Toolsetter
CNC machines these days can be as accurate as a micrometer or 3,9e-5inch. Often CNC-machinists just use a piece of paper or a feeling gauge to set the tool offset. This way of measuring is obviously prone to human error.
A touch-down probe is also a popular option, but this only works with standardized tooling.
The Toolsetter uses fiber laser modules in an optocoupler configuration.
This is connected to a micro PLC which has a switching time in the microseconds range, which allows for probing as fast as 2meters per minute. The fiber laser modules output an analog signal,
which allows the PLC to output the signal to the CNC’s control, with the laser signal only being partially broken up. This system meets the micrometer accuracy of CNC machines.
Fiber Laser
A fiber laser is a laser in which the active gain medium is an optical fiber doped with rare-earth elements such as erbium, ytterbium, neodymium, dysprosium, praseodymium, thulium and holmium. They are related to doped fiber amplifiers, which provide light amplification without lasing.
Optocoupler
An opto-isolator is an electronic component that transfers electrical signals between two isolated circuits by using light. Opto-isolators prevent high voltages from affecting the system receiving the signal.
