JP2009145113A - Survey instrument - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a survey instrument capable of protecting a light receiving element circuit including a light receiving element or observer's eyes when the sun enters the field of view of the collimating telescope of the survey instrument against the observer's will. <P>SOLUTION: The survey instrument comprises: a sun detecting means for detecting the sun entering the field of view of the collimating telescope (38); and a shielding plate or attenuating plate (80) for shielding or attenuating the sunlight which enters a CCD (20), a light receiving element (66) and observer's eyes after the sun enters the field of view of the collimating telescope until leaving it. A CCD provided to an automatic collimating device (40) is used as the sun detecting means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a light receiving element circuit including a light receiving element or a surveying instrument that can protect an observer's eyes from sunlight when the sun enters the field of view of a collimating telescope of the surveying instrument.

  In recent surveying instruments, surveying instruments having a function of automatically collimating a target or automatically tracking a moving target have become widespread. As a surveying instrument having an automatic collimation function, one disclosed in Patent Document 1 below is known. This surveying instrument will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the collimating telescope 38 of this surveying instrument includes an objective lens 41, a focusing lens 43, an erecting prism 44, a focusing screen 47, an eyepiece arranged on a collimating axis (optical axis) O. It consists of a lens 48. In this surveying instrument, the visible light collected by the objective lens 41 passes through the dichroic prism 42 and forms an image of the state near the target on the focusing screen 47. The observer can see the state near the target by looking through the eyepiece lens 48, and can also perform collimation work manually.

  An automatic collimation device 40 provided in the surveying instrument has an optical system that emits infrared collimation light, a light emitting unit 24 that emits infrared collimation light, a collimator lens 26 that collimates infrared collimation light, and infrared collimation light. A reflection mirror 45 and a reflection prism 46 that reflect in the direction of the collimation axis O, an objective lens 41, a dichroic prism 42, and a CCD area sensor (hereinafter simply referred to as a CCD) 20 that is a light receiving element. 2, in addition to the light emitting unit 24 and the CCD 20, an image processing device 21 that processes an image acquired from the CCD 20, a horizontal drive unit (horizontal servo motor) 28 that rotates the collimating telescope 38, and In order to display a vertical drive unit (vertical servomotor) 30, a microcomputer (arithmetic control unit) 32 connected thereto, and measurement values, images acquired from the CCD 20, etc. And a display unit 22.

  The infrared collimated light emitted from the light emitting unit 24 passes through the collimator lens 26, the optical path is bent at right angles by the reflecting mirror 45 and the reflecting prism 46, and is transmitted along the collimating axis O. The transmitted infrared collimating light is reflected by the target installed at the measurement point, returns along the collimation axis O, is collected by the objective lens 41, is reflected by the dichroic prism 42 in the right angle direction, Incident on the CCD 20.

  The microcomputer 32 processes the target image captured on the CCD 20 by the image processing device 21 and then obtains a horizontal deviation and a vertical deviation from the center of the target image. Then, the microcomputer 32 automatically collimates the target by rotating the collimating telescope 38 by the horizontal driving unit 28 and the vertical driving unit 30 until the horizontal deviation and the vertical deviation become zero.

  As a light receiving element, a CCD line sensor or a quadrant sensor arranged in a cross shape may be provided instead of the CCD 20. CCD line sensors and quadrant sensors are inexpensive and the automatic collimation method is simple. In this case, the expensive image processing device 21 is not required.

Since this surveying instrument is a total station (electronic rangefinder), a lightwave rangefinder is also provided. The optical system of the optical distance meter includes a distance measuring light emitting unit 60, a beam splitter 62, a dichroic prism 64, an objective lens 41, a light receiving element 66, and a reference optical path for directly guiding distance measuring light from the distance measuring light emitting unit 60 to the light receiving element 66. 68. Since the optical distance meter is the same as the conventional one, its description is omitted. The surveying instrument is further provided with a horizontal angle measuring unit (horizontal encoder) and a vertical angle measuring unit (vertical encoder) (not shown).
JP 2007-212291 A

