Method for locating a target by means of a detector having a plurality of quadrants

A method for locating a target by means of a detecting device comprising a photodetector comprising N×M quadrants positioned with respect to a sighting axis of the detecting device, the photodetector being configured to detect optical signals from the target to be detected, the photodetector comprising quadrants distributed along two perpendicular axes called elevation Z and azimuth Y axes, said method being implemented in a processing unit of said device and comprising the following steps, the target scattering an optical signal:

• acquiring the signals detected by each quadrant, which correspond to the signals scattered by the target toward the quadrants;
• processing the acquired signals to determine an elevation angle error and an azimuth angle error of the direction of the target with respect to the sighting axis of the device;
• processing the acquired signals with a view to deducing therefrom indicators of the distribution of the signals detected by the quadrants;
• processing the determined elevation angle error and azimuth angle error with a view to deducing therefrom indicators of the theoretical distribution of the signals in the quadrants for these angle errors;
• distribution indicators of the signal in the quadrants being obtained by means of theoretical and measured weighting values, said weightings being based on the levels of the signals detected by the quadrants,
• verifying the coherence of the theoretical distribution indicators with the distribution indicators obtained using the acquired signals so as to determine whether the measured angle error is valid.