System for measuring characteristics of an object's motion
First Claim
1. A measurement system adapted for measuring characteristics of an object'"'"'s motion through a preselected zone, said system comprising:
- transmitter means for transmitting first and second substantially parallel, synchronously pulsed beams of infrared energy such that said preselected zone is defined by said beams, and each beam has a predetermined fixed time interval between its energy pulses;
receiver means disposed for receiving, in the absence of beam interruptions, a portion of the transmitted energy in said first and second beams, and for providing output signals indicative thereof;
missing pulse detector and time gate generator means, responsive to said output signals from said receiver means, for producing a time gate signal which commences during the interpulse interval following the first missing pulse in the received energy from the first beam and which terminates during the interpulse interval following the first missing pulse in the received energy from the second beam; and
speed subsystem means, responsive to said time gate signal, for producing a first speed signal indicative of the speed of the object as it passes through said zone.
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Abstract
One embodiment of the subject invention comprises a device in which the passage of an object through first and second closely spaced parallel, pulsed, infrared beams is detected, to provide an elapsed time and/or speed indication. The beams are synchronously pulsed at a sufficiently high frequency that the interpulse periods are relatively short compared to the anticipated minimum elapsed time of the passage of the object through the beams, and beam interruptions are detected within a single interpulse period. In one embodiment of the invention, a third beam, in conjunction with one of the other two beams, is used to measure a second speed value, which is compared to the speed value measured between the first and second beams so as to ascertain if the object is accelerating or decelerating. Measured speed values are displayed on a multiplexed, multi-segment display, as well as being applied to a calculator or processor unit for the computation of preselected functions of the measured speed values. The display also provides an indication as to whether the object is accelerating or decelerating.
47 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A measurement system adapted for measuring characteristics of an object'"'"'s motion through a preselected zone, said system comprising:
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transmitter means for transmitting first and second substantially parallel, synchronously pulsed beams of infrared energy such that said preselected zone is defined by said beams, and each beam has a predetermined fixed time interval between its energy pulses; receiver means disposed for receiving, in the absence of beam interruptions, a portion of the transmitted energy in said first and second beams, and for providing output signals indicative thereof; missing pulse detector and time gate generator means, responsive to said output signals from said receiver means, for producing a time gate signal which commences during the interpulse interval following the first missing pulse in the received energy from the first beam and which terminates during the interpulse interval following the first missing pulse in the received energy from the second beam; and speed subsystem means, responsive to said time gate signal, for producing a first speed signal indicative of the speed of the object as it passes through said zone. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A measurement system adapted for displaying the speed value and an indication of the acceleration of an object as it passes through a predetermined zone, said system comprising:
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transmitter means for transmitting three parallel beams of electromagnetic energy such that said first and second zones are defined by said beams; receiver means for receiving, in the absence of beam interruptions, the transmitted energy in said three parallel beams, and for producing output signals indicative thereof; means responsive to the output signals from said receiver means, for providing first and second speed signals indicative of the speed of said object, as it passes through said first and second zones, repsectively; comparator means for comparing said first and second speed signals and for producing an acceleration signal which is indicative of the acceleration of the object as it passes through said first and second zones; and means for displaying said first speed signal and said acceleration signal. - View Dependent Claims (14)
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15. A system for measuring the speed of an object as it passes through a preselected zone, said system comprising:
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means for transmitting first and second beams of pulsed electromagnetic energy such that said preselected zone is determined thereby; receiver means disposed for receiving, in the absence of beam interruptions, a portion of the transmitted energy in said first and second beams and for providing output signals indicative thereof; missing pulse detector and time gate generator means, responsive to said output signals from said receiver means, for producing a time gate signal which commences during the interpulse interval following the first missing pulse in the received energy from the first beam and which terminates during the interpulse interval following the first missing pulse in the received energy from the second beam; speed subsystem means for producing a first speed signal indicative of the speed of the object as it passes through said zone; and means for inhibiting the production of a subsequent time gate signal until the end of the first preselected interval following the start of the preceding time gate signal or until the end of a second preselected interval following the end of the preceding time gate signal, whichever occurs first.
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16. A system for providing a signal which is indicative of the time it takes an object to pass through a preselected zone, said system comprising:
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transmitter means for transmitting first and second substantially parallel, synchronously pulsed beams of infrared energy such that said preselected zone is defined by said beams, and each beam has a predetermined fixed time interval between its energy pulses; receiver means disposed for receiving, in the absence of beam interruptions, a portion of the transmitted energy in said first and second beams, and for providing output signals indicative thereof; missing pulse detector and time gate generator means responsive to said output signals from said receiver means for producing a time gate signal which commences during the interpulse interval following the first missing pulse in the received energy from the first beam and which terminates during the interpulse interval following the first missing pulse in the received energy from the second beam; and means responsive to said time gate signal for producing a signal indicative of the time it takes the object to pass through said zone.
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Specification