Invention Grant
- Patent Title: Devices and methods for obtaining three-dimensional shape information using polarization and time-of-flight detection pixel cells
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Application No.: US16870687Application Date: 2020-05-08
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Publication No.: US11871132B2Publication Date: 2024-01-09
- Inventor: Badrinath Padmanabhan , Boyd Fowler , Alireza Bonakdar , Richard Mann
- Applicant: OMNIVISION TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
- Applicant Address: US CA Santa Clara
- Assignee: OMNIVISION TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
- Current Assignee: OMNIVISION TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
- Current Assignee Address: US CA Santa Clara
- Agency: Christensen O'Connor Johnson Kindness PLLC
- Main IPC: H04N25/705
- IPC: H04N25/705 ; H01L27/146 ; H04N25/75 ; H04N25/778

Abstract:
In some embodiments, an imaging system is provided. The imaging system comprises an image sensor, a light source, control circuitry, and function logic. The image sensor comprises a pixel array that includes a plurality of polarization pixel cells and a plurality of time-of-flight pixel cells. The light source is configured to emit light pulses to an object. The control circuitry is coupled to the light source and the pixel array, and is configured to synchronize a timing of the emission of the light pulses with sensing of photons reflected from the object by the plurality of time-of-flight pixel cells to generate depth information. The function logic is configured to determine a set of ambiguous surface normals using signals generated by the plurality of polarization pixel cells, and to disambiguate the set of ambiguous surface normals using the depth information to generate a three-dimensional shape image.
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