Hanwha Aerospace has been granted a patent for a photo sensor assembly that includes a rotator, multiple photo interrupter bars, and photo sensors. The assembly is designed to detect light-blocking patterns and estimate the position and rotational angle of the rotator. The second light-blocking pattern is obtained during idle intervals between pulses of the first light-blocking pattern. GlobalData’s report on Hanwha Aerospace gives a 360-degree view of the company including its patenting strategy. Buy the report here.
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According to GlobalData’s company profile on Hanwha Aerospace, remote controlled surveillance was a key innovation area identified from patents. Hanwha Aerospace's grant share as of June 2023 was 1%. Grant share is based on the ratio of number of grants to total number of patents.
Rotating photo sensor assembly for camera module
A recently granted patent (Publication Number: US11689806B2) describes a photo sensor assembly and a surveillance camera that utilize this assembly. The assembly includes a rotator that rotates with a camera module, along with multiple first photo interrupter bars and a second photo interrupter bar. The first photo sensor is positioned closer to the first circumference of the rotator and detects a first light-blocking pattern generated by the first photo interrupter bars. The second photo sensor is positioned closer to the second circumference and detects a second light-blocking pattern generated by the second photo interrupter bar. A processor estimates the initial position of the rotator based on the second light-blocking pattern and calculates the rotational angle from the initial position based on the detected first light-blocking pattern. Importantly, the position of the second photo interrupter bar does not overlap with any of the first photo interrupter bars in the circumferential direction of the rotator.
The surveillance camera described in the patent includes a motor that generates driving power, a transmission device that transfers the power to the rotator, and the same photo sensor assembly as described above. The camera module rotates with the rotator according to the transferred driving power. The camera assembly estimates the initial position of the rotator based on the second light-blocking pattern and calculates the rotational angle from the initial position based on the first light-blocking pattern. The first and second photo sensors are positioned at different locations on the same surface of a circuit board, and the second photo interrupter bar is placed to face the empty spaces between the first photo interrupter bars in the radial direction of the rotator.
The method described in the patent involves rotating the rotator with the camera module and detecting the first and second light-blocking patterns using the first and second photo sensors, respectively. The initial position of the rotator is estimated based on the second light-blocking pattern, and the rotational angle is estimated from the initial position based on the first light-blocking pattern. The rotational angle estimation involves counting the number of pulses in the first light-blocking pattern from the time the second light-blocking pattern is first detected.
Overall, this patent presents a photo sensor assembly and a surveillance camera that utilize this assembly to accurately estimate the rotational angle of a camera module. The unique arrangement of the photo interrupter bars and the photo sensors allows for precise position estimation and angle calculation.
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GlobalData Patent Analytics tracks bibliographic data, legal events data, point in time patent ownerships, and backward and forward citations from global patenting offices. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
