Lens system

• US 8,810,803 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2012
• Issued: 08/19/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Longhorn Automotive Group LLC (Alpha Alpha Intellectual Partners LLC)
• Original Assignee: Intellectual Ventures Holding 67 LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Bell, Matthew
• Primary Examiner(s): STOCK JR, GORDON J
• Application Number:
  US13/448,321
• Publication Number:
  US 20120200843A1
• Time in Patent Office: 855 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 356/614
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 11/002 for measuring two or more coordinates
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/06 Systems determining position data of a target
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/66 Tracking systems using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/0066 in the form of an LED array
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/0085 for use with both a detector and a source , e.g. in a transceiver, G02B19/009, G02B19/0095 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/009 for use with infrared radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 3/0006 Arrays G02B3/02, G02B5/188 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 3/08 with discontinuous faces, e.g. Fresnel lens diffractive Fresnel lenses G02B5/1876
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/20 for generating image signals from infrared radiation only
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/33 Transforming infrared radiation cameras or camera modules for generating image signals from infrared radiation H04N23/20; circuitry of SSIS for transforming infrared radiation into image signals H04N25/20

Abstract

A fragmented lens system for creating an invisible light pattern useful to computer vision systems is disclosed. Random or semi-random dot patterns generated by the present system allow a computer to uniquely identify each patch of a pattern projected by a corresponding illuminator or light source. The computer may determine the position and distance of an object by identifying the illumination pattern on the object.

Claims

1. A system for projecting a pattern of light, the system comprising:

a light source including a plurality of emitters configured to emit light, the plurality of emitters arranged in a pattern;

a cluster of lenses located in front of the light source, wherein each lens of the cluster of lenses is configured to receive light from the plurality of emitters and the cluster of lenses is configured to concurrently focus and project light from each of the emitters in a plurality of directions; and

a condenser lens located between the light source and the cluster of lenses, wherein the condenser lens is configured to concentrate light from each of the plurality of emitters towards a center of the cluster of lenses.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of emitters includes light emitting diodes configured to generate infrared light that is detectable by a camera but not by an eye of a human observer interacting with an object illuminated by at least a portion of the light.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the cluster of lenses includes a Fresnel lens.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the emitters are arranged in an irregular pattern.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein a first pattern of light projected by one of the lenses from the cluster of lenses overlaps with a second pattern of light projected by another of the lenses from the cluster of lenses.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein a pattern of light projected by the cluster of lenses is aperiodic along at least one dimension.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a camera configured to detect a pattern of light on an object illuminated by at least a portion of the pattern of light; and

a computing device configured to determine a location of the object in space based on at least the detected pattern of light on the object.

8. A method comprising:

emitting, from a plurality of emitters, a plurality of lights arranged in a pattern;

concentrating, via a condenser lens, the plurality of lights towards a central location of a cluster of lenses;

receiving the concentrated light at a plurality of points within the cluster of lenses; and

concurrently focusing, from each lens of the cluster of lenses, the received and concentrated light from each of the plurality of emitters in a plurality of directions.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said emitting includes generating infrared light that is not detectable by an eye of a human observer interacting with an object illuminated by at least a portion of the light.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein said concentrating comprises concentrating the plurality of lights towards a center of a cluster of lenses including a Fresnel lens.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the focused light comprises an irregular pattern.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the focused light includes a first pattern of light overlapping with a second pattern of light.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the focused light includes a pattern which is aperiodic along at least one dimension.

14. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

detecting a pattern of light on an object illuminated by at least a portion of a pattern of light; and

determining a location of the object in space based on at least the detected pattern of light on the object.

15. A system for projecting a pattern of light, the system comprising:

a light source including a plurality of emitters configured to emit light;

a cluster of lenses, each lens included in the cluster of lenses being configured to receive the emitted light from each of the plurality of emitters; and

a condenser lens located between said light source and said cluster of lenses, the condenser lens concentrating light from each of the plurality of emitters towards a center of the cluster of lenses.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the plurality of emitters includes light emitting diodes configured to generate infrared light that is not detectable by an eye of a human observer.

17. The system of claim 15, further comprising a computing device configured to analyze images of a pattern formed by light projected from each of the emitters on an object to determine a location of the object in space based on at least the pattern of light on the object.