Optical redirector device

US12055659B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Waymo LLC · US

Inventors

• Blaise Gassend · East Palo Alto, US
• David G. Duff · Woodside, US
• Pierre-Yves Droz · Los Altos, US
• Paul Karplus · Sunnyvale, US
• Jason Watson · Lafayette, US
• Michael Brickner · Mountain View, US
• Alex Rivas · Sunnyvale, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 26, 2020
• Grant date: Aug 6, 2024
• Expiry date: Jun 2, 2043

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01S2007/4975
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to devices, lidar systems, and vehicles that include optical redirectors. An example lidar system includes a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter includes at least one light-emitter device configured to transmit emission light into an environment of the lidar system. The receiver is configured to detect return light from the environment and includes a plurality of apertures, a plurality of photodetectors, and a plurality of optical redirector elements. Each optical redirector element is configured to optically couple a respective portion of return light from a respective aperture to at least one photodetector of the plurality of photodetectors.