Active sensor, object identification system, and vehicular lamp

Abstract

An optical system 114 illuminates a controllable illumination range A with radiated light from a semiconductor light source 112. A light sensor 120 detects reflected light L2 resulting from the radiated light of the optical system 114 reflecting off an object. A light distribution controller 116 controls the optical system 114 such that the illumination range A narrows in accordance with a decrease in the output of the semiconductor light source 112.

Description

Active sensors, object identification systems, vehicle lighting fixtures

[0001] The present disclosure relates to active sensors.

[0002] For autonomous driving and automatic control of headlamp light distribution, an object identification system is used to sense the position and type of objects around the vehicle. The object identification system includes a sensor and a processing unit that analyzes the sensor output. The sensor is selected from among cameras, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging, Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging), millimeter-wave radar, ultrasonic sonar, etc., taking into account the application, required accuracy, and cost.

[0003] There are two types of sensors: passive and active. Passive sensors detect light emitted by an object or light reflected from the ambient light by an object; the sensor itself does not emit light. On the other hand, active sensors irradiate an object with illumination light and detect the reflected light. Active sensors primarily comprise a light projector (lighting) that irradiates the object with light, and an optical sensor that detects the light reflected from the object. Active sensors have the advantage of being more resistant to disturbances than passive sensors by matching the wavelength of the illumination light with the sensor's wavelength sensitivity range.

[0004] The illumination light is generated by a semiconductor light source such as a laser diode (LD). The output (luminous flux) of the semiconductor light source, i.e., the amount of illumination light, decreases as the temperature of the semiconductor light source increases. When the illuminance of the light irradiating an object decreases, the accuracy of object sensing decreases.

[0005] Furthermore, if the power (drive current) supplied to the semiconductor light source is increased to compensate for the decrease in the amount of illumination light, further heat generation will occur.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of such problems, and one exemplary purpose of an embodiment thereof is to provide an active sensor that can suppress a decrease in the accuracy of sensing an object that occurs with an increase in temperature.

[0007] An aspect of the present disclosure relates to an active sensor that includes a semiconductor light source, an optical system that irradiates light emitted from the semiconductor light source within a controllable illumination range, an optical sensor that detects light reflected from an object that reflects the light emitted from the optical system, and a light distribution controller that controls the optical system to narrow the illumination range in response to a decrease in the output of the semiconductor light source.

[0008] Any combination of the above elements, or mutual substitution of elements or expressions between methods, devices, systems, etc., are also valid aspects of the present invention or the present disclosure. Furthermore, the description in this section (Means for Solving the Problems) does not explain all essential features of the present invention, and therefore, subcombinations of the described features may also constitute the present invention.

[0009] According to an aspect of the present disclosure, degradation of sensing accuracy can be suppressed.

[0010] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an active sensor according to an embodiment. FIGS. 2(a) and (b) are diagrams explaining the operation of the active sensor of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of change in light distribution of the active sensor of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a ToF (Time Of Flight) camera according to an embodiment. FIG. 6(a) and (b) are diagrams explaining the operation of the ToF camera. FIGS. 6(a) and (b) are diagrams explaining images obtained by the ToF camera. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an active sensor according to Example 1. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an active sensor according to Example 2. FIGS. 9(a) to 9(c) are diagrams explaining an example of control of an illumination range based on image data IMG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an active sensor according to Example 3. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a vehicular lamp incorporating an active sensor. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a vehicular lamp equipped with an object identification system.

[0011] (Summary of the Embodiments) A summary of some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be provided. This summary is intended to provide a basic understanding of one or more embodiments as a prelude to the detailed description that follows, and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention or disclosure. Furthermore, this summary is not intended to be a comprehensive overview of all possible embodiments, nor does it limit essential elements of the embodiments. For convenience, the term "one embodiment" may refer to one embodiment (example or variant) or multiple embodiments (examples or variants) disclosed herein.

[0012] An active sensor according to one embodiment includes a semiconductor light source, an optical system that irradiates the light emitted from the semiconductor light source over a controllable illumination range, an optical sensor that detects reflected light from an object that reflects the light emitted from the optical system, and a light distribution controller that controls the optical system to narrow the illumination range in response to a decrease in the output of the semiconductor light source.

