초록 ▼

An apparatus for determining the position and/or alignment of objects such as motor vehicle wheels, and including targets for attachment to the objects, a pair of optical sensing means such as television cameras for viewing the targets, an electronic processing means connected to the optical sensing

An apparatus for determining the position and/or alignment of objects such as motor vehicle wheels, and including targets for attachment to the objects, a pair of optical sensing means such as television cameras for viewing the targets, an electronic processing means connected to the optical sensing means for processing data relating to images of the targets to determine position and/or alignment information, and a display means for displaying the position and/or alignment information. The optical sensing means view a target located on each object and form an image of each target. Electronic signals corresponding to each of the images are transferred to the electronic processing means which correlates the image signals of each of the targets with the true shape of each target. In so doing, the processing means relates the geometric characteristics and positional interrelationships of certain known elements of the target with the geometric characteristics and positional interrelationships of corresponding elements in the viewed images and calculates the position and/or alignment of the objects to which the targets are attached.

대표청구항 ▼

[ What is claimed is:] [1.] An apparatus for determining the alignment of motor vehicle wheels comprising:target means including at least first and second target objects for attachment to wheels on respective first and second sides of a vehicle under inspection, each said target object including a p

[ What is claimed is:] [1.] An apparatus for determining the alignment of motor vehicle wheels comprising:target means including at least first and second target objects for attachment to wheels on respective first and second sides of a vehicle under inspection, each said target object including a plurality of visually perceptible, geometrically configured target elements having known geometric characteristics and positional interrelationships;optical inspection means defining a spatial reference system and including first and second cameras respectively forming first and second viewing paths intersecting said first and second target objects when they are attached to wheels of a vehicle under inspection, each said camera being operable to inspect an image of a corresponding target object as viewed along its corresponding viewing path and to generate image information describing the geometric characteristics and positional interrelationships of the imaged target elements;processing means for relating such image information to predetermined reference information describing the known geometric characteristics and positional interrelationships of said target elements and for determining the position and angular orientation of said first and second target objects relative to said spatial reference system and generating first and second position and orientation information commensurate therewith; andmeans responsive to said first and second position and orientation information and operative to indicate the position and alignment of the wheels to which said first and second targets are attached.