Single-pixel three-dimensional imaging with time-based depth resolution

TLDR

Time‑of‑flight 3‑D imaging is a key technique for object recognition and remote sensing, yet conventional systems rely on raster‑scanned lasers that measure each pixel sequentially. The authors aim to demonstrate a modified time‑of‑flight imaging system that employs compressed sensing to shorten acquisition times while illuminating the entire field of view. Their system uses a single‑pixel camera with short‑pulsed structured illumination and a high‑speed photodiode, reconstructing 128 × 128‑pixel 3‑D scenes with ~3 mm accuracy at ~5 m range and enabling continuous real‑time video at up to 12 Hz via compressive sampling. The hardware simplicity suggests that low‑cost 3‑D imaging devices could be realized for precision ranging at wavelengths beyond the visible spectrum.

Abstract

Abstract Time-of-flight three-dimensional imaging is an important tool for applications such as object recognition and remote sensing. Conventional time-of-flight three-dimensional imaging systems frequently use a raster scanned laser to measure the range of each pixel in the scene sequentially. Here we show a modified time-of-flight three-dimensional imaging system, which can use compressed sensing techniques to reduce acquisition times, whilst distributing the optical illumination over the full field of view. Our system is based on a single-pixel camera using short-pulsed structured illumination and a high-speed photodiode, and is capable of reconstructing 128 × 128-pixel resolution three-dimensional scenes to an accuracy of ∼3 mm at a range of ∼5 m. Furthermore, by using a compressive sampling strategy, we demonstrate continuous real-time three-dimensional video with a frame-rate up to 12 Hz. The simplicity of the system hardware could enable low-cost three-dimensional imaging devices for precision ranging at wavelengths beyond the visible spectrum.