Dual-Target, Single-Laser Metrological System

A single-laser-based, heterodyne optoelectronic system that measures the displacements of two targets along the same lines of sight has been developed. Heretofore, it would have been necessary to construct a two-target laser metrological system as two partly or wholly independent subsystems, each containing a set of optoelectronic components (including, possibly, its own laser) that must be aligned separately. The present system contains only one laser, and with the exception of the targets themselves, all optical and electronic components function together as a single system that generates a separate measurement of the displacement of each target.