Analysis of the influence of fixture locator errors on the compliance of work part features to geometric tolerance specifications

A machining fixture controls position and orientation of datum references (used to define important functional features of the geometry of a mechanical part) relative the reference frame for an NC program. Inaccuracies in fixture's location scheme result in a deviation of the work part from its nominal specified geometry. For a part to be acceptable this deviation must be within the limits allowed by the geometric tolerances specified. This paper addresses the problem of characterizing the acceptable level of inaccuracy in the location scheme so that the features machined on the part comply with the limits associated with its geometric tolerances. First we solve the "forward problem" that involves predicting the tolerance deviation resulting at a feature from a known set of errors on the locators. However, the paper concentrates on solving the "inverse" problem that involves establishing bounds on the errors of the locators to ensure that the limits specified by geometric tolerances at a feature are not violated.