Position determination and adjustment system and light sensing device used for the same

• US 6,646,732 B2
• Filed: 07/19/2001
• Issued: 11/11/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/19/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Inventors: Kodaira, Jun-ichi, Ohtomo, Fumio, Hayashi, Kunihiro, Osaragi, Kazuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Buczinski, Stephen C.
• Application Number:
  US09/907,591
• Publication Number:
  US 20020057426A1
• Time in Patent Office: 845 Days
• Field of Search: 356/139.04, 356/139.05, 356/141.1, 356/141.5, 356/141.4, 359/159
• US Class Current: 356/141.5
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 15/004 Reference lines, planes or sectors

Abstract

A position determining system is disclosed, which has a simplified configuration capable of producing a plurality of phantom planes simultaneously. The improved system according to the present invention consists of a light receiving and sensing device that includes a body having means for sending data on elevation- and depression-angles and horizontal angles, and a phantom plane determining function for determining phantom planes, so as to display or output differential angles of elevations and depressions in relation with the phantom surfaces produced from the data received from the body.

Claims

1. A position determining system comprising:

a rotary laser device including beam emission means for emitting at least three fan-shaped beams at different angles in radial directions from a center point while rotating the fan-shaped beams about the center point so as to transmit information on the angles of the fan-shaped beams relative to a vertical plane, means for detecting the direction in which the fan-shaped beams are emitted, and communication means for communicating data detected by said means for detecting the direction; and

a light receiving and sensing device including a single receiving means for receiving the fan-shaped beams emitted by the beam emission means, means for receiving the transmitted data from the communication means, determining means for determining a phantom plane based on the received fan-shaped beams and the received data, output means for outputting differential vertical angles relative to the phantom plane.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein said emission means emits first, second, and third fan-shaped beams, said first and second said fan-shaped beams are directed perpendicular to the plane in which said fan-shaped beams are rotated, said third fan-shaped beam is inclined relative to one of said first and second fan-shaped beams, and said determining means determines a vertical angle on the basis of the three fan-shaped beams, and determines a horizontal angle relative to a predetermined reference direction so as to determine at least one phantom plane.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein said light receiving and sensing device includes input means for entering a desired first vertical angle and a desired second vertical angle determined in a desired first direction and a desired second direction, respectively, and wherein said determining means determines one associated phantom plane which is inclined at said first vertical angle in said first direction and inclined at said second vertical angle in said second direction.

4. A system according to claim 2, wherein said light receiving and sensing device includes input means for entering a desired vertical angle determined in a desired direction, and wherein said determining means determines one phantom plane having said desired vertical angle in said desired direction as the maximum vertical angle.

5. A system according to claim 1, wherein said means for detecting the direction is a rotary encoder, and the data detected by said rotary encoder are transmitted from said communication means to said light receiving and sensing device.

6. A system according to claim 5, wherein said communication means communicates the data on the angles of the fan-shaped beams optically utilizing a laser beam having a different wavelength than the fan-shaped beams, and wherein said laser beam blinks in a digitally coded pattern.

7. A system according to claim 6, wherein said light receiving and sensing device includes a light receiving section that detects both the fan-shaped beams and the laser beam utilized by said communication means.

8. A system according to claim 5, wherein said communication means communicates the data on the angles of the fan-shaped beams using radio waves rather than laser beams.