Original Date: 11/03/1996
Revision Date: 01/18/2007

By combining range imaging technology with amplitude-modulated laser radar technology, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has developed a method for measuring the arc lengths along complex, body surface contours. This innovation utilizes active laser ranging equipment, combined with mirrors and calibration, and image analysis procedures.

Laser radar operates by measuring the phase and amplitude of a reflected modulated laser beam. Because only one optical path is required between the sensor and the subject, distances to the surface can be accurately measured to within 1 millimeter. Multiple images are combined by integrating information from different virtual viewpoints. By interposing reflecting surfaces into the optical path, any number of images can be created. This method also allows accessibility to unusual contours such as saddle-shaped or wedge-shaped crevasses.

Although the laser radar measurement technique could be applicable in various engineering and scientific fields, this technique would be particularly useful in anthropometry, the study of human body measurements. Tailors, artists, and scientists rely on anthropometry for their livelihoods. By using a single camera with several mirrors, the technique could quickly calculate an accurate assessment of body sizes and shapes without using manual tape measurements.

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