公开(公告)号：US20230258785A1

公开(公告)日：2023-08-17

申请号：US18163063

申请日：2023-02-01

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Shingo Mandai ,  Dong Zheng ,  Tong Chen ,  Cristiano L Niclass

IPC: G01S7/487 ,  G01S7/4863 ,  G01S17/88

CPC classification number: G01S7/4876 ,  G01S7/4863 ,  G01S7/4873 ,  G01S17/88

Abstract: An electronic device may include a proximity sensor under a cover layer. The proximity sensor may include a light-emitter, such as an infrared light source, and a light-detector, such as an array of single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs). The SPADs may measure light that has reflected from an external object. However, some of the light may be reflected by the cover layer, creating cross-talk. To distinguish between the cross-talk and signals from the external object, processing circuitry may histogram measurements from the SPADs. In particular, the processing circuitry may histogram near-field and/or far-field measurements into different histograms. The measurements may be weighted and/or gated prior to histogramming. In this way, cross-talk may be distinguished from the near-field and far-field signals.

公开(公告)号：US20220404475A1

公开(公告)日：2022-12-22

申请号：US17714161

申请日：2022-04-06

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Arnaud Laflaquière ,  Cristiano L Niclass ,  Marc Drader

IPC: G01S7/4863 ,  H01L23/00 ,  G01S17/10

Abstract: An optoelectronic device includes a first semiconductor die, having first front and rear surfaces and including at least one avalanche photodetector configured to output electrical pulses in response to photons incident on the first front surface. A second semiconductor die has a second front surface, which is bonded to the first rear surface, and a second rear surface, and includes a photodetector receiver analog circuit coupled to the at least one avalanche photodetector and an emitter driver circuit configured to drive a pulsed optical emitter. A third semiconductor die has a third front surface, which is bonded to the second rear surface, and a third rear surface, and includes logic circuits coupled to control the photodetector receiver analog circuit and the emitter driver circuit and to receive and process the electrical pulses output by the at least one avalanche photodetector.

公开(公告)号：US20220350026A1

公开(公告)日：2022-11-03

申请号：US17863412

申请日：2022-07-13

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Moshe Laifenfeld ,  Harish Venkataraman ,  Cristiano L Niclass ,  Doron Shinbox ,  Shingo Mandai ,  Susan A. Thompson

IPC: G01S17/894 ,  G01S17/10 ,  G01S7/481 ,  G01S7/4865 ,  G01S7/4863 ,  G01S7/484

Abstract: Sensing apparatus includes a radiation source, which emits pulses of optical radiation toward multiple points in a target scene. A receiver receives the optical radiation that is reflected from the target scene and outputs signals that are indicative of respective times of flight of the pulses to and from the points in the target scene. Processing and control circuitry selects a first pulse repetition interval (PRI), a second PRI, greater than the first PRI, and a third PRI, greater than the second PRI, from a permitted range of PRIs, drives the radiation source to emit sequences of the pulses at the first PRI, the second PRI, and the third PRI, and processes the signals output by the receiver in response to the first, second, and third sequences of the pulses in order to compute respective depth coordinates of the points in the target scene.

公开(公告)号：US11500094B2

公开(公告)日：2022-11-15

申请号：US16885316

申请日：2020-05-28

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Thierry Oggier ,  Bernhard Buettgen ,  Cristiano L Niclass ,  Rahmi Hezar ,  Shingo Mandai ,  Darshan Shrestha ,  Gary Chung ,  Moshe Laifenfeld

IPC: G01S17/26 ,  G01S17/86 ,  G01S7/524 ,  G01S7/527 ,  G01S7/53

Abstract: Sensing apparatus includes a radiation source, which emits pulses of optical radiation toward multiple points in a target scene. A receiver receives the optical radiation that is reflected from the target scene and outputs signals that are indicative of respective times of flight of the pulses to and from the points in the target scene. Processing and control circuitry selects a first pulse repetition interval (PRI) and a second PRI, greater than the first PRI, from a permitted range of PRIs, drives the radiation source to emit a first sequence of the pulses at the first PRI and a second sequence of the pulses at a second PRI, and processes the signals output in response to both the first and second sequences of the pulses in order to compute respective depth coordinates of the points in the target scene.

公开(公告)号：US10830879B2

公开(公告)日：2020-11-10

申请号：US15950186

申请日：2018-04-11

Applicant: APPLE INC.

Inventor： Cristiano L Niclass ,  Scott T Smith ,  Thierry Oggier

IPC: G01C3/08 ,  G01S7/4865 ,  G01S7/4863 ,  G01S17/10 ,  H01L31/107 ,  H01L27/144 ,  G01S17/42 ,  G01S17/89

Abstract: An optical sensing device includes a light source, which is configured to emit one or more beams of light pulses at respective angles toward a target scene. An array of sensing elements is configured to output signals in response to incidence of photons on the sensing elements. Light collection optics are configured to image the target scene onto the array. Control circuitry is coupled to actuate the sensing elements only in one or more selected regions of the array, each selected region containing a respective set of the sensing elements in a part of the array onto which the light collection optics image a corresponding area of the target scene that is illuminated by the one of the beams, and to adjust a membership of the respective set responsively to a distance of the corresponding area from the device.

公开(公告)号：US20220244391A1

公开(公告)日：2022-08-04

申请号：US17548541

申请日：2021-12-12

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Shingo Mandai ,  Cristiano L Niclass ,  Nadav Fine ,  Oz Barak ,  Rahmi Hezar

IPC: G01S17/894 ,  G01S7/481 ,  G01S7/4865 ,  G01B11/22

Abstract: Optical sensing apparatus includes a radiation source, which directs a series of optical pulses toward a target scene. A first array of single-photon detectors receives optical radiation that is reflected from the target scene and outputs electrical pulses in response to incident photons. A second array of counters aggregates and counts the electrical pulses output by the single-photon detectors over respective periods indicated by respective gating signals applied to the counters. Control logic applies the respective gating signals to the counters, in each of a sequence of image frames, so as to cause different ones of the counters to aggregate and count the electrical pulses output by one or more of the single-photon detectors over different, respective gating intervals relative to each of the optical pulses, and to sum the frame histograms generated with different temporal offsets so as to compute and output a cumulative histogram.

公开(公告)号：US10775507B2

公开(公告)日：2020-09-15

申请号：US15673428

申请日：2017-08-10

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Shingo Mandai ,  Cristiano L Niclass ,  Richard E Bills ,  Moshe Laifenfeld ,  Mina A. Rezk ,  Alexander Shpunt ,  Ron Sokolovsky ,  Tal Kaitz ,  Ronen Akerman ,  Jason D. Mudge ,  Andrew J Sutton

IPC: G01S17/00 ,  G01S17/89 ,  G01S7/486 ,  G01S7/4863 ,  G01S7/484 ,  G01S7/4865 ,  G01S17/10 ,  G01B11/02 ,  G01S7/481 ,  G02F1/29

Abstract: An electro-optical device includes a laser, which is configured to emit toward a scene pulses of optical radiation. An array of detectors are configured to receive the optical radiation that is reflected from points in the scene and to output signals indicative of respective times of arrival of the received radiation. A controller is coupled to drive the laser to emit a sequence of pulses of the optical radiation toward each of a plurality of points in the scene and to find respective times of flight for the points responsively to the output signals, while controlling a power of the pulses emitted by the laser by counting a number of the detectors outputting the signals in response to each pulse, and reducing the power of a subsequent pulse in the sequence when the number is greater than a predefined threshold.