  By the way, in the surveying instrument disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the target is automatically collimated, the sun may enter the field of view of the collimating telescope 38. In such a case, the collimating telescope 38 of the surveying instrument has an extremely high magnification as compared with an ordinary camera. Therefore, an excessive current flows through the light receiving element circuit including the CCD 20 or the light receiving element 66 due to sunlight, and the light receiving element circuit There is a problem of being damaged. Further, when the observer manually collimates, the sun may be placed in the field of view of the collimating telescope 38 against the intention of the observer. In such a case, there is also a problem that the eyes of the observer are damaged.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention protects a light receiving element circuit including a light receiving element or an observer's eyes when the sun enters the field of view of a collimating telescope of a surveying instrument against the intention of the observer. It is an object of the present invention to provide a surveying instrument capable of performing the above.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the surveying instrument according to the first aspect of the present invention, the sun detecting means for detecting whether the sun has entered or just entered the field of view of the collimating telescope, and the sun is the collimating telescope. And a sun protection means for shielding or attenuating the sunlight that enters the eyes of the light receiving element or the observer from the moment of entering the field of view or from just before entering.

  In the surveying instrument of the invention according to claim 2, the sun detecting means for detecting that the sun has entered or just before entering the visual field of the collimating telescope, and the moment when the sun entered the visual field of the collimating telescope or And a light receiving element circuit protection means for turning off the power of the light receiving element circuit from immediately before entering.

  In the surveying instrument of the invention according to claim 3, the sun detecting means for detecting that the sun has entered or just before entering the visual field of the collimating telescope, and the moment when the sun entered the visual field of the collimating telescope or And a sun avoiding means for driving the collimating telescope so as to avoid the sun immediately before entering.

  In the surveying instrument of the invention according to claim 4, in the surveying instrument of the invention according to claim 1, 2, or 3, the sun detecting means is a light receiving element provided in an automatic collimation device.

  In the surveying instrument of the invention according to claim 5, in the surveying instrument of the invention according to claim 4, the sun detection means detects the sun when the output from the light receiving element reaches the maximum value.

  According to a surveying instrument of the invention according to claim 6, in the surveying instrument of the invention according to claim 1, 2, or 3, the sun detection means has a field of view slightly wider than the collimating telescope in parallel with the collimating telescope. It was set as the light receiving element arrange | positioned in the telescope.

  As is apparent from the above description, in the invention according to claim 1, the sun detection means for detecting that the sun has entered or just before entering the visual field of the collimating telescope, and the sun is within the visual field of the collimating telescope. Since the light receiving element or the sun protection means for shielding or attenuating the sunlight entering the observer's eyes from the moment of entering or just before entering, the sun is within the field of view of the collimating telescope against the intention of the observer. When entering, the light receiving element circuit or the eyes of the observer can be protected.

  In the invention according to claim 2, the sun detection means for detecting that the sun has entered or just before entering the visual field of the collimating telescope, and from the moment when the sun entered or just before entering the collimating telescope Since it has a light receiving element circuit protection means that turns off the power of the light receiving element circuit until it comes out, an excessive current flows in the light receiving element circuit when the sun enters the field of view of the collimating telescope against the intention of the observer This can be prevented and the light receiving element circuit can be protected.

  In the invention according to claim 3, the sun detecting means for detecting that the sun has entered or just before entering the visual field of the collimating telescope, and the moment when the sun enters or just before entering the collimating telescope. And a sun avoiding means for driving the collimating telescope so as to avoid the sun, so that when the sun enters the collimating telescope's field of view against the observer's will, the light receiving element circuit or the eyes of the observer Can be protected.

In the invention according to claim 4, in the invention according to claim 1, 2 or 3, since the sun detection means is a light receiving element provided in the automatic collimation device, it is inexpensive and simple without adding special parts. The invention which concerns on Claim 1, 2, or 3 can be implemented.
In the invention according to claim 5, in the invention according to claim 4, the sun detection means detects the sun when the output from the light receiving element reaches the maximum value, so that the detection of the sun is particularly simplified. Thus, the invention according to claim 1, 2, or 3 can be implemented more inexpensively and easily.

  The invention according to claim 6 is the invention according to claim 1, 2, or 3, wherein the light receiving element disposed in the sun detection telescope having a field of view slightly wider than the collimating telescope in parallel with the collimating telescope. Therefore, it is possible to completely prevent sunlight from entering the eyes of the light receiving element or the observer arranged in the collimating telescope, and it is possible to protect the light receiving element circuit or the eyes of the observer more reliably.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. First, based on FIGS. 1-4, the surveying instrument based on 1st Example of this invention is demonstrated.

