Clamping Fault Detection in a Fixturing System

When a workpiece is located and clamped in a fixture, the dynamic response can be used to characterize its corresponding clamping condition. When the contact condition between the workpiece and the fixture is changed, the system response frequency will change accordingly. The identification of insufficient clamping forces is investigated in this study. This paper also presents the modeling and analysis of the contact condition between fixtures and components in a modular fixturing system. Analytical models were obtained using the finite element approach. Virtual spring elements are used to model the dynamic effect of surface contact in the model, and the estimation of the virtual spring constants is also presented. Experimental results are compared with the analytical predictions.