Abstract
A remote-sensing system that can determine the position of hidden objects has applications in many critical real-life scenarios, such as search and rescue missions and safe autonomous driving. Previous work has shown the ability to range and image objects hidden from the direct line of sight, employing advanced optical imaging technologies aimed at small objects at short range. In this work we demonstrate a long-range tracking system based on single laser illumination and single-pixel single-photon detection. This enables us to track one or more people hidden from view at a stand-off distance of over 50 m. These results pave the way towards next generation LiDAR systems that will reconstruct not only the direct-view scene but also the main elements hidden behind walls or corners.
Highlights
Recent advances in light sensing and computational imaging technologies are providing solutions to the problem of looking around obstacles [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11]
Devices that can detect the arrival of light at the single-photon level with extremely high temporal resolution have enabled the ranging and reconstruction of images of small, static hidden objects using methods based on laser-illuminated detection and ranging (LiDAR) [3, 6, 8]
Buttafava et al recently studied the possibility of determining the full three-dimensional profile of static objects using a single-pixel single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) and scanning laser illumination [6]
Summary
Recent advances in light sensing and computational imaging technologies are providing solutions to the problem of looking around obstacles [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11]. Devices that can detect the arrival of light at the single-photon level with extremely high temporal resolution have enabled the ranging and reconstruction of images of small, static hidden objects using methods based on laser-illuminated detection and ranging (LiDAR) [3, 6, 8]. LiDAR-based detection and ranging of objects hidden from view is achieved by illuminating the objects and detecting the backscattered signals via an intermediary scattering surface such as a wall or the floor. These additional, intermediate scattering events and their isotropic nature greatly reduce the available signal for detection, leading to the need for long acquisition or processing times, and/or the need for advanced detection devices. The system did not have the necessary speed to track a moving object in real-time, single-pixel SPADs do have a distinct advantage over SPAD cameras [13,14,15,16] in that they provide close to 100% coupling of light onto the sensitive detector area, compared to the few percent currently available in visible−near-infrared wavelength SPAD cameras [17, 18]
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