[0013] With this configuration, when the output of the semiconductor light source decreases, the irradiation range is narrowed and the output light of the semiconductor light source is concentrated in a part of the field of view, thereby suppressing the decrease in illuminance and suppressing the decrease in sensing accuracy within the irradiation range in exchange for the sensing range.

[0014] In one embodiment, the light distribution controller may narrow the illumination range as the temperature of the semiconductor light source increases. By monitoring the temperature of the semiconductor light source, a decrease in the output of the semiconductor light source can be estimated, allowing the illumination range to be adaptively controlled.

[0015] In one embodiment, the light distribution controller may narrow the illumination range in response to a decrease in the output of the light sensor. By monitoring the output of the light sensor, a decrease in illuminance can be detected.

[0016] In one embodiment, the light sensor is an image sensor, and the output of the light sensor may be a pixel value of a given object contained in an image of the image sensor.

[0017] In one embodiment, the light distribution controller may widen the illumination range when the output of the optical sensor exceeds a first threshold after narrowing the illumination range. In another embodiment, the light distribution controller may widen the illumination range when a predetermined time has elapsed after narrowing the illumination range.

[0018] In one embodiment, if the output of the optical sensor is lower than a second threshold after narrowing the illumination range to its limit, the arithmetic processing device downstream of the active sensor may stop arithmetic processing based on the output of the active sensor. Examples of such arithmetic processing include object detection and identification (classification). By stopping object detection and classification when the amount of light reflected from an object is small, erroneous detection and erroneous determination can be prevented.

[0019] In one embodiment, the semiconductor light source may emit pulsed light, and the optical sensor may detect reflected light at a timing synchronized with the pulsed light emission.

[0020] In one embodiment, the optical sensor is an image sensor, and the active sensor may be a ToF camera that divides the field of view into multiple ranges in the depth direction and can generate multiple images corresponding to the multiple ranges by changing the time difference between light emission and image capture for each range.

[0021] In one embodiment, the active sensor may be a LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging, Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging).

[0022] (Embodiments) Preferred embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings. The same or equivalent components, parts, and processes shown in each drawing will be given the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations will be omitted as appropriate. Furthermore, the embodiments are examples rather than limitations on the disclosure, and all features and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the disclosure.

[0023] 1 is a block diagram of an active sensor 100 according to an embodiment. The active sensor 100 is a ToF camera, a LIDAR, or the like, and includes an illumination device 110, an optical sensor 120, and a sensing controller 130.

[0024] The lighting device 110 includes a semiconductor light source 112, an optical system 114, and a light distribution controller 116. The semiconductor light source 112 includes a laser diode, a light-emitting diode (LED), etc. The wavelength of the light emitted from the semiconductor light source 112 is not particularly limited, and may be infrared light, visible light, or white light.

[0025] The optical system 114 irradiates the light emitted from the semiconductor light source 112 onto a controllable irradiation range A. Although the irradiation range A is shown as a rectangle in FIG. 1 , the shape is not particularly limited and may be an ellipse or another shape. Furthermore, although FIG. 1 shows two irradiation ranges Aw and An of different sizes, the number of switchable irradiation ranges A is not limited to two. The change in the irradiation range A by the optical system 114 is based on a change in the emission angle of the light from the optical system 114, and can be achieved by changing the composite focal length of the optical elements included in the optical system 114.

[0026] The illumination range A may be switchable in two stages, or may be switchable in multiple stages, or may be switchable continuously. The configuration of the optical system 114 is not particularly limited, and may be configured by a lens optical system, a reflective optical system, or a combination thereof.

[0027] The optical sensor 120 is sensitive to the same wavelength as the output light of the semiconductor light source 112. The optical sensor 120 detects reflected light L2 that is generated when an object OBJ within the sensing range (field of view) of the active sensor 100 reflects the emitted light (illumination light) L1 from the optical system 114.

[0028] The sensing controller 130 comprehensively controls the active sensor 100. Specifically, it controls the light emission of the semiconductor light source 112 of the lighting device 110 and the sensing by the optical sensor 120 in a synchronized manner.

