Optical devices, in-vehicle systems, and mobile devices

Abstract

To provide an optical device that is compact and has high definition.SOLUTION: An optical device (1) has: a light emitting unit (111) that includes at least one light emitting element (211); a light receiving unit (121) that includes a plurality of light receiving elements (125); an optical element (112) that includes a plurality of microlenses (231); an optical system that includes a first telecentric lens (131); and acquisition units (122, 123) that acquire information on the distance to an object based on the time required for the light receiving unit to receive light emitted by the light emitting unit and reflected on the object. The number of the plurality of microlenses is larger than the number of light emitting elements. The plurality of microlenses and the first telecentric lens form an afocal system.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an optical device, an in-vehicle system, and a mobile device.

Background Art

[0002] A TOF (Time-Of-Flight) distance measurement method is known, in which the distance to a subject is measured by measuring the time difference from when light is irradiated until the reflected light is detected. Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which light-emitting elements and light-receiving elements are each arranged two-dimensionally, light is irradiated onto a subject through an imaging lens, and reflected light is received, thereby obtaining three-dimensional distance information without a driving unit. In such a configuration, it is necessary to make the light-emitting angle and the light-receiving angle substantially equal. Therefore, in order to miniaturize the distance measurement device, it is desirable to make the sizes of the light-emitting element array and the light-receiving element array substantially equal and to share the imaging lens.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses a configuration in which the number of lights constituting a light group is increased to a plurality of times the original number by diffracting a light emission group from a two-dimensional light-emitting element array through a diffractive optical element, thereby achieving high resolution of the projected light.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In the configuration disclosed in Patent Document 2, it is necessary to increase the size of the light-receiving element array in accordance with the light-emitting angle that becomes larger due to diffraction. Therefore, with this configuration, it is difficult to realize a small and high-resolution distance measurement device due to the light-emitting angle widened by the diffractive optical element.

[0006] Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a compact and high-resolution optical device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] An optical device as one aspect of the present invention comprises a light-emitting unit including at least one light-emitting element, a light-receiving unit including a plurality of light-receiving elements, an optical element including a plurality of microlenses, an optical system including a first telecentric lens, and an acquisition unit that acquires distance information of an object based on the time required from when the light-emitting unit emits light until the light-receiving unit receives the light reflected by the object, wherein the number of the plurality of microlenses is greater than the number of light-emitting elements, and the plurality of microlenses and the first telecentric lens constitute an afocal system. The plurality of microlenses divide the light from the light-emitting unit into a plurality of divided beams, and the plurality of divided beams are projected onto the object via the first telecentric lens. ru.

[0008] Other objects and features of the present invention are described in the following embodiments. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, a compact and high-resolution optical device can be provided. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram of the distance measuring device in the first embodiment. [Figure 2] These are schematic diagrams of the light source unit in each embodiment. [Figure 3] This is an explanatory diagram of the method for splitting the emitted light in each embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure shows how the projected light is projected onto the subject in each embodiment. [Figure 5] These are modified examples of the method for splitting the emitted light in each embodiment. [Figure 6] This is a block diagram of the distance measuring device in the second embodiment. [Figure 7] This is a block diagram of the distance measuring device in the third embodiment. [Figure 8] This is a diagram showing the configuration of an in-vehicle system equipped with a distance measuring device in each embodiment. [Figure 9] These are schematic diagrams of mobile devices equipped with distance measuring devices in each embodiment. [Figure 10] This flowchart shows examples of operation of an in-vehicle system equipped with a rangefinder in each embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. (First Embodiment) [Overall configuration of the rangefinder] First, with reference to Figure 1, the schematic configuration of the optical device (distance measuring device) 1 in the first embodiment will be described. Figure 1 is a block diagram of the optical device 1. The optical device 1 is an optical device (Light Detection and Ranging: LiDAR) that calculates the distance to an object based on the time it takes for light to arrive after it is emitted using the TOF method. The optical device 1 is composed of a light projection unit 110, a measurement unit 120, an image-side telecentric lens (first telecentric lens) 131, an image-side telecentric lens (second telecentric lens) 132, and an overall control unit 140. The light projection unit 110 is composed of a light source unit 113 having a light-emitting part 111 and an optical element 112, and a light source control unit 114.

