Three-dimensional angle measurement based on auto-collimation and moire fringe

A method for small three-dimensional (3D) angle measurement based on auto-collimation and moire fringe is proposed and analyzed. A right-angle prism is used as the indicator of angle change. The inclined plane indicates the pitch and yaw angles and roll angle in indicated by the rib which is the intersection of two right-angle sides. Pitch and yaw angles measurement are implemented by auto-collimation based on reticule and roll angle measurement is measured based on moire fringe. Roll angle measurement is separated from pitch and yaw by using two light sources with different frequencies. Any small change of pitch and roll angles will induce the shift of the reticule image after reflecting by inclined plane. And any small roll angle will induce a change in moire fringe width that is generated by scale grating image which is reflected by the prism and index grating. The math model of this method is built up and error analysis is presented. The theoretical calculation results show that the proposed method is feasible and can achieve high accuracy.