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DYNAMIC RANGE OF A LINE SCANNER HAVING A PHOTOSENSITIVE ARRAY THAT PROVIDES VARIABLE EXPOSURE

  • US 20170167850A1
  • Filed: 12/23/2016
  • Published: 06/15/2017
  • Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2013
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A line scanner for measuring three-dimensional coordinates of a surface of an object, comprising:

  • a projector including a light source, the projector projecting light during operation from the light source as a line of light at the surface of the object;

    a camera including a photosensitive array, the photosensitive array including a two-dimensional array of light sensors, the array of light sensors having M rows and N columns, the camera further including control electronics that control an exposure time of each light sensor in the array of light sensors and control a readout time of each light sensor in the array of light sensors, the exposure time of each light sensor in the array of light sensors being controlled in one of the rows and the columns of the light sensors, the readout time of each light sensor in the array of light sensors being controlled in the one of the rows and the columns, the control electronics setting the exposure time of each light sensor to control the array of light sensors in a non-sequential manner, each of the light sensors in the array of light sensors converting an amount of optical energy received by each of the light sensors into a digital signal value, the optical energy captured by the light sensors being from a reflection of the projected line of light that is reflected line of light from the surface of the object, wherein the exposure time of each of the light sensors in a first row starts with a first row reset signal and ends with a first row select signal, the first exposure time is a first time period between the first row reset signal and the first row select signal, and the readout time of the first row starts with the first row select signal; and

    a processor configured to receive the digital signal values and to calculate three-dimensional coordinates of the surface of the object therefrom.

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