Specular reflection removal in time-of-flight camera apparatus

A computer system for facilitating removal of specular reflection noise from light data, comprising:

• one or more processors;
• and
• one or more computer-readable media having stored thereon executable instructions that when executed by the one or more processors configure the computer system to perform at least the following:
• illuminate, using an illumination unit, a target with a light source, wherein the illumination unit is configured to project light with a spatial light pattern onto the target;
• acquire, with a sensor unit, light data that is reflected from the target, wherein the light data comprises:
• time-of-flight data for light that illuminated the target,
• a directly reflected spatial light pattern and a specular reflected spatial light pattern, and
• the directly reflected spatial light pattern and the specular reflected spatial light pattern comprise at least one spatial distinction that distinguishes the directly reflected spatial light pattern from the specular reflected spatial light pattern;
• generate specular-reflection-compensated light data by processing, with the one or more processors, the light data, wherein the processing unit is configured to distinguish the directly reflected spatial light pattern from the specular reflected spatial light pattern based upon the at least one spatial distinction;
• and
• determine, with the one or more processors and based upon the specular-reflection-compensated light data, one or more distances that extend between the light source and one or more portions of the target.

A method, implemented at a computer system that includes one or more processors, for facilitating removal of specular reflection noise from light data, the method comprising:

• illuminating, using an illumination unit, a target with a light source, wherein the illumination unit is configured to project light with a spatial light pattern onto the target;
• acquiring, with a sensor unit, light data that is reflected from the target, wherein:
• the light data comprises a directly reflected spatial light pattern and a specular reflected spatial light pattern, and
• the directly reflected spatial light pattern and the specular reflected spatial light pattern comprise at least one spatial distinction that distinguishes the directly reflected spatial light pattern from the specular reflected spatial light pattern;
• and
• processing, with a processing unit, the light data, wherein the processing unit is configured to distinguish the directly reflected spatial light pattern from the specular reflected spatial light pattern based upon the at least one spatial distinction.