33results about "Length measurement chains" patented technology

The invention comprises a device, about the size of an iPod, this battery-powered device measures distances via an extremely thin wire. The head of the device extends out on a retractable wire. There are no measurements printed on the wire, the distance is calculated and displayed on a very bright, large LED or other type screen. As the wire is extended, a microprocessor calculates the distance and displays it on its screen. Measurements can be viewed (as decimal or fractions), saved and recalled. Mathematical calculations (listed below) can also be performed. The digital measuring device consists of a housing, a very thin extendable wire, cable or tape, a rotating spool, (from which the wire extends then automatically retracts to), a sensor which measures the amount of wire extended, a microprocessor, a tiny flash drive or other type of memory storage, a microphone / speaker, a large (size of unit) mono or duo chromatic or other type of display screen (LED) and a few buttons and / or a menu driven interface which control functionally.

A digital measuring instrument includes a housing containing a measuring line, a rotatable drum engaging the line whereby movement of the line causes rotation of the drum, a storage spool mounted in the housing for storing the line, a crank assembly for rotating the storage spool for winding the measuring line about the storage spool, and a rotatable disc that rotates simultaneously with the measuring drum. The instrument includes an optical sensor in communication with the rotatable disk for compiling data related to rotation of the disk, and electronic circuitry in communication with the optical sensor for calculating a length of the line drawn from the housing. The housing has a well for receiving the storage spool and a side cover with a slideable lock for covering the well.

A hand-held measuring device shaped like home plate holds a reel of line having color coded markings representing distances related to the dimensions of a variety of different sizes of baseball or softball diamonds. An end ring at the end of the line and an anchoring ring at the back of the housing can be staked to the ground. The device allows for a single person to create a competition or practice field with the proper dimensions of a baseball or softball diamond for various sizes of professional or amateur fields.

A measuring device generally comprises a base unit housing an extensible cable; the cable including a free end for placement by a user at a point being measured. The base unit, placed in line of sight of the point, includes: a base; a first carriage rotationally attached to the base about a turn axis; and a second carriage rotationally attached to the first carriage about a pitch axis. Servoed motors rotate the carriages to align them with cable path to the point. The turn angle, the pitch angle and the cable length are measured to determine the point's location. A plurality of points determines a surface. The user uses a programmed PDA with a radio to communicate with the base unit.

A pivoting cable extension arm (2) has a pivot sensor (3). The extension arm is mounted on a swivel frame (4) having a swivel sensor (5). The swivel frame has two tangent sheaves (4A, 4C) that allow a wide pivot range of the extension arm. A cable take-up drum (6) has a range sensor (7) for sensing the length of cable (1) extending from the drum. The three-sensors (3, 5, 7) provide data for computing 3D coordinates of the end of the cable (1) over a wide range of space surrounding the assembly. This allows an object to be measured and modeled in three dimensions by touching the cable end to points on the object and acquiring spatial coordinates of the points.

A measuring device measures distances via a thin retractable wire with a removable head. Distance is calculated and displayed on a very bright, large LED or other type screen. As the wire is extended, a microprocessor calculates the distance and displays it on its screen. The digital measuring device comprises a housing, a very thin extendable wire, cable or tape, a rotating spool, (from which the wire extends then automatically retracts to), a sensor which measures the amount of wire extended, a microprocessor, a tiny flash drive or other type of memory storage, a microphone / speaker, a large (size of unit) mono or duo chromatic or other type of display screen (LED) and a few buttons and / or a menu driven interface which control functionally. A plurality of removable heads may be attached to the wire for performing different measuring functions.

A measuring device generally comprises a base unit housing an extensible cable; the cable including a free end for placement by a user at a point being measured. The base unit, placed in line of sight of the point, includes: a base; a first carriage rotationally attached to the base about a turn axis; and a second carriage rotationally attached to the first carriage about a pitch axis. Servoed motors rotate the carriages to align them with cable path to the point. The turn angle, the pitch angle and the cable length are measured to determine the point's location. A plurality of points determines a surface. The user uses a programmed PDA with a radio to communicate with the base unit.

