Edge detecting system and method

An edge detecting system for detecting an edge on a wavy surface includes a stylus for tracking across the surface; a transducer, responsive to the stylus, for producing a signal representative of surface transitions sensed by the stylus; a support for suspending the stylus over the surface with the stylus contacting the surface in which the support has a natural frequency which isolates the stylus from the low-frequency wavy surface contours and compels the stylus to respond only to the higher frequency surface transitions. Further included is a detector, responsive to the transducer, for detecting a signal representative of an edge amidst other high-frequency surface transitions. Also disclosed is a system in which the signal of the transducer is averaged and then compared to a reference level to determine the orientations of the fibers in the material of the surface.