[0029] The light distribution controller 116 controls the optical system 114 to narrow the illumination range A in accordance with the decrease in the output of the semiconductor light source 112, i.e., the luminous flux. The function of the light distribution controller 116 may be implemented in the same hardware as the sensing controller 130, such as a microcontroller, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit).

[0030] The above is the configuration of the active sensor 100. Next, its operation will be described. Figures 2(a) and 2(b) are diagrams illustrating the operation of the active sensor 100 of Figure 1. Here, a case will be described in which the irradiation range A is switched between two stages, Aw and An.

[0031] When the output of the semiconductor light source 112 is relatively high, the illumination range Aw in Fig. 2(a) is selected. When the output of the semiconductor light source 112 is relatively low, the illumination range An in Fig. 2(b) is selected. When the output of the semiconductor light source 112 decreases, narrowing the illumination range can suppress a decrease in the amount of luminous flux per unit area on the object (or on a virtual vertical screen), i.e., the illuminance.

[0032] 3 is a diagram showing an example of a change in light distribution of the active sensor 100 of FIG. 1. In FIG. 3, the density of hatching within the illumination range indicates the illuminance. Initial state φ ０ In this example, the semiconductor light source 112 emits light with a luminous flux of the design value, and a wide irradiation range Aw is selected.

[0033] state φ １ In this state, the luminous flux of the semiconductor light source 112 is reduced in the wide irradiation range Aw. This reduces the illuminance in the irradiation range Aw (sparse hatching). １ In the case of the state φ, if an object is present in the field of view, the amount of light reflected from the object decreases, resulting in a decrease in sensing accuracy. Therefore, a narrower illumination range An is selected in response to the decrease in the luminous flux of the semiconductor light source 112, and the state φ ２ State φ ２In the initial state φ, the luminous flux of the semiconductor light source 112 decreases, but the irradiation range An also narrows. ０ This reduces the reduction in illuminance compared to conventional methods, thereby reducing the reduction in the amount of light reflected from the object and improving sensing accuracy.

[0034] The above is the operation of the active sensor 100. Next, we will explain the use of the active sensor 100. One embodiment of the active sensor 100 is a ToF (Time of Flight) camera.

[0035] 4 is a block diagram of the ToF camera 20 according to an embodiment. The ToF camera 20 has a field of view in the depth direction, and a plurality of N (N≧2) range RNGs. １ ~RNG Ｎ The image is captured in separate sections.

[0036] The ToF camera 20 includes an illumination device 22, an image sensor 24, a controller 26, and an image processing unit 28. The illumination device 22 corresponds to the illumination device 110 in Fig. 1, the image sensor 24 corresponds to the light sensor 120 in Fig. 1, and the controller 26 corresponds to the sensing controller 130 in Fig. 1.

[0037] The lighting device 22 irradiates a pulse of illumination light L1 ahead of the vehicle in synchronization with a light emission timing signal S1 provided by the controller 26. The illumination light L1 is preferably infrared light, but may be visible light having a predetermined wavelength. The illumination range of the illumination light L1 emitted by the lighting device 22 is variable as described above.

[0038] The image sensor 24 is configured to be capable of controlling exposure in synchronization with an image capturing timing signal S2 provided by the controller 26 and to be capable of generating a range image IMG. The image sensor 24 is sensitive to the same wavelength as the illumination light L1, and captures reflected light (return light) L2 reflected by the object OBJ.

[0039] The controller 26 holds predetermined light emission timing and exposure timing for each range RNG. ｉWhen capturing an image, the ToF camera 20 generates a light emission timing signal S1 and a photographing timing signal S2 based on the light emission timing and exposure timing corresponding to the range, and then captures the image. １ ~RNG Ｎ A plurality of range images IMG corresponding to １ ~IMG Ｎ The i-th range image IMG ｉ The corresponding range RNG ｉ The object contained in the image will be captured.

[0040] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the ToF camera 20. In FIG. 5, the i-th range RNG ｉ The illumination device 22 is synchronized with the light emission timing signal S1 and measures the time t ０ ~t １ The light emission period τ １ The top row shows a diagram of light rays with time on the horizontal axis and distance on the vertical axis. ｉ The distance to the boundary in front of ＭＩＮｉ、 Range RNG ｉ The distance to the inner boundary of ＭＡＸｉ Let's say.

