Apparatus and method for determining the perimeter of the surface of an object being scanned
First Claim
1. An apparatus for determining the perimeter of an object being scanned, comprising:
- a) a scanning chamber for receiving therein an object being scanned;
b) a laser beam disposed within said scanning chamber for impinging on the object being scanned, said laser beam for orbiting around the object;
c) an array of sensors disposed within said chamber, each of said sensors for detecting light emanating from the surface of the object due to said laser beam impinging on the object;
d) each of said sensors being disposed such that one of said sensors generates a peak response to light emanating from a point on the surface at a predetermined distance from a reference point, such that at each angular position of said laser beam in the orbit, a specific point at a distance from the reference is determined, thereby to generate a set of points representing the perimeter of the surface after a complete orbit.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus for determining the perimeter of an object being scanned comprises a scanning chamber for receiving therein an object being scanned; a source of laser beam disposed within the scanning chamber for impinging on the object being scanned, the laser beam being adapted to orbit around the object; an array of sensors disposed within the chamber, each of the sensors being adapted to detect light emanating from the surface of the object due to the laser beam exiting from the object; and each of the sensors being disposed such that at least only one of the sensors generates a peak response to light emanating from a point on the surface at a predetermined distance from a reference point, such that at each angular position of the laser beam in the orbit, a specific point at a distance from the reference is determined, thereby to generate a set of points representing the perimeter of the surface after a complete orbit.
251 Citations
19 Claims
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1. An apparatus for determining the perimeter of an object being scanned, comprising:
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a) a scanning chamber for receiving therein an object being scanned; b) a laser beam disposed within said scanning chamber for impinging on the object being scanned, said laser beam for orbiting around the object; c) an array of sensors disposed within said chamber, each of said sensors for detecting light emanating from the surface of the object due to said laser beam impinging on the object; d) each of said sensors being disposed such that one of said sensors generates a peak response to light emanating from a point on the surface at a predetermined distance from a reference point, such that at each angular position of said laser beam in the orbit, a specific point at a distance from the reference is determined, thereby to generate a set of points representing the perimeter of the surface after a complete orbit. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for determining the perimeter of an object being scanned, comprising:
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a) providing a laser beam; b) directing the laser beam toward the object being scanned; c) orbiting the laser beam around the object; d) providing a plurality of sensors for detecting light emanating from the surface due to the laser beam impinging on the object; e) detecting at each angular position of the orbit light emanating from the surface of the object at a unique one of the sensors for each point on the surface at a predetermined specific distance from a reference point such that a collection of points from the surface are generated during a complete orbit of the laser beam; f) determining the perimeter of the object from the collection of points. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18)
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19. An apparatus for determining the perimeter of an object being scanned, comprising:
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a) a scanning chamber for receiving therein an object being scanned; b) a laser beam disposed within said scanning chamber for impinging on the object being scanned, said laser beam for orbiting around the object; c) a linear array of sensors disposed within said chamber, each of said sensors for detecting light reflecting from the surface of the object due to said laser beam impinging on the object; and d) each of said sensors being disposed such that one of said sensors generates a peak response to light emanating from a point on the surface at a predetermined distance from a reference point, such that at each angular position of said laser beam in the orbit, a specific point at a distance from the reference is determined, thereby to generate a set of points representing the perimeter of the surface after a complete orbit.
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Specification