Patent ID: 9632019
Date: 2017-04-25
CPC Classifications: G01N

Claim:
1. An apparatus comprising: a sensor body including an end plate having an end surface with a surface edge, wherein at least one optical window is arranged in said end plate; and a peripheral module at least partially surrounding the sensor body and defining a module envelope in a rest position, the peripheral module including a wiper defining at least a portion of the module envelope and having a first surface and an opposing second surface, wherein said wiper further includes a wiper blade adjacent the second surface, the wiper blade including a wiper edge opposite the second surface, defining a height difference between the first surface of the wiper and the wiper edge of the wiper blade, wherein the wiper is configured to extend from the rest position to a cleaning position and retract to the rest position in unidirectional rotational motion along a spatial path comprising at least one complete rotation, wherein in the rest position the first surface of the wiper is flush with the end surface of said end plate and is disposed within the module envelope, wherein in the cleaning position the wiper is extended from the module envelope such that the wiper edge of the wiper blade is flush with said end surface of said end plate, such that said wiper blade cleans said end plate by contact of said wiper edge with said end surface, and wherein the peripheral module and the sensor body are configured such that deposits and accretions that accumulate on said wiper blade during cleaning are scraped off as the wiper blade moves across the surface edge of said end surface of said end plate as the wiper edge traverses the height difference in returning to the rest position.