公开(公告)号：US20230142300A1

公开(公告)日：2023-05-11

申请号：US18154361

申请日：2023-01-13

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Choon Ping Chng ,  Cheng-Han Wu ,  Lucian Ion ,  Giulia Guidi

IPC: F21V21/30 ,  B60Q3/51 ,  B60K35/00 ,  G01J1/00

CPC classification number: F21V21/30 ,  B60Q3/51 ,  B60K35/00 ,  G01J1/00 ,  B60K2370/21 ,  B60K2370/332

Abstract: Example embodiments described herein involve a system for testing a light-emitting module. The light-emitting module may include a mounting platform configured to hold a light-emitting module for a camera. The mounting platform may also be configured to rotate. The system may further include a housing holding a plurality of photodiodes arranged in an array over at least a 90 degree arc of a hemisphere. The system may also include a controller configured to control the photodiodes and the rotation of the mounting platform.

公开(公告)号：US20220357186A1

公开(公告)日：2022-11-10

申请号：US17872244

申请日：2022-07-25

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Nirav Dharia ,  Giulia Guidi ,  Ralph Shepard ,  Vlad Cardei ,  Lucian Ion

IPC: G01D5/353 ,  G01S13/89 ,  H04N5/33

Abstract: A system may include a first sensor of a first type and a second sensor of a second different type and having a detector. A field of view of the second sensor may be formed by a plurality of regions of interest (ROIs) defined by the detector. Control circuitry of the system may be configured to perform operations including obtaining, from the first sensor, first sensor data representing an environment, and determining, based on the first sensor data, information associated with a feature of interest within the environment. The operations may also include determining, based on the information, a particular ROI that corresponds to an expected position of the feature at a later time, obtaining a plurality of ROI sensor data from the particular ROI instead of obtaining full-resolution sensor data, and analyzing the plurality of ROI sensor data to determine one or more attributes of the feature.

公开(公告)号：US20220210363A1

公开(公告)日：2022-06-30

申请号：US17655411

申请日：2022-03-18

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Lucian Ion ,  Nirav Dharia ,  Vlad Cardei

IPC: H04N5/372

Abstract: An apparatus includes an image sensor having a plurality of pixels that form regions of interest (ROIs), analog-to-digital converter (ADC) banks, and multiplexers. Each respective multiplexer is electrically connected to (i) a corresponding ADC bank and (ii) a corresponding subset of the ROIs. The apparatus also includes control circuitry configured to obtain a full-resolution image of an environment by electrically connecting, by way of the multiplexers, each respective ADC bank to the associated respective ROI. The control circuitry is also configured to select a particular ROI based on the full-resolution image and obtain a plurality of ROI images of the particular ROI by (i) electrically connecting, to the particular ROI, a first ADC bank associated with the particular ROI and a second ADC bank associated with another ROI and (ii) digitizing pixels of the particular ROI by way of parallel operation of the first and second ADC banks.

公开(公告)号：US20200320677A1

公开(公告)日：2020-10-08

申请号：US16376717

申请日：2019-04-05

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Lucian Ion ,  Vlad Constantin Cardei

IPC: G06T7/00 ,  G06K9/00 ,  G06N3/063

Abstract: A method includes obtaining multiple images captured by pixel sensors of an image sensor, analyzing, using neural network circuitry integrated in the image sensor, the multiple images for object detection, generating, for each of the multiple images using the neural network circuitry integrated in the image sensor, neural network output data related to results of the analysis of the multiple images for object detection, and transmitting, from the image sensor, the neural network output data for each of the multiple images and image data for a subset of the multiple images instead of image data of each of the multiple images.

公开(公告)号：US12250468B2

公开(公告)日：2025-03-11

申请号：US18308390

申请日：2023-04-27

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Benjamin Frevert ,  Lucian Ion ,  Nirav Dharia

IPC: H04N23/71 ,  G05D1/00 ,  H04N23/10 ,  H04N23/76 ,  H04N25/60

Abstract: Example embodiments relate to microlensing for real-time sensing of stray light. An example device includes an image sensor that includes a plurality of light-sensitive pixels. The device also includes a first lens positioned over a first subset of light-sensitive pixels selected from the plurality of light-sensitive pixels. Further, the device includes a controller. The controller is configured to determine a first angle of incidence of a first light signal detected by the first subset of light-sensitive pixels. The controller is also configured to, based on the first determined angle of incidence, determine an amount of stray light incident on the image sensor.