A pivoting cable extension arm (2) has a pivot sensor (3). The extension arm is mounted on a swivel frame (4) having a swivel sensor (5). The swivel frame has two tangent sheaves (4A, 4C) that allow a wide pivot range of the extension arm. A cable take-up drum (6) has a range sensor (7) for sensing the length of cable (1) extending from the drum. The three-sensors (3, 5, 7) provide data for computing 3D coordinates of the end of the cable (1) over a wide range of space surrounding the assembly. This allows an object to be measured and modeled in three dimensions by touching the cable end to points on the object and acquiring spatial coordinates of the points.

A measuring device includes a spool mounted in a housing having opposing front and rear ends. A string is wound about the spool, and has an end is attached to a marker located outside the housing. The string winds and unwinds relative to the spool upon rotation thereof. A rocker arm, which carries a first reference mark, is pivotally attached to a support attached to the housing at the front end thereof. The rocker arm carries a second reference mark, which can be aligned with the first reference mark by pivoting the rocker arm. A brake is mounted in the housing, which moves between a first position against the spool inhibiting its rotation, and a second position away from the spool permitting its rotation. The brake is biased for movement in its first position, and a handle is provided for operating the brake.

Methods, apparatuses, and systems for advertising on a first-down measurement device in an American-style football game are disclosed. An apparatus may include an information display and a sleeve for engaging the information display with a portion of the first-down measurement device. A method may include fixing an advertisement to a material and engaging the material with a portion of a first-down measuring device. A system may include a sideline marker for marking a position of a playing field, a measuring device connected to the sideline marker, an information display, and a sleeve for engaging the information display with the sideline marker or the measuring device. First-down measurement devices containing the information display of the present invention may also be used in simulated American-style football games in which first-down measurements are displayed, such as video game(s).

The present invention provides a partition plate throat width measuring chain bead for a steam turbine, and the measuring chain bead comprises at least more than two global probe heads (1), at least more than two positioning sticks (2) and a measuring device body (3). The global probe heads (1), according to different diameters from small to big or from big to small, each adjacent global probe head (1) of which the center is positioned in the same plane, according to same or different spaces, are arranged in sequence to form a measuring chain, the global probe heads (1) are arranged on the positioning sticks (2) and fixed on the measuring device body (3) through the positioning sticks (2) according to an arrangement way of the global probe head (1). The measuring device is characterized in that the measuring size range is large, the operation is simple, the measuring accuracy is high, and the reading is direct-viewing, flexible and convenient.

An electronic measuring instrument includes a housing, a storage spool rotatably mounted to the housing, and a thin, flexible line provided on the storage spool and extendible from the housing for measuring distances. The storage spool is rotatable in a first direction for unwinding the line from the storage spool and a second direction for winding the line onto the storage spool. The instrument includes a rotatable drum in engagement with said line so that movement of said line causes movement of said rotatable drum. The instrument also includes a sensor, such as an optical sensor, in communication with the rotatable drum for sensing movement of the rotatable drum when unwinding the line from the storage spool and winding the line onto the storage spool, electronic circuitry in communication with the optical sensor for measuring distances based upon the sensed movement of the rotatable drum during unwinding and winding, and a spring-less, manually-operated crank assembly for winding the line onto the storage spool.

A cable length sensor, in particular, a bowden cable displacement sensor, comprising a cable drum, a measuring cable wound on the cable drum and a return device at least lightly pre-tensioned in the start position, wherein the measuring cable may be withdrawn by rotating the cable drum against the force of the return device and by withdrawing the measuring cable the return device may be further tensioned. The return device is arranged in a housing, and coupling means for releasably coupling the return device to the rotating movement of the cable drum are provided so as to permit ready removal and replacement of the return device. Also, the housing may be provided with a sensor element operated from outside the housing for determining the current position of the return device, in particular the at least lightly tensioned starting position of the return device.

