A pointing error compensating device for compensating the error induced in a position indicator as a result of forces acting on a structure, such as gravitational forces acting on a large antenna having a reflecting dish, that is pivotal about an elevation axis. The error compensating device comprises a torque producing device having a moment arm in the form of an eccentric mass attached to a shaft coupled to the structure, the shaft being rotatable in response to a pivotal movement of the struc...

Apparatus for providing accurate pointing of instruments on a carrier vehicle and for providing isolation of the instruments from the vehicle's motion disturbances. The apparatus includes two assemblies, with connecting interfaces, each assembly having a separate function. The first assembly is attached to the carrier vehicle and consists of an azimuth gimbal and an elevation gimbal which provide coarse pointing of the instruments by allowing two rotations of the instruments relative to the carr...

The present invention relates to an optical pointing device which preferably uses infrared light as a source and a camera as a detector. Movements of the camera with respect to the light source which remains fixed are sensed in the detector portion of the camera to determine the direction in which the camera is pointing with respect to, for example, a display screen adjacent the light source. The electronics included in the present invention are designed to act, responsive to sensing of the posi...

A telescope (10) is precisely pointed by a detent mechanism (32) in a sighting direction (18) after a motor (22) generally positions the telescope. The detent mechanism includes a roller assembly (60) precisely journalled at one end of an arm (38) which is biased into contact with a precisely formed V-groove (36) on the telescope by a spring 72.

A tube shaping machine includes a plurality of dies each having a substantially continuous, unbroken working surface. These dies are mounted with the working surfaces positioned one adjacent to the next so as to form a tube-receiving aperture therethrough, which aperture defines in cross-section regular polygon. The dies are substantially identical in configuration, this configuration being such that reciprocating each of the dies along a predetermined straight line throughout a range of positio...

A method is described for forming sharp tips on thin wires, in particular phosphor bronze wires of diameters such as one-thousandth inch used to contact micron size Schottky barrier diodes, which enables close control of tip shape and which avoids the use of highly toxic solutions. The method includes dipping and end (12) of a phosphor bronze wire (14) into a dilute solution (16) of sulfamic acid and applying a current through the wire to electrochemically etch it. The humidity in the room is co...

A laser beam pointing aid for field testing of breadboard laser systems and tilizing a hollow housing with apertures at each end and with crosshairs at one end of the housing and a telescope adjustably mounted to the hollow housing and being positionable relative to an output beam from a laser system to allow one to utilize the last mirror of the laser system and the laser beam pointing aid to accurately point the laser beam to a target.

Apparatus for controlling the spatial orientation of an angularly displacable working head supported by a base and relative to a given frame of reference. The apparatus comprises a linkage having terminal first and second articulate couplers coupling the working head to the base across the longitudinal axis of the linkage, wherein the first and second articulate couplers are located relative to each other to effectively isolate the working head freely of components of acceleration of the base pe...

A method of correcting a pointing position of a pointer rotated by a stepper motor includes the steps of: performing a prereset operation in which the pointer is rotated to a reset operation starting position that represents a pointing position of the pointer which is shifted by a predetermined amount in a plus direction of a scale from a reset position where a pin which is rotated in conjunction with a rotation of the pointer abuts against a fixed stopper; after the prereset operation, performi...

Provided is a pointing device that can be reduced in thickness even if a magnetic field sensor is mounted to a front face of a printed circuit board. When a support portion laterally moves, a reverse face of a flexible portion is displaced while being guided away from the printed circuit board due to deformation of a mountain fold flexure portion as a directional deformation portion. Therefore, a clearance between the reverse face of the flexible portion and the printed circuit board increases, ...