IRVINE, Calif. -– Newport Corporation has released the LDS electronic autocollimator for non-contact angular measurement and alignment tasks for laboratory and industrial settings. The LDS is a high performance, calibrated measurement tool that offers remarkably quick set-up and ease of use, compared to traditional instruments, and provides a cost effective solution in a very portable, compact package. With the high speed (2 kHz) analog output option, the LDS can even be used for vibration analysis.

The LDS is a very versatile and accurate instrument designed to address many application needs, including laboratory R&D, product benchmark qualification, product assembly, and production line testing. Typical R&D applications include optical system alignment or monitoring the physical response of a new material or assembly to varying environmental stresses. In product qualification, the LDS can be used to measure static deformation as well as vibrational responses. In product assembly, it is ideal for real time monitoring of the alignment of mechanical and opto-mechanical surfaces and interfaces. And as a production line QA tool, the LDS is well-suited to checking critical angular specifications. The LDS is also an effective tool for measuring the repeatability, angular deviation and accuracy of precision motion assemblies.

The LDS system included the LDS-VECTOR optical head and the LDS1000 controller. The LDS-Vector offers a large field of view (±2000 µrad, ±7 arcmin), 0.1 urad dual axis resolution and delivers high accuracy (<2% linearity) angular measurements up to 20 meters from the head, with a reflectivity requirement of only 2%. The Vector head emits a <1mW Class II 670nm beam, 31mm in diameter and features a +/-15mrad eyepiece for fast alignment. It can be used with surface dimensions as small as 10 mm without any compromise to the high quality data. And the high sampling rate analog output means the LDS-Vector can be used to provide real time visual feedback as surfaces or parts are manipulated into alignment.

The LDS1000 controller includes both RS 232 and IEEE interfaces as well as a simple to use Windows driven software utilities for precision alignment, enlarged display and alignment tracking. The use of a visible (670 nm) collimated beam and +/-15mrad optical eye piece makes the LDS the industry’s easiest autocollimator to align and operate.

Newport Corp.