Including assembly fixture repeatability in rigid and non-rigid variation simulation

The repeatability of the assembly fixtures influences the geometrical outcome of an assembly. To control the fixtures, capability studies are conducted. Those studies give however just information about the variability in a number of inspection points. In this paper, a method for transforming the variation in inspection data to variation in the contacts between workpiece and locators is described. By doing this, the fault localizing of the fixture is facilitated. Further, the accuracy of the variation simulations used to evaluate different concepts and designs can be improved. Usually, when data from a repeatability study are used as input to a variation simulation, the tolerances are only applied in the points that actually were inspected. The suggested methodology makes it possible to transform the tolerances containing the repeatability of the fixture to tolerances on the locating scheme, and they are thereby affecting every point in the simulation model, not only th e inspected ones. The method is tested on a case study and the effect of including fixture repeatability in a variation simulation is investigated.