CN116868026A

CN116868026A - Range finding device, imaging device and cloud platform

Info

Publication number: CN116868026A
Application number: CN202180094302.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 刘朝云; 鹿志村贵弘
Original assignee: SZ DJI Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: SZ DJI Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-03-22
Filing date: 2021-03-22
Publication date: 2023-10-10
Also published as: WO2022198376A1

Abstract

Ranging device, image device, cloud platform, unmanned aerial vehicle and robot. The distance measuring device includes: a light emitting unit; the first zoom lens is provided with different focal lengths, and when the first zoom lens is in different focal lengths, light rays are projected to a target object through the first zoom lens at different view angles so as to reflect at least part of the light rays by the target object; and the light receiving unit is used for receiving at least part of light reflected by the target object so that the distance measuring device can determine the distance between the distance measuring device and the target object according to the receiving condition of the light receiving unit. The range finding device, the imaging device, the cradle head, the unmanned aerial vehicle and the robot are small in size, low in power consumption and low in cost, and the use experience of a user is improved.

Description

Range finding device, imaging device and cloud platform

Technical Field

The application relates to the technical field of optical measurement, in particular to a distance measuring device, an imaging device, a cradle head, an unmanned aerial vehicle, an unmanned vehicle and a robot.

Background

The distance of an optical measurement target object is widely applied to various fields, and a device for measuring distance by using optics in the prior art is provided with a plurality of lenses with fixed focal lengths, and a plurality of light emitting units are correspondingly configured so as to realize distance measurement of objects with different distances. However, such ranging devices are not only bulky, high in power consumption, but also high in cost, severely affecting the user experience.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides a distance measuring device, an imaging device, a cradle head, an unmanned aerial vehicle and a robot.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a ranging apparatus, including: the light emission unit is used for emitting light; the first zoom lens is provided with different focal lengths and is arranged at a position corresponding to the light ray emission unit, so that when the first zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light rays are projected to a target object through the first zoom lens at different view angles so as to reflect at least part of the light rays by the target object; and the light receiving unit is used for receiving at least part of the light reflected by the target object so that the distance measuring device can determine the distance between the distance measuring device and the target object according to the receiving condition of the light receiving unit.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an image forming apparatus including: the light emission unit is used for emitting light; the first zoom lens is provided with different focal lengths and is arranged at a position corresponding to the light ray emission unit, so that when the first zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light rays are projected to a target object through the first zoom lens at different view angles so as to reflect at least part of the light rays by the target object; a light receiving unit, configured to receive the light reflected by at least a portion of the target object, so that the imaging device determines a distance between the imaging device and the target object according to a receiving condition of the light receiving unit; and the imaging lens is used for receiving light rays from the target object so as to enable the imaging device to generate an image of the target object, and the focal length of the imaging lens is determined by the distance between the imaging device and the target object.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a pan-tilt head, including: the cradle head body is used for supporting a load and adjusting the spatial attitude of the load; the light emission unit is arranged on the holder body and is used for emitting light; the first zoom lens with different focal lengths is arranged at a position on the holder body corresponding to the light ray emission unit, so that when the first zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light rays are projected to a target object through the first zoom lens at different view angles so as to reflect at least part of the light rays by the target object; the light receiving unit is arranged on the holder body and is used for receiving at least part of light reflected by the target object, so that the holder can determine the distance between the holder and the target object according to the receiving condition of the light receiving unit.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a unmanned aerial vehicle, including: an unmanned aerial vehicle body; any one of the above holders, wherein the holder body of the holder is connected with the unmanned aerial vehicle body.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an unmanned vehicle, including: an unmanned vehicle body; any one of the above holders, wherein the holder body of the holder is connected with the unmanned vehicle body.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a robot, including: a robot body; any one of the above holders, wherein the holder body of the holder is connected with the robot body.

According to the distance measuring device, the imaging device, the cradle head, the unmanned aerial vehicle and the robot, provided by the application, the focal length of the first zoom lens is changed, so that the target object can be projected at different angles of view, and the distance measurement of the target object at different distances is realized. The distance measuring device, the imaging device, the cradle head, the unmanned aerial vehicle and the robot do not need to be provided with a plurality of light emission units and a plurality of lenses with fixed focal lengths, which are in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of light emission units, so that the distance measuring device, the imaging device, the cradle head, the unmanned aerial vehicle and the robot are small in size, small in power consumption and low in cost, and the use experience of a user is improved.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the operation of a ranging apparatus according to one embodiment of the application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a ranging device measuring a relatively far target object according to one embodiment of the application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a ranging apparatus according to one embodiment of the application measuring a relatively close target object;

FIG. 4 is a state diagram of a liquid lens of a rangefinder according to one embodiment of the application when no voltage is applied;

FIG. 5 is a state diagram of a rangefinder according to one embodiment of the application with a liquid lens energized;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a ranging apparatus according to one embodiment of the application;

fig. 7 is a schematic structural view of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a block diagram of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a cradle head according to an embodiment of the application;

fig. 10 is a schematic structural view of a unmanned aerial vehicle according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 11 is a schematic structural view of an unmanned vehicle according to an embodiment of the application;

fig. 12 is a schematic structural view of a robot according to an embodiment of the present application.

In the figure, 10 is a ranging device, 100 is a light emitting unit, 200 is a first zoom lens, 300 is a light receiving unit, 400 is a power supply, 500 is an instruction receiving device, 600 is a second zoom lens, 700 is a temperature sensor, 20 is an imaging device, 800 is an imaging lens, 30 is a cradle head, 910 is a cradle head body, 920 is a handheld component, 40 is an unmanned aerial vehicle, 930 is an unmanned aerial vehicle body, 50 is an unmanned aerial vehicle, 940 is an unmanned aerial vehicle body, 60 is a robot, and 950 is a robot body.

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present application are described in detail below, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below by referring to the drawings are exemplary only for explaining the present application and are not to be construed as limiting the present application.

