초록 ▼

High speed readout is achieved in a triangulation ranger by a coded aperture light detector which provides a direct digital representation of a range or height position. A light spot reflected from the surface is optically spread into a line segment so it can be shared among a number of light detect

High speed readout is achieved in a triangulation ranger by a coded aperture light detector which provides a direct digital representation of a range or height position. A light spot reflected from the surface is optically spread into a line segment so it can be shared among a number of light detection channels. The line of light falls on a coded aperture in front of a segmented fiber optic bundle and the light transmitted by each channel is led to a separate photomultiplier or solid state detector. Every coded channel is constructed to give one bit of the digital address of the range position, and a reference light value is obtained from another channel. Background and secondary reflections may be filtered out by focusing light scattered from the surface to a spot and passing it through a slit aperture oriented in the plane of triangulation before being spread to a line segment.

대표청구항 ▼

A triangulation ranging system comprising: means to project onto a coded aperture light detecting means a line segment of light whose position along a coded aperture is related to range to an object surface; said light detecting means having a plurality of coded channels which transmit light to sepa

A triangulation ranging system comprising: means to project onto a coded aperture light detecting means a line segment of light whose position along a coded aperture is related to range to an object surface; said light detecting means having a plurality of coded channels which transmit light to separate detectors and said coded aperture at the front of said channels providing a digital representation of the position of said line segment; wherein each coded channel ha a row of opaque and clear cells and said light detecting mean also has a clear reference light value channel, the number N of channels to yield a resolution of R range points being given by N=1+log2R; and said channels are comprised of noncoherent fiber optic bundles, a patterned mask in front of said bundles serving as said coded aperture.