IP Library › Granted Patent US 11,619,582
Granted Patent B2
US 11,619,582 · App. 17/369,852 · Granted Apr 4, 2023

Retroreflectometer for non-contact measurements of optical characteristics

Inventors: Eric John Nelson (San Marcos, CA); Victor Fedoriouk (El Cajon, CA)
Assignee: GAMMA SCIENTIFIC INC.
G01N21/55G01N2021/551
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,619,582
App. No.
17/369,852
Granted
Apr 4, 2023
Kind
B2
Abstract

A retroreflectometer for non-contact measurements of optical characteristics of retroreflective materials from a range of distances includes a light source for emitting a light beam; a first moving mirror assembly for scanning the light beam; a collimating lens for collimating the scanning light on an illumination spot on the surface of the DUT; an imaging lens for receiving a reflected scanning light comprised of the collimated scanning light reflected from the surface of the DUT; a second moving mirror assembly for controlling a predetermined observation angle, wherein the first moving mirror assembly and the second moving mirror assembly moved in synchronization to maintain concentricity of the illumination spot on the surface of the DUT; a light collector for collecting the reflected light from the second moving mirror assembly; a processor including a memory for determining the optical characteristics of the surface of the DUT responsive to the collected reflected light.

Claims (20)

1. A retroreflectometer for non-contact measurements of optical characteristics of a surface of a device under test (DUT) comprising:

a light source for emitting a light beam, in a first optical path;

a first moving mirror assembly for scanning the light beam;

a collimating lens for collimating the scanning light on an illumination spot on the surface of the DUT;

an imaging lens for receiving a reflected scanning light comprised of the collimated scanning light reflected from the surface of the DUT, in a second optical path different from the first optical path;

a second moving mirror assembly for controlling a predetermined observation angle, wherein the first moving mirror assembly and the second moving mirror assembly move in synchronization to maintain concentricity of the illumination spot on the surface of the DUT, and wherein the predetermined observation angle is determined by triangulating the distance to three points on the surface of the DUT and setting the observation angle based on the measured distance from the DUT;

a light collector for collecting the reflected light from the second moving mirror assembly; and

a processor including a memory for determining the optical characteristics of the surface of the DUT responsive to the collected reflected light, wherein the processor controls the synchronization of the first moving mirror assembly and the second moving mirror assembly.

2. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , further comprising a display for displaying information about the optical characteristics of the surface of the DUT.

3. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , wherein the processor determines the optical characteristics based on a predetermined pattern of the reflected light from the second moving mirror assembly.

4. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , wherein the light collector collects the reflected light from the second moving mirror assembly via a beamsplitter and a goniometer.

5. The retroreflectometer of claim 4 , wherein the goniometer measures spatial distribution of light at the predetermined observation angle and allows steering the first moving mirror assembly and the second moving mirror assembly to a precise angular position, by the processor.

6. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , further comprising a camera for capturing an image of the illumination spot on the surface of the DUT and in conjunction with a display for visual alignment of the illumination spot on the surface of the DUT.

7. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , further comprising a measurement circuit for converting the collected reflected light into an electrical signal.

8. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , wherein the imaging lens includes a variable focal length between 18 and 400 mm.

9. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , wherein the light source emits a broadband pulsed light beam.

10. The retroreflectometer of claim 9 , wherein the broadband pulsed light beam is a high powered broadband white light source pulsed at a frequency range between 25 and 50 Hz.

11. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , wherein the collimating lens is an achromat doublet lens with a focal length of about 300 mm.

12. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , further comprising a light trap for trapping ambient lights.

13. The retroreflectometer of claim 1 , further comprising a laser range finder for determining a distance and orientation of the retroreflectometer to the DUT.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jul 7, 2021
From: NELSON, ERIC JOHN; FEDORIOUK, VICTOR
To: GAMMA SCIENTIFIC INC.
Reel/Frame 056782/0631 →
Continuity (2)
Provisional Application 63048992 · Jul 7, 2020
Related Publication 20220011226A1 · Jan 13, 2022
Cited By (1)
US 12,566,103