In view of the complexity in the calibration process and the discrepancy in point matching, a simplified binocular vision positioning system for surgical navigation was developed. The system could calculate the 24 parameters once and for all with the coordinate transformation method. In addition, the gridiron pattern marker and the principle of similarity measure were adopted to simplify the stereo matching process and to improve the stereo matching accuracy. Then, the calibrated system detected the distance between the pairs of markers which were within 1.5 m distance from the binocular vision sensing units, and the error was less than 1 mm. The new system was tested in the anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery. It is proved that the system is stable, reliable, easy to be calibrated with sufficient accuracy and high positioning precision, and can meet the requirements of surgical navigation.