Sub-resolution optical detection

摘要

A detector for optical detection of location within a volume, comprises a beam source for shining a structured light pattern on the volume and a digital detector having detection pixels of a given size. The light pattern, when shone into the volume and reflected back to the detection pixels, has a brightness distribution with a peak and a surrounding brightness structure. Now often the peak may be smaller than the pixel size although the overall distribution of the brightness extends over multiple pixels. The system includes an electronic processor for assessing a distribution of brightness among the neighboring pixels to infer a location of the peak within a region smaller than the size of the central pixel on which it falls, thus giving sub-pixel resolution.

主权项

1. An apparatus, comprising:
a structured light source for projecting a structured light pattern into a volume; a digital detector having a plurality of detection pixels configured to receive the structured light pattern reflected from the volume; and an electronic processor coupled to the digital detector configured to receive pixel values indicating a light intensity signal related to the structured light pattern reflected from the volume, the light intensity signal includes a peak and a surrounding structure, wherein the electronic processor is further configured to analyze, across a subset of the detection pixels having the pixel values, a distribution of the peak and the surrounding structure, and determine, based on the analysis, a location of the peak within a region smaller than a size of a detection pixel of the plurality of detection pixels.