Smart CMOS Sensor for 3D Measurement

Abstract

3D measurement is concerned with extracting the three dimensional visual information of an object using a suitable image sensor, aptly called “the electronic eye” for subsequent processing. Advances in microelectronics technologies and intensive research in CMOS image sensors have made it possible to integrate processing circuits on the focal plane of the imager. In this context, a smart image sensor for 3D measurement is proposed for design and development using the industry standard 0.35micron CMOS technology. Preliminary simulation results for finding the centroid of a light spot used in 3D measurement show conformance to the design. The proposal highlights design and implementation of a simple architecture of pixel, a self timing asynchronous clocking mechanism in conjunction with a straightforward digital algorithm to achieve the objective. Early digital approach and ability to choose the number of threshold enable high flexibility of date processing of data processing with sub pixel resolution. The sensor will be the core of an advanced 3D measuring system based on active optical triangulation principl