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US 6,633,051 B1Granted
Surface sensing device with optical sensor
AssigneeRenishaw PLC
InventorsAlan J Holloway, Kevyn B Jonas, David A Wright
Life of this patent
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AssigneeRenishaw PLC
InventorsAlan J Holloway, Kevyn B Jonas, David A Wright
Estimating the term…
A surface sensing device includes an articulating head adapted for attachment to the spindle of a measuring machine and having two relatively rotatable parts capable of rotation about two mutually perpendicular axes. The device additionally includes a stylus assembly having a relatively stiff hollow stylus carrier, and a relatively flexible hollow stylus. An optical transducer system is provided within the stylus assembly and comprises a fixed light source which directs a beam of light towards a stylus tip, and a retro-reflective component at the tip which reflects the beam back to a fixed detector. The arrangement is such that lateral displacement of the stylus tip when the tip is in contact with a surface can be measured directly.
A surface sensing device for use in position determining apparatus and which includes a hollow stylus having a workpiece-contacting tip and an optical transducer system, said optical transducer system comprising a light source for producing a beam of light directed internally of the stylus towards the tip of the stylus, an optical component mounted adjacent the tip of the stylus to return the beam, and a detector positioned relative to the returned beam to receive the beam and to produce a signal indicative of a lateral displacement of the stylus tip, wherein the optical component is a retro-reflecting device which is substantially insensitive to tilting of the stylus tip.
A surface sensing device for use in position determining apparatus and which includes a stylus having a workpiece-contacting tip and an optical transducer system, said optical transducer system comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.