An optical scanning system for measuring and/or controlling a vehicle and/or parts of a vehicle, wherein the vehicle is arranged on a support surface. The optical scanning system comprises two optical reader apparatuses, which are arranged on said support surface, on opposite sides of the vehicle, and are provided with respective optical image capturing devices configured to provide respective data/signals encoding one or more images of the vehicle, an electronic system, which is designed to process the data/signals in order to construct one or more three-dimensional images of the vehicle. The optical image reader apparatuses each comprise a calibration target, which lies on an approximately horizontal support surface and is arranged immediately adjacent to the optical image capturing device of the relative optical image reader apparatus at a predetermined distance from it.

A vehicle wheel assembly position measurement apparatus measures, at each of at least three measurement positions in a circumferential direction, a distance in a vehicle width direction between each of plural measurement points located on a specified line that crosses a lateral surface of a tire section from an inner circumferential end to an outer circumferential end and a respective one of distance measuring instruments, calculates an approximate curve indicating a relationship between a position in an extending direction of the specified line and the distance of each of the measurement points at the respective measurement position, calculates a rotation center position of a wheel assembly from a specific position of the approximate curve at the measurement position, and calculates a height position of the wheel assembly relative to a vehicle body from the rotation center position and a height position of a specified portion of the vehicle body.

The present subject matter relates to a non-contact system to determine alignment of wheels of a vehicle. Such alignment has been achieved by the present invention by providing a method and apparatus for a wheel alignment system to take images on the tyre of the wheel and to align the wheel on the basis of images taken on the tyre.

A system and method of determining tire and wheel assembly alignment orientation for determining at least caster angle includes imaging a tire and wheel assembly mounted to a vehicle and suspension components of the vehicle associated with the tire and wheel assembly. Images are processed, including identifying a pivot feature for a steering component of the vehicle and identifying a circular feature of the tire and wheel assembly, with a rotational axis of the tire and wheel assembly being determined based on the identified circular feature, and a contrived line extending from the pivot feature and intersecting the rotational axis of the tire and wheel assembly is determined that represents the steering axis. Caster angle is then calculated from the angle the steering axis makes with the vertical direction when viewed from the side of the vehicle. An alignment sensor may be used to image the tire and wheel assembly and determine the rotational axis.

A vehicle equipment comprises a scanning system for the contactless measurement of at least one projector arranged at least for the projection onto an object to be measured of a structured light with a pattern, at least one video camera arranged for the acquisition of the image of the object to be measured, and a processing unit for processing the acquired image for the three-dimensional reconstruction of the object to be measured, the projector comprising in turn at least one matrix of emitters integrated into a monolithic substrate.

A four-wheel aligner including four four-wheel alignment and measuring devices and two four-wheel alignment and calibration devices; one of the two four-wheel alignment and calibration devices is arranged between two of the four four-wheel alignment and measuring devices located at a side of the vehicle to be aligned, another one of the two four-wheel alignment and calibration devices is arranged between another two of the four four-wheel alignment and measuring devices located at another side of the vehicle to be aligned, and the two four-wheel alignment and calibration devices are configured to be oppositely arranged on two sides of the vehicle to be aligned; the four four-wheel alignment and measuring devices are configured to obtain images of the tires and to analyze alignment information of the tires.

Vehicle service system comprising optical reader apparatuses, which are arranged in the vehicle service area, on opposite sides with respect to the longitudinal axis of a vehicle. The vehicle service system comprises at least two targets, which are arranged in the vehicle service area in positions immediately adjacent to the respective optical reader apparatuses so as to be positioned on the sides of the vehicle. The optical image reader apparatus comprises a first optical image acquisition device having a first field of view, which frames the vehicle, and a second optical image acquisition device, which has a second field of view different from the first field of view and is structured so as to frame the target.