System for determining the position of at least one target by triangulation
AssigneeSAT (Societe Anonyme de Telecommunications)
InventorsMichel P. Bertrand, Michel B. Bucher, Andre R. Delclaux
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system is disclosed for determining the position of at least one target by triangulation, comprising two passive sighting devices which measure the intensity of radiation received along a sighting line which scans a vertical sighting plane. They are disposed at a distance from each other along the same vertical axis and are driven in rotation about this common axis so that their sighting planes merge. A circuit extracts the angular coordinates of the target, relative to each of the sighting devices, and computes the distance of the target by triangulation in the vertical sighting plane.
Claims10
A system for determining the position of at least one target emitting radiation, comprising:
- two passive sighting devices, sensitive to said radiation, disposed at a distance from each other and movable in rotation about a substantially vertical common axis,
- means for measuring the intensity of the radiation received by one of the sighting devices along a sighting line scanning a substantially vertical sighting plane, common to the two sighting devices,
- means for extracting, in response to the intensities measured, the values of the elevation angles of said target relatively to the two sighting devices, and
- means for computing, in response to the values of the elevation angles, the distance of said target by triangulation in said substantially vertical common sighting plane, wherein
- each of the two sighting devices comprises its own means for measuring the intensity of the radiation received, its own drive means for driving it in rotation about said common axis and its own means for measuring its bearing angle, and
- means are provided for controlling said means driving it in rotation about said common axis, in response to the values of the bearing angles measured, and arranged so that said bearing angles are equal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.