Page 8 - EE|Times Europe Magazine - December 2020

8 EE|Times EUROPE

State-of-the-Art Photography and Immersive AR/MR Experiences

objects or 3D imaging for furniture planning,
and other design applications.
In addition, “always on” applications such
as mobile AR games benefit in particular
from the new sensor’s low energy con-
sumption. In the new generation, the power
consumption has been reduced by 40%,
which means significantly longer battery
running times for mobile devices.

ACCURATE AND ROBUST DEPTH DATA
UNDER ALL AMBIENT LIGHT CONDITIONS
The REAL3™ image sensors have another
advantage, as they provide accurate and
robust depth data under all lighting condi-
tions. Therefore, high-quality depth data can
be generated even in challenging ambi-
ent light environments. This capability is
becoming increasingly important, especially
in modern photography. For this purpose,
pmdtechnologies has developed a patented
Figure 4: The distance can be precisely measured using two modulation frequencies. circuit, integrated in every pixel, called Sup-
3
pression of Background Illumination (SBI) .
2
SBI expands the dynamic capabilities of the
developers more freedom to create advanced the measurement range can be extended sensor chip and reduces pixel saturation
phone designs with greater cost efficiency. beyond the UR of each single modulation caused by ambient light, e.g., direct sunlight.
Finally, the new REAL3™ imager and system frequency. All of these steps are accomplished Low-light conditions are among the most
are designed to provide depth data from dis- with the sophisticated camera driver software challenging environments for a 2D RGB
tances of up to 10 meters without sacrificing from pmdtechnologies. camera and prevent high-quality night-mode
high resolution at short range (Figure 3). The latest generation of 3D imagers and portraits and fast autofocus. Figure 6 shows
To reach a distance of 10 meters, the associated vertical-cavity surface-emitting an example of a ToF-assisted night-vision
modulation sequence of the emitted light has laser (VCSEL) drivers from Infineon allows portrait with a beautifully blurred back-
to be changed significantly (Figure 4). The REAL3™ imagers to use significantly higher ground and the same image without this
modulation frequency of the projected IR modulation frequency pairs than in previous effect. The secret behind the ToF-assisted
light of the ToF camera is related to the depth 3D cameras. In this way, the depth accuracy image is the ability of the new 3D sensor
quality/accuracy. The higher the modulation increases and, at the same time, the envi- to create a night-vision image of the scene,
frequency, the better the depth quality, but ronment can be scanned in high quality with which is shown in the gray value image.
at the same time, the unambiguity range a range of up to 10 meters. At a distance of The gray value image is available in
(UR) decreases. Thus, a high depth accuracy up to 5 meters, even high-resolution images addition to the depth data. Here as well, the
requires a high modulation frequency, but for with 40k depth points are possible (Figure resolution is key: The new 3D sensor provides
a long unambiguity range, a low modulation 5). Other solutions available on the market a clear night-vision image, while other
frequency is necessary. offer a resolution of only approximately 600 commercial solutions in the same category
To solve this problem, REAL3™ 3D ToF depth points at this distance, which means of applications deliver only several hundreds
sensors use two modulation frequencies. A that small structures cannot be resolved. of pixels. The gray value image as well as the
distance measurement is performed for each With this high range and resolution, depth map of the captured portrait are shown
frequency, and then the measurements of the Infineon’s sensor family is suitable for the in the center of Figure 6. The left image
two frequencies are compared to determine entire scale of AR/MR applications, such as shows a 2D image without ToF assistance.
the correct position of the object. In this way, AR/MR games, 3D scanning of rooms and The right image depicts the result of using

Figure 5: The new long-
range REAL3™ image sensor
offers flexible and superior
resolution for improved
AR/MR experiences over
extended distance ranges.

DECEMBER 2020 | www.eetimes.eu