  The surveying instrument of the present embodiment is the same as the conventional surveying instrument shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 in the optical system and the block diagram. However, in the surveying instrument of this embodiment, when the sun enters the field of view of the collimating telescope 38 and sunlight rays enter the CCD 20 of the light receiving element as the sun detecting means, the light receiving element circuit and the light receiving element including the CCD 20 The light receiving element circuit protection means for protecting the light receiving element circuit including 66 is provided. The light receiving element circuit protection means is a switch (not shown) for turning on / off the power of the light receiving element circuit, and is controlled by the microcomputer 32.

  Now, a procedure of automatic collimation performed while controlling the light receiving element circuit protection means by the microcomputer 32 will be described with reference to FIG.

  When the surveying instrument starts automatic collimation, the process proceeds to step S1 to determine whether the sun 76 or the target 74 is detected in the field of view of the collimating telescope 38, in other words, the sun 76 or the target within the imaging range 78 of the CCD 20. It is checked whether or not 74 has entered, that is, whether or not the sun 76 or the target 74 is reflected on the CCD 20. If the target 74 is detected, the process proceeds to step S6, the search for the target 74 is terminated, and automatic collimation is executed. If the sun 76 is detected, the process proceeds to step S3. If neither the target 74 nor the sun 76 is detected, the process proceeds to step S2, and the collimating telescope 38 is rotated slightly smaller than the width 78a of the imaging range 78 of the CCD 20 along the search route 70 as shown in FIG. The target 74 is searched. In the present embodiment, the search route 70 has a substantially square spiral shape from the search start point 72 to the target 74.

  When detecting the sun 76 on the CCD 20, the output from the pixel of the CCD 20 in the portion where the sun 76 is reflected is saturated and becomes an upper limit value (255 in the case of 8 bits, but it is 0 depending on the type of the light receiving element). There are things that become). That is, when all the outputs from the pixels in a certain range of the CCD 20 reach the upper limit value, it is determined that the sun 76 is reflected in the CCD 20 or the sun 76 is reflected very close to the CCD 20.

  In step S3, the light receiving element circuit protection means is operated, that is, the power of the light receiving element circuit including the CCD 20 and the light receiving element circuit including the light receiving element 66 is turned off, and the operations of both light receiving element circuits are stopped. In step S4, the collimating telescope 38 is rotated along the search route 70 shown in FIG. 4 until the sun 76 does not appear on the CCD 20. If the collimating telescope 38 is rotated along the search route 70 a little larger than the sun's visual diameter (about 32 ') added to the width 78a of the imaging range 78 of the CCD 20, the sun 76 will not appear on the CCD 20.

  Next, proceeding to step S5, the power of the light receiving element circuit including the CCD 20 and the light receiving element circuit including the light receiving element 66 is turned on to restart the operations of both light receiving element circuits. Then, the process returns to step S1, and hereinafter, steps S1 to S5 are repeated until the target 74 is detected.

  According to this embodiment, the power of the light receiving element circuit including the CCD 20 and the light receiving element circuit including the light receiving element 66 is turned off until the sun 76 comes out from the moment when it enters the field of view of the collimating telescope 38 while searching for the target 74. As described above, since it is possible to prevent an excessive current from flowing through the light receiving element circuit, damage to the light receiving element circuit can be prevented and safety can be improved without adding special parts or the like. In the case of the present embodiment, at the moment when the sun 76 is reflected on the CCD 20, an excessive current flows through the light receiving element circuit for an instant, but since it is extremely short, the light receiving element circuit is safe.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, a light shielding plate or attenuating plate 80 that is a sun protection means for protecting the light receiving element circuit or the eyes of the observer is provided in front of the CCD 20, in front of the light receiving element 66, and in front of the eyepiece 48, respectively. Etc. are arranged so that they can move forward and backward. Normally, the light shielding plate or attenuating plate 80 is retracted from the front of the CCD 20, the light receiving element 66, and the eyepiece lens 48 (see step S5a in FIG. 6). The light shielding plate or attenuating plate 80 is moved in front of the CCD 20, the light receiving element 66, and the eyepiece lens 48 according to the command (see step S3a in FIG. 6), and sunlight does not enter the eyes of the CCD 20, the light receiving element 66, and the observer. I am doing so. Of course, the light receiving element circuit protection means used in the first embodiment is not necessary. Other than this, the second embodiment is the same as the first embodiment.

