipbetweeneffectiveareaandgeometricalareaisunlikely
tobethesameforairflowthroughanorificeandthejetofairfromanozzle.Intheexperimental
determinationofthep/P,MICcharacteristicsthevalueofMandCusedwerethegeometrical
areasoforificesOmandOc.Thereforeduetoeffectiveareabeingdifferentfromthegeometrical
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area,theempiricalequationobtainedbyanalysingthesecharacteristicswouldnotbeexpected
toprovideacompletelyaccuratenumericalforecastofperformance.
Nevertheless,experiencehasshownthattheydogiveafirstapproximationsufficiently
reliabletopermittherequiredperformancetobeobtainedbyasinglestepcorrectiveadjust
mentofthecontrolorifice.
5.8.3.

DifferentialComparators.
Alaterdevelopmentbroughtoutthebalanced
circuittypeofairgauge.Inthisequipmentadifferentialpressureindicatingmechanism,
connectedacrossthetwoairpathsandabuiltingaugezeroingvalveisprovided.Sucha
balancedcircuitisshownschematicallyinFig.5.48.Anairgaugebasedonthisbalancedcircuit
iscalledDifferentialComparator.

Threeequallyspacedmeasuringorifices
(jets)revealanylobbingeffectalso.
Fig.5.47

Fig.5.48.DifferentialCircuit.
Compressedairfromasuitablesource,afterpassingthroughairdrierandfilteris
regulatedforconstantpressurebyapressureregulator.Nowtheairflowsintotwochannels,
eachofwhichhasacontrolorificeOclandOc2(controlorificesarealsocalledmasterjets).
FromthecontrolorificeOcl,airflowstothemeasuringheadwhereitmeetsfurtherrestriction
oftheworkpieceorthemastersettings.Therestrictionoftheworkpiecebuildsupback
pressureasexplainedearlier.Atthesametime,otherhalfoftheairisflowingthroughthe
othercontrolorificeOc2tothereferencejetOm.Byclosingoropeningthevalveofreferencejet
Om,thepressureinthespacebetweenOc2andOmisregulated(adjusted)tomatchtheback
pressurefromthemeasuringjets,whichissensedbythepressureindicatingdevicefitted
acrossthetwochannelsasshown.Atthisadjustmentofthereferencejet,thepressureindicator
wouldindicateequalpressureinthetwochannelsandhencereadzeroonthescale.Thiszero
setting(adjustingofreferencejetOm)isdonewithmasterworkpiecewhosedimensionisexact
nominalsize.
Nowthevariationofthedimensionatthemeasuringheadwouldcausechangeof
backpressureinchannelA.Thispressurewouldbedifferentfromthemeanpressurewhich
hasbeenalreadysetinthechannelB(byreferencejet).Nowthedifferenceofpressureofthe
twochannelswouldbeindicatedbythepressureindicatingdevicewhichcanbedirectly
calibratedintermsofvariationofdimensionfromthemeandimensions.Hencetheinstrument
basedonthemeasurementofdifferentialpressureiscalledDifferentialComparator.
IfthedimensioncausesadecreaseingapLascomparedtoLa,thisinturndecreases
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MandhenceincreasingbackpressureinchannelAandviceversa.Inthesecasesthepressure
indicatorwouldshowreadingsonbothsidesofzerocorrespondingtodeviationfrommaster
setting.
5.8.3.1.

AdvantagesofDifferentialCircuitoverSingleChannelCircuit,
(i)Effect
ofchangeofoperatingpressureP.Theoperatingpressuremayvaryslightlyfromthedesigned
value.Itcanbeshownthaterrorduetochangeofpressurewouldbe0.6to0.8timesthechange
inpressureinsinglechannelincaseofdifferentialcircuittheerrorwouldbe0.1timesthe
changeinpressure.
(ii)Zerosettingofmastergaugeisanextraadvantage.
(iii)Rectificationforcontrolorifice.Inasinglechannelsystem,thepracticallimitations
maynotgivetheperfectlycorrectandaccuratedimensionofthecontrolorificeasdesigned.
Sometimesitmaygooutoftheusefulrangeofthedesignanditmayhavetobediscarded.
Therefore,inordertoavoidtheerrorofmanufactureandalsototakeintoaccountthe
factthatthegeometricalareaisdifferentfromtheeffectivearea,weneedaneedlevalveso
thatareamaybeadjustedaccordingly.
Butinthedifferentialcircuitwhichincorporatesaneedlezeroadjustingvalve,the
offsetoftheactualsizeofthecontrolorificefromthedesignedvaluecanbenullifiedby
adjustingthisvalve.
5.8.4.

