Motor control system for a self-calibrating multi-camera alignment system

A method for tracking a vehicle during vehicle alignment, the method comprising:

• providing a vehicle alignment system comprising:
• a first camera pod mounted to move relative to the vehicle and comprising a first motor drive and a first camera to image a first target mounted to the vehicle, and
• a second camera pod mounted to move relative to the vehicle and comprising a second motor drive, a second camera, and a calibration camera;
• acquiring, by the first camera, an image of the first target mounted to the vehicle;
• receiving, at one or more data processors, first image data from the first camera;
• calculating, at the one or more data processors, a first optimal location of the first camera pod;
• determining, at the one or more data processors, whether to move the first camera pod;
• transmitting, by the one or more data processors, when the one or more data processors determines to move the first camera pod, a first motor command to the first motor drive thereby causing the first camera pod to move relative to the vehicle to the first optimal location;
• acquiring, by the second camera, an image of a second target mounted to the vehicle and, by the calibration camera, an image of a calibration target mounted to the first camera pod;
• receiving, at the one or more data processors, calibration image data from the calibration camera;
• calculating, at the one or more data processors, an optimal location of the second camera pod based at least in part on the received calibration image data;
• determining, at the one or more data processors, whether to move the second camera pod;
• and
• transmitting, by the one or more data processors, when the one or more data processors determines to move the second camera pod, a second motor command to the second motor drive thereby causing the second camera pod to move relative to the vehicle to the second optimal location.

A non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by one or more processors operably connected to a first camera pod mounted to move relative to the vehicle, cause the one or more processors to track a vehicle during vehicle alignment, the tracking comprising:

• receiving vehicle target image data from a vehicle target camera and calibration target image data from a calibration camera, the vehicle target camera being adapted to acquire images of a target mounted to a vehicle, the calibration camera being adapted to acquire images of a calibration target mounted to a second camera pod;
• calculating an optimal location of the first camera pod based at least in part on the received calibration target image data;
• determining, responsive to the calculating, whether to move the first camera pod relative to the vehicle;
• and
• transmitting, when it is determined to move the first camera pod, a motor command to a motor drive of the first camera pod, thereby causing the first camera pod to move relative to the vehicle to the optimal location.