[0041] Light that leaves the lighting device 22 at a certain time travels a distance d ＭＩＮｉ and the round trip time T ＭＩＮｉ is T ＭＩＮｉ = 2 × d ＭＩＮｉ / c, where c is the speed of light.

[0042] Similarly, light that leaves the lighting device 22 at a certain time travels a distance d ＭＡＸｉ and the round trip time T ＭＡＸｉ is T ＭＡＸｉ = 2 × d ＭＡＸｉ / c.

[0043] Range RNG ｉ When an object OBJ included in the image is to be photographed, the controller 26 ２ = t０ +T ＭＩＮｉ Exposure begins at time t ３ = t １ +T ＭＡＸｉ The image capturing timing signal S2 is generated so that the exposure is completed at this timing. This is one exposure operation.

[0044] i-th range RNG ｉ When capturing an image, light emission and exposure are repeated multiple times, and the image sensor 24 accumulates the measurement results.

[0045] 6A and 6B are diagrams illustrating images obtained by the ToF camera 20. In the example of FIG. 6A, the range RNG １ Object (pedestrian) OBJ １ exists and the range RNG ３ Object (vehicle) OBJ ３ FIG. 6(b) shows a plurality of range images IMG obtained in the situation of FIG. 6(a). １ ~IMG ３ is shown. Range image IMG １ When taking a picture, the image sensor is in the range RNG １ Since the range image IMG is exposed only by the reflected light from １ There are pedestrians １ Object image OBJ １ is captured.

[0046] Range image IMG ２ When taking a picture, the image sensor is in the range RNG ２ , and thus the range image IMG ２ No object image is captured on the

[0047] Similarly, range image IMG ３ When taking a picture, the image sensor is in the range RNG ３ Since the range image IMG is exposed by the reflected light from ３ In the ３ In this way, the ToF camera 20 can capture images of objects separately for each range.

[0048] The above is the operation of the ToF camera 20. In this ToF camera 20, the illumination range A illuminated by the lighting device 22 is controlled in accordance with the output of the semiconductor light source, thereby preventing an extreme decrease in illuminance within the illumination range A. As a result, even if the output of the semiconductor light source decreases, the pixel values ​​of objects captured in the range image IMG become larger (i.e., brighter), and deterioration of image quality is suppressed.

[0049] Next, a specific example of the configuration of the active sensor 100 will be described.

[0050] 7 is a block diagram of an active sensor 100A according to Example 1. The lighting device 110A includes a temperature sensor 118. The temperature sensor 118 is arranged so as to be able to detect the temperature of the semiconductor light source 112. The temperature sensor 118 may be a thermistor, a thermocouple, or the like.

[0051] Light distribution controller 116 controls optical system 114 based on the temperature of semiconductor light source 112 detected by temperature sensor 118. Specifically, light distribution controller 116 narrows irradiation range A as the temperature of semiconductor light source 112 increases. With semiconductor light sources such as laser diodes, the luminous flux decreases as the temperature increases when the same power is input.

[0052] For example, light distribution controller 116 may select a wide illumination range Aw when the temperature is below a predetermined threshold, and switch to a narrow illumination range An when the temperature exceeds the threshold.

[0053] For example, if the area of ​​the narrow irradiation range An is K times (K<1) the area of ​​the wide irradiation range Aw, the temperature at which the output (luminous flux or brightness) of the semiconductor light source 112 becomes 1 / K times that at room temperature can be determined in advance, and the threshold value can be determined based on that temperature.

[0054] When the irradiation range A is continuously variable, the irradiation range A may be gradually narrowed as the temperature increases.

[0055] 8 is a block diagram of an active sensor 100B according to Example 2. The light distribution controller 116 of the lighting device 110B controls the illumination range A based on the output of the optical sensor 120.

[0056] Specifically, the optical sensor 120 may be an image sensor. The light distribution controller 116 controls the illumination range A based on pixel values ​​of image data IMG generated by the image sensor. If the active sensor 100B is a ToF camera 20, the illumination range A may be controlled based on all range images, or based on a range image corresponding to a specific range.