[0012] The light-emitting unit 111 has a light-emitting element array 210 comprising a plurality of light-emitting elements 211 arranged in two dimensions (see Figure 2). However, this embodiment is not limited to this, and the light-emitting unit 111 may have only one light-emitting element 211. That is, the light-emitting unit 111 only needs to have at least one light-emitting element 211. The optical element 112 is a microlens array 230 comprising a plurality of microlenses 231 arranged in two dimensions (see Figure 2), which divides the light from the light-emitting unit 111 into a plurality of divided beams.

[0013] The measurement unit 120 is configured to include a light receiving unit 121, a TDC (Time-to-Digital Convertor) array unit 122, a signal processing unit 123, and a measurement control unit 124. The light receiving unit 121 has a light receiving element array 125 including a plurality of light receiving elements.

[0014] When each of the plurality of light emitting elements 211 in the light source unit 113 emits pulsed light, pulsed light is projected into space through the image-side telecentric lens 131. The pulsed light emitted from different light emitting elements 211 is projected onto different angular fields of view in space. The projected light is irradiated onto the subject (object), and a part of the light reflected by the subject is received by the light receiving unit 121 through the image-side telecentric lens 132. The time from when light is emitted by the light emitting element 211 until the light is received by the light receiving unit 121 is the time-of-flight TOF. The TDC array unit 122 is a measurement unit that measures the time-of-flight TOF. However, in one measurement, it is difficult to remove noise components such as noise light like ambient light and dark count, and also due to the influence of noise in the measurement circuit, etc., the ranging error becomes large. For this reason, the TDC array unit 122 repeatedly measures the time-of-flight TOF from emission to reception, and the signal processing unit 123 creates a histogram of the measurement results and performs removal of noise components and averaging of the measurement results. The TDC array unit 122 and the signal processing unit 123 constitute an acquisition unit that acquires distance information of the object based on the time required from when the light emitting unit 111 emits light until the light reflected by the object is received by the light receiving unit 121.

[0015] By substituting the thus obtained time-of-flight TOF into the following formula (1), the distance L to the subject can be obtained with high precision. In formula (1), c is the speed of light.

[0016] L = TOF × c / 2 ···(1) [Light Source Unit] Next, an example of a light source unit 113 constituting the light projection unit 110 will be described with reference to Figure 2. Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the light source unit 113. The light-emitting element array 210 is a VCSEL array in which multiple VCSELs (Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers) as multiple light-emitting elements 211 are arranged in a two-dimensional manner on a substrate. In this embodiment, the light-emitting elements 211 are not limited to VCSELs, but are preferably light-emitting elements that can be integrated in a one-dimensional or two-dimensional array, such as edge-emitting lasers or LEDs (light-emitting diodes).

[0017] When an end-emitting laser is used instead of a VCSEL array as the light-emitting element 211, the light-emitting element array 210 can be, for example, a laser bar arranged in a one-dimensional manner on a substrate, or a laser bar stack arranged in a two-dimensional manner by stacking these laser bars. When LEDs are used as the light-emitting elements 211, the light-emitting element array 210 can be a two-dimensional arrangement of LEDs on a substrate.

[0018] In this embodiment, the optical device 1 preferably uses a near-infrared wavelength for the light emitted by the light-emitting element 211 to suppress the influence of ambient light. However, this embodiment is not limited to this. VCSELs are manufactured using semiconductor processes with materials used in conventional end-emitting lasers and surface-emitting lasers. When configuring a VCSEL to emit light in the near-infrared wavelength range, GaAs-based semiconductor materials can be used as the main material. In this case, the dielectric multilayer film forming the DBR (distributed reflection) mirror constituting the VCSEL can be constructed by alternately and periodically stacking two thin films (e.g., GaAs / AlGaAs) made of materials with different refractive indices. The wavelength of the emitted light can be changed by adjusting the elemental combination or composition of the compound semiconductor.

