Patent · US Expired

Device for measuring a three-dimensional shape of an elongate member

US5289261A · kind A · utility

22Cited by
6References
21Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMar 13, 1992
Grant dateFeb 22, 1994
Priority date
Expiry dateMar 13, 2012

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG01B11/2545
  • WIPO fieldMeasurement
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A device for measuring a three-dimensional shape of an elongate member which comprises a first image detector and a second image detector, a projected image computing device, and a center line computing device. The first image detector and the second image detector detect a two-dimensional image of an image of the elongate member projected onto a planar surface. The projected image computing device computes each central line of the projected image of the elongate member from each of the images detected by the first image detector and the second image detector. Then, the center line computing device detects a plane including the central line obtained from the first image detector and the position of the first image detector, and another plane including the other central line obtained from the second image detector and the position of the second image detector, thereby obtaining a center line of the elongate member along which the planes intersect each other.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.