Bioptical holographic laser scanning system

• US 7,407,103 B2
• Filed: 05/30/2006
• Issued: 08/05/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Metrologic Instruments Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Metrologic Instruments Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Good, Timothy, Dickson, LeRoy, Check, Frank, Groot, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; Michael G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Trail; Allyson N
• Application Number:
  US11/443,552
• Publication Number:
  US 20070001013A1
• Time in Patent Office: 798 Days
• Field of Search: 235/462.4, 235/462.22, 235/462.25, 235/462.36, 235/462.42, 235/462.43, 235/462.47, 235/472.01, 235/462.01, 359/16
• US Class Current: 235/462.01
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/10 Scanning systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/106 having diffraction gratings as scanning elements, e.g. holographic scanners holographic optical elements G02B5/32, holography G03H
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/0022 arrangements or provisious for transferring data to distant stations, e.g. from a sensing device "transfer between computer elements G06F13/00 "; data-transmission H04L
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2207/1012 Special detection of object
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2207/1013 Multi-focal
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2207/1016 Motor control or optical moving unit control
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2207/1017 Programmable
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2207/1018 Source control
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10 by electromagnetic radiation, e.g. optical sensing; by corpuscular radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10564 Light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10584 Source control
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10594 Beam path
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10603 Basic scanning using moving elements
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10663 using hologram
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10673 Parallel lines
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10693 for omnidirectional scanning
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10702 Particularities of propagating elements, e.g. lenses, mirrors G06K7/10831 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10792 Special measures in relation to the object to be scanned
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10801 Multidistance reading
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10811 Focalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10851 : Circuits for pulse shaping, amplifying, eliminating noise signals, checking the function of the sensing device basic electronic circuitry H03
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10861 : sensing of data fields affixed to objects or articles, e.g. coded labels postal sorting B07C3/14, conveying articles B65G47/48
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10871 : randomly oriented data-fields, code-marks therefore, e.g. concentric circles-code
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10881 : constructional details of hand-held scanners
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10891 : the scanner to be worn on a finger or on a wrist
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/109 : adaptations to make the hand-held scanner useable as a fixed scanner
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/14 : using light without selection of wavelength, e.g. sensing reflected white light G06K7/10831 - G06K7/1097 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/002 : Vending machines being part of a centrally controlled network of vending machines
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0045 : with a code reader for reading of an identifying code of the article to be registered, e.g. barcode reader or radio-frequency identity [RFID] reader
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0054 : with control of supplementary check-parameters, e.g. weight or number of articles

Abstract

A bioptical holographic laser scanning system employing a plurality of laser scanning stations about a holographic scanning disc having scanning facets with high and low elevation angle characteristics, as well as positive, negative and zero skew angle characteristics which strategically cooperate with groups of beam folding mirrors having optimized surface geometry characteristics. The system has an ultra-compact construction, ideally suited for space-constrained retail scanning environments, and generate a 3-D omnidirectional laser scanning pattern between the bottom and side scanning windows during system operation. The laser scanning pattern of the present invention comprises a complex of pairs of quasi-orthogonal laser scanning planes, which include a plurality of substantially-vertical laser scanning planes for reading bar code symbols having bar code elements (i.e. ladder-type bar code symbols) that are oriented substantially horizontal with respect to the bottom scanning window, and a plurality of substantially-horizontal laser scanning planes for reading bar code symbols having bar code elements (i.e. picket-fence type bar code symbols) that are oriented substantially vertical with respect to the bottom scanning window.