An embodiment of the present application first provides a ranging apparatus 10, and fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of the operation of the ranging apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present application.

The distance measuring apparatus 10 includes a light emitting unit 100, a first zoom lens 200, and a light receiving unit 300.

Wherein the light emitting unit 100 is used for emitting light. It is understood that the light emitted by the light emitting unit 100 may be visible light or invisible light. When the light emitted from the light emitting unit 100 is visible light, the light emitting unit 100 may emit light of various colors such as red light, orange light, yellow light, green light, cyan light, blue light, violet light, and the like. When the light emitted from the light emitting unit 100 is invisible light, the light emitting unit 100 may emit infrared rays, ultraviolet rays, or the like.

The light emitted by the light emitting unit 100 may be laser light, that is, the light emitting unit 100 may include a laser. The laser is light excited by atoms, electrons in the atoms absorb energy and then transition from a low energy level to a high energy level, and when the electrons fall back from the high energy level to the low energy level, the released energy is emitted in the form of photons. The attracted (excited) photon beam (laser) has high uniformity of photon optical characteristics. Therefore, compared with the common light source, the laser has good monochromaticity and directivity and higher brightness, and can improve the ranging effect of the ranging device 10 and the user experience.

It is understood that when the light emitted from the light Emitting unit 100 is Laser light, the light Emitting unit 100 may include various lasers such as a gas Laser, a solid state Laser, a semiconductor Laser, and a dye Laser, and for example, when the light Emitting unit 100 is a semiconductor Laser, the light Emitting unit 100 may be a VCSEL (Vertical-Cavity Surface Emitting Laser).

A gas laser is a device that generates laser light using gas as a working substance. The device consists of three main parts, namely an activating gas in a discharge tube, a resonant cavity formed by a pair of reflectors and an excitation source. The main excitation modes include electric excitation, pneumatic excitation, optical excitation, chemical excitation and the like. Under proper discharge conditions, the gas particles are selectively excited to a certain high energy level by electron collision excitation, energy transfer excitation and the like, so that the population inversion between the gas particles and a certain low energy level is formed, and stimulated emission transition is generated. The gas laser has simple structure, low cost, convenient operation, uniform working medium, good beam quality and long-time stable continuous operation.

A solid-state laser is a laser that uses a solid-state laser material as a working substance. The working medium is a crystal or glass as a matrix material with a small amount of activator ions homogeneously incorporated therein. For example: a laser incorporating trivalent neodymium ions in yttrium aluminum garnet crystals may emit near infrared laser light having a wavelength of 1050 nanometers. The solid laser has the characteristics of small volume, convenient use and high output power.

Semiconductor lasers, also known as laser diodes, are lasers that use semiconductor materials as the working substance. Common working substances are gallium arsenide, cadmium sulfide, indium phosphide, zinc sulfide, etc. The excitation modes include three modes of electric injection, electron beam excitation and optical pumping. Semiconductor laser devices can be classified into homojunctions, single heterojunctions, double heterojunctions, and the like. The homojunction laser and the single heterojunction laser are mostly pulse devices at room temperature, and the double heterojunction laser can realize continuous operation at room temperature. Semiconductor diode lasers are the most practical and important type of laser. The device has small volume and long service life, can be pumped by adopting a simple current injection mode, and has working voltage and current compatible with an integrated circuit, thus being monolithically integrated with the integrated circuit.

Dye lasers are lasers that use organic dyes as the lasing medium, typically a liquid solution. Dye lasers can generally be used in a wider range of wavelengths than gaseous and solid state laser media.

The first zoom lens 200 has different focal lengths, that is, the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 is changeable, and the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 is not fixed.

The first zoom lens 200 is disposed at a position corresponding to the light emitting unit 100. As can be appreciated, the first zoom lens 200 is disposed on the propagation path of the light emitted from the light emitting unit 100 (i.e., the light propagation path between the light emitting unit 100 and the target object).

When the first zoom lens 200 is at different focal lengths, the light emitted by the light emitting unit 100 is projected to the target object at different angles of view after passing through the first zoom lens 200, so that at least part of the light is reflected by the target object.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of the distance measuring device 10 according to an embodiment of the present application when measuring a relatively far target object, and fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of the distance measuring device 10 according to an embodiment of the present application when measuring a relatively near target object.

The target object is taken as an example of the human body in fig. 2 and 3. It will be appreciated that the target object may be a moving object or a stationary object. When the target object is a moving object, the target object may include not only a human body but also various other animals, automobiles, ships, and the like. When the non-target object is a stationary object, it may include furniture, plants, buildings, mountains, etc.

As the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 may vary. Therefore, the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 can be adjusted to be large when the distance measuring device 10 measures a distant target object. As shown in fig. 2, at this time, the first zoom lens 200 is in a tele state, has a small vertical angle of view, and can be used to focus on a target object at a distance from distance.

The focal length of the first zoom lens 200 may be adjusted to be small when the ranging apparatus 10 measures a nearer target object. As shown in fig. 3, at this time, the first zoom lens 200 is in a wide-angle state, has a large vertical angle of view, and can be used to focus on a target object near ranging.

In some embodiments of the present application, the first zoom lens 200 may include a liquid lens, the first zoom lens 200 being configured to receive voltages of different magnitudes such that when the first zoom lens 200 receives voltages of different magnitudes, the first zoom lens 200 is at different focal lengths.

A liquid lens is an optical element made using one or more liquids without mechanical connections, the internal parameters of which can be changed by external control. The medium of the glass lens is changed into liquid from glass, and the optical element is used for dynamically adjusting the refractive index of the lens or changing the focal length by changing the surface shape of the lens.

Fig. 4 is a state diagram of the ranging apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present application when the liquid lens is not energized, and fig. 5 is a state diagram of the ranging apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present application when the liquid lens is energized.

As shown in fig. 4 and 5, the liquid lens may be composed of a glass case 210, a liquid medium 220, an oil layer 230, an insulator 240, a metal medium 250, and the like.