[0019] Multiple VCSELs constituting a VCSEL array are equipped with electrodes for injecting current and holes into their active layers, and by controlling the injection timing, it is possible to emit arbitrary pulsed light or modulated light. For this reason, the light source control unit 114 can, for example, independently drive each of the multiple VCSELs acting as multiple light-emitting elements 211, or it can drive VCSELs in specific areas of the VCSEL array, such as rows or columns.

[0020] Light emitted from a VCSEL acting as a light-emitting element 211 is normally divergent due to diffraction at the aperture of the VCSEL. Therefore, the light source unit 113 has a collimator lens array 220 configured by arranging multiple collimator lenses 221 in a two-dimensional manner to control the divergence angle of the divergent light or to convert the divergent light into parallel light. In this embodiment, the multiple collimator lenses 221 constituting the collimator lens array 220 are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with each of the multiple light-emitting elements 211. The light emitted from the VCSEL array collimated by the collimator lens array 220 is converted, for example, into parallel light perpendicular to the VCSEL array substrate. Note that the collimator lenses 221 may be omitted when the radiation angle from the VCSEL is small due to the aperture diameter, etc.

[0021] Furthermore, the light source unit 113 has a microlens array 230 equipped with multiple microlenses 231 arranged in two dimensions in order to split the parallel light collimated by multiple collimator lenses 221 into multiple emitted lights. [Method of splitting emitted light] Next, with reference to Figure 3, a method for splitting the light emitted from the light-emitting element 211 into multiple emitted beams will be explained. Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram of the method for splitting the emitted beam, and as an example, it shows how one emitted beam is split into multiple 3x3 emitted beams (Figure 3 is shown in two dimensions (cross-section)).

[0022] The light emitted from the light-emitting element 211 diverges due to diffraction, so it is collimated by the collimator lens 221 to become parallel light. The parallel light collimated by the collimator lens 221 is split into multiple emitted beams by passing through the microlens array 230. The width (thickness in three dimensions) of the parallel light collimated by the collimator lens 221 must be greater than the diameter of the microlens 231. The emitted light split into multiple beams by the microlens array 230 is projected onto the subject via the image-side telecentric lens 131.

[0023] The microlens 231 and the image-side telecentric lens 131 constitute an afocal system (a non-focus optical system). Therefore, when light is projected from the image-side telecentric lens, it is projected at an angle corresponding to the image height (the positional relationship between the microlens 231 and the image-side telecentric lens 131) and is projected parallel to the image. Consequently, the width d (thickness in three dimensions) of the projected light is the same regardless of the distance from the image-side telecentric lens 131 to the subject (independent of the distance to the subject). If the pitch of the microlens 231 is p, the focal length of the microlens 231 is fM, and the focal length of the image-side telecentric lens 131 is fL, the width d of the projected light is expressed by the following equation (2). However, if the width d of the projected light is greater than the pupil diameter of the image-side telecentric lens 131, the width d of the projected light is limited by the pupil diameter.

[0024] d = p × (fL / fM) ... (2) Next, we will explain how the projected light described in Figure 3 appears on the subject, referring to Figures 4(a) to (c). Figures 4(a) to (c) show how the projected light is projected onto the subject (object) 401. In Figures 4(a) to (c), the projected light is divided into 3x3 sections and projected onto the subject 401 as a projected image 402. The projected image size d in Figures 4(a) to (c) and the width d of the projected light in Figure 3 are equal to each other. The subjects 401 are shown in order of proximity to the image-side telecentric lens 131 (the light-emitting section 111 or light-receiving section 121 of the optical device 1) as Figures 4(a), (b), and (c).

