The purpose of the VMIS is to allow manufacturers the luxury of testing and perfecting manufacturing plans long before a single machine tool is turned on and resources are committed. The VMIS will allow the user to select an available machine tool and an available inspection device, specify a proposed inspection plan and a dimensional analysis procedure, and then build and inspect hundreds (or even thousands) of virtual parts. This will be accomplished in the span of a few minutes rather than waiting several months for the first pre-production run. If these virtual parts indicate a high rejection rate, the process can be refined or additional diagnostic tests can be conducted within VMIS to isolate and correct the problems. All this would go on before the pressure of idle resources forces a compromise in quality. The Virtual Measuring Device (kinematic model of the CMM structure), Dimensional Analysis (mathematical fitting algorithms), and Data Generation (measurement strategy) Modules of this project combine to yield a Virtual Coordinate Measuring Machine (VCMM) as defined in the referenced Solicitation Subtopic. To test this VCMM we need a source of parts with known errors. What better source than a Virtual Machine Tool. The Virtual Machine Tool Module will receive minimal emphasis under this proposal. It is merely a convenient and efficient method of producing virtual test parts with known anomalies.
