Patent ID: 7616327

Claim:
An optical measuring device using optical triangulation for measuring, relative to a plane reference surface (L) and in a direction substantially perpendicular to said reference surface, the distance (d) and the inclination in two directions of a surface (W) to be checked, which locally can be likened to a plane, and comprising: light emitter means ( 8 ) suitable for emitting along the same path, with a given repetition frequency, two alternating light beams (F L , F W ) in a first wavelength range (Δλ L ) and in a second wavelength range (Δλ W ), respectively; beam divider means ( 9 ) suitable for generating, from each single incident beam (F L , F W ), several separate parallel light beams (F′ L , F′ W ), being at least three in number and distributed in a predetermined configuration; an optical splitter ( 11 ) suitable for directing each of the incident light beams (F′ L , F′ W ) in two different directions in relation to the two wavelength ranges (Δλ L , Δλ W ) respectively, said optical splitter ( 11 ) being placed laterally relative to the reference surface (L) and to the surface (W) to be checked, so that the two output beams (F′ L , F′ W ) are directed, along paths of substantially the same length, into respectively the reference surface (L) and the surface (W) to be checked, off which they undergo respective reflections (F″ L , F″ W ) so as thereafter to converge on each other; an optical beam combiner ( 12 ) suitable for collecting the two reflected beams (F″ L , F″ W ) coming from the same incident beam and in directing them alternately along one and the same optical output path; sensor means ( 14 ) for receiving each of said alternating output beams (F″ L , F″ W ), said sensor means ( 14 ) comprising optronic sensors ( 15 ): which are fewer than or the same in number as that of the multiple light beams, which are placed in a configuration that is correlated with that of the multiple light beams in such a way that each optronic sensor ( 15 ) receives alternately two light images ( 16 L , 16 W ) formed by the two alternate reflected beams (F′ L , F′ W ) respectively and which are suitable for delivering (at 20) an output signal representative of the position of the energy barycenter of each of the two light images ( 16 L , 16 W ); synchronization means ( 17 , 18 ) for establishing a temporal relationship between the two alternate beams (F L , F W ) emitted by the light emitter means ( 8 ) and the two images ( 16 L , 16 W ) respectively formed on the optronic sensors ( 15 ); and means ( 17 ) for processing all of the signals delivered by the optronic sensors ( 15 ) in order to provide information about the position and inclination of the surface (W) to be checked relative to the reference surface (L).