[0025] As shown in Figures 4(a) to (c), the projection light interval increases as the distance from the image-side telecentric lens 131 increases, but the projected image size d does not change. That is, the interval between the multiple segmented lights (projected light interval) that are divided by the optical element 112 and passed through the image-side telecentric lens 131 to illuminate the subject 401 changes according to the distance to the subject 401. On the other hand, the width of each of the multiple segmented lights (projected image size d) does not change according to the aforementioned distance to the subject 401. As a result, the light emitted from a certain light-emitting element 211 can be received only by a specific photodetector (not shown) in the photodetector array 125, making it possible to establish a one-to-one correspondence between the light-emitting element 211 and the photodetector. Therefore, sequential driving is possible, where only a portion of the multiple light-emitting elements 211 emit light, and only the photodetector corresponding to the emitted light-emitting element 211 is driven among the multiple photodetectors. As a result, multiple photodetectors can share one TDC, reducing the pixel size and enabling higher resolution.

[0026] In this embodiment, the case in which the light emitted from one light-emitting element 211 is divided into 3 × 3 is described, but the number of divisions of the emitted light is not limited to 3 × 3. Figure 5 shows a modified example of the method of dividing the emitted light. As shown in Figure 5, the arrangement does not have to be square, such as the microlens array 230 in which the microlenses are arranged in a 3 × 2 pattern. Also, the microlenses constituting the microlens array 230 may be not only circular microlenses 501, but also elliptical microlenses 502. (Second Embodiment) Next, with reference to Figure 6, the optical device (distance measuring device) 1a in the second embodiment will be described. Figure 6 is a block diagram of the optical device 1a. The optical device 1a differs from the optical device 1 of the first embodiment in that it has one image-side telecentric lens 133 and a beam splitter (light division unit) 150 instead of two image-side telecentric lenses 131 and 132. That is, the optical device 1a uses the beam splitter 150 to share the same image-side telecentric lens 133 for light emission and light reception.

[0027] In the first embodiment described with reference to Figure 1, a binocular optical device 1 was described in which the light-emitting optical system and the light-receiving optical system were separate systems. In this case, when light emitted from a light-emitting element 211 is projected through the image-side telecentric lens 131, the projected light is reflected by the subject, and when it returns through the image-side telecentric lens 132, the optical path of the reflected light changes according to the distance to the subject. Therefore, since the imaging position on the light-receiving element changes according to the distance to the subject, there is a possibility that the distance measurement accuracy will be subject distance dependent.

[0028] On the other hand, in the optical device 1a of this embodiment, the same optical path can be used for light emission and light reception. Therefore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to eliminate the dependence of the distance measurement accuracy on the subject distance caused by the aforementioned two-lens configuration. (Third embodiment) Next, with reference to Figure 7, the optical device (distance measuring device) 1b in the third embodiment will be described. Figure 7 is a block diagram of the optical device 1b. The optical device 1b differs from the optical device 1a of the second embodiment in that it has a converter (angle of view changing unit) 160. The optical device 1b of this embodiment can change the angle of view arbitrarily by including the converter 160. In this embodiment, the converter 160 may change the angle of view using a teleconverter or a wide converter depending on the distance to the subject. The converter 160 of this embodiment is also applicable to the configuration of the first embodiment. [In-vehicle systems] Figure 8 is a diagram showing the configuration of the optical device 1 (1a, 1b) and the in-vehicle system (driving assistance device) 1000 equipped therewith according to each embodiment. The in-vehicle system 1000 is held by a movable mobile body (mobile device) such as an automobile (vehicle) and is a system for assisting the driving (operation) of the vehicle based on distance information of objects such as obstacles and pedestrians around the vehicle acquired by the optical device 1. Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the vehicle 500 as a mobile device including the in-vehicle system 1000. In Figure 9, the case in which the distance measurement range (detection range) of the optical device 1 is set to the front of the vehicle 500 is shown, but the distance measurement range may also be set to the rear or side of the vehicle 500.

