Measuring device having a scanning functionality and a single-point measurement mode

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9658059-B2
Application number	US-201314375421-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 30, 2013
Priority date	Jan 30, 2012
Publication date	May 23, 2017
Grant date	May 23, 2017

Abstract

Embodiments described herein relate to a measuring device, comprising a base that defines a vertical axis, an assembly that can be pivoted about the vertical axis relative to the base, and a beam deflecting unit for varying the orientation of a measurement axis, wherein the beam deflecting unit can be rotated about a horizontal axis relative to the assembly. The measuring device further has a distance measurement functionality for measuring distance by means of the measurement radiation, an angle measurement functionality for determining an orientation of the measurement axis relative to the base, a control and processing unit for processing data and for controlling the measuring device, and a scanning functionality, wherein when the scanning functionality is executed, a scan is performed, and a point cloud comprising the scan points is produced. The assembly also has an imaging system. The measuring device may have a single-point measurement mode.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A surveying instrument, comprising
a beam source for generating measurement radiation,
a base defining a vertical axis,
a structure pivotable about the vertical axis relative to the base, comprising a beam entry window and a beam exit window, wherein the beam entry window and the beam exit window are identical,
a beam deflection unit for varying the alignment of a measurement axis defined by an emission direction of the measurement radiation, wherein the beam deflection unit
is rotatable about a horizontal axis relative to the structure and
is arranged relative to the structure in such a way that
measurement radiation emerging from the beam exit window is incident on the beam deflection unit and can be guided by means of the latter to an object, and
measurement radiation reflected by the object and incident on the beam deflection unit is directed thereby onto the beam entry window,

a range finder for measuring the distance to the object by means of the measurement radiation,
an angle sensor for determining an alignment of the measurement axis relative to the base,
a control and processing unit for data processing and for controlling the surveying instrument, and
a scanning functionality, wherein, when the scanning functionality is carried out in an automatically controlled manner by the control and processing unit, there is scanning with
rotating the beam deflection unit about the horizontal axis and pivoting the structure about the vertical axis simultaneously,
determining the respective distance and the respective alignment of the measurement radiation for scanning points lying within a certain scanning region with a predetermined scanning point resolution, and
generating a point cloud comprising the scanning points,

wherein
the structure furthermore comprises an imaging system comprising an imaging optical unit with a focusing group and an image plane for generating and graphically providing an image of a field of view, wherein
the field of view is defined by the imaging system and the beam deflection unit and can be aligned together with the measurement axis by means of the beam deflection unit and
the image of the field of view can be provided graphically in focus in the image plane by means of image focusing using the focusing group, and

the surveying instrument has a single-point measurement mode, within the scope of which
the measurement axis can be aligned onto a target point, and
when a single-point measurement is triggered in an automatically controlled manner by the control and processing unit, the distance to the target point and the alignment of the measurement axis and a position of the target point can be determined depending on the distance and on the alignment of the measurement axis.

2. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein
the structure comprises an adjustment mechanism with a rotary knob for aligning the beam deflection unit, wherein the beam deflection unit can be aligned by manual actuation of the rotary knob.

3. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the structure comprises an eyepiece for graphic provision of the image.

4. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the structure comprises a marking displaying the emission direction.

5. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein
the structure comprises a measurement camera for acquiring the image, wherein the graphic provision of the image is brought about by means of an electro optical viewer interacting with the measurement camera.

6. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 4 , wherein
the structure comprises an overview camera with an overview field of view, wherein the overview field of view is greater than a field of view of the measurement camera, wherein the overview field of view can be aligned by means of the beam deflection unit.

7. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein
the imaging system comprises an optical zoom group for varying a linear magnification of the image on the image plane, and/or
the beam deflection unit is embodied as a reflecting deflection element.

8. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein
the surveying instrument furthermore comprises a single-point scanning functionality, wherein, when carrying out the single-point scanning functionality,
the distance and the alignment of the measurement radiation are determined in each case for a multiplicity of single points within a single-point region,
a single-point point cloud comprising the single points is generated and
the position of the target point is derived from the single-point point cloud by means of an algorithm for point cloud analysis.

9. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein,
in the single-point measurement mode, the distance to the target point is determined in a first distance measurement mode, wherein a certain number of distance measurement values are determined and averaged for the target point, and,
within the scope of the scanning functionality, the distance to the scanning points is determined in a second distance measurement mode, wherein, compared to the first distance measurement mode, a fewer number of distance measurement values is/are determined for, in each case, one of the scanning points and optionally averaged.

10. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the surveying instrument comprises a switching function configured in such a way that, when the switching function is carried out, there is a switch between the single-point measurement mode and the scanning functionality.

11. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the surveying instrument comprises a switching function configured in such a way that, when the switching function is carried out, there is a switch between the single-point measurement mode and the single-point scanning functionality.

12. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein
the surveying instrument comprises an inclination sensor for measuring an inclination of the surveying instrument relative to the gravitational vector, wherein, depending on a measured inclination, a measured value for the alignment of the measurement radiation can be corrected.

13. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein
the imaging system comprises a beam variation module for attenuation and/or expansion and/or wavelength-dependent filtering by introducing the beam variation module in a beam path of the measurement radiation.

14. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 1 , wherein
the structure comprises a targeting and target-tracking device with a position-sensitive detector, wherein measurement radiation reflected at a reflector unit can be acquired by the position-sensitive detector and an offset of the acquired measurement radiation relative to a reference point on the detector can be determined, wherein the targeting and target-tracking device is arranged in the imaging system.

15. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim 12 , wherein
the targeting and target-tracking device comprises a further beam source for emitting laser radiation, wherein laser radiation reflected at the reflector unit can be used as measurement radiation for determining the offset on the position-sensitive detector,
wherein
the measurement axis can be aligned in an automatically controlled manner depending on the offset in such a way that the measurement radiation is continuously aligned onto a center of the reflector unit.

16. The surveying instrument as claimed in claim

Assignees

• Hexagon Technology Ct Gmbh

Inventors

• Metzler Bernhard
• Hinderling Jürg
• Jensen Thomas

Classifications

• G01S7/4817

  relating to scanning · CPC title

• G01B11/26

  for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes · CPC title

• G01C15/002 Primary

  Active optical surveying means (optical plumbing G01C15/105) · CPC title

• G01B11/14 Primary

  for measuring distance or clearance between spaced objects or spaced apertures (G01B11/26 takes precedence; rangefinders G01C3/00) · CPC title

• G01S7/4812

  transmitted and received beams following a coaxial path · CPC title