Patent ID: 7809522
Filing Date: 2010-10-05
Classification: B26D,G01B

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for generating and displaying numeric values corresponding to the volume of any selected segment of an item comprising: a support defining a generally horizontally planar surface for supporting said item placed thereon; a hand held sensor member freely movable horizontally and vertically over said support surface and an item resting thereon; a horizontal movement detector arrangement which generates signals corresponding to the extent of horizontal movement of said sensor member over said support surface in a direction along said item; a sensor arrangement on said sensor member including sensors generating signals corresponding the distances between a series of points along the sensor member and a series of points on an upper surface of said item lying beneath said points on said sensor member arranged extending across each of successive sections of said item passing beneath said sensor member as said sensor member is moved along and over said item; a height detector arrangement producing signals corresponding to the height of said points along said sensor member above said support surface at each successive horizontal position to which said sensor member is moved along said item; a signal processor receiving said signals generated by said horizontal movement detector arrangement, said sensor arrangement, and said height detector arrangement and computing from said sensor arrangement signals and said height detector arrangement signals the cross sectional area of successive sections of said item passed over by said sensor member and from said computed cross sectional area values and said horizontal movement detector arrangement signals computing a volume of said selected segment of said item defined by movement of said sensor member in being passed over and along said item from a reference position to another position displaced horizontally in said direction along said item; and, a display displaying a numeric value corresponding to said computed volume of said selected segment of said item as computed by said signal processor.