  According to this embodiment, damage to the light receiving element circuit including the CCD 20 or the light receiving element 66 can be prevented, and even when the observer is looking into the collimating telescope 38, the eyes of the observer are protected and safety is improved. Can be increased. As the sun protection means, either a light shielding plate or an attenuation plate may be used. However, when an attenuation plate is used, the observer can see the sun, so the survey needs to detect the solar direction. It can also be used for a machine (for example, a true north measuring device).

  Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The optical system and block diagram of the surveying instrument of this example are the same as those of the conventional surveying instrument shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively. However, in this embodiment, when the surveying instrument starts automatic collimation and the target 74 is searched for along the search route 70 as shown in FIG. A sun avoiding means is provided for rotating the collimating telescope 38 so as to avoid the sun 76 when entering the inside.

  The sun avoiding means includes a microcomputer 32, a horizontal driving unit 28, and a vertical driving unit 30. In order to avoid the sun 76, at the moment when the sun 76 enters the field of view of the collimating telescope 38, a command is sent from the microcomputer 32 to the horizontal driving unit 28 and the vertical driving unit 30 so that the original search route 70 (collimating telescope Rotate slightly larger than the addition of the visual diameter of the sun to the width 78a of the imaging range 78 of the CCD 20 in the direction perpendicular to the rotation direction of the rotation angle 38), and then the width of the imaging range 78 of the CCD 20 parallel to the original search route 70 It may be rotated slightly larger than the sun's visual diameter added to 78a and then returned to the original search route 70.

  A procedure for performing automatic collimation while avoiding the sun will be described with reference to FIG. When the surveying instrument starts automatic collimation, the process proceeds to step S11 to detect the rotation direction of the collimating telescope 38. Next, proceeding to step S12, it is checked whether or not the sun 76 has been detected within the field of view of the collimating telescope 38. If the sun 76 is detected, the process proceeds to step S13, and the collimating telescope is rotated so as to avoid the sun 76 by the sun avoiding means. The sun avoidance subroutine S10 including steps S11 to S13 always works even when collimation work is not being performed, and always protects the light receiving element circuit and the eyes of the observer.

  If the sun is not detected in step S12, the process proceeds to step S14 to check whether the target 74 is detected in the field of view of the collimating telescope 38. If the target 74 is detected, it will progress to step S15, the search of the target 74 will be complete | finished, and automatic collimation will be performed. When the target 74 is not detected, the process proceeds to step S16, the collimating telescope 38 is rotated by a predetermined angle along the search route 70 as shown in FIG. 7 as an example, and the process returns to step S11. Other than this, the second embodiment is the same as the first embodiment.

  Even in this embodiment, it is possible to prevent damage to the light receiving element circuit including the CCD 20 or the light receiving element 66 without adding special parts and the like, and even when the observer is looking into the collimating telescope 38, Protect your eyes and increase safety.

  Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In this embodiment, a solar detection telescope 82 having an objective lens 86 and a slightly wider field of view than the collimation telescope 38 is provided in parallel with the collimation telescope 38, and the CCD 20 of the automatic collimation device 40 is included in the sun detection telescope 82. Is provided with another light receiving element 84. The light receiving element 84 may be one or a plurality of photodiodes, and a low sensitivity element that is sensitive only to intense light is used. When the sun is reflected on the light receiving element 84, the power of the light receiving element circuit including the CCD 20 and the light receiving element circuit including the light receiving element 66 is turned off as in the first embodiment. Other than this, the second embodiment is the same as the first embodiment.

  According to the present embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment is obtained, and the field of view of the sun detection telescope 82 is wider than the field of view of the collimating telescope 38 including the CCD 20, so that the sun just enters the field of view of the collimating telescope 38. Can be detected, and it is possible to completely prevent an excessive current from flowing through the light receiving element circuit even for a moment, thereby further improving safety.

