General Electric Company

William A Hunter

Allan R Barlow

Ross Christopher Stalter

Chao Yang

Larisa Alexandra Elman

Yalan Yang

Bryan E Irving

Xiang Zhang

Daniel C Garafola

Lea Anne Dantin

Paul D Colananni

Eduardo Milrud

The present invention relates to a portable ultrasound machine, comprising a display and a host. The portable ultrasound machine further includes a supporting member which is connected with the display at one end and connected with the host at the other end, and which may allow the edge of the display closest to the host to locate at a plurality of positions on the host.

Portable ultrasound machine

A host computer is connected to one or more machining workstations, each having its own electronic controller. Each workstation controller contains an operating machine control logic module which controls the functioning of the workstation, such as the carrying out of the movement of a chuck holding a workpiece to be machined on a spindle with respect to a tool which does the machining. Each workstation controller also contains an automation machine control logic module which automates the operation of each of the workstations. In the example of the invention described here, each automation machine control logic module contains blocks which manage the initialization of the workstation, communication between the host and the workstation controller, quality control functions, the interfacing of automated guided vehicles with the workstation, the supply of coolant to the workstation, the removal of swarf from the workstation, the status and location of the workpieces in the workstation, the supply and exchange of tools for the workstation, the logging and reporting of data, the end of part program tasks, the aborting of the part program, and tool wear and break detection and recovery of the workstation from such occurrences.

Intelligent machining workstation operating logic

A system and method are disclosed for automatically machining a work piece to precise selectively determined dimensions under computer numerical control. A movable probe is calibrated against position reference surfaces and is then used to calibrate the position of a fixed probe. The latter serves as a position reference for calibrating the cutting edge of one or more cutting tools. All calibrations are performed under closed loop control. Appropriate tool position offsets are automatically determined from deviations between the programmed and the actual probe and tool positions and are entered into numerical control means to modify the programmed machining operation. After machining has been initiated, probing of the work piece occurs at least once before the final cut is taken and the appropriate tool position offsets are determined and entered to assure that the dimensions of the finished surface will conform to the desired selectively determined dimensions. Any dimensional deviations which are shown to exist upon probing of the finished surface, are indicated together with the allowable machining tolerances for each dimension.

System and method of precision machining

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Danvers, MA, United States of America

William A Hunter