[0029] As shown in Figure 8, the in-vehicle system 1000 comprises an optical device 1, a vehicle information acquisition device 200, a control device (control unit, ECU: electronic control unit) 300, and a warning device (warning unit) 400. In the in-vehicle system 1000, the control unit 60 provided in the optical device 1 has the functions of a distance acquisition unit (acquisition unit) and a collision determination unit (determination unit). However, if necessary, the in-vehicle system 1000 may provide a distance acquisition unit and a collision determination unit separate from the control unit 60, and each may be provided outside the optical device 1 (for example, inside the vehicle 500). Alternatively, the control device 300 may be used as the control unit 60.

[0030] Figure 10 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the in-vehicle system 1000 according to this embodiment. The operation of the in-vehicle system 1000 will be described below in accordance with this flowchart.

[0031] First, in step S1, the light source unit 10 of the optical device 1 illuminates the object around the vehicle, and the light receiving unit 40 receives reflected light from the object. Based on the signal output by the light receiving unit 40, the control unit 60 acquires distance information of the object. In step S2, the vehicle information acquisition device 200 acquires vehicle information, including the vehicle speed, yaw rate, and steering angle. Then, in step S3, the control unit 60 uses the distance information acquired in step S1 and the vehicle information acquired in step S2 to determine whether the distance to the object falls within a preset distance range.

[0032] This allows the system to determine whether or not an object exists within a set distance around the vehicle and to determine the possibility of a collision between the vehicle and the object. Steps S1 and S2 may be performed in the reverse order of the above, or they may be processed in parallel. The control unit 60 determines "possibility of collision" if an object exists within the set distance (step S4), and determines "no possibility of collision" if an object does not exist within the set distance (step S5).

[0033] Next, if the control unit 60 determines that there is a possibility of collision, it notifies (transmits) the determination result to the control device 300 and the warning device 400. At this time, the control device 300 controls the vehicle based on the determination result from the control unit 60 (step S6), and the warning device 400 issues a warning to the vehicle's user (driver, passengers) based on the determination result from the control unit 60 (step S7). Note that notification of the determination result only needs to be made to at least one of the control device 300 and the warning device 400.

[0034] The control device 300 can control the movement of a vehicle by outputting control signals to the vehicle's drive unit (such as the engine or motor). For example, it can control the vehicle by applying the brakes, releasing the accelerator, turning the steering wheel, and generating control signals to apply braking force to each wheel, thereby suppressing the output of the engine or motor. The warning device 400 can also warn the user by, for example, emitting a warning sound, displaying warning information on a screen such as a car navigation system, or vibrating the seat belt or steering wheel.

[0035] As described above, the in-vehicle system 1000 according to this embodiment can detect objects and measure their distance through the above-described process, making it possible to avoid collisions between the vehicle and the objects. In particular, by applying the optical device 1 according to each of the embodiments described above to the in-vehicle system 1000, high distance measurement accuracy can be achieved, making it possible to detect objects and determine collisions with high accuracy.

[0036] In this embodiment, the in-vehicle system 1000 is applied to driver assistance (collision damage mitigation), but it is not limited to this, and the in-vehicle system 1000 may also be applied to cruise control (including with full-speed following function) or autonomous driving. Furthermore, the in-vehicle system 1000 is not limited to automobiles and other vehicles, but can be applied to mobile objects such as ships, aircraft, and industrial robots. Moreover, it is not limited to mobile objects, but can be applied to various devices that utilize object recognition, such as intelligent transportation systems (ITS) and surveillance systems.

[0037] Furthermore, the in-vehicle system 1000 and the vehicle (mobility device) 500 may be equipped with a notification device (notification unit) to notify the manufacturer of the in-vehicle system or the dealer of the mobility device if the vehicle 500 collides with an obstacle. For example, the notification device may be one that sends information regarding the collision between the vehicle 500 and the obstacle (collision information) to a pre-set external notification destination via email or the like.

