Mesaurements of Stylus Radii- T.V. Vorburger et. al

Abstract
In stylus measurements of surface texture the measured results for roughness depend on the stylus radius. Therefore it is important to determine the stylus radius. Since stylus tips are not perfectly spherical, the local radius of curvature varies significantly over the surface which makes the
determination of an effective radius difficult. Both the techniques used to generate stylus profiles and the subsequent algorithms used to derive an
effective radius are discussed. Comparisons are made between three techniques: sharp-edge traces, optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Several algorithms, including that prescribed by the American National Standard ANSI B46-1, are discussed. It is concluded that the radius scale method is accurate, unambiguous and easy to use for routine measurements
in the laboratory.