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Planar normality sensor

  • US 6,327,520 B1
  • Filed: 08/31/1999
  • Issued: 12/04/2001
  • Est. Priority Date: 08/31/1999
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A sensor for determining the planar inclination of a surface comprising:

  • a sensor body having a light emitting end and defining a longitudinal axis;

    three sensors positioned within said sensor body, each sensor comprising;

    a laser assembly having a light output for emitting a light beam from the light emitting end in a longitudinal direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis onto a surface to be scanned; and

    an optical detector for receiving scattered light that had been emitted from said laser assembly onto a surface to be scanned;

    a processor operatively connected to said optical detectors for calculating the planar inclination of the surface based on the light scattered back from the surface to be scanned; and

    a sine wave generator for generating a sine wave modulation for a laser assembly, wherein each laser assembly has a sine wave modulation that is different from the sine wave modulation of a respective other laser assembly based on stored values within a wave table, wherein the sine waves are a frequency that are prime relative to each other.

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