Alignment Instrument Facts & Information

By Carey Bourdier


For the vast majority of people, the word alignment probably conjures up some type of association with their vehicle. After all, we all have taken our car or truck into a mechanic to have the wheels properly aligned. Without proper alignment, the suspension of the car can be damaged not to mention the effect this has on steering and safety. When you bring you vehicle into the auto service shop, a professional mechanic uses various types of alignment instruments to complete the alignment process.

However, while this type of alignment might be familiar to you, there are many other items that must be aligned properly in order to work properly. An alignment telescope, for instance, is one type of alignment instrument that is quite important in various professions. An alignment telescope also might be called a line scope or perhaps a line of sight telescope. No matter what you call it, the alignment telescope is a handy tool used for collimation as well as autocollimation.

Of course, it's probable that most people do not know much about collimation and perhaps have never heard this word before. Collimation is a way to make light beams or rays parallel. You will use an instrument such as an alignment collimator to combine many rays of light coming into the device at a variety of angles. The device will take these rays and combine them all to form one beam of light, where all the rays line up.

While it might sometimes be misspelled as an alignment collimeter, an alignment collimator is a popular device for many different professions. You can utilize the alignment collimator to ascertain a position in regards to a specific line of sight. Many optical alignment instruments can be adjusted using the alignment collimator, thus improving their accuracy. Alignment telescopes and alignment collimators have similar appearances, albeit the telescope will include a sighting tube as one might expect.

When buying a collimator or an alignment telescope, it is important to select the right model for your needs as there are several choices. These choices include general-use models of alignment telescopes as well as the spherical alignment telescope, which may or may not include a micrometer. When making a purchase, it often is wise to consider some helpful accessories, including fixed base or perhaps a base with rotating capabilities. There are also helpful telescope mounts that you might think about purchasing.

For those that do need an alignment instrument, such as an alignment collimator or any type of alignment telescope, there are several manufacturers of these types of optical instruments. Warren Knight, for example, has been creating alignment instruments such as the alignment telescope and alignment collimator for more than a century. They also offer many other types of optical instruments, theodolites, leveling tools, navigational tools and much more.




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