[0057] 9A to 9C are diagrams illustrating an example of control of the irradiation range based on image data IMG.

[0058] 9A. When the illuminance of the illumination light L1 decreases, the image data IMG based on the reflected light becomes darker overall. Therefore, the light distribution controller 116 can estimate the decrease in output of the semiconductor light source 112 based on the sum or average of the pixel values ​​of all pixels in the image data IMG, and can control the illumination range A. For example, when the sum or average of the pixel values ​​falls below a predetermined threshold, the illumination range A is narrowed.

[0059] Furthermore, when the sum or average of pixel values ​​exceeds the first threshold value while the illumination range A is narrowed, the illumination range A may be returned to its original state. Alternatively, after the illumination range A is narrowed, the illumination range may be returned to its original wide range after a predetermined time has elapsed.

[0060] If the output (pixel value) of the optical sensor 120 falls below the second threshold value after narrowing the illumination range A to its limit, it is desirable for the downstream arithmetic processing device of the active sensor 100B (not shown in FIG. 8 , for example, the arithmetic processing device 40 in FIG. 10 ) to stop arithmetic processing based on the output of the active sensor 100B. In such a situation, since the amount of light reflected from the object is small, erroneous detection and erroneous determination can be prevented by stopping object detection and classification.

[0061] It should be noted that sensing by the active sensor 100B continues even while the subsequent arithmetic processing is stopped. When the output of the optical sensor 120 exceeds the second threshold value, the subsequent arithmetic processing is resumed.

[0062] In the example of Figure 9(b), the light distribution controller 116 controls the illumination range A based on pixel values ​​of a predetermined region of interest ROI in the image data IMG. The predetermined region ROI should be selected as an area that is likely to contain an object with a known reflectance. For example, the lower region of the image is likely to contain the road surface, and the reflectance of the road surface is approximately constant. Therefore, the pixels that contain the road surface may be monitored, and the illumination range A may be controlled based on the pixel values.

[0063] 9C, the light distribution controller 116 analyzes the image data IMG and detects an object OBJ. Then, the illumination range A may be controlled based on the pixel values ​​of pixels in which the specific object OBJ is captured. For example, the specific object OBJ may be a car, a person, a road sign, a delineator, a road surface, etc.

[0064] In the example of Figure 9(c), the amount of light detected by the optical sensor 120 varies depending on the illuminance of the object surface and the distance to the object. Therefore, the light distribution controller 116 may control the illumination range A depending on the pixel value of the detected object and the distance to the object. When the active sensor 100B is a ToF camera 20, the distance information to the object can be easily estimated from the range number. When the active sensor 100B is a LiDAR or ToF camera, the distance to the object can also be easily determined.

[0065] If the active sensor 100B cannot acquire distance information like a ToF camera, the distance to the object may be estimated based on the number of pixels of the object included in the image.

[0066] Alternatively, the light distribution controller 116 may detect an object that exists at a specific distance from the active sensor 100, and control the illumination range based on the pixel value of the object.

[0067] 10 is a block diagram of an active sensor 100C according to a third embodiment. In the active sensor 100C, the optical sensor 120 is an image sensor and generates image data IMG. The arithmetic processing device 40 processes the image data IMG to detect the position and type of an object. The arithmetic processing device 40 may include, for example, a classifier or a discriminator including a trained model.

[0068] The arithmetic processing device 40 supplies information relating to the success or failure of object detection and the identification rate in the arithmetic processing device 40 to the light distribution controller 116. When the arithmetic processing device 40 is no longer able to detect an object normally, the light distribution controller 116 may assume that the illuminance has decreased and reduce the illumination range A. The light distribution controller 116 may be incorporated into the arithmetic processing device 40.

[0069] This allows object detection, classification, and identification to be stopped when the amount of light reflected from an object is small, thereby preventing erroneous detection and erroneous judgment.

[0070] 11 is a diagram showing a vehicle lamp 200 incorporating an active sensor 100. The vehicle lamp 200 includes a housing 210, an outer lens 220, high beam and low beam lamp units 230H / 230L, and the active sensor 100. The lamp units 230H / 230L and the active sensor 100 are housed in the housing 210.