The glass housing 210 may include a first glass sheet and a second glass sheet disposed front and back, the metal medium 250 may include a first metal layer disposed on a periphery of a side of the first glass sheet adjacent to the second glass sheet, and a second metal layer disposed on a periphery of a side of the second glass sheet adjacent to the first glass sheet, the first metal layer and the second metal layer being separated by the insulator 240. The first glass sheet, the second glass sheet, the first metal layer, the second metal layer, and the insulator 240 define an interior space, which is filled with the liquid medium 220 and the oil layer 230, wherein the liquid medium 220 fills the interior space near one end of the second glass sheet and the oil layer 230 fills the interior space near one end of the first glass sheet. The first metal layer is separated from the liquid medium 220, the first metal layer is separated from the oil layer 230 by an insulator 240, and the second metal layer may be in contact with the liquid medium 220 but not in contact with the oil layer 230.

Thus, by inputting voltages to the first metal layer and the second metal layer, the shape of the liquid medium 220 can be changed, thereby changing the focal length of the liquid lens. In fig. 4, when no voltage is applied, the liquid medium 220 is in the shape of a convex lens, and at this time, the liquid lens has a larger focal length. In fig. 5, when a voltage is applied, the liquid medium 220 has the shape of a concave lens, and at this time, the liquid lens has a small focal length. It will be appreciated that when the liquid lens receives voltages of different magnitudes, the shape of the liquid medium 220 will also vary, and therefore, the liquid lens will be at different focal lengths.

The first zoom lens 200 may be a graded index liquid lens that changes a voltage applied to the liquid crystal to adjust the refractive index of the liquid crystal, thereby achieving zooming. Such a first zoom lens 200 has an advantage that the control voltage is low and the array is easy to realize.

The first variable focus lens 200 may also be an electrowetting effect liquid lens, which is a liquid lens that controls the wetting characteristics of a liquid on a solid surface by varying an applied voltage. The electrowetting effect is a physical and chemical phenomenon, and the wetting characteristic of liquid on a solid surface is controlled by changing the external voltage of a liquid-solid interface, so that the contact angle of liquid drops is changed, and the curvature of the liquid drops can be changed like the crystalline lens of a human eye to realize zooming. Meanwhile, the curvature of the surface of the optical zoom lens is changed according to the difference of applied voltages, so that the optical zoom lens is realized.

In other embodiments of the present application, the first zoom lens 200 may also implement a zoom function by changing the focal point of the first zoom lens 200 by a driver.

The light receiving unit 300 is configured to receive light reflected by at least a portion of the target object, so that the distance measuring device 10 determines a distance between the distance measuring device 10 and the target object according to the receiving condition of the light receiving unit 300.

The light receiving unit 300 may include various sensors that may receive reflected light, for example, the light receiving unit 300 may include a sensing sensor IMX316.

In some embodiments of the present application, the distance measuring device 10 may determine the distance between the distance measuring device 10 and the target object according to the time of the light emitted by the light emitting unit 100 and the time difference of the light received by the light receiving unit 300 and the propagation speed of the light.

The propagation speed of light in vacuum is a constant, which is 299792458 m/s. Since the environment in which the ranging device 10 is used in an actual use scenario is not completely vacuum, the propagation speed of the selected light may not be equal to 299792458 m/s, but may be less than 299792458 m/s, for example 299792000 m/s, 299791000 m/s, 299790000 m/s, 299780000 m/s, 299770000 m/s, 299760000 m/s, 299750000 m/s, 299740000 m/s, 299730000 m/s, 299720000 m/s, 299710000 m/s, 299700000 m/s, etc., in determining the distance between the ranging device 10 and the target object. The specific numerical values can be determined according to actual conditions or experimental conditions.

It will be appreciated that the distance measuring device 10 may also include a vacuum gauge for measuring the vacuum level of the environment surrounding the distance measuring device 10. When the vacuum level of the surroundings of the distance measuring device 10 measured by the vacuum gauge is greater, the propagation speed of the selected light ray is smaller when determining the distance between the distance measuring device 10 and the target object. The smaller the vacuum level of the surroundings of the distance measuring device 10 measured by the vacuum gauge, the greater the propagation speed of the selected light ray, but the maximum propagation speed of the selected light ray is 299792458 m/s, when determining the distance between the distance measuring device 10 and the target object.

The distance traveled by the light may be determined according to the time of the light emitted by the light emitting unit 100 and the time difference of the light received by the light receiving unit 300 and the propagation speed of the light, and it is understood that the distance traveled by the light is the sum of the distance from the light emitting unit 100 to the target object and the distance from the light receiving unit 300 to the target object, and thus, the distance between the ranging apparatus 10 and the target object may be obtained by dividing the distance traveled by the light by 2.

In order to improve the accuracy of the measurement result, in some embodiments of the present application, the distance between the light emitting unit 100 and the light receiving unit 300 may be further used to correct the measurement result, that is, to correct the distance between the distance measuring device 10 and the target object obtained by dividing the distance traveled by the light by 2. The specific correction manner may be determined according to the actual situation or the experimental situation, for example, when the distance between the light emitting unit 100 and the light receiving unit 300 is larger, the difference between the numerical value before correction and the numerical value after correction is larger, and when the distance between the light emitting unit 100 and the light receiving unit 300 is smaller, the difference between the numerical value before correction and the numerical value after correction is smaller.

In other embodiments of the present application, the light emitted by the light emitting unit 100 may be a light beam whose amplitude is modulated in time sequence, and the distance measuring device 10 may determine the distance according to a phase delay of the light received by the light receiving unit 300 with respect to the light emitted by the light emitting unit 100.

