Spectral Basis Filter Super-Pixels for Adjustable Bandpass Imaging

The detector array is divided into multiple super-pixels, where each super-pixel contains multiple sub-pixels with different spectral filtering characteristics. This segmentation allows the system to capture multiple spectral bands simultaneously across spatial dimensions, enabling flexible bandpass control through software-based combination of sub-pixel data while reducing the need to transmit full spectral data for every pixel.

Each super-pixel functions as a multi-functional unit that can simultaneously capture multiple spectral bands through its constituent sub-pixels. The system can dynamically assign different spectral filtering functions to different sub-pixels within a super-pixel, allowing a single detector array to perform multiple spectral imaging functions without requiring separate hardware for each spectral band.

Multiple spectral filtering functions are merged into a single detector array through the super-pixel architecture. Instead of using separate detectors or complex optical paths for different spectral bands, the invention combines multiple sub-pixels with different spectral characteristics within each super-pixel, allowing spectral information from multiple bands to be captured simultaneously by a unified hardware structure.

The patent adds a spectral dimension to the spatial arrangement of detector elements by organizing sub-pixels in groups within super-pixels. Each sub-pixel within a super-pixel is assigned a specific spectral filtering characteristic, creating a spectral dimension alongside the spatial dimensions. This allows spectral differentiation without requiring additional spatial separation of optical paths.

The invention replaces mechanical spectral filtering systems (such as rotating filters or tunable filters with moving parts) with a fixed detector array where spectral selection is achieved through electronic processing. Each sub-pixel has a fixed spectral filtering characteristic, and real-time spectral adjustments are accomplished by dynamically changing the software-based combination of sub-pixel data rather than physically moving any components.

While the physical detector array remains static, the system achieves dynamic spectral filtering capabilities through real-time processing. The effective spectral bandpass can be dynamically adjusted by changing which sub-pixels are combined and how their data is weighted, allowing the system to adapt to different spectral requirements without any mechanical movement.