Apparatus and method for detecting physical orientation of a position system and for calibrating an optimum control for the system that is usable in optical disk recorders

In apparatus for calibrating a positioning system, including, in combination:

• a frame;
• a work member having a work surface with a plurality of work lines;
• a rotary tool support means having a pivot axis substantially perpendicular to said work surface and having a work tool facing said works surface, said rotary tool support means being capable of working in any one of a plurality of physical orientations including rotary motions along vertical and horizontal oriented work surfaces;
• carriage support means movably mounted on the frame for reciprocating movements along a first linear path across the work surface and mounting the rotary tool support means for rotation about the pivot axis, said rotary tool support means having a distal end portion mounting said work tool for movements substantially along said first linear path, said carriage support means having a predetermined reference relative position for the rotary tool support means to be positioned on said carriage support means;
• stop lock servo means connected to the rotary tool support means and in an operative sensing relation to the work surface for indicating a relative motion along said first linear path of said rotary tool support means and said work surface from a predetermined stop lock position and having a TES error means for generating a TES position error signal representative of said relative motion;
• RPE error means connected between said rotary and carriage support means for sensing rotary relative motion between the rotary and carriage support means and supplying an RPE error signal indicating relative displacements of the rotary tool support means from said predetermined reference relative position for indicating said sensed rotary relative motions;
• carriage servo means operatively coupled to said carriage support means and to said RPE error means for responding to said RPE error signal to actuate the carriage support means to move in a direction for reducing said relative displacements such that the relative displacement of the rotary tool support means is at said reference relative position whereby the carriage support means follows the motions of said work tool along said first linear path,
• bias means connected to said rotary tool support means for mechanically biasing said rotary tool support means in a second direction orthogonal to said first linear path;
• orientation testing means connected to the bias means for actuating the bias means to supply one of a plurality of predetermined bias forces for mechanically biasing said rotary tool support means to balance any effects of gravity on the rotary tool support means only if the positioning system is oriented in respective ones of a plurality of physical orientations;
• said orientation testing means coupled to the biasing means and one of said error means and to said carriage support means for momentary urging one of said support means for a predetermined movement along said first linear path and for simultaneously actuating said biasing means to bias said rotary tool support means successively by each one of said plurality of bias forces for testing said positioning system to determine said physical orientation of said rotary tool support means;
• and
• analysis means for determining said physical orientation of said rotary tool support means and connected to one of said support means, to said RPE means and to said orientation testing means for responding to said orientation testing means momentary urging one of said support means at each respective one of said bias forces to sense any uncorrected movement of said carriage support means with respect to rotary relative movement of said rotary tool support means;
• said analysis means having a peak detector for peak detecting said indicated rotary relative motion at each respective one of said plurality of bias forces;
• orientation means in the analysis means for responding to said peak detecting indicating a first predetermined error indication peak at a first one of said bias forces for indicating that the rotary tool support means is physically oriented for horizontally oriented rotary motions along a horizontally oriented work surface.