Remote lidar with coherent fiber optic image bundle
First Claim
1. A light detection and ranging system comprising:
- a. an emitter to generate an outgoing set of light pulses;
b. a coherent fiber optic image bundle (CFOB) having a length and comprising;
a plurality of optical fibers;
an input surface; and
an output surface;
wherein the plurality of optical fibers have a common spatial sequence at both the input surface and the output surface, andwherein the CFOB is positioned to transmit a set of light reflections corresponding to the outgoing set of light pulses, from the input surface to the output surface; and
c. a ranging subassembly comprising;
a detector, operably coupled to the output surface, to detect the set of light reflections; and
electronic circuitry to compute for the set of light reflections a corresponding set of 3D reflection locations, wherein the electronic circuitry is configured to use the length of the CFOB to compute the corresponding set of 3D reflection locations for the set of light reflections.
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Abstract
Optical time-of-flight detector arrays are costly and therefore enhancing their utilization (e.g. angular coverage range) is desirable. In one embodiment, a vehicle-based distributed LIDAR is disclosed, comprising a plurality of coherent fiber optic image bundles that transfer laser reflections from fields of view (FOVs) around the vehicle to a shared remotely located detector array. An optical multiplexor timeshares the FOVs from the coherent fiber bundles onto the remote detector array. Individual fibers in the coherent bundles gather laser reflections from distinct portions of a FOV, thereby enabling correlation of the original reflection directions with fiber locations within a bundle. Unlike an externally mounted LIDAR with direct access to a single FOV, or a LIDAR using a single optic fiber that loses direction data associated with laser reflections, the coherent fiber optic image bundles transfer both the timing and direction of laser reflections from multiple FOVs to a shared remote detector array.
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Citations
10 Claims
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1. A light detection and ranging system comprising:
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a. an emitter to generate an outgoing set of light pulses; b. a coherent fiber optic image bundle (CFOB) having a length and comprising; a plurality of optical fibers; an input surface; and an output surface; wherein the plurality of optical fibers have a common spatial sequence at both the input surface and the output surface, and wherein the CFOB is positioned to transmit a set of light reflections corresponding to the outgoing set of light pulses, from the input surface to the output surface; and c. a ranging subassembly comprising;
a detector, operably coupled to the output surface, to detect the set of light reflections; and
electronic circuitry to compute for the set of light reflections a corresponding set of 3D reflection locations, wherein the electronic circuitry is configured to use the length of the CFOB to compute the corresponding set of 3D reflection locations for the set of light reflections. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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Specification