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:
Feb. 10, 2004
Filed:
Jan. 10, 2000
Lyle Shirley, Boxboro, MA (US);
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA (US);
Abstract
Apparatus and methods of measuring three-dimensional position information of a point on the surface of an object. In one embodiment, the method includes the steps of providing two sources of radiation having a spectral distribution, illuminating the surface with each of the sources to produce a first fringe pattern, moving the first fringe pattern to a second position, generating a first wrapped cycle map, estimating fringe numbers in the first fringe pattern, changing the first fringe pattern, moving the second fringe pattern to a second position, generating a second wrapped cycle map, estimating fringe numbers in the second fringe pattern, and determining position information in response to the estimated fringe numbers in the second fringe pattern and the second wrapped cycle map. In another embodiment the apparatus includes two sources of radiation having a spectral distribution and being coherent with respect to one another, a control system for moving each of the sources relative to each other, a detector positioned at the point on the surface of the object to receive radiation illuminating the point on the surface of the object, and a processor for receiving signals from the detector. The processor calculates position information of the point on the surface of the object in response to the movement of the sources and the radiation received at the point on the surface of the object.