NoncontactandContactTypePneumaticGaugingElements.
Noncontact
toolingisbestsuitedforautomaticgaugingapplicationsbecauseoftheadvantagesofno
contact,clearingofoilorforeignparticlesfromgaugingarea,etc.
Inthecaseofnoncontactairgaugetooling,onlytheaircomingoutoftheairescapement
orificetouchestheparttobemeasured,theairflowratedependingonthecrosssectionalarea
ofthejetandtheclearancebetweenthejetandtheparttobemeasured.Itmayhaveasingle
jet,twodiametricallyoppositejetsormoreevenlyspacedjets.Singleopenjettoolingcanbe
usedforcheckingoutsidediameter,height,depth,straightness,squareness,etc.andFig.5.49
showsafewofsuchapplications.Dualjettechniquescanbeappliedfordeterminingtrue
diameter,outorround,bellmouth,thick
ness,etc.Thevariousgaugesmaybe
designedeitherforpresentingthegauges
topartorviceversa.
Manymodernmechanicalas
sembliesdemandthatholesshouldbe
closelycontrolledforstraightnessaswell
asdiameter.Anairpluggaugefor
gaugingholestraightnessisshownin
Fig.5.50.
Inthecontacttooling,amechani
calmemberisincorporatedbetweenthe
airescapementorificeandtheparttobe
measured.Theairflowfromthejetchan
gesduetodisplacementofthismechani
calmemberwhenitcontactsthepart.
Themechanicalmembercouldbeaball,
lever,plungerorblade.Abigadvantage
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ofcontacttypeairgaugeisthatamuch
biggermeasuringrange(upto2.5mm)is
possiblei.e.itissuitableforwiderange
ofgauging.Anotheradvantageisthatit
eliminatessurfaceroughnessfrom
size.Itmaybementionedthatopen
jettypemethodwouldbesubjectto
errorforroughsurfacesbecauseit
measuresacombinationofsizeand
surfacefinishfurtheritsrangeof
measurementislimited.Balljet
spindlegivesapointreadingrather
thantheaverageoverasmallarea
andisbestsuitedforgauginginside
diameterofsoftorporouspartsand
forroughbores.Leafjetspindlecan
beusedforcheckinglaminatedbores,blindholesinwhichkeywaysetc.donotpermittheuse
ofopenjetspindlesatextremebottomofblindholesetc.Bladejetspindlesareusedfor
inspectinggunboresinwhichoilgrooves,orslotsdonotpermittheuseofballjetorleafjet
spindles.
Fig.5.51showsasmallplungertypeairgaugingcartridgewhichishighlyefficient
sizesensingelementforwiderangeofgauging,tooling,fixturing,andmachinecontrol
applications.Itessentiallyconsistsofaspringloadedplunger.Thespringtriestokeepthe

Fig.5.49.Applicationsofsingleopenjettooling.

Fig.5.50.Straightnessmeasuringgauge.

Fig.5.51.AirCartridge.
plungeroutwardsandwhentheparttobemeasuredcomesincontactwithitoritcomesin
contactwiththepartitmovesinandattheendrestrictstheorifice,therebyincreasingthe
backpressure.Themaximumandminimumlimitsoftheplungermovementcanbesetwith
thehelpofmasters.Suchcartridgescanbesecuredingaugingpositiononvarioustypesof
fixturesandusedformeasurementslikeheight,depth,flatness,concentricity,squareness,
inside/outsidediameter,etc.
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inside/outsidediameter,etc.
Fig.5.52showsthesameprincipleusedinatestindicatorwhichisveryefficientfor
severalapplications.Ithasatinystyluscapableofenteringintosmallholes,keyways,slots

Fig.5.52.Pneumatictestindicator.
etc.anditsmovementcausesthetaperedendtoactasaprecisionvalvestemtoregulatethe
amountofairflowingthroughanorifice.Itisfreeofhysteresisorlagordraginindications
whenthestylusismovedinanydirectionacrosstheworkpiece.
Thecontacttypeadjustablespindlekitsandadjustableairsnapgaugesavailablein
marketarefoundtobeverysuitableforhandlingnewdesigns,altereddimensionsandvarious
othervariedapplications.
5.8.5.

IndirectPneumaticGaugingDevices.
Theopenjethasthedisadvantageof
smallmeasuringrange.Itcanbeovercomebyusingindirectpneumaticgaugingdevicesby
usingagaugingcartridge.Suchcartridgeemploysacontactingstylus,theinnerendofwhich
istaperedandformstherestrictioninanescapeorifice.Thepositionofthestylusand
consequentlythepositionofthetaperintheorificecauseschangesintheareaoftheorifice.
Changesintherateoftaperchangethemeasuringrangeofthecartridge.Measuringranges
upto3mmcanbeobtainedwiththistypeofcartridge.
5.8.6.

