Plural anode time-of-flight sensor
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A time-of-flight light-sensitive pixel in a time-of-flight camera, comprising:
- a hermetically sealed evacuated cavity formed in an insulating substrate;
a photoelectric cathode for generating electrons responsive to light incident on the time-of-flight light-sensitive pixel in the time-of-flight camera; and
a plurality of anodes for collecting electrons generated at the photoelectric cathode and passing through the hermetically sealed evacuated cavity.
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Abstract
A time of flight (TOF) camera comprises a light source for illuminating an object with light and a plurality of light-sensitive pixels for collecting return image light reflected by the object. Further, each light-sensitive pixel of the TOF camera may comprise a photoelectric cathode for generating electrons responsive to return image light incident on the pixel and a plurality of anodes for collecting electrons generated at the photoelectric cathode.
227 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A time-of-flight light-sensitive pixel in a time-of-flight camera, comprising:
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a hermetically sealed evacuated cavity formed in an insulating substrate; a photoelectric cathode for generating electrons responsive to light incident on the time-of-flight light-sensitive pixel in the time-of-flight camera; and a plurality of anodes for collecting electrons generated at the photoelectric cathode and passing through the hermetically sealed evacuated cavity. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method for operating a time-of-flight camera, the method comprising:
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emitting an image light pulse from a light source of the time-of-flight camera, the light source configured to illuminate an object with image light; during a first collection phase, collecting a first portion of return image light at a first anode of a light-sensitive pixel, the return image light comprising image light reflected by the object; during a second collection phase, collecting a second portion of the return image light at a second anode of the light-sensitive pixel; normalizing the first and second portions of the return image light with a normalization factor; and estimating a distance to the object based on one or more of the normalized first and second portions of the return image light. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A time-of-flight camera, comprising:
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a light source for illuminating an object with image light; a plurality of time-of-flight light-sensitive pixels for collecting return image light reflected by the object, each time-of-flight light-sensitive pixel comprising; a photoelectric cathode for generating electrons responsive to return image light incident on a corresponding time-of-flight light-sensitive pixel, and a plurality of anodes for collecting electrons generated at the photoelectric cathode and passing through a hermetically sealed evacuated cavity between the photoelectric cathode and the plurality of anodes. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification