Precision Hydrostatic Level and Flatness Measuring Devices, Systems and Methods

Abstract

A water-holding cup for use in connection with a hydrostatic system for measuring with precision, a level normal to gravitation of a surface, said cup comprising: a cup height h thereof from a bottom to a top of said cup when said cup is resting upon the surface, which cup height h is known a priori within acceptable measurement errors; mirroring on a bottom surface of said cup; and at least two water outlets for fluidically interconnecting said cup with other like-cups, said outlets oriented at a fitting angle of at least five (5) degrees downward.

I claim: 
     
         1 . A water-holding cup for use in connection with a hydrostatic system for measuring with precision, a level normal to gravitation of a surface, said cup comprising:
 a cup height h thereof from a bottom to a top of said cup when said cup is resting upon the surface, which cup height h is known a priori within acceptable measurement errors;   mirroring on a bottom surface of said cup; and   at least two water outlets for fluidically interconnecting said cup with other like-cups, said outlets oriented at a fitting angle of at least five (5) degrees downward.   
     
     
         2 . The water-holding cup of  claim 1 , configured such that:
 when a micrometer is physically aligned to said top of said cup and a probe tip at a lower extremity of said micrometer is extended to contact the top surface of water within said cup thereby forming a meniscus when said contact occurs, the user is able to see when the meniscus is formed by the reflection of light from the meniscus against said mirroring, and is enabled from the micrometer extension when the meniscus is formed, to ascertain a distance d between said top of said cup and said top surface of said water within said cup; and   the user is further able to deduce with precision, a level l of the water surface within said cup above said surface by the relation l=h−d.   
     
     
         3 . The water-holding cup of  claim 1 , further comprising a cup cover for preventing evaporation of said water by covering said water-holding cup. 
     
     
         4 . A method of using a water-holding cup for measuring with precision, a level normal to gravitation of a surface, said method comprising:
 providing said water-holding cup with a cup height h thereof from a bottom to a top of said cup when said cup is resting upon the surface, which cup height h is known a priori within acceptable measurement errors;   providing mirroring on a bottom surface of said cup; and   providing at least two water outlets of said cup for fluidically interconnecting said cup with other like-cups, said outlets oriented at a fitting angle of at least five (5) degrees downward.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising:
 physically aligning a micrometer to said top of said cup;   extending a probe tip at a lower extremity of said micrometer to contact the top surface of water within said cup thereby forming a meniscus when said contact occurs;   seeing when the meniscus is formed by the reflection of light from the meniscus against said minoring;   ascertaining a distance d between said top of said cup and said top surface of said water within said cup from the micrometer extension when the meniscus is formed; and   deducing with precision, a level  1  of the water surface within said cup above said surface by the relation l=h−d.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising covering said water-holding cup, using a cup cover for preventing evaporation of said water. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising:
 providing a plurality of N of said water-holding cups, where said N is greater than or equal to 2;   resting said N cups upon the surface for which the level normal to gravitation is to be measured;   fluidically interconnecting said cups with one another, where each of said cups is designated by a reference numeral n=1, 2, 3 . . . N;   introducing water into said cups;   stabilizing a top surface of said water within each cup into being substantially the same as the top surface of said water within all of the other said cups by virtue of the gravitation acting on said water and said water becoming equalized among said cups via said fluidic interconnections;   measuring water levels within each cup using a micrometer system; and   deducing with precision from said measuring, how much the surface beneath each of said N cups deviates from being gravitationally level relative to the other N−1 cups.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising:
 for each said cup, physically aligning a portion of a micrometer system to a top of said cup;   extending a probe tip at a lower extremity of said micrometer system to contact a top surface of said water within each said cup, thereby forming a meniscus visible when said contact occurs;   for each said cup, measuring on an absolute or relative scale, a distance d n  between said top of said cup and said top surface of said water within said cup, using said micrometer system;   knowing a priori within acceptable measurement errors for each of said water-holding cups, a cup height h n  thereof from a bottom to a top of said cup which cup height h n ;   calculating a level l n  of the water surface within each said cup n above said surface to be equal to l n =h n −d n ; and   by virtue of said micrometer system measuring each of said d n  and thereby implicitly measuring each of said l n , deducing with precision how much the surface beneath each of said N cups deviates from being gravitationally level relative to the other N−1 cups.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , said measuring the water levels within each cup using a micrometer system comprising:
 extending and retracting an extension head of said micrometer in response to dialing a dial of said micrometer;   viewing in said mirroring on said bottom surface of said cup, grade markers of a calibration protractor comprising a plurality of grade markers, corresponding with finer scale markers of a Vernier scale, situated on a bottom of said extension head; and   guiding the dialing simultaneously with viewing said grade markers, using said grade markers to provide a visual reference.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising:
 visually determining with precision, the setting of said micrometer dial when the meniscus is formed, and using that visual reference to guide the dialing, by:   orienting a line of sight is so as to view said calibration protractor as reflected by said mirroring;   angling the line of sight off of a normal line relative said mirroring; and   consequently juxtaposing said micrometer probe against said plurality of grade markers so as to be an indicator needle, while simultaneously configuring said micrometer probe to measure said distance d n  when the meniscus is formed.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , providing additional visual reference to guide the dialing by said meniscus physically acting as a lens due to light refraction and thereby magnifying a grade marker corresponding to the meniscus formation. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising adding a wetting agent for decreasing a surface tension of said water to minimize water droplet adhesion to said probe tip and enhance meniscus formation. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 4 , said water comprising distilled water.