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US 2002/0162235 A1Published application
Tilt sensor or an automatic leveling device
OwnerJoseph F. Randoinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A tilt sensor for use in an automatic leveling device includes a level vial with a level bubble, the vial including a metal base member. The metal base has provisions for mounting the sensor device to an instrument or object to be leveled, and optical as well as capacitive sensing arrangements are disclosed for sensing the position of the level bubble and providing a signal to be used by a motor that brings the instrument or object to level.
Claims13
An apparatus used for sensing tilt of an object electronically, comprising:
- a vessel comprising a metal base with means for mounting the metal base on the object, and including at least one plastic member secured in sealed relationship to the metal base to form the vessel,
- a liquid contained in the vessel, but not completely filling the vessel, such that a bubble resides in the vessel, the bubble being movable in a longitudinal direction of the vessel with tilt of the object,
- a bubble motion control cross section formed by the shape of the vessel, such that the bubble tends to remain localized and tends to remain at a position indicating level when the object is level, and
- bubble sensing means for sensing the position of the bubble in the longitudinal direction, to provide a signal to be used in automatically leveling the device.
1 more element
A method for sensing tilt of an object electronically, comprising:
- providing a metal base for a tilt sensor,
- securing at least one plastic member to the metal base in sealed relationship so as to form an internal vessel capable of holding a liquid,
- adding a liquid to the vessel, such that the vessel is nearly filled but leaving a bubble within the vessel, then sealing the vessel closed,
- the metal base to a metal portion of an object whose condition with respect to level is to be sensed, such that when the object is level the bubble within the vessel is located substantially at a position indicating level within a longitudinal path within which the bubble can move with tilt of the object and of the vessel, and
- sensing the position of the bubble within the vessel electronically, and generating a signal in accordance with the position of the bubble useful in an electrically operated leveling device for restoring the object to level.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.