초록 ▼

Provision is made in a battery operated probe for detecting and wirelessly transmitting information to a remote receiver indicating that the battery power in the probe is low. In the preferred embodiment, both probe stylus position information and low battery information are transmitted by way of at

Provision is made in a battery operated probe for detecting and wirelessly transmitting information to a remote receiver indicating that the battery power in the probe is low. In the preferred embodiment, both probe stylus position information and low battery information are transmitted by way of at least one infrared optical transmission device in the probe. A pair of phase locked loop circuits in the remote receiver are used to discriminate stylus position information from low battery condition information in the optical transmission.

대표청구항 ▼

In an inspection system having a battery operated probe with a moveable stylus adapted to move from its rest position upon contact with an object, the probe including optical transmission means having at least one optical device for emitting an optical transmission containing information about the s

In an inspection system having a battery operated probe with a moveable stylus adapted to move from its rest position upon contact with an object, the probe including optical transmission means having at least one optical device for emitting an optical transmission containing information about the stylus position, and remote receiver means for receiving the optical transmission from the probe, wherein the improvement comprises: first means in the probe for detecting a low battery condition; second means in the probe for driving the optical device at a frequency that is capable of being detected by the remote receiver means, said second means driving said optical device in a first predetermined manner when the stylus is in a rest position, said second means driving the optical device in a second predetermined manner when the stylus moves from its rest position upon contact with an object, and said second means driving said optical device in a third predetermined manner in response to detection of a low battery condition by the first means whereby the same optical device is used to transmit both stylus position information and low battery information to the remote receiver.