Identification of weak spots in the metrological investigation of dynamic machine behaviour

Both the measurement of frequency response functions and the modal analysis are established tools for the measurement of the dynamic compliance of machine tools. State of the art measurement technique enables an allocation of dynamic weak points of the machine structure and optimization of the machine design on the basis of these measurement results. In recent applications the metrological investigation is used for the parameterization and the verification of simulation models to describe the dynamic behaviour of machine tools, which demands high standards regarding to the quantitative quality of measurement results. This paper describes the interlaboratory comparison test, which has been carried out at well-known German research institutes and was initiated by the Laboratory for Machine Tools and Production Engineering (WZL) of the RWTH Aachen. In this regard, the question is discussed, to what extent the compliance behaviour of machine structures under real process conditions corresponds to behaviour, determined in metrological investigation under idealized test conditions.