MULTI-BEAM PHOTOELECTRIC SENSOR AND METHOD FOR MOUNTING THE SAME

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inexpensive multi-beam photoelectric sensor the size of which is reduced to a relatively small size while the sensor is enabled to detect a wide range of objects in a plurality of directions even when the objects move by forming light beams in a plurality of directions. SOLUTION: A multi-beam photoelectric sensor forms a plurality of light beams by passing light rays from a plurality of light emitting elements 11a-11c through a light emitting optical system 12. The sensor converges the light spots formed on objects 3a-3c when the objects 3a-3c are respectively irradiated with the light beams on the light receiving surface of a light receiving element 21 through a light receiving optical system 22 and finds the distances to the objects 3a-3c based on the output of the element 21. The light emitting elements 11a-11c are arranged perpendicularly to the moving directions of the received light spots and also to the optical axis of the light receiving optical system 22 in accordance with the distances to the objects 3a-3c. In addition, the width of the light receiving surface of the light receiving element 21 is set to such a size or larger that the received light spots can be formed on the light receiving surface correspondingly to all light beams.