The present invention extends to methods, systems, apparatus, and computer program products related to a cable-based measuring system. The cable-based measuring system includes a cable, comprising an inner cable member configured to move linearly within an outer cable housing. The measuring system also includes a measuring device configured to generate measurement information regarding movement of the inner cable member relative to the outer cable housing using one or more encoders. A computer system receives the measurement information from the measuring device. The measurement information indicates length as a function of time, and represents three orthogonal dimensional measurements of a three-dimensional object. Based on the measurement information, the computer system identifies a length of each dimensional measurement, including a length, a width, and a height of the three-dimensional object. The computer system then initiates creation of a box template sized to accommodate the three-dimensional object and / or updates a database.

A cable length sensor, in particular, a bowden cable displacement sensor, comprising a cable drum, a measuring cable wound on the cable drum and a return device at least lightly pre-tensioned in the start position, wherein the measuring cable may be withdrawn by rotating the cable drum against the force of the return device and by withdrawing the measuring cable the return device may be further tensioned. The return device is arranged in a housing, and coupling means for releasably coupling the return device to the rotating movement of the cable drum are provided so as to permit ready removal and replacement of the return device. Also, the housing may be provided with a sensor element operated from outside the housing for determining the current position of the return device, in particular the at least lightly tensioned starting position of the return device.

A system for measuring suspension sag in a vehicle, such as a motorcycle, is disclosed. The system includes a measuring device that attaches to a wheel hub, axle, or other component. The system includes a clamp that attaches to a fender or other vehicle component. The device is connected to the clamp by a cord, which extends from and retracts into the device. When a load is placed on the vehicle, the fender may move closer to the hub or axle. Any slack in the cord may be taken up by a spool shaft in the device. A rotary encoder may measure the rotation of the spool shaft, and the measuring device may calculate a change in a linear distance between, for example, the fender and the axle based on the rotation of the spool shaft.

A pull element travel sensor include a winding drum and a pull element which can be wound on to and unwound from the winding drum. The winding drum is biassed in the pull element winding-on direction. The length of the pull element which is pulled off the winding drum can be detected by a detecting unit. The pull element is wound on the winding drum in a spiral configuration in a plurality of layers in mutually superposed relationship in a single radial plane of the winding drum. A lifting apparatus for lifting a load has at least two lifting units and at least one travel sensor, each lifting unit having a winding drum with a pull element and a motor for driving the winding drum in the winding-on direction. At least one of the lifting units has a detecting unit for detecting the drawn-off length of the pull element from the winding drum, with all pull elements of the lifting units engaging the same load.

A cable-based distance detector comprises a winding drum (101) for winding a cable, a torque generator (102) for directing torque to the winding drum so as to retract the cable, a measurement drum (103) configured to be rotated by the cable when the cable is wound in by the winding drum or wound off from the winding drum, and an encoder connected to the measurement drum and producing an en- coder signal indicative of revolutions of the measurement drum and the length of the portion of the cable wound in or off. As there is the separate measurement drum, the measurement is more accurate than in cases where revolutions of the winding drum are measured because different turns of the cable on the winding drum may have different lengths. The cable-based distance detector is suitable for a system for generating calibration data for a robot.

A measurement tool for circumference includes at least one disk with a circumference thereof provided with a through hole; a straightedge provided with a fixed post and a plurality of scales, and the fixed post penetrates through the through hole to fix the disk to the fixed post; and a hitching line with one end thereof penetrated by the fixed post, and the other end of the hitching line surrounds the disk or straightens along the straightedge. Thus, a string makes a circle around the circumference, whereby the string is marked an index corresponding to the fixed post, and then the string straightens along the straightedge, and a length of the circumference of the disk is obtained according to relative positions of the scales and the index.

The present invention extends to methods, systems, apparatus, and computer program products related to a cable-based measuring system. The cable-based measuring system includes a cable, comprising an inner cable member configured to move linearly within an outer cable housing. The measuring system also includes a measuring device configured to generate measurement information regarding movement of the inner cable member relative to the outer cable housing using one or more encoders. A computer system receives the measurement information from the measuring device. The measurement information indicates length as a function of time, and represents three orthogonal dimensional measurements of a three-dimensional object. Based on the measurement information, the computer system identifies a length of each dimensional measurement, including a length, a width, and a height of the three-dimensional object. The computer system then initiates creation of a box template sized to accommodate the three-dimensional object and / or updates a database.

