Burke E. Porter Machinery Company

Munir T Ozdemir

Jon D Lawrence

James R Lehman

Hilbrand J Sybesma

An apparatus and method is provided for measuring the caster angle of a steerable wheel assembly without contact with the vehicle. An image capture device, preferably a CCD type video camera or sensor, views a vehicle wheel mounting and steering assembly that is illuminated by a light source. Information from the captured image is transmitted to a computer based control, such as a computer or processor, that determines the angle of a preformed line or preselected physical features on the wheel assembly in the captured image, and determines the caster angle of the steering axis based on the fixed angular relationship of the line or physical features to the steering axis that is stored or accessed by the control. Preferably, the image capture device is mounted below the vehicle on a vehicle alignment machine that supports the vehicle.

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Grand Rapids, MI, United States of America

Munir T Ozdemir