ISO 10360-12:2016

Overview

ISO 10360-12:2016 - "Geometrical product specifications (GPS) - Acceptance and reverification tests for coordinate measuring systems (CMS) - Part 12: Articulated arm coordinate measurement machines (CMM)" defines standardized procedures for verifying the performance of articulated arm CMMs. The standard specifies how to perform acceptance tests (to confirm manufacturer-stated performance) and reverification tests (for periodic user checks) using calibrated test lengths. It applies to articulated arms equipped with tactile probes and optionally optical distance sensors (laser line scanners/laser line probes). Note: ISO 10360-12:2016 does not set test frequency or assign testing costs.

Key topics

• Scope and purpose: Defines performance requirements assignable by manufacturer or user and the rules for proving conformance.
• Rated operating conditions: Environmental and operational conditions under which the tests should be executed.
• Test categories (Clause 6 and annexes):
  • Probing size and form errors (tactile probe behaviour and artefact probing);
  • Articulated location errors (joint/encoder derived positional accuracy);
  • Length measurement errors (measurement of calibrated test lengths and concatenated lengths - see Annex F).
• Measurement artefacts and alignment: Describes suitable artefacts representing calibrated test lengths (Annex B) and alignment procedures (Annex C).
• Scanner-specific tests: Procedures and requirements for scanning probing systems and accessories (Annex E).
• Compliance and reporting: Acceptance criteria, data rejection rules, reverification decision rules, and recommended forms (Annex A).
• Informative guidance: Interim checks, optional repeatability metrics and relation to the GPS matrix model (Annexes D, H, I).

Applications

ISO 10360-12:2016 is intended for practical use by:

• Articulated arm CMM manufacturers - to specify and declare MPEs (Maximum Permissible Errors) and guaranteed performance.
• Calibration laboratories and metrology service providers - to perform traceable acceptance and reverification testing using calibrated artefacts.
• Quality managers and metrology engineers in production, inspection, R&D, and reverse-engineering environments who rely on articulated arm measurements for part verification, dimensional control, and process qualification.
• Users of laser line scanners attached to articulated arms who need standardized performance assessments (Annex E).

Key benefits include traceability to the unit metre, consistent test procedures, and objective evidence for conformity to declared performance.

Related standards

• ISO 10360 series (e.g., ISO 10360-1 Vocabulary; ISO 10360-8 Optical distance sensors; ISO 10360-9 Multiple probing systems).
• ISO 14638 (GPS masterplan), ISO 8015 (fundamental GPS rules), ISO 14253-1 (decision rules for verification).

Using ISO 10360-12:2016 helps ensure reproducible, traceable verification of articulated arm CMM performance and aligns acceptance/reverification testing with international GPS practices.