  In the case of the present embodiment, when the sun is reflected on the light receiving element 84, the power of the light receiving element circuit is not turned off, but the light shielding plate or attenuation plate 80 is placed in front of the CCD 20 and the CCD 20 as in the second embodiment. The collimating telescope 38 may be rotated so as to avoid the sun 76 as in the third embodiment. In this case, the same effects as those of the second embodiment or the third embodiment can be obtained, and further, it is possible to completely prevent sunlight from entering the eyes of the observer, thereby further improving safety. Further, a pinhole may be used instead of the objective lens 86 of the sun detection telescope 82.

  Next, a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The surveying instrument of the present embodiment includes a sun detection telescope 82 in addition to the collimation telescope 38, but does not include an automatic collimation device. When the sun is reflected on the light receiving element 84 in the sun detection telescope 82, the shielding plate or attenuating plate 80 is moved in front of the eyepiece 48 according to a command from the microcomputer 32. According to the present embodiment, an observer's eyes can be protected in a surveying instrument that does not include an automatic collimation device.

  By the way, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made. For example, in the first, second and third embodiments, the CCD area sensor 20 is used as the light receiving element which is the sun detecting means. As the light receiving element, a CCD color area sensor, a CMOS area sensor, a cross-shaped CCD line is used. It is also possible to select an appropriate light receiving element such as a sensor or a quadrant sensor. In the first, second, and third embodiments, the sun is detected because the outputs from the pixels in a certain part of the CCD 20 are all saturated and reach the upper limit value. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the microcomputer 32 may detect that the differential values of the outputs from the pixels of a certain part of the CCD 20 have all exceeded a predetermined value, and then detect the sun. In this case, the sun can be detected early without adding any special parts, which makes it safer.

It is a figure explaining the surveying instrument which concerns on 1st Example of this invention, and the optical system of the conventional surveying instrument. It is a block diagram of the automatic collimation apparatus with which the surveying instrument which concerns on 1st Example of this invention, and the conventional surveying instrument is provided. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the automatic collimation apparatus of the surveying instrument which concerns on 1st Example of this invention. It is a figure explaining the path | route which searches for the target of the automatic collimation apparatus of the surveying instrument which concerns on 1st Example of this invention. It is a figure explaining the optical system of the surveying instrument which concerns on 2nd Example of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the automatic collimation apparatus of the surveying instrument based on the said 2nd Example. It is a figure explaining the path | route which searches the target of the automatic collimation apparatus of the surveying instrument which concerns on 3rd Example of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the automatic collimation apparatus of the surveying instrument based on the said 3rd Example. It is a figure explaining the optical system of the surveying instrument which concerns on 4th Example of this invention. It is a figure explaining the optical system of the surveying instrument which concerns on 5th Example of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

20 CCD area sensor (sun detection means, light receiving element)
38 collimation telescope 40 automatic collimation device 66 light receiving element 80 light shielding plate or attenuation plate (sun protection means)
82 Sun detection telescope 84 Light receiving element (sun detection means)

Claims (6)

  Sun detecting means for detecting whether the sun has entered or just before entering the field of view of the collimating telescope, and a light receiving element or an observer until the sun enters the field of view of the collimating telescope or immediately before entering Surveyor equipped with sun protection means that shields or attenuates sunlight entering the eyes.   Sun detecting means for detecting that the sun has entered or just before entering the collimating telescope's field of view, and the light receiving element circuit is powered from the moment the sun enters the collimating telescope's field of view or just before entering. Surveying instrument provided with light-receiving element circuit protection means for turning off.   Sun detecting means for detecting whether the sun has entered or just before entering the collimating telescope field of view, and the collimation so as to avoid the sun from the moment the sun enters the collimating telescope field of view or just before entering. Surveyor equipped with sun avoidance means to drive the telescope.   The surveying instrument according to claim 1, wherein the sun detection means is a light receiving element provided in an automatic collimation device.   The surveying instrument according to claim 4, wherein the sun detecting means detects the sun when the output from the light receiving element reaches a maximum value.   The surveying instrument according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the sun detection means is a light receiving element arranged in a solar detection telescope that is parallel to the collimating telescope and has a slightly wider field of view than the collimating telescope.

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