According to the distance measuring device 10 provided by the embodiment of the application, the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 is changed, so that the distance measuring device can be projected to a target object at different angles of view, and therefore, the distance measuring device 10 does not need to be provided with a plurality of light emitting units 100 or a plurality of lenses with fixed focal lengths, which are in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of light emitting units 100, and the distance measuring device 10 is small in size, low in power consumption, convenient to carry, low in cost and capable of improving the use experience of users. Also, the ranging apparatus 10 provided by the embodiment of the present application can avoid a phenomenon that the temperature of the entire ranging apparatus 10 is seriously increased due to the use of the plurality of light emitting units 100. The inventors of the present application have found that an increase in the temperature of the entire distance measuring device 10 may affect the use of the light emitting unit 100 to some extent, thereby affecting the accuracy of the distance measuring device 10.

In some embodiments of the present application, the ranging device 10 may further include a power source 400, and FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the ranging device 10 according to one embodiment of the present application. The power supply 400 is configured to supply a voltage to the first variable focus lens 200. Thus, the first zoom lens 200 of the distance measuring device 10 does not need an external supply voltage, which is convenient to use.

The power source 400 may be a chemical power source, such as a dry battery, a lead-acid storage battery, a nickel-cadmium, a nickel-hydrogen, a lithium ion battery, etc., and the power source 400 may be another type of power source, such as a linear stable power source, etc.

It will be appreciated that the power supply 400 may also be configured to supply power to at least one of the light emitting unit 100, the light receiving unit 300, and other components of the ranging device 10. The power supply 400 may also be configured not to power the light emitting unit 100, the light receiving unit 300, and other components of the ranging device 10.

In other embodiments of the present application, the distance measuring device 10 may not include the power supply 400 for supplying the voltage to the first zoom lens 200, and the corresponding voltage may be received through the voltage receiving port, thereby reducing the volume and weight of the distance measuring device 10 and facilitating the user's carrying.

The distance measuring device 10 may further include an instruction receiving device 500, the instruction receiving device 500 being configured to receive a voltage adjustment instruction indicating a magnitude of a voltage supplied from the power supply 400 to the first zoom lens 200. The power supply 400 is configured to supply a voltage having a magnitude corresponding to the voltage adjustment instruction to the first zoom lens 200.

The instruction receiving device 500 may include any device that can receive an instruction, for example, a button, a knob, a touch screen, a voice input device, etc. The instruction receiving device 500 enables the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 to be adjusted according to the user's desire, thereby improving the user experience.

The distance measuring device 10 may further comprise a second zoom lens 600, the second zoom lens 600 having a different focal length, that is, the focal length of the second zoom lens 600 may be variable, the focal length of the second zoom lens 600 not being fixed.

The second zoom lens 600 is disposed at a position corresponding to the light receiving unit 300. As can be appreciated, the second zoom lens 600 is disposed on the propagation path of the light received by the light receiving unit 100 (i.e., the light propagation path between the light receiving unit 600 and the target object).

The light receiving unit 300 receives light reflected by at least part of the target object at different angles of view while the second zoom lens 600 is at a different focal length. Thus, the received light intensity or number of photons may be adjusted so that the received light intensity or number of photons may be maximized, thereby improving the measurement accuracy of the ranging device 10.

It will be appreciated that the second zoom lens 600 may comprise a liquid lens, or the zoom function may be implemented by the actuator changing the focus of the second zoom lens 600. The relevant content of the liquid lens may refer to the above embodiments, and will not be described herein.

The focal length size at which the second zoom lens 600 is positioned may be related to the focal length size at which the first zoom lens 200 is positioned. That is, when the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 is changed, the focal length of the second zoom lens 600 is also changed, and when the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 is unchanged, the focal length of the second zoom lens 600 is also unchanged. In this way, the focal length of the second zoom lens 600 can automatically change along with the focal length of the first zoom lens 200, so that the user does not need to adjust the focal length, and the user experience is improved.

The focal length size at which the second zoom lens 600 is positioned is positively correlated with the focal length size at which the first zoom lens 200 is positioned. When the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 is large, it means that the target object is far away, and at this time, the focal length of the second zoom lens 600 is also large, so that the light intensity or the photon number received from the far target object is increased, thereby improving the measurement accuracy of the distance measuring device 10. When the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 is small, it means that the target object is close, and at this time, the focal length of the second zoom lens 600 is also small, so that the light intensity or the photon number received from the close target object is increased, thereby improving the measurement accuracy of the distance measuring device 10.

It will be appreciated that when the second variable focus lens 600 is a liquid lens, the power supply 400 may also be configured to provide a corresponding voltage to the second variable focus lens 600. Also, the above-described voltage adjustment instruction may also instruct the power supply 400 to supply the voltage to the second zoom lens 600 in a numerical value, and the power supply 400 is configured to supply the voltage corresponding to the voltage adjustment instruction in a numerical value to the second zoom lens 600.

Wherein the first zoom lens 200 and the second zoom lens 600 may be located on the same side of the distance measuring device 10. For example, the first zoom lens 200 and the second zoom lens 600 are both located on the front side, the rear side, the upper side, the lower side, the left side, the right side, or the like of the distance measuring device 10. Thereby, the efficiency of the light receiving unit 300 to receive light can be improved.

The distance measuring device 10 may further include a temperature sensor 700, the temperature sensor 700 being configured to detect a temperature of the light emitting unit 100, and the light emitting unit 100 being configured to stop emitting light when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 700 is greater than or equal to a temperature threshold. Therefore, the light emitting unit 100 can be prevented from being damaged due to overhigh temperature, the service life of the light emitting unit 100 is ensured, and the user experience is improved. The specific value of the temperature threshold may be determined according to actual conditions or experimental conditions.

An embodiment of the present application further provides an imaging apparatus 20, fig. 7 is a schematic structural diagram of the imaging apparatus 20 according to an embodiment of the present application, and fig. 8 is a structural block diagram of the imaging apparatus 20 according to an embodiment of the present application.

The imaging apparatus 20 includes a light emitting unit 100, a first zoom lens 200, a light receiving unit 300, and an imaging lens 800.