[0038] In this way, by adopting a configuration in which collision information is automatically notified by the notification device, it is possible to promptly take action such as inspection and repair after a collision occurs. The recipients of the collision information may be insurance companies, medical institutions, the police, or any other name set by the user. Furthermore, the notification device may be configured to notify recipients not only of collision information, but also of malfunction information of various parts and information on the wear and tear of consumables. The detection of whether or not a collision has occurred may be performed using distance information acquired based on the output from the light receiving unit 2 described above, or it may be performed by other detection units (sensors).

[0039] Each embodiment makes it possible to provide a compact and high-resolution optical device, an in-vehicle system, and a mobile device.

[0040] Each embodiment disclosed includes the following configuration:

[0041] (Composition 1) A light-emitting section including at least one light-emitting element, A light-receiving unit including multiple light-receiving elements, An optical element including multiple microlenses, An optical system including the first telecentric lens, The system includes an acquisition unit that acquires distance information of an object based on the time required from the time the light-emitting unit emits light until the light-receiving unit receives the light reflected by the object. The number of the plurality of microlenses is greater than the number of the light-emitting elements. An optical device characterized in that the afocal system is composed of the plurality of microlenses and the first telecentric lens. (Configuration 2) The optical apparatus according to configuration 1, characterized in that the first telecentric lens is an image-side telecentric lens. (Composition 3) The optical device according to configuration 1 or 2, characterized in that the light emitted from one of the light-emitting elements passes through at least two of the plurality of microlenses. (Composition 4) The optical apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 3, characterized in that the light-emitting element is a VCSEL. (Composition 5) The optical system has a second telecentric lens, The light from the light-emitting part passes through the first telecentric lens and is reflected by the object. The optical apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 4, characterized in that the light reflected by the object passes through the second telecentric lens and is received by the light receiving unit. (Composition 6) The aforementioned optical system has an optical splitting section, The light from the light-emitting unit is guided by the light-splitting unit, passes through the first telecentric lens, and is reflected by the object. The optical apparatus according to any one of configurations 1 to 4, characterized in that the light reflected by the object passes through the first telecentric lens, is guided by the light splitting unit, and is received by the light receiving unit. (Composition 7) The optical apparatus according to configuration 6, characterized in that the optical system is shared between the light-emitting unit and the light-receiving unit. (Composition 8) The optical device according to any one of configurations 1 to 7, characterized in that the optical system has a field of view changing unit that changes the field of view. (Composition 9) The optical element divides the light emitted from the light-emitting part into a plurality of divided beams, The interval between the multiple divided beams, which have passed through the first telecentric lens and irradiated onto the object, changes according to the distance to the object. The optical device according to any one of configurations 1 to 8, characterized in that the width of each of the plurality of divided light beams does not change according to the distance to the object. (Composition 10) An in-vehicle system comprising an optical device described in any of configurations 1 to 9, characterized in that it determines the possibility of a collision between the vehicle and the object based on the distance information of the object obtained by the optical device. (Composition 11) The in-vehicle system according to configuration 10, characterized in that it includes a control device that outputs a control signal to generate braking force on the vehicle when it is determined that there is a possibility of collision between the vehicle and the object. (Composition 12) The in-vehicle system according to configuration 10 or 11, characterized in that it includes a warning device that warns the user of the vehicle when it is determined that there is a possibility of collision between the vehicle and the object. (Composition 13) An in-vehicle system according to any one of configurations 10 to 12, characterized in that it includes a notification device for notifying the outside of information regarding a collision between the vehicle and the object. (Composition 14) A mobile device comprising an optical device described in any of configurations 1 to 9, and characterized in that it is capable of holding and moving the optical device. (Composition 15) The moving device according to configuration 14, characterized in that it has a determination unit that determines the possibility of collision with the object based on distance information of the object obtained by the optical device. (Composition 16) The moving device according to configuration 15, further comprising a control unit that outputs a control signal to control movement when it is determined that there is a possibility of collision with the aforementioned object. (Composition 17) The mobile device according to configuration 15 or 16, further comprising a warning unit that warns the user of the mobile device when it is determined that there is a possibility of collision with the aforementioned object. (Composition 18) A mobile device according to any one of configurations 15 to 17, characterized in that it includes a notification unit for notifying the outside of information relating to a collision with the aforementioned object.