Claims

1. A bioptical laser scanning system providing 360°

of omni-directional bar code symbol scanning coverage at a point of sale (POS) station, said bioptical laser scanning system comprising;

a horizontal section integrally connected to a vertical section;

a horizontal-scanning window formed in said horizontal section;

a vertical-scanning window formed in said vertical section, and being substantially orthogonal to said horizontal-scanning window;

a first plurality of laser beam folding mirrors disposed within said horizontal section;

a second plurality of laser beam folding mirrors disposed within said vertical section;

a laser beam generating subsystem for generating a plurality of laser beams;

a laser beam scanning subsystem disposed within said horizontal section, for scanning said plurality of laser beams and (i) producing and projecting a first plurality of laser scanning planes through said horizontal-scanning window, and (ii) producing and projecting a second plurality of laser scanning planes through said vertical-scanning window,

whereby said first and second pluralities of laser scanning planes (i) intersect within predetermined scan regions contained within a 3-D scanning volume defined between said horizontal-scanning and vertical-scanning windows, and (ii) generate a plurality of groups of intersecting laser scanning planes within said 3-D scanning volume, and

wherein said plurality of groups of intersecting laser scanning planes form a complex omni-directional 3-D laser scanning pattern within said 3-D scanning volume capable of scanning a bar code symbol located on a surface of an object presented within said 3-D scanning volume at any orientation and from any direction at said POS station so as to provide 360°

of onmi-directional bar code symbol scanning coverage at said POS station.

2. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 1, wherein a height dimension of the said horizontal section is less than about 4.5 inches for installation of said horizontal section within a countertop surface at said POS.

3. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 1, wherein said plurality of groups of intersecting laser scanning planes comprises over 60 different laser scanning planes cooperating within said 3-D scanning volume to generate said complex omni-directional 3-D laser scanning pattern.

4. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 1, wherein each said group of intersecting laser scanning planes comprises (i) a plurality of substantially-vertical laser scanning planes for reading bar code symbols having bar code elements that are oriented substantially parallel with respect to said horizontal-scanning window, and (ii) a plurality of substantially-horizontal laser scanning plane for reading bar code symbols having bar code elements that are oriented substantially orthogonal with respect to said horizontal-scanning window.

5. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 1, wherein said laser beam scanning subsystem includes a first laser beam production subsystem which comprises a first visible laser diode (VLD), and a second visible laser diode (VLD).

6. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 1, which further comprises a first light collecting/focusing optical element and a first photodetector to form a first scanning station, and

wherein the first light collecting/focusing optical element collects light from predetermined scan regions within said 3-D scanning volume and focuses such collected light onto the first photodetector to produce an electrical signal having an amplitude proportional to the intensity of light focused thereon, and said electrical signal being supplied to analog/digital signal processing circuitry for processing analog and digital scan data signals derived therefrom to perform bar code symbol reading operations.

7. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 6, which further comprises a second light collecting/focusing optical element and a second photodetector, and

wherein the second light collecting/focusing optical element collects light from predetermined scan regions within said 3-D scanning volume and focuses such collected light onto the second photodetector to produce an electrical signal having an amplitude proportional to the intensity of light focused thereon, and said electrical signal being supplied to analog/digital signal processing circuitry for processing analog and digital scan data signals derived therefrom to perform bar code symbol reading operations.

8. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 7, which further comprises a third light collecting/focusing optical element and a third photodetector, and

wherein the third light collecting/focusing optical element collects light from predetermined scan regions within said 3-D scanning volume and focuses such collected light onto the third photodetector to produce an electrical signal having an amplitude proportional to the intensity of light focused thereon, and said electrical signal being supplied to analog/digital signal processing circuitry for processing analog and digital scan data signals derived therefrom to perform bar code symbol reading operations.

9. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 1, which further comprises a fourth light collecting/focusing optical element and a fourth photodetector, and

wherein the fourth light collecting/focusing optical element collects light from predetermined scan regions within said 3-D scanning volume and focuses such collected light onto the fourth photodetector to produce an electrical signal having an amplitude proportional to the intensity of light focused thereon, and said electrical signal being supplied to analog/digital signal processing circuitry for processing analog and digital scan data signals derived therefrom to perform bar code symbol reading operations.

10. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 1, wherein said laser beam scanning subsystem comprises a holographic scanning disc supporting a plurality of holographic scanning elements.

11. The bioptical laser scanning system of claim 10, wherein wherein said holographic scanning elements are classifiable into a first class of facets having High Elevation (HE) angle characteristics, and a second class of facets having Low Elevation (LE) angle characteristics.