An imager that can measure the distance from each pixel to the point on the object that is in focus at the pixel is described. This is accomplished by a short photoconducting lossi lightguide section at each pixel. The eye or camera lens selects the object point who’s range is to be determined at the pixel. Light arriving at an image point trough a convex lens adds constructively only if it comes from the object point that is in focus at this pixel.. Light waves from all other object points cancel. Thus the lightguide at this pixel receives light from one object point only. This light signal has a phase component proportional to the range. The light intensity modes and thus the photocurrent in the lightguides shift in response to the phase of the incoming light. Contacts along the length of the lightguide collect the photocurrent signal containing the range information. Applications of this camera include autonomous vehicle navigation and robotic vision. An interesting application is as part of a crude teleportation system consisting of this camera and a three dimensional printer at a remote location.

Date Published: 24 October 2012
PDF: 12 pages
Proc. SPIE 8412, Photonics North 2012, 84121I (24 October 2012); doi: 10.1117/12.2000733

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8412:
Photonics North 2012
Jean-Claude Kieffer, Editor(s)