[0042] Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of its gist. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0043] 1, 1a, 1b Distance measuring device (optical device) 111 Light-emitting part 112 Optical elements 122 TDC Array Unit (Acquisition Unit) 123 Signal Processing Unit (Acquisition Unit) 125 Photodetector 131 Image-side telecentric lens 211 Light-emitting element 231 Microlenses

Claims

1. A light-emitting section including at least one light-emitting element, A light-receiving unit including multiple light-receiving elements, An optical element including multiple microlenses, An optical system including a first telecentric lens, The system includes an acquisition unit that acquires distance information of an object based on the time required from the time the light-emitting unit emits light until the light-receiving unit receives the light reflected by the object. The number of the plurality of microlenses is greater than the number of the light-emitting elements. The afocal system is formed by the plurality of microlenses and the first telecentric lens. The plurality of microlenses divide the light from the light-emitting unit into a plurality of divided beams, The optical device is characterized in that the plurality of segmented lights are projected onto the object via the first telecentric lens.

2. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the first telecentric lens is an image-side telecentric lens.

3. The optical device according to claim 1, characterized in that the light emitted from one of the light-emitting elements passes through at least two of the plurality of microlenses.

4. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the light-emitting element is a VCSEL.

5. The optical system has a second telecentric lens, The light from the light-emitting part passes through the first telecentric lens and is reflected by the object. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the light reflected by the object passes through the second telecentric lens and is received by the light receiving unit.

6. The aforementioned optical system has an optical splitting section, The light from the light-emitting unit is guided by the light-splitting unit, passes through the first telecentric lens, and is reflected by the object. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the light reflected by the object passes through the first telecentric lens, is guided by the light splitting unit, and is received by the light receiving unit.

7. The optical apparatus according to claim 6, characterized in that the optical system is shared between the light-emitting unit and the light-receiving unit.

8. The optical device according to claim 1, characterized in that the optical system has a field of view changing unit that changes the field of view.

9. The interval between the plurality of divided light beams, which have passed through the first telecentric lens and irradiated onto the object, changes according to the distance to the object. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the width of each of the plurality of divided light beams does not change according to the distance to the object.

10. An in-vehicle system comprising an optical device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that it determines the possibility of collision between a vehicle and the object based on the distance information of the object obtained by the optical device.

11. The in-vehicle system according to claim 10, further comprising a control device that outputs a control signal for generating braking force on the vehicle when it is determined that there is a possibility of collision between the vehicle and the object.

12. The in-vehicle system according to claim 10, further comprising a warning device that warns the user of the vehicle when it is determined that there is a possibility of collision between the vehicle and the object.

13. The in-vehicle system according to claim 10, further comprising a notification device for notifying an external party of information relating to a collision between the vehicle and the object.

14. A mobile device comprising an optical device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that it is capable of holding and moving the optical device.

15. The moving device according to claim 14, further comprising a determination unit that determines the possibility of collision with the object based on distance information of the object obtained by the optical device.

16. The moving device according to claim 15, further comprising a control unit that outputs a control signal to control movement when it is determined that there is a possibility of collision with the aforementioned object.

17. The mobile device according to claim 15, further comprising a warning unit that warns the user of the mobile device when it is determined that there is a possibility of collision with the aforementioned object.

18. The mobile device according to claim 15, further comprising a notification unit for notifying the outside of information relating to a collision with the aforementioned object.

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