PROXIMITY SENSOR AND PROXIMITY SENSING METHOD USING LIGHT QUANTITY OF REFLECTION LIGHT

• US 20140022528A1
• Filed: 07/12/2013
• Published: 01/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: LEE, Jun Haeng, RYU, Hyun Surk, LEE, Kyoobin, DELBRUCK, Tobi, BERNER, Raphael
• Granted Patent: US 9,243,904 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 356/4.01
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 11/026 by measuring distance between sensor and object G01B11/0608 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 3/02 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/04 Systems determining the presence of a target
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/941 using an optical detector H03K17/968 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/94108 making use of reflection
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/94116 increasing reliability, fail-safe

Abstract

A proximity sensor and proximity sensing method using a change in light quantity of a reflected light are disclosed. The proximity sensor may include a quantity change detection unit which detects a change in a quantity of reflected light which is output light which has been reflected by an object, where an intensity of the output light changes, and a proximity determination unit which determines a proximity of the object to the quantity change detection unit based on a change in the intensity of the output light and the detected change in the quantity of the reflected light.

Claims

1. A proximity sensor comprising:

a quantity change detection unit which detects a change in a quantity of reflected light which is output light which has been reflected by an object, wherein an intensity of the output light changes; and

a proximity determination unit which determines a proximity of the object to the quantity change detection unit based on a change in the intensity of the output light and the detected change in the quantity of the reflected light.

2. The proximity sensor of claim 1, wherein the proximity determination unit determines the proximity of the object based on an occurrence number of events, wherein each occurrence of an event is based on a detected change in the quantity of the reflected light during a predetermined time measured from a time when the change in intensity of the output light occurs.

3. The proximity sensor of claim 1, wherein the proximity determination unit determines the proximity of the object using a temporal distribution pattern of events based on the detected change in the quantity of the reflected light and a time when the change in the intensity of the output light occurs.

4. The proximity sensor of claim 3, wherein the proximity determination unit determines the proximity of the object using a difference between a time, in the temporal distribution pattern of events, when events most frequently occur and the time when the change in the intensity of the output light occurs.

5. The proximity sensor of claim 1, wherein the quantity change detection unit detects the change in a quantity of environmental light related to a motion of the object when the light source does not output the output light.

6. The proximity sensor of claim 5, further comprising a motion recognition unit which recognizes a motion of the object using the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

7. The proximity sensor of claim 6, wherein the motion recognition unit recognizes the motion of the object using an occurrence number of events based on the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

8. The proximity sensor of claim 6, wherein the motion recognition unit recognizes the motion of the object using an interval of events based on the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

9. The proximity sensor of claim 6, wherein the motion recognition unit recognizes the motion of the object using an occurrence direction of events based on the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

10. The proximity sensor of claim 6, wherein the motion recognition unit recognizes the motion of the object using a type of events based on the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

11. A proximity sensing method comprising:

detecting a change in a quantity of reflected light which is an output light which has been reflected by an object, using a quantity change detection unit, wherein an intensity of the output light changes; and

determining a proximity of the object based on a change in the intensity of the output light and the detected change in the quantity of the reflected light.

12. The proximity sensing method of claim 11, wherein the determining comprises determining the proximity of the object based on an occurrence number of events, wherein each occurrence of an event is based on a detected change in the quantity of the reflected light during a predetermined time measured from a time when the change in intensity of the output light occurs.

13. The proximity sensing method of claim 11, wherein the determining comprises determining the proximity of the object using a temporal distribution pattern of events based on the detected change in the quantity of the reflected light and a time when the change in intensity of the output light occurs.

14. The proximity sensing method of claim 13, wherein the determining comprises determining the proximity of the object using a difference between a time, in the temporal distribution pattern of the events, when events most frequently occur and the time when the change in the intensity of the output light occurs.

15. The proximity sensing method of claim 11, further comprising detecting the change in a quantity of environmental light related to a motion of the object when the light source does not output the output light.

16. The proximity sensing method of claim 15, further comprising recognizing the motion of the object using the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

17. The proximity sensing method of claim 16, wherein the recognizing comprises recognizing the motion of the object using an occurrence number of events based on the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

18. The proximity sensing method of claim 16, wherein the recognizing comprises recognizing the motion of the object using an interval of events based on the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

19. The proximity sensing method of claim 16, wherein the recognizing comprises recognizing the motion of the object using an occurrence direction of events based on the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

20. The proximity sensing method of claim 16, wherein the recognizing comprises recognizing the motion of the object using a type of events based on the change in the quantity of environmental light related to the motion of the object.

21. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium storing a program to cause a computer to execute a method comprising:

detecting a change in a quantity of reflected light which is an output light which has been reflected by an object, wherein an intensity of the output light changes; and

determining a proximity of the object based on a change in the intensity of the output light and the detected change in the quantity of the reflected light.