Measurement of 3-D position of large objects by laser scanning system to aid the fabrication process of composite aerospace components

Optical scanning systems can be used for measuring the 3D position of objects. In the case of large objects large errors can occur depending from the area to be covered by the laser scanning system and from the accuracy obtainable on angular position of driven rotating mirrors. A numerical simulation has been performed to evaluate errors in a case of large objects. This is a typical situation that is encountered when a scanning laser system is applied to aid the fabrication process of composite materials for aircraft components. Criteria used to perform the numerical simulation are described and results are reported for a number of cases could be met in areal applications.