Airgaugingwithelectronicsensors.
Airgaugingsystemoperateoneither
loworhighairpressure.Whilelowpressuresystemshavegreatersensitivity,quickerresponse
timeandminimaldistortionwhenmeasuringflexiblecomponents,thehighpressuresystems
areselfcleaningtypeandhavealargemeasuringrange.Basicallyairgaugingcomprisesair
jetgaugessuchasringorplug,andairoperatedliquidcolumnsformultidimensional
measurement.
Nowadayselectronicflowmetersareusedinplaceofairoperatedliquidcolumns.They
havetheadvantageofmeasuringflowofairwiththeaddedbenefitofelectronicdisplay.Such
instrumentscaneasilyhave2or3rangeselectiontogiveanextramagnificationfactor.
Tolerancelimitlightscanbeincorporatedtoindicatewhetherpartsareinsideoroutside
manufacturingtolerances.Responsetimeincreasesmanyfolds.
Theversatilityofairgaugingisenhancedbythewiderangeofmeasuringtoolslike2
and3jetnoncontactairpluggauges,settingringsandairjetringgauges.
5.8.7.

MultigaugingSystems.
Multigaugingsystemsareusedtomeasureanumber
ofdimensionssimultaneously.Partstobegaugedarecomparedwithasettingmasterwhich
simulatesthecomponent.Thefeaturesgaugedcouldbeexternal/internaldiameters,lengths,
straightness,squareness,ovality,runoutoffaces,etc.Themeasuringheadgaugingfixtureis
specificallydesignedtosuitthecomponenttobemeasuredandmaybecompletelyspecialor
itmaybebuiltusingaseriesofmodularelements.Itcontainsthemeansforsensingthe
dimensionaldifferencebetweenthecomponentsandthemasterwhichmaytaketheformof
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mechanicalorelectronicprobesorairjetsconnectedtothemeansforamplifyingthedifference.
Theamplifyinganddisplayofreadingsmaytaketheformofdialgaugesorsomeform
ofelectronicorair/electronicsystem.
Displaymaybeanalogue,digitalorgraphicandmaybeaugmentedbyoutoftolerance
indication.
Usingelectronicdifferentialmethods,therelationshipbetweendifferentfeaturescan
berelatedtoacommondatum.
Thechoiceofsystemdependsonnumberoffactorslikeinitialcost,dimensional
tolerancesofthefeaturestobemeasured,complexityofthecomponent,complexityofthe
featurestobemeasured,numberoffeaturestobemeasured,speedofmeasurementrequired,
skillorotherwiseoftheuser.
Thereasonsaffectingthechoiceofdisplaysaregivenbelow:
(i)Pointerdisplaysbestwherearapidcheckofrunoutorconcentricityisrequired.
(ii)Columnsnaturalchoicewhereaconsiderablenumberofdimensionsareinvolved.
Thesearefastestandmostconvenientformofdisplayingthereadingsforevery
dimension.
(iii)Digitalprovideshighaccuracyoveralongermeasuringrangeandbestforsitua
tionswhereitisrequiredtoworkindrawingdimensions.Canbeviewedwithoutstrainover
longerdistances.
(iv)GraphiconVDUthemostsophisticateddisplayessentialwhenstatisticalprocess
controlsystemsareemployed.
Systemscapableofdealingwithverylargenumberofinterrelateddimensionscanbe
developed.
Automaticinspectionmachinesincorporatebothautomatedloadinghopper,magazine,
pickandplacerobotandautomatedsegregationofinspectedcomponents.Automaticinspec
tionisessentialwherethecomplexityofthecomponentissuchthatmanualmethodscannot
achievethedesiredlevelsofaccuracy.
Theresultsofinspectioncouldbefedtoelectroniccomputerbasedsystemwhichmay
alsocontrolthemachineoperation.Theuseofsuchcomputerbasedprocessingalsoallowsthe
resultsobtainedtoprovideawiderangeofcontrolfacilitiesincludingfeedbackforcontrolof
themanufacturingprocess.
Coordinatemeasuringmachinesaccommodatemultidimensionalinspectionbyusinga
singlepointcontacttotakesuccessivemeasurementsoverthecomponentprofile.Thecontact
movementandprocessingofthedimensionalinformationisundercomputercontrol,which
canalsoprovidesimilarfacilitiestothoseofferedbymultipointgauging.
Nextpost:FluidDisplacementComparators[Fig.5.53](Metrology)
Previouspost:ElectricalandElectronicComparators(Metrology)

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