Patent ID: 8120769

Claim:
A fiber measurement system for measuring individual cotton fiber properties including precision measurement of fiber length and fiber length distribution comprising: a fiber introduction system configured to introduce a plurality of individualized cotton fibers; a fiber guidance enclosure for receiving the fibers from the fiber introduction system, the fiber guidance enclosure having an enclosed pathway and including an enclosed viewing area, the viewing area having a height between about 0.001 inches and about 0.25 inches that limits mobility of the individualized fibers in a Z-direction and the viewing area having a width that is wider than the enclosed pathway; a sensing system for detecting the presence of the fibers within the fiber guidance enclosure; an imaging system positioned proximal the viewing area of the fiber guidance enclosure to capture an image of each fiber as the fibers pass through the viewing area; and a controller for analyzing the image data to determine at least one property of the fibers.