Optical communication system for position-finding of a portable electronic device in free space
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional positioning systems for portable electronic devices are complex and power-consuming, making them unsuitable for battery-powered devices, as they require computationally intensive calculations and sophisticated circuitry to determine spatial and angular positions accurately in free space.
Innovation Solution
An optical communication system using an array of laser diodes to project angular-encoded information into the field of view, allowing devices to determine their position relative to a reference point without complex calculations or communication, by receiving serially-projected codes and correlating them using a lookup table.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional positioning systems are used to determine spatial and angular positions accurately, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity and power consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional mechanical/electronic positioning systems with an optical system. A light source projects angularly-encoded light patterns into the environment, and a light sensor detects these patterns to determine spatial and angular positions. This optical approach eliminates the need for complex computational hardware and sophisticated circuitry, significantly reducing device complexity while maintaining positioning accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The system encodes angular position information into light patterns that are projected into the field of view. Instead of performing computationally-intensive calculations to determine position, the system creates optical copies of position data in the form of angularly-encoded light patterns. The sensor simply detects which pattern is visible, converting the position determination into a pattern recognition task that requires minimal computation.
2Productivity
If conventional positioning systems perform computationally-intensive calculations rapidly, then productivity is improved, but use of energy increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent substitutes computational processing with optical processing. Rather than using processors to perform rapid calculations, the system uses light to carry position information directly. The angularly-encoded light patterns are projected such that the sensor can determine position by detecting which pattern is currently visible, eliminating the need for rapid computational processing and significantly reducing power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The system projects a sequence of angularly-encoded light patterns in temporal sequence, with each pattern corresponding to a different angular position. This periodic projection allows the sensor to determine position by detecting which pattern is currently visible in the field of view. The periodic nature of pattern projection enables rapid position determination without requiring continuous computational processing, thus reducing energy consumption while maintaining productivity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables efficient and accurate determination of spatial and angular positions in free space with reduced computational effort and power consumption, allowing multiple devices to determine their position relative to a source device without coordination or communication.
Implementation Method 1
an array of laser diodes coupled to, or otherwise formed into or onto, a substrate
Implementation Method 2
Optical communication system for position-finding of a portable electronic device in free space
Implementation Method 3
receiving a serially-projected code at a photosensitive element of the apparatus
Data Source
AI summary
A optical communication system including a source device and an endpoint device. The source device include an array of laser diodes and is configured to drive the laser diodes to project a sequence of patterns into the field of view of the source device to define a set of serially-projected codes, each of which isolated to one respective angular division of the field of view of the source device. The endpoint device receives a serially-projected code from the source device which varies based which angular division of the field of view of the source device is occupied by the endpoint device.