The light emitting unit 100 is used for emitting light. The first zoom lens 200 has different focal lengths, and the first zoom lens 200 is disposed at a position corresponding to the light emitting unit 100, so that when the first zoom lens 200 is at the different focal lengths, light is projected to the target object at different angles of view after passing through the first zoom lens 200, so that at least part of the light is reflected by the target object. The light receiving unit 300 is configured to receive light reflected by at least a portion of the target object, so that the imaging device 20 determines a distance between the imaging device 20 and the target object according to the receiving condition of the light receiving unit 300. The imaging lens 800 is configured to receive light from the target object for the imaging device 20 to generate an image of the target object, and the focal length of the imaging lens 800 is determined by the distance between the imaging device 20 and the target object.

Specifically, the larger the distance between the imaging device 20 and the target object, the larger the focal length of the imaging lens 800, and the smaller the distance between the imaging device 20 and the target object, the smaller the focal length of the imaging lens 800.

According to the imaging device 20 provided by the embodiment of the application, the focal length of the first zoom lens 200 is changed, and the imaging device can be projected to a target object at different angles of view, so that the distance measurement of the target object at different distances is realized, a plurality of light emitting units 100 are not required to be arranged on the imaging device 20, a plurality of lenses with fixed focal lengths, which are in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of light emitting units 100, are not required to be arranged, the imaging device 20 is small in size, low in power consumption and low in cost, and the use experience of a user is improved. Also, such an imaging device 20 provided by the embodiment of the present application can avoid a phenomenon in which the temperature of the entire imaging device 20 is seriously increased due to the use of the plurality of light emitting units 100. The inventors of the present application have found that an increase in the temperature of the entirety of the imaging device 20 may affect the use of the light emitting unit 100 to some extent, thereby affecting the accuracy of the imaging device 20. In addition, the focal length of the imaging lens 800 is adapted to the distance between the imaging device 20 and the target object, so as to facilitate taking clear and high-quality pictures and videos.

The imaging device 20 may include a camera, video camera, cradle head camera, mobile phone with photographing function, tablet, computer, etc.

It will be appreciated that such an imaging device 20 may also be used in fields such as industry inspection, resource exploration, and personnel search and rescue, since the focal length may be determined by the distance between the imaging device 20 and the target object, such that the target object in the generated picture or video is clear.

The imaging device 20 may include a processor, and the processor may determine the focal length of the imaging lens 800 based on the distance between the imaging device 20 and the target object. In some embodiments of the present application, the light receiving unit 300 may convert the received signals corresponding to the light, for example, convert the signals into signals such as IIC, XVS, XCLR, MIPI, and output the signals to the serial chip, where the serial chip may synthesize each received signal into a signal, for example, synthesize a differential signal, and then transmit the synthesized signal to the deserializing chip, for example, transmit the synthesized signal to the deserializing chip through the X9 coaxial line, then the deserializing chip restores each signal and then transmits the restored signal to the image chip to process the signals, and after the processed signals are transmitted to the processor, the processor determines the focal length, and controls the focal length of the imaging lens 800 to be the determined focal length.

The adjustment of the focal length of the imaging lens 800 may take various forms. For example, in some embodiments of the present application, the imaging lens 800 may include a third zoom lens, and it is understood that the third zoom lens may include a liquid lens, or may be implemented by changing the focal point of the third zoom lens by a driver. The relevant content of the liquid lens may refer to the above embodiments, and will not be described herein. In other embodiments of the present application, the imaging lens 800 may include a plurality of lens groups, and the adjustment of the focal length of the imaging lens 800 is achieved by the movement of the lens groups.

In some embodiments of the present application, the imaging apparatus 20 may further include a power supply 400, the power supply 400 configured to supply a voltage to the first zoom lens 200.

In some embodiments of the present application, the imaging apparatus 20 may further include an instruction receiving means 500 for receiving a voltage adjustment instruction indicating a magnitude of a voltage supplied from the power supply 400 to the first zoom lens 200. And the power supply 400 is configured to supply the first zoom lens 200 with the voltage having a value corresponding to the voltage adjustment instruction.

In some embodiments of the application, the first variable focus lens 200 may be a graded index liquid lens or an electrowetting effect liquid lens.

In some embodiments of the present application, the imaging device 20 may further include a second zoom lens 600. The second zoom lens 600 has different focal lengths, and the second zoom lens 600 is disposed at a position corresponding to the light receiving unit 300 such that the light receiving unit 300 receives light reflected by at least a portion of the target object at different angles of view when the second zoom lens 600 is at the different focal lengths.

In some embodiments of the present application, the focal length size at which the second zoom lens 600 is positioned is related to the focal length size at which the first zoom lens 200 is positioned.

In some embodiments of the present application, the focal length size at which the second zoom lens 600 is positioned is positively correlated with the focal length size at which the first zoom lens 200 is positioned.

In some embodiments of the present application, the first zoom lens 200, the second zoom lens 600, and the imaging lens 800 are located on the same side of the imaging device 20. For example, the first zoom lens 200, the second zoom lens 600, and the imaging lens 800 are all located on the front side, the rear side, the upper side, the lower side, the left side, the right side, or the like of the distance measuring device 10. Therefore, the light receiving efficiency of the light receiving unit 300 can be improved, and the focal length of the imaging lens 800 is ensured to be adapted to the distance between the imaging device 20 and the target object, so that a clear picture and a video with high picture quality can be conveniently shot.

In some embodiments of the present application, the imaging device 20 may further include a temperature sensor 700, the temperature sensor 700 detecting the temperature of the light emitting unit 100. And the light emitting unit 100 is configured to stop emitting light when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 700 is greater than or equal to the temperature threshold.

The light emitting unit 100, the first zoom lens 200, the light receiving unit 300, the power supply 400, the instruction receiving device 500, the second zoom lens 600, and the temperature sensor 700 may be referred to as above, and will not be described herein.

The embodiment of the application further provides a cradle head 30, and fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of the cradle head 30 according to an embodiment of the application.

