High dynamic range sensor system and method
First Claim
1. A high dynamic range sensor assembly, comprising:
- a plurality of sensing sets, said sensing sets being organized into a sensing array, each of said sensing sets comprising;
a) a set of sensing elements for sensing physical phenomena, said set of sensing elements having a locally selectable integration time;
b) an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter operatively connected to said set of sensing elements for acquisition and conversion of an analog signal from each of said sensing elements into a digital signal; and
,c) a processor operatively connected to said A/D converter and to said set of sensing elements for managing said selectable integration time for said set of sensing elements and for analyzing said digital signals from each of said sensing elements in said set of sensing elements, wherein said digital signals from each of said sensing elements are measured by said processor and an integration scaling factor for said set of sensing elements is computed and controlled by said processor to adjust said integration time.
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Abstract
A high dynamic range sensor assembly includes a plurality of sensing sets that are organized into a sensing array. Each of the sensing sets includes a set of sensing elements for sensing physical phenomena. Each set of sensing elements has a locally selectable integration time. An analog-to-digital (A/D) converter operatively connected to the set of sensing elements acquires and converts an analog signal from each of the sensing elements into a digital signal. A processor operatively connected to the A/D converter and to the set of sensing elements manages the selectable integration time for the set of sensing elements and analyzes the digital signals from each of the sensing elements in the set of sensing elements. The digital signals from each of the sensing elements are measured by the processor and an integration scaling factor for the set of sensing elements is computed and controlled by the processor to adjust the integration time. The integration scaling factor for the set of sensing elements is mathematically combined with a value of the digital signal from the A/D converter to form a larger data word than what is generated by the A/D converter. The larger data word is utilized to represent a magnitude of each of the sensing elements. If a substantial number of A/D values have saturated, the integration time is decreased; and, if a substantial number of A/D values are below a predetermined threshold, the integration time is increased.
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Citations
27 Claims
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1. A high dynamic range sensor assembly, comprising:
a plurality of sensing sets, said sensing sets being organized into a sensing array, each of said sensing sets comprising; a) a set of sensing elements for sensing physical phenomena, said set of sensing elements having a locally selectable integration time; b) an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter operatively connected to said set of sensing elements for acquisition and conversion of an analog signal from each of said sensing elements into a digital signal; and
,c) a processor operatively connected to said A/D converter and to said set of sensing elements for managing said selectable integration time for said set of sensing elements and for analyzing said digital signals from each of said sensing elements in said set of sensing elements, wherein said digital signals from each of said sensing elements are measured by said processor and an integration scaling factor for said set of sensing elements is computed and controlled by said processor to adjust said integration time. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A high dynamic range night vision sensor assembly, comprising:
a plurality of pixel sets, said pixel sets being organized into an array, each of said pixel sets comprising; a) a focal plane array comprising a set of pixel elements having a locally selectable integration time; b) an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter operatively connected to said focal plane array for acquisition and conversion of an analog signal from each of said pixel elements into a digital signal; and
,c) a dedicated processor operatively connected to said A/D converter and to said focal plane array for managing said selectable integration time for said set of sensing elements and for analyzing said digital signals from each of said pixel elements in said focal plane array, wherein said digital signals from each of said pixel elements is measured by said processor and an integration scaling factor for said focal plane array is computed and controlled by said processor to adjust said integration time. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21)
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22. A method for providing high dynamic range sensing, comprising the steps of:
providing a plurality of sensing sets, said sensing sets being organized into a sensing array, each of said sensing sets operating by utilizing the following steps; a) sensing a selected physical phenomena using a set of sensing elements having a locally selectable integration time; b) acquiring and converting an analog signal from each of said sensing elements into a digital signal using an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter operatively connected to said set of sensing elements; and
,c) managing said selectable integration time for said set of sensing elements and analyzing said digital signals from each of said sensing elements in said set of sensing elements, utilizing a processor operatively connected to said A/D converter and to said set of sensing elements, wherein said digital signals from each of said sensing elements are measured by said processor and an integration scaling factor for said set of sensing elements is computed and controlled by said processor to adjust said integration time. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
Specification