Zebra Technologies Corporation
Apparatus and method for determining tread depth

Abstract:

A device for measuring tread depth includes: an image sensor; first and second depth sensing modules spaced apart along a separation axis, each including (i) an emitter configured to emit a beam of light, and (ii) an optical assembly configured to direct reflections of the beam of light onto a respective region of the image sensor; a controller connected to the image sensor and configured, responsive to the device traversing a treaded surface, to: receive, from the image sensor, a sequence of images corresponding to sequential positions of the device traversing the treaded surface in a travel direction substantially perpendicular to the separation axis, the sequence of images depicting successive reflections of the beams from the treaded surface; determine, for each image in the sequence of images, a first depth measurement and a second depth measurement; and store, in a memory, the first and second depth measurements.