The pan/tilt head 30 includes a pan/tilt head body 910, a light emitting unit 100, a first zoom lens 200, and a light receiving unit 300.

The holder body 910 is used for supporting a load, and the holder body 910 is also used for adjusting the spatial attitude of the load. The light emitting unit 100 is disposed on the pan-tilt body 910, and the light emitting unit 100 is configured to emit light. The first zoom lens 200 has different focal lengths, and the first zoom lens 200 is disposed at a position on the pan-tilt body 910 corresponding to the light emitting unit 100, so that when the first zoom lens 200 is at the different focal lengths, light is projected to the target object at different angles of view after passing through the first zoom lens 200, so that at least part of the light is reflected by the target object. The light receiving unit 300 is disposed on the holder body 910, and the light receiving unit 300 is configured to receive light reflected by at least a portion of the target object, so that the holder 30 determines a distance between the holder 30 and the target object according to the receiving condition of the light receiving unit 300.

The cradle head 30 provided by the embodiment of the application can be used for measuring the distance between the cradle head 30 and a target object. Moreover, by changing the focal length of the first zoom lens 200, the cradle head 30 can project to the target object at different angles of view, so as to realize ranging of the target object at different distances, so that the cradle head 30 does not need to set a plurality of light emitting units 100, and does not need to set a plurality of lenses with fixed focal lengths corresponding to the plurality of light emitting units 100 one by one, the cradle head 30 is small in size, low in power consumption, convenient to carry, low in cost and capable of improving the use experience of users. Moreover, the cradle head 30 provided by the embodiment of the application can avoid the phenomenon that the temperature of the whole cradle head 30 is seriously increased due to the use of a plurality of light emitting units 100. The inventors of the present application have found that an increase in the temperature of the entire head 30 may affect the use of the light emitting unit 100 to some extent, thereby affecting the accuracy of the ranging of the head 30.

In some embodiments of the present application, the pan/tilt head 30 may further include a power supply 400, the power supply 400 configured to provide a voltage to the first zoom lens 200.

In some embodiments of the present application, the pan/tilt head 30 may further include an instruction receiving device 500, where the instruction receiving device 500 is configured to receive a voltage adjustment instruction, and the voltage adjustment instruction indicates a magnitude of a voltage provided by the power supply 400 to the first zoom lens 200. And the power supply 400 is configured to supply a voltage having a magnitude corresponding to the voltage adjustment instruction to the first zoom lens 200.

In some embodiments of the present application, the pan-tilt 30 may further include a second zoom lens 600. The second zoom lens 600 has different focal lengths, and the second zoom lens 600 is disposed on the pan-tilt body 910 at a position corresponding to the light receiving unit 300, so that when the second zoom lens 600 is at the different focal lengths, the light receiving unit 300 receives the light reflected by at least part of the target object at different angles of view.

In some embodiments of the present application, the first zoom lens 200 and the second zoom lens 600 are located on the same side of the Yun Taiben body 910. For example, the first zoom lens 200, the second zoom lens 600, and the imaging lens 800 are all located on the front side, the rear side, the upper side, the lower side, the left side, the right side, or the like of the distance measuring device 10. Thereby, the efficiency of the light receiving unit 300 to receive light can be improved.

In some embodiments of the present application, the cradle head 30 may further include a temperature sensor 700, and the temperature sensor 700 is used to detect the temperature of the light emitting unit 100. And the light emitting unit 100 is configured to stop emitting light when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 700 is greater than or equal to the temperature threshold.

The load may include an imaging device, including, for example, a camera, a video camera, and a cell phone, a tablet, a computer, etc. having a photographing function. The imaging device may include an imaging lens, where the imaging lens is used to receive light from the target object, so that the imaging device generates an image of the target object, and the focal length of the imaging lens is determined by the distance between the pan-tilt 30 and the target object, so as to take a clear picture and a video with high picture quality.

Holder body 910 may include a hand piece 920 for a user to hold holder 30 via hand piece 920, improving the user experience, and such holder 30 may also be referred to as a hand-held holder. The hand piece 920 may include a handle or a bracelet. It will be appreciated that the handle is cylindrical, e.g., cylindrical, fang Zhuzhuang, etc., which facilitates storage of the pan/tilt head 30. The bracelet is annular, for example, is annular, square annular etc., and the bracelet makes cloud platform 30 be convenient for by the user from different angles gripping, has promoted user experience.

Wherein the pan-tilt 30 may comprise one pan-tilt component, two pan-tilt components, three pan-tilt components, or more pan-tilt components, and accordingly, the pan-tilt 30 may allow the load to rotate about one, two, three, or more axes, which may or may not be orthogonal to each other. In some embodiments of the application, the pan-tilt component may control the attitude of the load via the motor, including controlling one or more of the pitch angle, roll angle, and yaw angle of the load, and accordingly, the load may rotate about one or more of the pitch, yaw, and yaw axes.

In some embodiments, the number of pan-tilt components may be 3, such as a first pan-tilt component, a second pan-tilt component, and a third pan-tilt component, it being understood that each pan-tilt component may include a connecting arm. The first pan/tilt unit is connected to the hand-held unit 920, and the first pan/tilt unit can rotate relative to the hand-held unit 920, so that a yaw angle of the load changes, that is, when the first pan/tilt unit rotates relative to the hand-held unit 920, the load can rotate around the yaw axis. The second pan and tilt member is connected to the first pan and tilt member and is rotatable relative to the hand-held member 920 to change the roll angle of the load, i.e., the second pan and tilt member rotates relative to the hand-held member 920 to rotate the load about the roll axis. The third pan/tilt member is connected to the second pan/tilt member, and the third pan/tilt member is rotatable relative to the hand-held member 920, so that a pitch angle of the load changes, that is, when the third pan/tilt member rotates relative to the hand-held member 920, the load can rotate about a pitch axis.

