Sick Ag

Erwin Sick Gmbh Optik-elektronik

Gottfried Hug

Klaus Clemens

Martin Marra

Hartmut Gimpel

Bernd Rothenberger

Stefan Seitz

Sascha Steinkogler

Reinhard Heizmann

Bahram Torabi

Sebastian Tschuch

Boris Szerbakowski

Carsten Ehrler

Gernot Reiner

Konrad Winterer

Dennis Lipschinski

Jakob Heindl

Alexander Bohli

An optoelectronic sensor for the detection of objects in a monitored region is provided that comprises at least one light transmitter for transmitting a plurality of light beams separate from one another starting from a respective transmission point, a common transmission optics for the transmitted light beams, at least one light receiver for generating a respective received signal from the remitted light beams reflected from the objects and incident at a respective reception point, a common reception optics for the remitted light beams and an evaluated unit for obtaining information on the objects from the received signals. In this connection the transmission points are arranged on a first circular line and/or the reception points are arranged on the second circular line.

Optoelectronic sensor and method for the detection of objects

An optoelectronic sensor () for detecting objects in a monitoring region (), the sensor () having a scanning unit () movable about an axis of rotation (), a plurality of scanning modules () for periodically scanning the monitoring region () and for generating corresponding received signals, and an evaluation unit () for obtaining information about the objects from the received signals, the scanning modules () comprising at least one light transmitter () for transmitting several light beams () separated from one another and at least one light receiver () for generating the received signals from the light beams () remitted by the objects, wherein at least one scanning module () is at least one of tilted by a tilt angle (&#x3b2;) relative to its main viewing direction and rotated by a rotation angle (&#x3b3;).

Optoelectronic sensor and method for detecting objects

A light receiver (), comprising: a plurality of avalanche photodiode elements () each being biased with a bias voltage above a breakdown voltage and thus operated in a Geiger mode in order to trigger a Geiger current upon light reception and a plurality of readout circuits () associated with individual avalanche photodiode elements () or a group of avalanche photodiode elements () for reading out a Geiger current generated upon light reception, wherein the readout circuits () each comprise a measurement path () and a blanking path () as well as a switching element () for selectively supplying the Geiger current, or a measurement current corresponding to the Geiger current, to the measurement path () or the blanking path ().

Light receiver and method for reading out avalanche photodiodes in Geiger mode

A light receiver () having a plurality of avalanche photodiode elements () each configured to be biased with a bias voltage above a breakdown voltage and thus to be operated in a Geiger mode for triggering a Geiger current upon light reception, the light receiver () comprising a plurality of bias voltage terminals (-) providing different bias voltages, wherein the avalanche photodiode elements () form a plurality of groups (-), and wherein the avalanche photodiode elements () of a group (-) are each supplied with a same one of the different bias voltages.

Light receiver having a plurality of avalanche photodiode elements and method for supplying a bias voltage

A light receiver () is provided having a plurality of avalanche photodiode elements () that are each biased by a bias above a breakdown voltage and that are thus operated in a Geiger mode to trigger a Geiger current on light reception. The avalanche photodiode elements () have a first connector (-) and a second connector (-). A first signal tapping circuit () for reading out the avalanche photodiode elements is connected to one of the connectors (-). In this respect, a second signal tapping circuit () for reading out the avalanche photodiode elements () is connected to the other connector (-).

Light receiver having geiger-mode avalanche photodiodes and method for reading out

A light receiver () having a plurality of avalanche photo diode elements (-) which are biased with a bias voltage greater than a breakthrough voltage and are thus operated in a Geiger mode in order to trigger a Geiger current upon light reception, and having a signal detection circuit () for reading out the avalanche photo diode elements (-), wherein the signal detection circuit () comprises an active coupling element () having an input () connected to the avalanche photo diode elements (-) and an output (), the active coupling element () mapping the Geiger current at the input () to a measuring current corresponding to the Geiger current in its course and level, wherein the input () forms a virtual short-circuit for the Geiger current with respect to a potential (ground, &#x2212;U; U&#x2212;U), and the output () is decoupled from the input ().

Geiger mode APD light receiver having an active readout forming a virtual short-circuit

An optoelectronic sensor () for the measurement of distances in accordance with the light transit time principle is provided having a light transmitter () for the transmission of a light signal, having a light receiver () for the reception of a remitted or reflected received signal and having an evaluation unit () which is made to satisfy a transition condition for the received signal by systematic selection of a transmission delay time for the transmission of the light signal at an observation time and to calculate the light transit time from the transmission delay time required for this. In this respect, a regulator () is provided which is made to adjust the transmission delay time such that the transition condition is satisfied at the observation time.

