3D imaging of a substrate using perpendicular scanning directions
First Claim
1. A method for obtaining a three-dimensional image of a substrate comprising the steps of:
- (a) training a linescan camera onto the surface of a substrate normal to its plane so that a strip of area, running across the surface of the substrate parallel to a first axis, is within the field of view of the camera so the camera may capture the image thereof;
(b) spanning the substrate, along a second axis perpendicular to the first axis, with a line of light parallel to the first axis, the line of light being directed at the surface of the substrate at an angle to successively illuminate each of a plurality of contiguous strips of area, including the strip within the field of view of the linescan camera;
(c) simultaneously capturing the image of the strip within the field of view of the camera each time a successive one of the plurality of strips is illuminated by the line of light;
(d) processing the successive images captured by the linescan camera to establish a three-dimensional image of the strip within its field of view; and
(e) imparting a relative motion between the linescan camera and the substrate along the second axis to obtain a three-dimensional image of the substrate.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system (10) for obtaining a three-dimensional image of a substrate (12) comprises a linescan camera (20) trained on the substrate normal to the plane of its surface to capture the image of a strip of area (Sy) running along a first axis. A reflective member (38), driven by a motor (39), spans a line of light (36) generated by a laser (30) at an angle across the surface of the substrate so each of a plurality of strips of area (Sa,Sb,Sc. . . ), including the strip (Sy) imaged by the camera, is successively illuminated. A processing device (26) is coupled both to the camera (20) and to the motor (39) to synchronize them so that the camera captures the image of the strip within its field of view each time a successive one of the strips (Sa,Sb,Sc. . . Sy) is illuminated. The processing device (26) further serves to process the successively captured images of the strip (Sy) within the field of view of the camera to obtain a three-dimensional image of the strip. A relative motion is imparted between the linescan camera (20) and the substrate (12) by a slide to enable a three-dimensional image of the substrate to be obtained.
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Citations
9 Claims
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1. A method for obtaining a three-dimensional image of a substrate comprising the steps of:
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(a) training a linescan camera onto the surface of a substrate normal to its plane so that a strip of area, running across the surface of the substrate parallel to a first axis, is within the field of view of the camera so the camera may capture the image thereof; (b) spanning the substrate, along a second axis perpendicular to the first axis, with a line of light parallel to the first axis, the line of light being directed at the surface of the substrate at an angle to successively illuminate each of a plurality of contiguous strips of area, including the strip within the field of view of the linescan camera; (c) simultaneously capturing the image of the strip within the field of view of the camera each time a successive one of the plurality of strips is illuminated by the line of light; (d) processing the successive images captured by the linescan camera to establish a three-dimensional image of the strip within its field of view; and (e) imparting a relative motion between the linescan camera and the substrate along the second axis to obtain a three-dimensional image of the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. Apparatus for obtaining a three-dimensional image of a substrate comprising:
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a linescan camera trained onto a substrate such that the camera has its optical axes normal to the plane of the substrate surface so that a strip of area running along the substrate surface along a first axis is within the field of view of the camera; means for spanning the substrate along a second axis, perpendicular with the first axis, with a line of light, parallel to the first axis, to successively illuminate each of a plurality of strips of area on the substrate surface, including the strip within the field of view of the linescan camera; processing means for synchronizing the linescan camera to the spanning means so that the camera successively captures the image of the strip of area within its field of view each time a successive one of the strips is illuminated by the spanning means, and for processing the successive images captured by the camera to establish a three-dimensional image of each attribute, if any, within the strip imaged by the camera; and means for imparting a relative motion between the linescan camera and the substrate to establish a three-dimensional image of the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9)
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Specification