Abstract

The advance of automated assembly equipment and robotics has led to the development of intelligent sensor systems. Analog optical-imaging systems are current, but signal processing and interfacing can make these cumbersome. It would speed up response if the optical information could be presented directly as binary data. A new class of sensor, the logical optical detector, is described. The sensor has an inbuilt threshold, which can be externally controlled and is sharply defined, permitting a form of feedback analog-to-digital conversion. Based on silicon technology, it has wide application, such as in an imaging sensor with memory.

© 1986 Optical Society of America

Compact three-dimensional camera for robotic applications

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