Sensor with alternating visible and infrared sensitive pixels

• US 10,484,623 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2016
• Issued: 11/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Price, Raymond Kirk, Demandolx, Denis, Bleyer, Michael, Zhao, Jian
• Primary Examiner(s): Elahi, Shan E
• Application Number:
  US15/385,713
• Publication Number:
  US 20180176487A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,064 Days
• Field of Search: 348164
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/1443 with at least one potential jump or surface barrier
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/1461 characterised by the photosensitive area
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14621 Colour filter arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14645 Colour imagers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14649 Infrared imagers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/11 for generating image signals from visible and infrared light wavelengths
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/534 depending on the spectral component

Abstract

A sensor device is provided that includes an array of light sensitive pixels configured in a predetermined pattern of light sensitive pixels that alternates between broadband visible light sensitive pixels and infrared light sensitive pixels, each broadband visible light sensitive pixel being configured to have increased sensitivity to light of the visible light spectrum and to have reduced sensitivity to light of the infrared light spectrum compared to each infrared light sensitive pixel, and each infrared light sensitive pixel being configured to have increased sensitivity to light of the infrared light spectrum and to have reduced sensitivity to light of the visible light spectrum compared to each broadband visible light sensitive pixel.

Claims

1. A sensor device, comprising:

an array of light sensitive pixels arranged in a predetermined pattern of light sensitive pixels that alternates between broadband visible light sensitive pixels and infrared light sensitive pixels;

a color filter array of visible light filters and infrared light filters;

each broadband visible light sensitive pixel including a respective infrared light filter of the color filter array that causes that broadband visible light sensitive pixel to have increased sensitivity to light of the visible light spectrum and to have reduced sensitivity to light of the infrared light spectrum compared to each infrared light sensitive pixel; and

each infrared light sensitive pixel including a respective visible light filter of the color filter array that causes that infrared light sensitive pixel to have increased sensitivity to light of the infrared light spectrum and to have reduced sensitivity to light of the visible light spectrum compared to each broadband visible light sensitive pixel.

2. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein the broadband visible light sensitive pixels are configured to have increased sensitivity to light in the 400 nm to 700 nm range, and the infrared light sensitive pixels are configured to have increased sensitivity to light in the 700 nm to 1000 nm range.

3. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein relative sensitivities to light of the light sensitive pixels includes a band gap in the 650 nm to 750 nm range, wherein both the broadband visible light sensitive pixels and the infrared light sensitive pixels are configured to have reduced sensitivity to light in the band gap range.

4. The sensor device of claim 1, further comprising a lens that includes an infrared bandpass filter configured to isolate ambient infrared light from the infrared light sensitive pixels.

5. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein the predetermined pattern of light sensitive pixels is a checkerboard pattern.

6. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein the predetermined pattern of light sensitive pixels alternates between columns of broadband visible light sensitive pixels and columns of infrared light sensitive pixels.

7. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein the predetermined pattern of light sensitive pixels alternates between rows of broadband visible light sensitive pixels and rows of infrared light sensitive pixels.

8. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein each broadband visible light sensitive pixel includes two or more differential visible light sensitive pixels, and each infrared light sensitive pixel includes two or more differential infrared light sensitive pixels.

9. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein the broadband visible light sensitive pixels are configured to output grayscale values.

10. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein the infrared light sensitive pixels are configured to be globally shuttered.

11. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein the infrared light sensitive pixels and the broadband visible light sensitive pixels are configured to be rolling shuttered.

12. The sensor device of claim 1, further configured to control a first shutter speed for the broadband visible light sensitive pixels independently of a second shutter speed for the infrared light sensitive pixels.

13. The sensor device of claim 1, further configured to concurrently expose the broadband visible light sensitive pixels and the infrared light sensitive pixels.

14. The sensor device of claim 1, wherein each light sensitive pixel is trenched such that each light sensitive pixel is optically isolated from each other light sensitive pixel of the array of light sensitive pixels.

15. A method comprising,

providing a sensor device including an array of light sensitive pixels arranged in a predetermined pattern of light sensitive pixels that alternates between broadband visible light sensitive pixels and infrared light sensitive pixels,

a color filter array of visible light filters and infrared light filters,

each broadband visible light sensitive pixel including a respective infrared light filter of the color filter array that causes that broadband visible light sensitive pixel to light of the visible light spectrum and to have reduced sensitivity to light of the infrared light spectrum compared to each infrared light sensitive pixel, and

each infrared light sensitive pixel including a respective visible light filter of the color filter array that causes that infrared light sensitive pixel to have increased sensitivity to light of the infrared light spectrum and to have reduced sensitivity to light of the visible light spectrum compared to each broadband visible light sensitive pixel;

at a processor, concurrently performing infrared sensing and tracking and simultaneous localization and mapping based on output of the sensor device.

16. A head mounted display device comprising,

a sensor device including an array of light sensitive pixels arranged in a predetermined pattern of light sensitive pixels that alternates between broadband visible light sensitive pixels and infrared light sensitive pixels,

a color filter array of visible light filters and infrared light filters,

each broadband visible light sensitive pixel including a respective infrared light filter of the color filter array that causes that broadband visible light sensitive pixel to have increased sensitivity to light of the visible light spectrum and to have reduced sensitivity to light of the infrared light spectrum compared to each infrared light sensitive pixel, and

each infrared light sensitive pixel including a respective visible light filter of the color filter array that causes that infrared light sensitive pixel to have increased sensitivity to light of the infrared light spectrum and to have reduced sensitivity to light of the visible light spectrum compared to each broadband visible light sensitive pixel;

and

a processor configured to concurrently perform infrared sensing and tracking and simultaneous localization and mapping based on output of the sensor device.

17. The head mounted display device of claim 16, further comprising an active illuminator.

18. The head mounted display device of claim 16, wherein the sensor device is one of a plurality of sensor devices having the same configuration, and the plurality of sensor devices are located on the head mounted display device with overlapping field of views.

19. The head mounted display device of claim 16, wherein the sensor device is one of a plurality of sensor devices having the same configuration, and the plurality of sensor devices are located on the head mounted display device with non-overlapping field of views.