Precision Engineering Institute, Cranfield University, Cranfield, Bedfordshire, MK43 0AL, UK.
Philos Trans A Math Phys Eng Sci. 2012 Aug 28;370(1973):3993-4014. doi: 10.1098/rsta.2011.0638.
This paper provides a perspective on the development of ultra-precision technologies: What drove their evolution and what do they now promise for the future as we face the consequences of consumption of the Earth's finite resources? Improved application of measurement is introduced as a major enabler of mass production, and its resultant impact on wealth generation is considered. This paper identifies the ambitions of the defence, automotive and microelectronics sectors as important drivers of improved manufacturing accuracy capability and ever smaller feature creation. It then describes how science fields such as astronomy have presented significant precision engineering challenges, illustrating how these fields of science have achieved unprecedented levels of accuracy, sensitivity and sheer scale. Notwithstanding their importance to science understanding, many science-driven ultra-precision technologies became key enablers for wealth generation and other well-being issues. Specific ultra-precision machine tools important to major astronomy programmes are discussed, as well as the way in which subsequently evolved machine tools made at the beginning of the twenty-first century, now provide much wider benefits.
推动它们发展的因素是什么，以及当我们面对地球有限资源消耗所带来的后果时，它们现在对未来又有什么承诺？本文介绍了测量技术的改进是如何成为大规模生产的主要推动因素的，并考虑了其对创造财富的影响。本文确定了国防、汽车和微电子等领域的雄心壮志是提高制造精度能力和创造更小特征的重要驱动力。然后，本文描述了天文学等科学领域如何提出了重大的精密工程挑战，说明了这些科学领域如何达到了前所未有的精度、灵敏度和规模水平。尽管它们对科学理解很重要，但许多由科学驱动的超精密技术成为了创造财富和解决其他福祉问题的关键手段。本文讨论了对主要天文学计划很重要的特定超精密机床，以及在 21 世纪初开发的机床如何在现在提供更广泛的效益。
