Abstract: An optical probe head has a front optic and an annular enclosure surrounding the front optic. The enclosure contains the illuminating device of the probe head. The front optic is rigidly attached to the optical probe head and the enclosure having the illuminating device and surrounding the front optic is attached to the optical probe head so as to be radially yieldable. In the case of a collision, only the enclosure having the illuminating optics is therefore deflected; whereas, the imaging optics remains undisturbed. In this way, a follow-up calibration of the probe head after a collision is no longer required.

Abstract: The invention is directed to a coordinate measuring apparatus having an optical sensing head. The optical sensing head is held on the measuring arm of the coordinate measuring apparatus. The optical sensing head includes a holder and a plurality of detachable front optic units which can be exchanged as required. Each of the front optic units has its own objective and its own illuminating optic arrangement adapted to the objective. The illuminating optic is supplied via light conductors with the light conductors being guided over a change interface where the front optic unit is attached to the holder of the sensing head in a reproducible manner. The light conducting ends for the illumination are coupled in the change interface by means of a coupling device which achieves this coupling with low losses. This device includes, for example, self-centering sleeves which enable flexible supply light conductors to be centrally seated on the end faces of half-rigid plastic light conductors.

Abstract: A device for sharp-edge uniform illumination of an observation field lying in a preselectable plane is adapted to utilize light from a remote source, via a flexible fiber-optic connection having a glass-rod termination for producing a uniformly illuminated light-exit surface. The glass rod is insertably connected to the device via clamping mechanism (9, 10) in such manner that its light-radiating surface is immediately adjacent to a diaphragm (7). In front of the diaphragm (7), a collector (2, 3) is fixedly positioned, to focus the diaphragm as a real image in the observation plane. The diaphragm (7) (together with the glass rod) is displaceable axially with respect to the collector (2, 3), thus enabling sharp adjustment for different distances from the observation plane.