Patent ID: 6248989
Filing Date: 2001-06-19
Classification: G01C,G01J

Abstract:
A tilt detecting device, comprising a bubble tube having an upper side and a lower side, a light source arranged on one of said upper or lower sides of said bubble tube, a pair of photodetector elements arranged on a side of said bubble tube opposite to said light source for receiving a transparent light beam, each of said pair of photodetector elements generating an output signal, a photodetector element for detecting the amount of light from said light source, a light source driving unit for controlling the amount of light emitted from said light source at a constant level based on the output signals from said photodetector element for detecting the amount of light, and a tilt detection unit for controlling said light source on and off and for detecting the tilt based on the output signals from said pair of photodetector elements both when said light source is turned on and when said light source is turned off such that the amount of light is controlled at a constant level.