Method and apparatus for measuring angular or linear displacement

• US 20040080306A1
• Filed: 09/12/2003
• Published: 04/29/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: David C. Fischer
• Original Assignee: David C. Fischer
• Inventors: Fischer, David C.
• Granted Patent: US 7,325,327 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 324/71.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 3/022 having an ideal characteristic, map or correction data stored in a digital memory
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 3/484 delivered by contact-making switches

Abstract

An apparatus and method are disclosed for measuring the angular or linear displacement of an object. That displacement is transmitted to a movable conductive member, which, in response thereto, is moved to a position at which it electrically contacts one of a plurality of fixed contacts, thereby to complete an electrical circuit that includes a memory location in a read-only memory that contains digital data representing the amount of displacement that correlates to the fixed contact associated with that memory location. That digital data is transferred to an output device for display or additional data processing.

Claims

1. An apparatus for measuring the relative position of a movable object, said apparatus comprising:

a member movable along a path corresponding to the position of the object;

a plurality of spaced electrical contacts insulated from one another and positioned along said path;

means operatively connected to said plurality of contacts for storing a corresponding plurality of angular measurement data at a corresponding plurality of memory locations, said measurement data respectively associated with said plurality of contacts along said path; and

output means operatively connected to said data storing means;

said movable member being effective when in engagement with one of said contacts to cause the data stored in the one of said memory locations associated with said one of said contacts to be applied to said output means

2. The apparatus of claim 1, in which said output means is a display device.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, in which said output means is a CPU.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, in which said contacts are arranged in an arcuate path.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, in which said movable member is connected at one of its ends to a voltage source and its other free end is movable along said arcuate path to make electrical contact with one of said contacts.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, in which said contacts are arranged in a rectilinear path.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, in which said member is movable axially along said rectilinear path for making contact with aligned pairs of said contacts at each of its ends.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, in which said data-storing means is a ROM.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a voltage source, said member being effective when in electrical engagement with one of said contacts to place an associated one of said memory locations in a circuit arrangement with said voltage source.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, in which said output means is a display device.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, in which said output means is a CPU.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, in which said contacts are arranged in an arcuate path.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, in which said movable member is connected at one end to said voltage source and its other free end is movable along said arcuate path to make electrical contact with one of said contacts.

14. The apparatus of claim 9, in which said contacts are arranged in a rectilinear path.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, in which said member is movable axially along said rectilinear path for making contact with aligned pairs of said contacts at its ends.

16. The apparatus of claim 9, in which said data-storing means is a ROM.

17. A method for determining the relative position of a movable object, said method comprising the steps of:

arranging a plurality of fixed, spaced and insulated electrical contacts along a path;

moving a member along said path by an amount representative of the relative movement of the object, thereby causing said movable member to make electrical contact with one of said contacts;

storing respectively a corresponding plurality of position data in a plurality of data-storing locations in a memory, each of said data-storing locations being respectively associated with the position of one of said contacts; and

causing the measurement data from the one of said memory location associated with the one of said contacts then engaged by said movable member to be applied to an output device.