Theoretical Study on Self-Calibration for the Wide-Range Laser Auto-Collimation Method

A wide-range laser auto-collimation method to measure the surface profiles of targets with steep slopes has been proposed. This method employs a deflecting optical system to enlarge the measurement range of the angle sensor. However, this optical system also changes the sensitivity property of the angle sensor. Therefore, we propose a new in-situ self-calibration method that includes the geometrical designed data of the target and can be applied to wide-range laser auto-collimation method. In the proposed method, the calibration sensitivities at each measurement point are obtained with two sets of measured data, which are acquired before and after performing minute rotation or translation with respect to the measured target, and the simulated shift of the normal angle at each point. The present paper describes the calibration procedure and specific calculation method used in the proposed method.