Method and apparatus for electro-optically determining the dimension, location and attitude of objects
AssigneeSensor Adaptive Machines, Inc.
InventorsTimothy R. Pryor, Bernard Hockley, Nick Liptay-Wagner, Omer L. Hageniers, W. J. Pastorius
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for optically determining the dimension of part surfaces. Particular embodiments describe optical triangulation based coordinate measurement machines capable of accurate measurement of complex surfaces, such as gear teeth and turbine blades. Other embodiments provide highly useful sensors for robot guidance and related purposes. Up to 5 axis sensing capability is provided on surfaces of widely varying form.
Claims21
Apparatus for enabling determining of dimension, location or attitude of an object, said apparatus comprising:
- electro-optical sensor means for determining range to said object, said sensor means having an axis of measurement,
- movement means for moving said axis relative to an object to be measured so as to determine range to multiple object points on said object so as to enable dimension, location or attitude of said object to be determined, and
- microcomputer means for controlling operation of said sensor means and for controlling a detection characteristic or a light characteristic of said sensor means.
A method for determining dimension, location or attitude of an object comprising the steps of:
- providing electro-optical sensor means for determining range to said object, said sensor means having an axis of measurement,
- providing a microcomputer means to control the operation of said sensor means,
- moving said sensor measurement axis relative to an object to be measured to provide a determination of range to multiple object points on the object,
- using said microcomputer means to control a detection characteristic or a light characteristic of said sensor means, and
- determining the location, dimension or attitude of said object based on said determination of range to said multiple object points.
A machine for enabling determining of dimension, location or attitude of an object, said machine comprising:
- electro-optical sensor means for determining range to said object, said sensor means having an axis of measurement,
- means for moving said axis relative to an object to be measured so that said sensor means determines range to multiple object points on said object, to thereby enable a determination to be made of dimension, location or attitude of said object, and
- control means for varying a characteristic of said sensor means as a function of light gathered from said object.
A method for determining dimension, location or attitude of an object, said method comprising the steps of:
- providing a non-contact ranging sensor having an axis of measurement,
- providing a computer having a memory containing computer data concerning a theoretical dimension or shape of the object,
- positioning said sensor, based on said computer data, at a nominal range along said axis of measurement from a surface of said object,
- determining the distance from said sensor to at least one point on said surface along said axis,
- comparing said distance to said computer data to obtain a signal indicative of deviation of said surface from a theoretical surface determined based on said computer data,
- storing said deviation and/or said distance,
- determining the distance from said sensor to at least one further point on said surface, and
- comparing said distance from said sensor to said at least one further point with said computer data to obtain a further signal indicative of deviation of said surface from said theoretical surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.