Ascension laserBIRD, Installation And Operation Manual

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Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of the Ascension Technology Corporation (ATC)
laserBIRD motion tracking system. Our company is proud of the quality of all our
motion tracking products.
The laserBIRD is an optical scanning system that tracks the position and orientation of a
sensor in six degrees of freedom. Fan-shaped laser beams are scanned throughout a
conical-like motion region, and are detected by photodiodes mounted in the laserBIRD
sensor. Information from these detectors is used to compute sensor position and
orientation, which is reported serially to a host computer through an RS232 interface.
This manual is designed to help you set up and install the laserBIRD hardware and
software, and to assist you in configuring the system for optimal tracking. Please take the
time to read this manual carefully. Properly setting up your system will maximize its
performance for your application.
About This Manual
The laserBIRD Installation and Operation Guide contains everything you'll need to install and
run the laserBIRD tracker. It provides simple steps to operate and test the system quickly,
and it details the methods for communicating with the laserBIRD directly. In addition, it
explains the tools available for configuring your system and how to find support.
How this manual is organized
This manual contains six chapters.
Chapter 1: Preparing for Setup
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Lists system software and hardware requirements
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Outlines the components of your system
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Details handling precautions
Chapter 2: Quick Start: Setup and Checkout
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Describes how to connect your system components
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Guides you through a quick checkout, using the demo software