Method and apparatus for recording road appearance, geometry and surface characteristics

Claim 1

APPARATUS ADAPTED TO BE MOUNTED IN A VEHICLE FOR RECORDING ROAD APPEARANCE, GEOMETRY, AND SURFACE CHARACTERISTICS COMPRISING: MEANS FOR SENSING AND INDICATING SURFACE IRREGULARITIES, SAID MEANS INCLUDING A WHEEL ADAPTED TO ENGAGE THE ROAD SURFACE AND CONNECTED TO THE VEHICLE, A VIBRATION-SENSING DEVICE CARRIED BY SAID WHEEL, A PLURALITY OF DIGITAL COUNTERS TO INDICATE THE CUMULATIVE TOTAL OF SURFACE IRREGULARITIES, EACH OF SAID COUNTERS ADAPTED TO REGISTER IRREGULARITIES IN A RANGE OF PREDETERMINED MAGNITUDE, AND MEANS FOR ACTUATING SAID COUNTERS INDIVIDUALLY IN RESPONSE TO VIBRATIONS SENSED BY MOVEMENT OF SAID WHEEL OVER THE ROAD SURFACE; DIRECTION INDICATING MEANS INCLUDING A DIGITAL COUNTER FOR REGISTERING THE CUMULATIVE TOTAL OF UNIT DIRECTION CHANGES MADE BY THE VEHICLE IN TRAVELING OVER THE ROAD; GRADE INDICATING MEANS INCLUDING A DIGITAL COUNTER FOR REGISTERING THE CUMULATIVE TOTAL OF POSITIVE UNIT GRADE CHANGES AND A DIGITAL COUNTER FOR REGISTERING THE CUMULATIVE TOTAL OF NEGATIVE UNIT GRADE CHANGES; A SPEEDOMETER HAVING A DIAL FOR INDICATING VEHICLE SPEED; AN ODOMETER FOR INDICATING DISTANCE TRAVELED BY THE VEHICLE; A DISPLAY PANEL VISIBLY SUPPORTING SAID COUNTERS, SAID SPEEDOMETER DIAL AND SAID ODOMETER ON ONE FACE THEREOF, A CAMERA MOUNTED IN THE VEHICLE AND HAVING SAID PANEL WITHIN ITS OPTIC FIELD; AND MEANS FOR ACTUATING SAID CAMERA AT PREDETERMINED DISTANCES ALONG THE ROAD TO RECORD THE DATA DISPLAYED ON SAID PANEL.