Facebook Technologies, LLC

Meta Platforms Technologies, LLC

Jonatan Ginzburg

Mark Timothy Sullivan

Zhaoming Zhu

Michael Anthony Hall

Nadav Grossinger

Robert Nasry Hasbun

Zihe Gao

Benjamin Nicholas Jones

Michael Hall

A projector for illuminating a target area is presented. The projector includes an array of emitters positioned on a substrate according to a distribution. Each emitter in the array of emitters has a non-circular emission area. Operation of at least a portion of the array of emitters is controlled based in part on emission instructions to emit light. The light from the projector is configured to illuminate the target area. The projector can be part of a depth camera assembly for depth sensing of a local area, or part of an eye tracker for determining a gaze direction for an eye.

Depth camera assembly with addressable crossed line projector

A depth camera assembly (DCA) determines depth information for a local area. The DCA includes a camera assembly and at least one illuminator. The DCA may select a subset of the VCSELs to provide illumination at any given time. The illuminator may comprise near-field VCSELs configured to generate a structured light (SL) pattern for depth sensing in the near-field and far-field VCSELs configured to generate a SL pattern for depth sensing in the far-field. The near-field VCSELs may comprise a linear emission region which is shorter than a linear emission region of the far-field VCSELs. The DCA may generate and phase shift a quasi-sinusoidal SL pattern. The DCA may phase shift the quasi-sinusoidal SL pattern by alternating which traces on the illuminator are active.

VCSEL arrays for generation of linear structured light features

Addressable crossed line projector for depth camera assembly

The disclosed structured light projector may include (1) a light source having a light-emitting side that emits light, (2) a solid optical spacer element having a first side securely coupled to the light-emitting side of the light source, and (3) a diffractive optical element (DOE) stack including one or more DOEs, where the DOE stack includes (a) a light-receiving side securely coupled to a second side of the solid optical spacer element opposite the first side, and (b) a light-emitting side opposite the light-receiving side that emits structured light in response to the light received from the light-emitting side of the light source via the solid optical spacer element. Various other devices and methods are also disclosed.

Structured light projector with solid optical spacer element

An addressable vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) array may generate structured light in dot patterns. The VCSEL array includes a plurality of traces that control different groups of VCSELs, such that each group of VCSELs may be individually controlled. The VCSEL groups are arranged such that they emit a dot pattern, and by modulating which groups of VCSELs are active a density of the dot pattern may be adjusted. The VCSEL array may be part of a depth projector that projects the dot pattern into a local area. A projection assembly may replicate the dot pattern in multiple tiles.

Addressable vertical cavity surface emitting laser array for generating structured light patterns

A vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) die package includes a bottom substrate comprising a bottom contact pad electrically contacting a bottom electrode on a bottom surface of a VCSEL die. The VCSEL die package includes a submount including a submount contact pad electrically contacting a first electrode on another surface of the VCSEL die. The submount contact pad overlaps a portion of the first electrode, wherein the VCSEL die is positioned between the submount and the bottom substrate.

Compact vertical cavity surface emitting laser package

The disclosed system may include (1) a diffractive optical element (DOE) stack including one or more DOEs, where the DOE stack generates, in response to incoming light received at a first side of the DOE stack, structured light from a second side of the DOE stack opposite the first side, (2) a primary light source that emits the incoming light toward the first side of the DOE stack, and (3) at least one photodetector that detects light emitted from an edge of each of at least one of the DOEs of the DOE stack, where the edge is located between the first side and the second side of the DOE stack. Various other methods and systems are also disclosed.

Growing community of inventors

Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Jonatan Ginzburg