	US 12,487,362 B2
	Configurable memory blocks for LIDAR measurements
Angus Pacala, San Francisco, CA (US); Yan Zhao, San Francisco, CA (US); Boyi Ma, San Francisco, CA (US); and Marvin Shu, San Francisco, CA (US)
Assigned to Ouster, Inc., San Francisco, CA (US)
Filed by Ouster, Inc., San Francisco, CA (US)
Filed on Oct. 20, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/451,612.
Application 17/451,612 is a continuation of application No. PCT/US2020/055343, filed on Oct. 13, 2020.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/913,602, filed on Oct. 10, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0043156 A1, Feb. 10, 2022
Int. Cl. G01S 17/93 (2020.01); G01S 7/481 (2006.01); G01S 17/36 (2006.01); G01S 17/42 (2006.01); G06F 13/16 (2006.01)

CPC G01S 17/93 (2013.01) [G01S 7/4817 (2013.01); G01S 17/36 (2013.01); G01S 17/42 (2013.01); G06F 13/1673 (2013.01); G06F 13/1689 (2013.01)]

19 Claims

1. An optical measurement system comprising:

a light source configured to transmit one or more pulse trains over one or more time intervals as part of an optical measurement, wherein each of the one or more time intervals includes one of the one or more pulse trains, and wherein each of the one or more time intervals is subdivided into a plurality of time bins;

a photosensor configured to detect photons from the light source;

one or more memory blocks, wherein each of the one or more memory blocks comprises a plurality of registers configured to store accumulated photon counts from the photosensor, and wherein each of the plurality of registers is associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of time bins to represent a histogram; and

a select circuit configured to:

receive accumulated photon counts from the photosensor during the one or more time intervals;

provide a select signal that adds or removes memory blocks from the one or more memory blocks that accumulate photon counts from the photosensor; and

change a clock signal associated with the photosensor in response to the adding or removing of memory blocks from the one or more memory blocks.

11. A method of using an optical measurement system, the method comprising:

transmitting one or more pulse trains from a light source over one or more time intervals as part of an optical measurement, wherein each of the one or more time intervals includes one of the one or more pulse trains, and wherein each of the one or more time intervals is subdivided into a plurality of time bins;

detecting photons from the one or more pulse trains using a photosensor;

selecting one or more memory blocks from a plurality of memory blocks to store accumulated photon counts from the photosensor; and

accumulating photon counts from the photosensor received during the one or more time intervals into the one or more memory blocks, wherein each of the one or more memory blocks comprises a plurality of registers, and each of the plurality of registers is associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of time bins for the photosensors to represent a histogram;

changing the number of memory blocks in the one or more memory blocks; and

changing a clock signal associated with the photosensor based on the changed number of memory blocks in the one or more memory blocks.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein clock signals associated with the one or more memory blocks are phase-shifted 180° relative to each other.