OPTICAL SYSTEM FOR OBJECT DETECTION AND LOCATION
First Claim
1. An imaging system comprising:
- a laser radar optical source positioned to emit a pulsed laser beam along a fixed optical axis;
a non-mechanical beamsteering device positioned along the fixed optical axis to receive the pulsed laser beam from the laser radar optical source and to scan the pulsed laser beam in a first linear scan over a first area of a scene;
a laser radar detector positioned to receive and integrate, at a first active portion of the laser radar detector, a reflection of the pulsed laser beam from the first area of the scene;
a read-out integrated circuit (ROIC) coupled to the laser radar detector and configured to provide at least a first read-out signal based at least in part on the integrated reflection of the pulsed laser beam corresponding to the first area of the scene; and
a controller coupled to the ROIC and configured to;
receive the first read-out signal;
determine a range to the first area of the scene based at least in part on a time of flight of the pulsed laser beam of the first linear scan; and
identify a presence of an object within the scene based at least in part on a first signal level of the first read-out signal, the first signal level corresponding to a reflectivity of at least a portion of the object within the first area of the scene.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Optical systems and methods for object detection and location. One example of an optical system includes a laser radar optical source positioned to emit a pulsed laser beam, a non-mechanical beamsteering device positioned to scan the beam in a linear scan over a first area of a scene, a laser radar detector positioned to receive and integrate a reflection of the beam, a read-out integrated circuit (ROIC) configured to provide a first read-out signal based on the integrated reflection, and a controller configured to receive the first read-out signal, determine a range to the first area based on a time of flight of the pulsed laser beam, and identify a presence of an object within the scene based on a signal level of the first read-out signal, the first signal level corresponding to a reflectivity of a portion of the object within the first area of the scene.
8 Citations
20 Claims
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1. An imaging system comprising:
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a laser radar optical source positioned to emit a pulsed laser beam along a fixed optical axis; a non-mechanical beamsteering device positioned along the fixed optical axis to receive the pulsed laser beam from the laser radar optical source and to scan the pulsed laser beam in a first linear scan over a first area of a scene; a laser radar detector positioned to receive and integrate, at a first active portion of the laser radar detector, a reflection of the pulsed laser beam from the first area of the scene; a read-out integrated circuit (ROIC) coupled to the laser radar detector and configured to provide at least a first read-out signal based at least in part on the integrated reflection of the pulsed laser beam corresponding to the first area of the scene; and a controller coupled to the ROIC and configured to; receive the first read-out signal; determine a range to the first area of the scene based at least in part on a time of flight of the pulsed laser beam of the first linear scan; and identify a presence of an object within the scene based at least in part on a first signal level of the first read-out signal, the first signal level corresponding to a reflectivity of at least a portion of the object within the first area of the scene. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method for optical imaging, the method comprising:
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emitting from a laser radar optical source a pulsed laser beam along a fixed optical axis; scanning with a non-mechanical beamsteering device the pulsed laser beam in a first linear scan over a first area of a scene; receiving and integrating, at a first active portion of a laser radar detector, a reflection of the pulsed laser beam from the first area of the scene; providing at least a first read-out signal from a read-out integrated circuit (ROIC) coupled to the laser radar detector, the first read-out signal being based at least in part on the integrated reflection of the pulsed laser beam corresponding to the first area of the scene; determining a range to the first area of the scene based at least in part on a time of flight of the pulsed laser beam of the first linear scan; and identifying whether an object is present within the scene based at least in part on a first signal level of the first read-out signal, the first signal level corresponding to a reflectivity of at least a portion of the object within the first area of the scene. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An imaging system comprising:
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a laser radar optical source positioned to emit a pulsed laser beam; a non-mechanical beamsteering device positioned to receive the pulsed laser beam from the laser radar optical source, the non-mechanical beamsteering device being configured to scan the pulsed laser beam in a first linear scan over a first area of a scene including at least a portion of an object; a laser radar detector positioned to receive and integrate, at an active portion of the laser radar detector, a reflection of the pulsed laser beam from the first area of the scene, wherein a boresight of the laser radar detector is fixed to a line of sight of an operator; a read-out integrated circuit (ROIC) configured to provide at least a first read-out signal based at least in part on the integrated reflection of the pulsed laser beam corresponding to the first area of the scene; a controller coupled to the ROIC and configured to receive the first read-out signal, determine a range to the first portion of the object based at least in part on a time of flight of the pulsed laser beam of the first linear scan, and identify a presence of the object within the scene based at least in part on a first signal level of the first read-out signal, the first signal level corresponding to a reflectivity of the portion of the object within the first area of the scene; and a housing configured to couple the imaging system to the operator. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification