Automotive auxiliary ladar sensor

A vehicle guidance system mountable within a vehicle and connectable to at least one control system of said vehicle, said vehicle guidance system comprising:

• a digital processor connected to a ladar sensor and a two-dimensional camera, said digital processor receiving three-dimensional data from the ladar sensor and two-dimensional data from the camera;
• said ladar sensor including
• a receiving lens,
• a laser transmitter having a modulated laser light output and a diffusing optic adapted to illuminate a scene in a field of view of said ladar sensor,
• a range correction circuit having a zero range reference output,
• a two-dimensional array of light sensitive detectors positioned at a focal plane of said receiving lens, each of said light sensitive detectors with an output adapted to produce an electrical response signal from a reflected portion of the modulated laser light output,
• a readout integrated circuit with a plurality of unit cell electrical circuits, each of the unit cell electrical circuits having an input connected to one of the light sensitive detector outputs, each unit cell electrical circuit having an electrical response signal demodulator and a range measuring circuit connected to an output of said electrical response signal demodulator, said range measuring circuit further connected to the zero range reference output;
• said digital processor adapted to identify objects by operating on the three-dimensional data and the two-dimensional data,

A vehicle guidance system mounted within a vehicle, connected to a control system of the vehicle, and having a digital processor connected to a ladar sensor, and a two-dimensional camera, said digital processor receiving three-dimensional data from the ladar sensor, and the digital processor receiving two-dimensional data from the two-dimensional camera,

• said digital processor adapted to identify objects by operating on the three-dimensional data and the two-dimensional data, said digital processor in communication with a digital memory adapted to store a plurality of three-dimensional data frames, and said digital processor adapted to operate on the plurality of three-dimensional data frames and to track the objects,
• said at least one ladar sensor comprising
• a receiving lens,
• a laser transmitter, said laser transmitter with a modulated laser light output and a diffusing optic adapted to illuminate a scene in a field of view of said at least one ladar sensor,
• a range correction circuit having a zero range reference output,
• a two-dimensional array of light sensitive detectors positioned at a focal plane of said receiving lens, each of said light sensitive detectors with an output adapted to produce an electrical response signal from a reflected portion of said modulated laser light output,
• a readout integrated circuit with a plurality of unit cell electrical circuits, each of the unit cell electrical circuits having an input connected to one of the light sensitive detector outputs, each unit cell electrical circuit having an electrical response signal demodulator and a range measuring circuit connected to an output of said electrical response signal demodulator, said range measuring circuit further connected to the zero range reference output.