System for and method of configurable line scan array imaging
AssigneeRaytheon Company
InventorsJoseph McCorkle, Richard A. Zapor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Disclosed are image data acquisition methods and systems that utilizes selective temporal co-adding of detector integration samples to construct improved high-resolution output imagery for arrays with selectable line rates. Configurable TDI arrays are used to construct output imagery of various resolutions dependent upon array commanding, the acquisition geometry, and temporal sampling. The image acquisition techniques may be applied to any optical sensor system and to optical systems with multiple sensors at various relative rotations which enable simultaneous image acquisitions of two or more sensors. Acquired image data may be up-sampled onto a multitude of image grids of various resolution.
Claims18
A method of generating reduced in-scan blur image data using an imaging device including a controller, a digital memory structure having a plurality of storage locations, each storage location to store a digital value and being individually addressable by the controller, and an array of unit cells configured to store charge based on detected photons, each of the unit cells being associated with a corresponding storage location and including a time delay and integrate (TDI) detector, the imaging device having a readout rate that is greater than a line rate, the readout rate defining readout-clock times, the method comprising the steps of:
- selecting shift mode readout-clock times and accumulate mode readout-clock times, the accumulate mode readout-clock times representing times during which scene data should be accumulated from one or more of the unit cells;
- for each of the selected accumulate mode readout-clock times and for each of a set of the one or more unit cells:
- accumulating over an integration time detector charge associated with a projected detector field of view (PDFOV) of the scene to obtain a detector co-add data sample,
- reading the detector co-add data sample from the unit cell,
- adding the detector co-add data sample to existing detector co-add scene data in the storage location corresponding to the unit cell;
- and
- for each of the selected shift mode readout-clock times, and for each unit cell in the set of one or more unit cells:
- shifting the existing detector co-add scene data stored in a plurality of the storage locations corresponding to the set of unit cells to a plurality of shifted storage locations by a number of rows that is based on a rate of motion change of the scene in relation to the PDFOV, and
- outputting at the line rate from one or more of the plurality of storage locations the detector co-add scene data corresponding to a line of scene data, to form an enhanced image of the scene.
A method of generating reduced in-scan blur image data with an imaging device including an array of unit cells configured to store charge based on detected photons, a controller, and a digital memory structure having a plurality of storage locations, each storage location to store a digital value and being individually addressable by the controller, each of the unit cells being associated with a corresponding storage location, the method comprising the steps of:
- determining a digital value based on a stored charge from at least one of the unit cells;
- adding the determined digital value to an existing value in a corresponding storage location when operating in accumulate mode;
- and
- selectively adding the determined digital value to an existing value in a storage location when operating in accumulate mode;
- wherein during shift mode said storage locations shift values from adjacent storage locations and an output is generated from a set of storage locations.
A line scanning imaging device having a readout rate that is greater than a line rate, the readout rate defining readout clock times, comprising:
- a focal plane array of unit cells each including a time delay and integrate (TDI) detector configured to accumulate charge based on detected photons;
- a digital memory structure having a plurality of storage locations, each associated with a corresponding unit cell and configured to store a digital value indicative of the charge and to be individually addressable;
- and
- a controller is configured to operate in an accumulate mode and a shift mode;
- wherein, in the accumulate mode, the controller determines the digital value based on the stored charge from at least one of the unit cells, and selectively adds the at least one determined digital value to existing values in at least one corresponding storage location, and
- in the shift mode, the controller shifts values from the at least one corresponding storage location to adjacent storage locations.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.