Two-camera triangulation scanner with detachable coupling mechanism

A method for measuring three-dimensional (3D) coordinates of a tactile probe comprising:

• providing a processor;
• providing a target device including a triangulation scanner and a six degree-of-freedom (six-DOF) target assembly, the triangulation scanner including a scanner connector, the six-DOF target assembly including a collection of light points, the tactile probe, and an assembly connector configured to detachably coupled to the scanner connector;
• providing a camera bar device including a first camera and a second camera separated by a camera-bar baseline distance, the first camera and the second camera fixed in space;
• connecting the scanner connector to the assembly connector;
• forming with the first camera a first light point image of the collection of light points and sending a first electrical light point signal to the processor in response;
• forming with the second camera a second light point image of the collection of light points and sending a second electrical light point signal to the processor in response;
• and
• determining with the processor the 3D coordinates of an object surface based at least in part on the first electrical light point signal, and the second electrical light point signal, and the camera-bar baseline distance.

A system for measuring three-dimensional (3D) coordinates of an object surface comprising:

• a processor;
• a target device including a triangulation scanner and a six degree-of-freedom (six-DOF) target assembly, the triangulation scanner including a projector, a scanner camera, and a scanner connector, the projector configured to project a scanner pattern onto the object surface, the scanner camera configured to form an image of the scanner pattern and to send an electrical scanner signal to the processor in response, the six-DOF target assembly including a collection of light points and an assembly connector configured to detachably couple to the scanner connector;
• a camera bar device including a first camera and a second camera separated by a camera-bar baseline distance, the first camera and the second camera fixed in space, the first camera configured to form a first light point image of the collection of light points and to send a first electrical light point signal to the processor in response, the second camera configured to form a second light point image of the collection of light points and to send a second electrical light point signal to the processor in response,
• wherein the processor is configured to determine the 3D coordinates of the object surface based at least in part on the scanner pattern, the electrical scanner signal, the first electrical light point signal, the second electrical light point signal, and the camera-bar baseline distance.

A method for measuring three-dimensional (3D) coordinates of an object surface comprising:

• providing a processor;
• providing a target device including a triangulation scanner and a six degree-of-freedom (six-DOF) target assembly, the triangulation scanner including a projector, a scanner camera, and a scanner connector, the six-DOF target assembly including a collection of light points and an assembly connector configured to detachably couple to the scanner connector;
• providing a camera bar device including a first camera and a second camera separated by a camera-bar baseline distance, the first camera and the second camera fixed in space;
• connecting the scanner connector to the assembly connector;
• in a first instance:
• projecting with the projector a first light onto the object surface;
• forming with the scanner camera a first image of the first light and sending a first electrical scan signal to the processor in response;
• forming with the first camera a first light point image of the collection of light points and sending a first electrical light point signal to the processor in response;
• forming with the second camera a second light point image of the collection of light points and sending a second electrical light point signal to the processor in response;
• determining by the camera bar device in cooperation with the processor and a six-DOF target assembly first values for six degrees of freedom of the triangulation scanner;
• determining with the processor the 3D coordinates of the object surface based at least in part on the first light, the first electrical scan signal, the first electrical light point signal, and the second electrical light point signal;
• and
• storing the 3D coordinates of the object surface.