ULTRA-SONIC DISTANCE SENSOR AND MONITORING OF SURFACE PROFILE UTILIZING ULTRA-SONIC DISTANCE SENSOR

• Main Authors: OHKI, TOSHIO, ICHIKAWA, FUMIHIKO
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 26.04.1989
• Edition: 4
• Subjects: ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION ORRERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; MEASURING; MEASURING ANGLES; MEASURING AREAS; MEASURING IRREGULARITIES OF SURFACES OR CONTOURS; MEASURING LENGTH, THICKNESS OR SIMILAR LINEARDIMENSIONS; MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVINGMATERIAL; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PHYSICS; PUNCHING METAL; RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; ROLLING OF METAL; TESTING; TRANSPORTING

An ultra-sonic distance sensor generates ultra-sonic waves and transmit same toward a target surface, the distance to which is to be measured, through a predetermined path. The sensor is also provided with a reference surface which reflects ultra-sonic waves, which reference surface is disposed within the aforementioned predetermined path of the ultra-sonic waves. A receiver associated with an enabling means receives the ultra-sonic waves reflected by the reference surface or by the target surface, selectively. Arithmetic operations based on the elapsed time between transmission of the ultra-sonic waves and reception of the ultra-sonic waves from the reference surface derive the transmission velocity of the ultra-sonic wave based on the known distance to the reference surface. On the basis of the derived transmission velocity and the elapsed time measured with respect to the ultra-sonic waves reflected by the target surface, the distance to the target surface is derived. The aforementioned ultra-sonic sensor is used to monitor the external shape of an object. In order to monitor the external shape of the object, a system is composed of a plurality of the ultra-sonic sensors. The sensors comprises a primary sensor or sensors directed toward the external surface of the object and an auxiliary sensor or sensors directed to a reference line.