Pulsing Laser Spot Tracking via Sub-Region Sampling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current laser spot tracking and frequency decoding methods are not suitable for low power implementations, as they require high operating power, limiting the run time of handheld, battery-powered devices due to the need for high-speed image sensors.
Innovation Solution
A method that involves locating a pulsing laser on an imaging array, defining a smaller sub-region around it, and sampling at a higher rate within this sub-region, while maintaining a lower sampling rate for the remainder of the array, allowing for precise tracking and decoding with reduced power consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the entire imaging array is sampled at a high rate to achieve precise laser tracking and frequency measurement, then measurement precision is improved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The imaging array is divided into multiple regions of interest (ROIs) based on predicted laser positions. Only these segmented regions are sampled at high rates, while the rest of the array is sampled at lower rates or skipped entirely. This segmentation allows precise laser tracking in critical areas without the power penalty of full-array high-rate sampling.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sampling rates are applied to different regions of the imaging array based on their importance. Regions containing or near the predicted laser position receive high-rate sampling for precise measurement, while other regions receive lower-rate sampling. This local quality differentiation maintains measurement precision where needed while reducing overall power consumption.
2Reliability
If the entire imaging array is sampled continuously at a high rate to track a moving laser, then tracking reliability is improved, but the run time of battery-powered devices decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by predicting the laser's future position based on its current trajectory. These predictions are made before the laser actually reaches those positions, allowing the system to pre-identify regions of interest. This preliminary action enables the system to maintain reliable tracking by having sampling ready when the laser arrives, without needing to continuously sample the entire array at high rates.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of continuous high-rate sampling of the entire array, the system uses periodic sampling focused on predicted laser positions. The sampling is triggered periodically based on predicted laser arrival times at specific regions, maintaining tracking reliability through timely periodic measurements rather than continuous sampling, thereby extending battery runtime.
3Measurement precision
If a high-speed image sensor is used to achieve accurate frequency decoding, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity and power consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies partial action by using high-speed sampling only for the specific task of measuring laser frequency in the regions where the laser is actually present. Rather than deploying a full high-speed imaging sensor for the entire field of view, the system selectively applies high-speed sampling to small regions of interest, achieving the necessary measurement precision with reduced hardware complexity and lower power consumption.
Data Source
AI summary
A non-transitory computer readable medium including computer executable instructions for performing a method that includes locating a pulsing laser on an imaging array, defining a sub-region array smaller than the imaging array based on a location of the located pulsing laser such that the pulsing laser is at least partly within the sub-region, and sampling the sub-region array at a sub-region sampling rate that is higher than a remainder region sampling rate.