The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Feb. 18, 2003
Filed:
Nov. 28, 2000
Robert W. Rudeen, Eugene, OR (US);
PSC Scanning, Inc., Eugene, OR (US);
Abstract
A micro-optical system with autofocus capability utilizing micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) to vary the focus of the beam achieving increased depth of field and improved poor quality reading. The disclosed micro-optical system includes a light source, a micro-optical element positioned adjacent the light source, a detector configured to provide detection information based at least in part on a location of an object, a processor configured to calculate and transmit, and an actuator configured to adjust the relative spacing of the micro-optical element and the light source based at least n part on the actuation information received. In another embodiment, end-user or OEM focus is disclosed wherein the scanner is varied by altering the focus parameters input by the user. In this embodiment, the focus parameters are dependent on the application for which the scanner is to be used. For example, the device may be configured to have a very small “waist” or “spot” to read extremely small barcodes for applications where space for barcode labels is limited or where barcodes are deliberately made unobtrusive. Similarly, a methods of use of the present invention are also disclosed.