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.] Apparatus for use in calibrating an opto-electronic alignment system including at least first and second fixed and spaced apart optical inspection devices and an associated data processor adapted to optically inspect and determine the position and orientation relative to

[ What is claimed is:] [1.] Apparatus for use in calibrating an opto-electronic alignment system including at least first and second fixed and spaced apart optical inspection devices and an associated data processor adapted to optically inspect and determine the position and orientation relative to said inspection devices of targets affixed to objects such as vehicle wheels to be aligned, and from such determination to infer the position and orientation of the objects to which the targets are affixed, comprising:means forming an elongated beam;support means for supporting said beam at a predetermined elevation above a work surface; andfirst and second target means rigidly affixed to said beam at spaced apart locations, each said target means having predetermined geometric target features formed on a target face thereof, said target faces being oriented at predetermined fixed angles relative to the length of said beam such that when the length of said beam is disposed to extend generally normal to an imaginary line connecting said first and second inspection devices, said first and second target faces lie within the field of view of said first inspection device, and when the length of said beam is disposed to extend generally parallel to said line, said first target face lies within the field of view of said first inspection device and said second target face lies within the field of view of said second inspection device.