Survey system capable of remotely controlling a surveying instrument

• US 7,345,748 B2
• Filed: 05/13/2005
• Issued: 03/18/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Topcon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Sokkia Co. Ltd. (Topcon Corporation)
• Inventors: Chiba, Minoru, Sugiura, Akinobu, Kawakami, Masataka, Muraki, Masaru
• Primary Examiner(s): Tarcza; Thomas H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Brainard; Tim
• Application Number:
  US11/128,182
• Publication Number:
  US 20050254044A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,040 Days
• Field of Search: 356/141.1
• US Class Current: 356/139.04
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 15/002 Active optical surveying means optical plumbing G01C15/105

Abstract

In a survey system in which guide light is emitted from the side of a target, and, on the side of a surveying instrument, a telescope is directed roughly toward the target by receiving the guide light so as to shorten the time required for automatic collimation, the automatic collimation of the surveying instrument can be reliably performed by removing guide light reflected by reflective objects such as windowpanes. The target has a guide light remitter that emits guide light The guide light transmitter includes a light source, a polarizing plate that changes light emitted from this light source into linearly polarized light, and a quarter-wave plate that changes this nearly polarized light into circularly polarized guide light The surveying instrument includes a direction detector and a collimation preparing means. The direction detector includes a quarter-wave plate and a polarizing plate.

Claims

1. A survey system comprising a target for collimation and a surveying instrument provided with an automatic collimation device that causes a collimation axis of a telescope to automatically coincide with the target, wherein

said target has a guide light transmitter that emits guide light,

said surveying instrument including a direction detector that detects a direction of said guide light transmitter by receiving the guide light and a collimation preparing means for directing said telescope toward said target based on an output signal emitted from said direction detector before actuating said automatic collimation device,

said guide light transmitter emitting circularly polarized guide light,

said direction detector including a polarization changing portion for changing said circularly polarized guide light into linearly polarized guide light and a polarizing plate for giving a polarization plane that coincides with said linearly polarized guide light into which said circularly polarized guide light has been changed by said polarization changing portion.

2. A survey system as recited in claim 1, wherein said guide light transmitter includes a light emitting portion that emits linearly polarized light and a polarization changing portion by which linearly polarized light emitted from said light emitting portion is changed into circularly polarized guide light.

3. A survey system as recited in claim 2, wherein said light emitting portion comprises a light source and a polarizing plate by which light emitted from said light source is changed into linearly polarized light, and each of said polarization changing portion by which said circularly polarized guide light is changed into linearly polarized light and said polarization changing portion by which linearly polarized light is changed into circularly polarized guide light is a quarter-wave plate.

4. A survey system as recited in claim 1, wherein said guide light transmitter includes a circularly polarized light semiconductor laser.