[0071] Note that a part of the active sensor 100, for example, the optical sensor 120, may be installed outside the vehicle lamp 200, for example, on the back side of the rearview mirror.

[0072] 12 is a block diagram showing a vehicle lamp 200 equipped with an object identification system 10. The vehicle lamp 200, together with a vehicle-side ECU 304, constitutes a lighting system 310. The vehicle lamp 200 includes a light source 202, a lighting circuit 204, and an optical system 206. The vehicle lamp 200 is further provided with an object identification system 10. The object identification system 10 includes an active sensor 100 and a processing unit 40.

[0073] The arithmetic processing unit 40 is configured to be able to identify the type of object based on the image obtained by the active sensor 100 .

[0074] The arithmetic processing device 40 can be implemented as a combination of a processor (hardware) such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), MPU (Micro Processing Unit), or microcomputer, and a software program executed by the processor (hardware). The arithmetic processing device 40 may also be a combination of multiple processors. Alternatively, the arithmetic processing device 40 may be configured solely as hardware.

[0075] Information about the object OBJ detected by the arithmetic processing device 40 may be used for light distribution control of the vehicle lamp 200. Specifically, the lamp-side ECU 208 generates an appropriate light distribution pattern based on the information about the type and position of the object OBJ generated by the arithmetic processing device 40. The lighting circuit 204 and the optical system 206 operate to obtain the light distribution pattern generated by the lamp-side ECU 208.

[0076] Furthermore, information relating to the object OBJ detected by the arithmetic processing device 40 may be transmitted to the vehicle-side ECU 304. The vehicle-side ECU may perform automatic driving based on this information.

[0077] The above-described embodiment is merely an example, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications are possible in the combination of the components and the processing steps. Such modifications will be described below.

[0078] (Variation 1) The active sensor 100 is not limited to a ToF camera and may be a LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging, Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging) or a single-pixel imaging device (quantum radar) that uses correlation calculations.

[0079] The embodiments are merely examples, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that there are various variations in the combination of each component and each treatment process, and that such variations are also included within the scope of this disclosure or the present invention.

[0080] The present disclosure relates to active sensors.

[0081] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 Object identification system OBJ Object 20 ToF camera 22 Lighting device 24 Image sensor 26 Controller S1 Light emission timing signal S2 Photography timing signal 40 Processing unit 100 Active sensor 110 Lighting device 112 Semiconductor light source 114 Optical system 116 Light distribution controller 118 Temperature sensor 120 Light sensor 130 Sensing controller 200 Vehicle lamp 202 Light source 204 Lighting circuit 206 Optical system 310 Lamp system 304 Vehicle-side ECU

Claims

1. a semiconductor light source; an optical system that irradiates light emitted from the semiconductor light source onto a controllable irradiation range; an optical sensor that detects reflected light that is reflected by an object from the optical system; a light distribution controller that controls the optical system so as to narrow the irradiation range in response to a decrease in the output of the semiconductor light source; An active sensor comprising:

2. The active sensor according to claim 1 , wherein the light distribution controller narrows the irradiation range as the temperature of the semiconductor light source increases.

3. The active sensor according to claim 1 , wherein the light distribution controller narrows the illumination range in response to a decrease in the output of the optical sensor.

4. 4. The active sensor according to claim 3, wherein the light distribution controller widens the illumination range when the output of the optical sensor exceeds a first threshold value after narrowing the illumination range.

5. The active sensor according to claim 4, characterized in that if the output of the optical sensor is lower than a second threshold value after the irradiation range is narrowed to its limit, a processing unit downstream of the active sensor stops processing based on the output of the active sensor.

6. the semiconductor light source emits pulsed light; 6. The active sensor according to claim 1, wherein the optical sensor detects the reflected light in synchronization with the pulsed light emission.

7. the optical sensor is an image sensor, The active sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the active sensor is a time-of-flight camera capable of dividing a field of view into a plurality of ranges in the depth direction and generating a plurality of images corresponding to the plurality of ranges by changing the time difference between light emission and image capture for each range.

8. The active sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 5; a processing unit capable of identifying the type of object based on the image obtained by the active sensor; An object identification system comprising:

9. A vehicle lamp comprising the object identification system according to claim 8.