The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 10, 2001
Filed:
Aug. 02, 1999
Harold B. Carter, Metairie, LA (US);
Kevin Schehrer, Boulder, CO (US);
Rikk Crill, Longmont, CO (US);
Quantum Imaging, Inc., Metairie, LA (US);
Abstract
Apparatus and method for determining the level of a material in a vessel. In one embodiment, and optical emitter emits light onto a rotating mirror. The light reflects off of the rotating mirror and propagates into a vessel. At a first time, the light reflects back and is detected by a first detector. At a second time, the light is reflected back and is detected by a second detector. The distance to the surface of the material in the vessel can be determined using the difference between the first and second times. The volume of the material may also be determined based on this distance. Additional embodiments include rotating the light source itself, maintaining an inert gas near a surface of a window located between the steering mirror and an interior area of the vessel, tilting the steering mirror and first and second detectors to obtain a reflection at maximum intensity, and accounting for the tilt in calculating the volume.