A system for measuring fence posts in a fence run includes a leading unit and a trailing unit. The leading unit includes a first measurement wire extending through a first rotary encoder and terminating in a second rotary encoder, a second measurement wire terminating in a third rotary encoder, and a third measurement wire terminating in a fourth rotary encoder, as well as a clamp to secure the leading unit to a fence post. The trailing unit includes a first rotary encoder to engage with the first measurement wire of the leading unit and a measurement wire terminating in a second rotary encoder, as well as a clamp to secure the trailing unit to a fence post.

An apparatus for evaluating the condition of a lift sling. The apparatus includes a body with an upper section and a lower section. The lower section includes a cradle member with a load bearing surface that engages an inner surface of a connecting link at one end of a sling. The apparatus includes an engagement section that receives and positions the end of a measuring device so that it is in tangential alignment with the load bearing surface of the cradle member. In use, one end of a sling is positioned on the load bearing surface of the cradle member and one end of a measuring device is positioned on the engagement section of the apparatus. The apparatus is then raised so that the sling and the measuring device are hanging freely. The reach of the sling is then measuring using the measuring device.

Provided is a tool system for including a machine tool configured for machining by the removal of material an object defining a machining surface.

A system for measuring suspension sag in a vehicle, such as a motorcycle, is disclosed. The system includes a measuring device that attaches to a wheel hub, axle, or other component. The system includes a clamp that attaches to a fender or other vehicle component. The device is connected to the clamp by a cord, which extends from and retracts into the device. When a load is placed on the vehicle, the fender may move closer to the hub or axle. Any slack in the cord may be taken up by a spool shaft in the device. A rotary encoder may measure the rotation of the spool shaft, and the measuring device may calculate a change in a linear distance between, for example, the fender and the axle based on the rotation of the spool shaft.

The present invention extends to methods, systems, apparatus, and computer program products related to a cable-based measuring system. The cable-based measuring system includes a cable, comprising an inner cable member configured to move linearly within an outer cable housing. The measuring system also includes a measuring device configured to generate measurement information regarding movement of the inner cable member relative to the outer cable housing using one or more encoders. A computer system receives the measurement information from the measuring device. The measurement information indicates length as a function of time, and represents three orthogonal dimensional measurements of a three-dimensional object. Based on the measurement information, the computer system identifies a length of each dimensional measurement, including a length, a width, and a height of the three-dimensional object. The computer system then initiates creation of a box template sized to accommodate the three-dimensional object and / or updates a database.

A measurement tool for circumference includes at least one disk with a circumference thereof provided with a through hole; a straightedge provided with a fixed post and a plurality of scales, and the fixed post penetrates through the through hole to fix the disk to the fixed post; and a hitching line with one end thereof penetrated by the fixed post, and the other end of the hitching line surrounds the disk or straightens along the straightedge. Thus, a string makes a circle around the circumference, whereby the string is marked an index corresponding to the fixed post, and then the string straightens along the straightedge, and a length of the circumference of the disk is obtained according to relative positions of the scales and the index.

A depth determination apparatus is described. The depth determination apparatus includes a rotatable reel for receiving a length of line, a free end of the line being adapted to receive a weight, a hollow elongate leader assembly through which the line is played out and retracted, a measuring arrangement for measuring the length of line played out and / or retracted through the hollow elongate leader; and a drive means for at least retracting the line through the hollow elongate leader.

A position sensor (1.1, 1.2) for a working cylinder (2.1, 2.2) with a cable drum (4.1, 4.2), a cable (5) with a piston anchor (7.1, 7.2) and an interface (13.1, 13.2) for determining a position and a movement of a piston (3.1, 3.2) of the working cylinder (2.1, 2.2), the position sensor (1.1, 1.2) is to be operatively connected to the working cylinder (2.1, 2.2) from outside in the area of a cylinder head (15.1, 15.2).