In other embodiments of the present application, holder body 910 may include only one holder member that is rotatable relative to hand piece 920 to change the yaw angle of the load, i.e., the holder member rotates relative to hand piece 920 to rotate the load about the yaw axis.

It should be understood that the connection relationship between the holder components and the hand-held component 920 is merely illustrative, and is not limited to the embodiments of the present application. For example, when there are 3 cradle head units, wherein the first cradle head unit is connected to the hand-held unit 920, and the first cradle head unit can rotate relative to the hand-held unit 920, so that the yaw angle of the load changes, that is, when the first cradle head unit rotates relative to the hand-held unit 920, the load can be rotated about the yaw axis. The second pan-tilt component is connected with the first pan-tilt component, and the second pan-tilt component can rotate relative to the handheld component 920, so that the pitch angle of the load changes, that is, when the second pan-tilt component rotates relative to the handheld component 920, the load can rotate around the pitch axis. The third pan/tilt unit is connected to the second pan/tilt unit, and the third pan/tilt unit can rotate relative to the handheld unit 920, so that the roll angle of the load changes, that is, when the third pan/tilt unit rotates relative to the handheld unit 920, the load can rotate around the roll axis, and so on.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a drone 40, and fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of the drone 40 according to one embodiment of the present application, where the drone 40 includes a drone body 930 and any of the holders 30 described above. The pan-tilt body 910 of the pan-tilt 30 is connected to the unmanned aerial vehicle body 930.

The drone 40 is also commonly referred to as a UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ), wherein the drone 40 may include various types of fixed-wing drones, rotary-wing drones, umbrella-wing drones, and the like. It will be appreciated that the cradle head 30 may be coupled not only to the bottom of the drone 40, but also to the top, sides, etc. of the drone 40, and embodiments of the present application are not limited in this regard.

The embodiment of the present application further provides an unmanned vehicle 50, and fig. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of the unmanned vehicle 50 according to an embodiment of the present application, where the unmanned vehicle 50 includes an unmanned vehicle body 940 and any of the holders 30 described above. The pan-tilt body 910 of pan-tilt 30 is connected to the unmanned vehicle body 940.

The unmanned vehicle 50 may be moved by wheels or by other mechanisms such as crawler belts. Where the drone 50 moves directly with wheels, the number of wheels of the drone 50 may be one or more, and embodiments of the present application are not limited in this respect.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a robot 60, and fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of the robot 60 according to an embodiment of the present application, where the robot 60 includes a robot body 950 and any of the holders 30, and a holder body 910 of the holder 30 is connected to the robot body 950.

The cradle head 30 may be connected to not only the head of the robot body 950 but also other parts such as a robot arm and a back of the robot body 950, and the embodiment of the present application is not limited thereto.

The unmanned aerial vehicle 40, the unmanned aerial vehicle 50 and the robot 60 provided by the embodiment of the application can be used for measuring the distance to the target object. Moreover, the unmanned aerial vehicle 40, the unmanned aerial vehicle 50 and the robot 60 can project to the target object at different view angles by changing the focal length of the first zoom lens 200, so that the ranging of the target object at different distances is realized, a plurality of light emitting units 100 are not required to be arranged on the unmanned aerial vehicle 40, the unmanned aerial vehicle 50 and the robot 60, a plurality of lenses with fixed focal lengths corresponding to the light emitting units 100 one by one are not required to be arranged, the unmanned aerial vehicle 40, the unmanned aerial vehicle 50 and the robot 60 are small in size, low in power consumption and convenient to carry, the cost is low, and the use experience of a user is improved. Moreover, the unmanned aerial vehicle 40, the unmanned aerial vehicle 50 and the robot 60 provided by the embodiment of the application can avoid the phenomenon that the temperature of the unmanned aerial vehicle 40, the unmanned aerial vehicle 50 and the robot 60 is seriously increased due to the use of a plurality of light emitting units 100. The inventors of the present application have found that an increase in the temperature of the entire unmanned aerial vehicle 40, unmanned aerial vehicle 50, and robot 60 may affect the use of the light emitting unit 100 to some extent, thereby affecting the accuracy of ranging of the unmanned aerial vehicle 40, unmanned aerial vehicle 50, and robot 60.

It should also be noted that, in the case of no conflict, the embodiments of the present application and features in the embodiments of the present application may be combined with each other to obtain new embodiments of the present application.

The present application is not limited to the above embodiments, but the scope of the application is defined by the claims.

Claims

A ranging apparatus, comprising:

the light emission unit is used for emitting light;

the first zoom lens is provided with different focal lengths and is arranged at a position corresponding to the light ray emission unit, so that when the first zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light rays are projected to a target object through the first zoom lens at different view angles so as to reflect at least part of the light rays by the target object;

and the light receiving unit is used for receiving at least part of the light reflected by the target object so that the distance measuring device can determine the distance between the distance measuring device and the target object according to the receiving condition of the light receiving unit.
The distance measuring device according to claim 1, wherein,

The first zoom lens includes a liquid lens configured to receive voltages of different magnitudes such that the first zoom lens is at different focal lengths when the first zoom lens receives the voltages of different magnitudes.
The ranging apparatus as recited in claim 2 further comprising:

a power supply configured to supply the voltage to the first zoom lens.
A ranging apparatus as defined in claim 3, further comprising:

an instruction receiving means for receiving a voltage adjustment instruction indicating a magnitude of a value of the voltage supplied by the power supply to the first zoom lens; and is also provided with

The power supply is configured to supply the voltage having a magnitude corresponding to the voltage adjustment instruction to the first zoom lens.
The distance measuring device according to claim 2, wherein,

the first zoom lens is a graded index liquid lens or an electrowetting effect liquid lens.
The ranging apparatus as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

the second zoom lens with different focal lengths is arranged at a position corresponding to the light receiving unit, so that when the second zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light receiving unit receives at least part of the light reflected by the target object at different angles of view.
The distance measuring device according to claim 6, wherein,

the focal length of the second zoom lens is related to the focal length of the first zoom lens.
The distance measuring device according to claim 7, wherein,

the focal length of the second zoom lens is positively correlated with the focal length of the first zoom lens.
The distance measuring device according to claim 6, wherein,

the first zoom lens and the second zoom lens are positioned on the same side of the distance measuring device.
The ranging apparatus as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the light emitting unit; and is also provided with

