Lens System

• US 20090251685A1
• Filed: 11/12/2008
• Published: 10/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Longhorn Automotive Group LLC (Alpha Alpha Intellectual Partners LLC)
• Original Assignee: Reactrix Systems Incorporated
• Inventors: Bell, Matthew
• Granted Patent: US 8,159,682 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 356/51
• 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 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, the cluster of lenses configured to focus and project light from the emitters in a plurality of directions, the focused and projected light forming a pattern of light;

a camera configured to detect the pattern of light on an object illuminated by the plurality of emitters; and

a computing device configured to execute instructions stored in memory to determine a location of the object in space utilizing at least the detected pattern of light on the object.

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

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a condenser lenses located between the light source and the cluster of lenses, wherein the condenser lens concentrates light from the light source to the cluster of lens.

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

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

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

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

8. A method for projecting a pattern of infrared light, the method comprising:

emitting light from a light source including a plurality of emitters, the plurality of emitters arranged in a pattern;

focusing and projecting the emitted light from the plurality of emitters in a plurality of directions by using a cluster of lenses located in front of the light source, the focused and projected light forming a pattern of light;

detecting the pattern of light on an object illuminated by the plurality of emitters; and

determining a location of the object in space utilizing at least the detected pattern of light on the object, wherein the location of the object is determined by a computing device executing instructions stored in memory.