Accurate monitoring of large aligned objects with videometric techniques

This paper describes a new videometric technique designed to monitor the deformations and misalignments of large vital components in the centre of a future particle detector. It relies on a geometrical principle called "reciprocal collimation" of two CCD cameras: the combination of the video devices in pair gives rise to a network of well located reference lines that surround the object to be surveyed. Each observed point, which in practice is a bright point-like light- source, is accurately located with respect to this network of neighbouring axes. Adjustment calculations provide the three- dimensional position of the object fitted with various light-sources. An experimental test-bench, equipped with four cameras, has corroborated the precision predicted by previous simulations of the system. (11 refs)