Optical measuring device

2:

• The method of claim 1 further comprising adding a fiducial marker calculated using said optical property to an object image of an object taken using said imaging optical device.

3:

• The method of claim 2 further comprising providing a digital computer functionally connected to said imaging optical device, said digital computer comprising a digital processor and a digital memory and wherein said calibration image and said object image are digital images stored in said digital memory.

4:

• The method of claim 3 wherein said digital computer further comprises a set of instructions stored in said digital memory that enable said digital processor to automatically perform the function of locating said position of sharpest focus using an analysis of said imaged periodic structure in said calibration image.

5:

• The method of claim 4 wherein said analysis comprises calculating a first harmonic of a Fourier series derived from said imaged periodic structure.

6:

• The method of claim 4 wherein said optical property is a magnification m of said optical device, and wherein said set of instructions stored in said digital memory further enable said digital processor to perform the function of automatically obtaining said magnification m using an algorithm comprising a calculation equivalent to the equation:
• m=D/(d cos(α)).

7:

• The method of claim 3 wherein said optical property is an effective focal length ef of said optical device and wherein said set of instructions stored in said digital memory further enable said digital processor perform the function of automatically obtaining said effective focal length ef of said optical device using an algorithm that comprises obtaining the magnifications m1 and m2 at two locations x1 and x2 in said calibration image, said two locations being separated by a distance Dx measured parallel to said direction of periodicity, and wherein said set of instructions stored in said digital memory further enable said digital processor perform the function of automatically calculating the effective height difference Hx between said two locations.

8:

• The method of claim 7 wherein said set of instructions stored in said digital memory further enable said digital processor perform the function of automatically obtaining said effective focal length of using an algorithm that comprises a calculation equivalent to the equation:
• ef=f(m1, m2, Hx).

9:

• The method of claim 3 wherein said optical property is a depth of field df of said optical device, and wherein said set of instructions stored in said digital memory further enable said digital processor perform the function of automatically obtaining said depth of field df of said optical device using an algorithm comprising obtaining a position of acceptable focus furthest from said position of sharpest focus measured perpendicular to an orientation of said structure of uniformly periodic linear elements.

10:

• The method of claim 3 wherein said optical property is a field curvature c of said optical device and wherein said digital computer is further programmed to perform the function of automatically obtaining said field curvature c of said optical device using an algorithm comprising obtaining a focal position fxy , on said calibration image at two or more positions, said positions separated by a distance measured normal to said direction of periodicity 116.

11:

• The method of claim 3 wherein said optical property is a distortion dx of said optical device and wherein said digital computer is further programmed to perform the function of automatically obtaining said distortion dx of said optical device using an algorithm comprising obtaining a curvature of one or more of said imaged linear elements.

14:

• The device of claim 13 wherein said second flat plane is swivelingly connected to said flat plane such that said second flat plane is movable from a first position in which it is oriented parallel to said plane and a second position in which it is oriented at an angle α with respect to said plane.

16:

• The method of claim 1 wherein said structure of the uniformly periodic linear elements having said periodicity d is produced on a digital display and produced using pixels of the digital display.

17:

• The method of claim 15 further comprising adding a fiducial marker calculated using said optical property to an object image of an object taken using said imaging optical device.

18:

• The method of claim 17 further comprising providing a digital computer functionally connected to said imaging optical device, said digital computer comprising a digital processor and a digital memory and wherein said calibration image and said object image are digital images stored in said digital memory.

19:

• The method of claim 18 wherein said digital computer further comprises a set of instructions stored in said digital memory that enable said digital processor to automatically perform the function of locating said position of sharpest focus using an analysis of said imaged periodic structure in said calibration image.

20:

• The method of claim 19 wherein said analysis comprises calculating a first harmonic of a Fourier series derived from said imaged periodic structure.

21:

• The method of claim 19 wherein said optical property is a magnification m of said optical device, and wherein said set of instructions stored in said digital memory further enable said digital processor to perform the function of automatically obtaining said magnification m using an algorithm comprising a calculation equivalent to the equation:
• m=D/(d cos(α)).