A Portable High-Resolution Surface Measurement Device

A high-resolution portable surface measurement device has been demonstrated to provide micrometer-resolution topographical plots. This device was specifically developed to allow in situ measurements of defects on the Space Shuttle orbiter windows but is versatile enough to be used on a wide variety...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inIEEE transactions on instrumentation and measurement Vol. 62; no. 1; pp. 205 - 209
Main Authors Ihlefeld, C. M., Burns, B. M., Youngquist, R. C.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published New York IEEE 01.01.2013
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
Subjects
Aerospace engineering
Defects
Devices
Ergonomics
Extraterrestrial measurements
Glass
In situ measurement
Instrumentation
NASA
Optical imaging
Optical measurement
Optical sensors
Optical variables measurement
Portability
sensor systems
Space shuttles
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Summary:A high-resolution portable surface measurement device has been demonstrated to provide micrometer-resolution topographical plots. This device was specifically developed to allow in situ measurements of defects on the Space Shuttle orbiter windows but is versatile enough to be used on a wide variety of surfaces. This paper discusses the choice of an optical sensor and then the decisions required to convert a laboratory bench optical measurement device into an ergonomic portable system. The necessary tradeoffs between performance and portability are presented along with a description of the device developed to measure orbiter window defects.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
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ISSN:0018-9456
1557-9662
DOI:10.1109/TIM.2012.2212511