Optoelectronic sensor and method for the measurement of distances in accordance with light transit time principle

A sensor for the measurement of distances has a transmitter to transmit a signal at presettable transmission times and a receiver for the reception of the signal remitted in a monitored zone, wherein the received signals are accumulated in a histogram over a plurality of measurement periods to determine the reception time from the histogram and thus the signal transit time. The reception time is determined by an interpolation and thus with a better time resolution than that of the histogram. To facilitate the interpolation, transmission times are preset over the plurality of measurement periods in accordance with a distribution such that the time position of the reception time varies within the histogram over the plurality of measurement periods.

Measurement of distances or of distance changes

An optoelectronic sensor () for the measurement of distances or distance changes in accordance with the light transit time principle is provided having a light transmitter () for the transmission of a light signal and having a light receiver () for the reception of the remitted or reflected light signal, wherein an evaluation unit () is provided which is made to trigger the transmission of a light signal at a transmission time in a respective measurement period () and to sample the received light signal as well as to accumulate a histogram () of such received light signals over a plurality of measurement periods () and to determine the reception time from the histogram () and the light transient time from this. In this respect, a unit () for the fine setting of a transmission time is provided which is made to shift the respective transmission time within the measurement periods () by an offset, with the offsets forming a distribution () whose center of mass forms a desired transmission time.

Optoelectronic sensor and method for the measurement of distances in accordance with the light transit time principle

An optoelectronic sensor () for the measurement of distances or distance changes in accordance with the light transit time principle is provided having a light transmitter () for the transmission of a light signal and having a light receiver () for the reception of the remitted or reflected light signal, wherein an evaluation unit () is provided which is made to fix the transmission time for the light signal relative to a reference time and to digitize the received light signal on a sampling pattern () having a sampling period to determine the reception time of the light signal, and wherein a time base unit () is provided by means of which the transmission time can be shifted relative to the sampling pattern () with a time precision below the sampling period. In this respect, the time base unit () is made to derive the time shift from a first time signal having a first frequency (f) and a second time signal having a second frequency (f) different from the first frequency (f) and to provide any desired time shifts with a time resolution given by the difference period belonging to the first and second frequencies (f, f).

An optoelectronic sensor () having a light transmitter () for the transmitting of laser pulses () into a monitored region () by means of a laser light source () and having a driver circuit () for the laser light source () is described which is designed to set the light transmitter () into a working state in which the laser light source () transmits a laser pulse () or into a preparatory state. The driver circuit () is further designed to set the light transmitter () into the preparatory state in each case prior to the transmission of a laser pulse ().

Optoelectronic sensor

An apparatus for measuring the transit time of electromagnetic waves operates with pulse frequencies (9, 10), conducted in a feedback loop (12) which are supplied after passing through a measurement path (13) or through a reference path (14) to a resonator (35). As a result of an 180.degree. phase-shift of the last pulse (10) of each pulse sequence (9, 10) the resonator oscillation collapses abruptly at a specific point in time. The directly preceding zero passage of the resonator oscillation defines the time of reception of the pulse sequence.

Apparatus for measuring the transit time of electromagnetic waves

A distance measuring apparatus has a photoelectric light transmitter (11) and a photoelectric light receiver (12) which alternately direct light via a measurement path (14) and a reference path (15) to a single photoreceiver (20). The distance from a target (13) is determined by measurement of the transit time differences via the measurement path (14), on the one hand, and via the reference path (15), on the other hand. The light transmitter (11) contains two laser diodes (18, 19) which can be electronically switched in a complementary manner of which the one sends the light trains to the measurement path (14) and the other sends light trains to the reference path (15). Both light wave trains are alternately received by the same photoreceiver (20) which is connected to an electronic processing circuit.

Distance measuring apparatus with phase detection

An apparatus for measuring the transit time of electromagnetic waves has a pulse generator (11) which is arranged in a feedback loop (12) and which can be triggered by pulses. Either the measurement path (13) or a reference path (14) with a reference receiver (16) at the end of it can be selectively included in the feedback loop (12). The pulse generator is also connected to a computing/counting stage (19) which counts the pulse transmitted during the measurement and reference periods separately and computes the transit time therefrom (FIG. 1).

Growing community of inventors

Waldkirch, Germany

Gottfried Hug