Spirit level

• US 6,792,382 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2002
• Issued: 09/14/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sakamoto-Denki-Seisakusho, Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Sakamoto-Denki-Seisakusho, Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Kunitomo, Ken
• Primary Examiner(s): Barlow, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): LE, JOHN H
• Application Number:
  US10/208,019
• Publication Number:
  US 20030182078A1
• Time in Patent Office: 776 Days
• Field of Search: 702/154, 702/161, 333/661.2, 333/661.4, 333/661.6, 333/661.8, 333/661.9, 333/662.2, 333/662.4, 333/662.6, 333/662.7, 333/482, 333/72, 333/54, 333/53, 333/12, 340/995.21
• US Class Current: 702/154
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 9/00 Measuring inclination, e.g. by clinometers, by levels
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 9/06 Electric or photoelectric indication or reading means

Abstract

A spirit level has a first inclination sensor, at least one second inclination sensor, and a display to represent an inclination for the at least one second inclination sensor based on an inclination for the first inclination sensor. The display may represent the inclination for the at least one second inclination sensor as an inclination relative to the inclination at the first sensor. At least one of the inclination sensors may have a changing inclination. In this case, the display represents the inclination for the at least one second inclination sensor based on the changing inclination. The inclination sensors may be movable with respect to a remainder of the spirit level. In this case, the inclination sensors may be connected to the remainder of the sprit level with a cable or high frequency radio links.

Claims

1. A spirit level comprising:

a first inclination sensor to sense inclination in two directions;

at least one second inclination sensor to sense inclination in two directions;

a processing and display unit to;

display the inclination at the first sensor, while the first sensor is being leveled; and

after the first sensor has been leveled, display an inclination related to the second sensor such that if the inclination at the first sensor has changed less than a predetermined amount since the first sensor was leveled, then an actual inclination at the second sensor is displayed, and if the inclination at the first sensor has changed more than the predetermined amount since the first sensor was leveled, then a corrected inclination at the second sensor is displayed, the corrected inclination being based on the inclination at both the first and second sensors; and

communication links connecting the first and second sensors to the processing and display unit to allow the first and a second sensors to move with respect to each other and with respect to the processing and display unit.

2. A spirit level comprising:

a first inclination sensor;

at least one second inclination sensor, the first and second inclination sensors being movable with respect to each other and movable with respect to a remainder of the spirit level; and

a computing module and a display to represent an inclination for the second inclination sensor based on an inclination for the first inclination sensor,

wherein the inclination for the at least one second inclination sensor is represented based on the inclination for the first inclination sensor only if the inclination at the first inclination sensor has changed greater than a threshold amount.

3. The spirit level according to claim 2, wherein the display represents the inclination for the second inclination sensor as an inclination relative to the inclination at the first sensor.

4. The spirit level according to claim 3, wherein

at least one of the inclination sensors has a changing inclination, and

the display represents the inclination for the second inclination sensor based on the changing inclination.

5. The spirit level of claim 4, wherein the inclination sensors are connected to the remainder of the sprit level with a cable.

6. The spirit level of claim 4, wherein the inclination sensors are connected to the remainder of the sprit level with high frequency radio links.

7. The spirit level according to claim 2, wherein

at least one of the inclination sensors has a changing inclination, and

the display represents the inclination for the second inclination sensor based on the changing inclination.

8. The spirit level of claim 2, wherein the inclination sensors are connected to the remainder of the sprit level with a cable.

9. The spirit level of claim 2, wherein the inclination sensors are connected to the remainder of the sprit level with high frequency radio links.

10. The spirit level according to claim 2, wherein there are a plurality of second inclination sensors.

11. The spirit level according to claim 2, wherein the first and second inclination sensors each sense inclination in both the x- and y-directions.

12. A method for leveling an object, comprising:

displaying the inclination at a first sensor, while the first sensor is being leveled; and

after the first sensor has been leveled, displaying an inclination related to the second sensor such that if the inclination at the first sensor has changed less than a predetermined amount since the first sensor was leveled, then an actual inclination at the second sensor is displayed, and if the inclination at the first sensor has changed more than the predetermined amount since the first sensor was leveled, then a corrected inclination at the second sensor is displayed, the corrected inclination being based on the inclination at both the first and second sensors.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising freely positioning the first and second sensors with respect to each other, without also moving a processing and display unit, which displays the inclination.