公开(公告)号：US20240175728A1

公开(公告)日：2024-05-30

申请号：US18431467

申请日：2024-02-02

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Nirav Dharia ,  Giulia Guidi ,  Ralph Shepard ,  Vlad Cardei ,  Lucian Ion

IPC: G01D5/353 ,  G01S13/89 ,  H04N5/33 ,  G01S7/40

CPC classification number: G01D5/35383 ,  G01S13/89 ,  H04N5/33 ,  G01S7/4004

Abstract: A system may include a first sensor of a first type and a second sensor of a second different type and having a detector. A field of view of the second sensor may be formed by a plurality of regions of interest (ROIs) defined by the detector. Control circuitry of the system may be configured to perform operations including obtaining, from the first sensor, first sensor data representing an environment, and determining, based on the first sensor data, information associated with a feature of interest within the environment. The operations may also include determining, based on the information, a particular ROI that corresponds to an expected position of the feature at a later time, obtaining a plurality of ROI sensor data from the particular ROI instead of obtaining full-resolution sensor data, and analyzing the plurality of ROI sensor data to determine one or more attributes of the feature.

公开(公告)号：US11933647B2

公开(公告)日：2024-03-19

申请号：US17872244

申请日：2022-07-25

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Nirav Dharia ,  Giulia Guidi ,  Ralph Shepard ,  Vlad Cardei ,  Lucian Ion

IPC: G01D5/353 ,  G01S13/89 ,  H04N5/33 ,  G01S7/40

CPC classification number: G01D5/35383 ,  G01S13/89 ,  H04N5/33 ,  G01S7/4004

Abstract: A system may include a first sensor of a first type and a second sensor of a second different type and having a detector. A field of view of the second sensor may be formed by a plurality of regions of interest (ROIs) defined by the detector. Control circuitry of the system may be configured to perform operations including obtaining, from the first sensor, first sensor data representing an environment, and determining, based on the first sensor data, information associated with a feature of interest within the environment. The operations may also include determining, based on the information, a particular ROI that corresponds to an expected position of the feature at a later time, obtaining a plurality of ROI sensor data from the particular ROI instead of obtaining full-resolution sensor data, and analyzing the plurality of ROI sensor data to determine one or more attributes of the feature.

公开(公告)号：US11920770B2

公开(公告)日：2024-03-05

申请号：US18154361

申请日：2023-01-13

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Choon Ping Chng ,  Cheng-Han Wu ,  Lucian Ion ,  Giulia Guidi

IPC: F21V21/30 ,  B60K35/00 ,  B60Q3/51 ,  G01J1/00

CPC classification number: F21V21/30 ,  B60K35/00 ,  B60Q3/51 ,  G01J1/00 ,  B60K2370/21 ,  B60K2370/332

Abstract: Example embodiments described herein involve a system for testing a light-emitting module. The light-emitting module may include a mounting platform configured to hold a light-emitting module for a camera. The mounting platform may also be configured to rotate. The system may further include a housing holding a plurality of photodiodes arranged in an array over at least a 90 degree arc of a hemisphere. The system may also include a controller configured to control the photodiodes and the rotation of the mounting platform.

公开(公告)号：US11880902B2

公开(公告)日：2024-01-23

申请号：US17138229

申请日：2020-12-30

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Ignacio Garcia-Dorado ,  Damien Kelly ,  Xiaoying He ,  Jia Feng ,  Bartlomiej Wronski ,  Peyman Milanfar ,  Lucian Ion

IPC: G06K9/00 ,  G06T3/40 ,  G06F17/16 ,  G06F17/18 ,  B60R11/04

CPC classification number: G06T3/4053 ,  B60R11/04 ,  G06F17/16 ,  G06F17/18

Abstract: Described examples relate to an apparatus comprising one or more image sensors coupled to a vehicle and at least one processor. The at least one processor may be configured to capture, in a burst sequence using the one or more image sensors, multiple frames of an image of a scene, the multiple frames having respective, relative offsets of the image across the multiple frames and perform super-resolution computations using the captured, multiple frames of the image of the scene. The at least one processor may also be configured to accumulate, based on the super-resolution computations, color planes and combine, using the one or more processors, the accumulated color planes to create a super-resolution image of the scene.

公开(公告)号：US20230368488A1

公开(公告)日：2023-11-16

申请号：US18225329

申请日：2023-07-24

Applicant: Waymo LLC

Inventor： Nirav Dharia ,  Lucian Ion

IPC: G06V10/20 ,  G06T7/246 ,  G06V40/16 ,  H04N23/70 ,  H04N23/951

CPC classification number: G06V10/255 ,  G06T7/246 ,  G06V40/162 ,  H04N23/70 ,  H04N23/951 ,  G06T2207/20084

Abstract: A system includes an image sensor having a plurality of pixels that form a plurality of regions of interest (ROIs), and configured to operate at a frame rate higher than a threshold rate. The system also includes an image processing resource. The system further includes control circuitry configured to perform operations that include obtaining, from the image sensor, a full-resolution image of an environment. The full-resolution image contains each respective ROI of the plurality of ROIs. The operations also include selecting a particular ROI based on the full-resolution image, and detecting an object of interest in the particular ROI. The operations include determining a mode of operation by which subsequent image data generated by the particular ROI is to be processed. The operations further include processing, based on the mode of operation and the frame rate, the image data comprising a plurality of ROI images of the object of interest.