Position measuring apparatus of moving vehicle

An apparatus for measuring the position of a moving vehicle by utilizing reflection of light, comprising

• light reflecting means disposed along a course for said moving vehicle and positioned in a predetermined relationship to a predetermined reference direction of movement for said vehicle, said light reflecting means having first and second reflectors with an optical characteristic for reflecting an incident light beam back along its path of incidence, said reflectors being disposed in spaced relationship so that said vehicle passes through the space between said reflectors while moving along said course,
• light emitting means in said vehicle for emitting lights to the outside of said moving vehicle,
• means in said vehicle for directing light emitted by said light emitting means laterally outward on each side of said vehicle and in such a direction that light strikes each of said reflectors as said vehicle passes proximate thereto,
• photodetecting means in said vehicle for detecting light reflected from said light reflecting means, and positioned to receive light form each of said reflecting means, said photodetecting means producing first and second electrical signals indicating the detection of light from said first and second reflectors respectively,
• moving direction measuring means in said vehicle responsive to said first and second electrical signals for measuring the angle of deviation of the direction of movement of said moving vehicle with respect to said reference direction, and
• position detecting means in said vehicle for detecting a position of said moving vehicle based on the angle of deviation measured by said moving direction measuring means and said first and second electrical signals of said photodetecting means.