The light emitting unit is configured to stop emitting light when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is greater than or equal to a temperature threshold.
An image forming apparatus, comprising:

the light emission unit is used for emitting light;

the first zoom lens is provided with different focal lengths and is arranged at a position corresponding to the light ray emission unit, so that when the first zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light rays are projected to a target object through the first zoom lens at different view angles so as to reflect at least part of the light rays by the target object;

A light receiving unit, configured to receive the light reflected by at least a portion of the target object, so that the imaging device determines a distance between the imaging device and the target object according to a receiving condition of the light receiving unit;

and the imaging lens is used for receiving light rays from the target object so as to enable the imaging device to generate an image of the target object, and the focal length of the imaging lens is determined by the distance between the imaging device and the target object.
The imaging apparatus of claim 11, wherein the imaging apparatus comprises,

the first zoom lens includes a liquid lens configured to receive voltages of different magnitudes such that the first zoom lens is at different focal lengths when the first zoom lens receives the voltages of different magnitudes.
The imaging apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising:

a power supply configured to supply the voltage to the first zoom lens.
The imaging apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising:

an instruction receiving means for receiving a voltage adjustment instruction indicating a magnitude of a value of the voltage supplied by the power supply to the first zoom lens; and is also provided with

The power supply is configured to supply the voltage having a magnitude corresponding to the voltage adjustment instruction to the first zoom lens.
The imaging apparatus of claim 12, wherein the imaging device comprises a lens,

the first zoom lens is a graded index liquid lens or an electrowetting effect liquid lens.
The imaging apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

the second zoom lens with different focal lengths is arranged at a position corresponding to the light receiving unit, so that when the second zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light receiving unit receives at least part of the light reflected by the target object at different angles of view.
The imaging apparatus of claim 16, wherein the imaging device comprises a lens,

the focal length of the second zoom lens is related to the focal length of the first zoom lens.
The imaging apparatus of claim 17, wherein the imaging device comprises a lens,

the focal length of the second zoom lens is positively correlated with the focal length of the first zoom lens.
The imaging apparatus of claim 16, wherein the imaging device comprises a lens,

the first zoom lens, the second zoom lens, and the imaging lens are located on the same side of the imaging device.
The imaging apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the light emitting unit; and is also provided with

The light emitting unit is configured to stop emitting light when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is greater than or equal to a temperature threshold.
The imaging apparatus of claim 11, wherein the imaging apparatus comprises,

the imaging lens includes a third zoom lens.
A cradle head, comprising:

the cradle head body is used for supporting a load and adjusting the spatial attitude of the load;

the light emission unit is arranged on the holder body and is used for emitting light;

the first zoom lens with different focal lengths is arranged at a position on the holder body corresponding to the light ray emission unit, so that when the first zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light rays are projected to a target object through the first zoom lens at different view angles so as to reflect at least part of the light rays by the target object;

the light receiving unit is arranged on the holder body and is used for receiving at least part of light reflected by the target object, so that the holder can determine the distance between the holder and the target object according to the receiving condition of the light receiving unit.
The holder of claim 22, wherein,

the first zoom lens includes a liquid lens configured to receive voltages of different magnitudes such that the first zoom lens is at different focal lengths when the first zoom lens receives the voltages of different magnitudes.
The holder of claim 23, further comprising:

a power supply configured to supply the voltage to the first zoom lens.
The holder of claim 24, further comprising:

an instruction receiving means for receiving a voltage adjustment instruction indicating a magnitude of a value of the voltage supplied by the power supply to the first zoom lens; and is also provided with

The power supply is configured to supply the voltage having a magnitude corresponding to the voltage adjustment instruction to the first zoom lens.
The holder of claim 23, wherein,

the first zoom lens is a graded index liquid lens or an electrowetting effect liquid lens.
The holder of claim 22, further comprising:

the second zoom lens with different focal lengths is arranged at a position on the holder body corresponding to the light receiving unit, so that when the second zoom lens is in different focal lengths, the light receiving unit receives at least part of the light reflected by the target object at different angles of view.
The holder of claim 27, wherein,

the focal length of the second zoom lens is related to the focal length of the first zoom lens.
The holder of claim 28, wherein,

the focal length of the second zoom lens is positively correlated with the focal length of the first zoom lens.
The holder of claim 27, wherein,

the first zoom lens and the second zoom lens are positioned on the same side of the holder body.
The holder of claim 22, further comprising:

a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the light emitting unit; and is also provided with

The light emitting unit is configured to stop emitting light when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is greater than or equal to a temperature threshold.
The holder of claim 22, wherein,

the load includes an imaging device.
The holder of claim 32, wherein the imaging device comprises:

and the imaging lens is used for receiving light rays from the target object so as to enable the imaging device to generate an image of the target object, and the focal length of the imaging lens is determined by the distance between the holder and the target object.
The holder of claim 32, wherein the holder body comprises:

the handheld component is used for a user to hold the cradle head through the handheld component.
The holder of claim 34, wherein,

the hand-held part comprises a handle or a bracelet.
An unmanned aerial vehicle, comprising:

an unmanned aerial vehicle body;

the pan-tilt of any one of claims 22 to 33, wherein a pan-tilt body of the pan-tilt is coupled to the unmanned aerial vehicle fuselage.
An unmanned vehicle, comprising:

an unmanned vehicle body;

a pan-tilt head according to any one of claims 22 to 33, the pan-tilt head body of the pan-tilt head being connected to the drone body.
A robot, comprising:

a robot body;

a pan and tilt head according to any one of claims 22 to 33, the pan and tilt head body of the pan and tilt head being physically connected to the robot.