Abstract
This paper describes a new method of position measurement for a vehicle travelling on two-dimensional space using laser and optical detectors. If two-points set on the vehicle and a reference point form an isosceles triangle, tha vehicle position relative to the reference point can be calculated by a simple relation. Then, we propose a system consisting of a laser beacon at the reference point and two photo-detectors set to be able to rotate on the vehicle. The bearing angles of the two detectors relative to the reference point can be measured by the laser beacon. The direction of the two photodetectors is controlled so that the difference of the two bearing angles may be the maximum. In order to demonstrate tha above method, an experimental system is made up and used for a vehicle position measurement. Results of the experiment show that the measurement system is effective to determine the position of the vehicle near the reference point.
