High frame rate interleaved imagers
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An imaging system comprising:
- a first global shutter coupled to a first imager having a first frame rate;
a second global shutter coupled to a second imager having a second frame rate; and
an imaging controller configured to;
maintain a first exposure interval of the first global shutter with a duration less than the first frame rate;
maintain a second exposure interval of the second global shutter with a duration less than the second frame rate;
interleave open and closed global shutter exposure intervals of the first and second global shutters; and
read out images from each of the imagers during non-exposed intervals to generate an effective frame rate greater than the first frame rate or the second frame rate.
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Abstract
Two or more imagers having associated frame rates are each configured with a global shutter having an exposure interval less than a frame interval. The exposure interval for a first imager is offset from the exposure interval of a second imager such that the first imager is exposed while the second imager is not exposed. When interleaved, an effective frame rate exceeds the individual frame rates provided by the individual imagers. This interleaved imaging system may be used to recover, at high frame rates, images that are projected from spatial light modulators.
36 Citations
27 Claims
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1. An imaging system comprising:
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a first global shutter coupled to a first imager having a first frame rate; a second global shutter coupled to a second imager having a second frame rate; and an imaging controller configured to; maintain a first exposure interval of the first global shutter with a duration less than the first frame rate; maintain a second exposure interval of the second global shutter with a duration less than the second frame rate; interleave open and closed global shutter exposure intervals of the first and second global shutters; and read out images from each of the imagers during non-exposed intervals to generate an effective frame rate greater than the first frame rate or the second frame rate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An imaging system comprising:
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a plurality of imaging elements configured to share at least a portion of an optical path, each of the plurality of imaging elements being coupled to a respective global shutter; and an imaging controller configured to interleave open and closed states of the global shutters across the plurality of imaging elements to generate an effective frame rate greater than an individual frame rate for each of the plurality of imaging elements. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. One or more computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors to perform acts comprising:
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setting a first imager to a first frame rate; setting a first global shutter coupled to the first imager to a first exposure interval; setting a second imager to a second frame rate interleaved with the first frame rate; and setting a second global shutter coupled to the second imager to a second exposure interval interleaved with the first exposure interval to generate an effective frame rate greater than the first frame rate and greater than the second frame rate. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A method comprising:
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opening a first global shutter coupled to a first imager; acquiring an image passed by the first global shutter at the first imager; closing the first global shutter; opening a second global shutter coupled to a second imager sharing at least a portion of an optical path with the first imager; reading out image data from the first imager; acquiring an image passed by the second global shutter at the second imager; closing the second global shutter; opening the first global shutter coupled to the first imager; reading out image data from the second imager; and interleaving the acquired image passed by the first global shutter at the first imager with the acquired image passed by the second global shutter at the second imager to generate an effective frame rate greater than a frame rate for the first or second imager. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27)
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Specification