Patent ID: 7600876

Claim:
An optical angle detection apparatus comprising: a single optical distance measurement unit disposed opposite an object having a plane; an optical axis deflector that can deflect an optical axis, which is oriented from the optical distance measurement unit to the plane of the object, toward a first orientation and toward a second orientation; and a controller that controls the optical distance measurement unit and the optical axis deflector to measure a tilt angle of the plane of the object, wherein the optical distance measurement unit includes: a light projecting portion that projects a beam in the direction of the optical axis; and a light receiving portion that receives a beam reflected from a measurement position at which the optical axis intersects the plane and outputs a distance measurement signal indicating a distance to the measurement position, wherein the optical axis deflector includes: a mounting substrate that mounts thereon the light projecting portion and the light receiving portion which are spaced vertically from each other, and a rotating substrate that supports the mounting substrate and that is rotatable horizontally for deflecting the optical axis, and wherein the optical axis deflector deflects the optical axis between the first orientation and the second orientation, thereby switching the measurement position between a first measurement position and a second measurement position, so that a first distance measurement signal corresponding to the first measurement position and a second distance measurement signal corresponding to the second measurement position are output from the optical distance measurement unit, wherein the controller obtains respective distances to the first and second measurement positions based on the first and second distance measurement signals and calculates the tilt angle of the plane based on the obtained distances.