Abstract: Imaging unit for obtaining a three-dimensional image of an object area, comprising an image sensor constituted by a matrix of sensor elements and a focusing unit for providing an image of said object area on the image sensor, the matrix being covered by a color filter array, and a projection unit for projecting a predetermined pattern toward the object area, the focusing unit and the projection unit having optical axes differing with a known angle, wherein the projection unit is adapted to project a time sequence of patterns toward the object area, the pattern sequence being chosen so as to uniquely define a position along at least one axis perpendicular to the projection axis, over the period defined by the illumination, wherein each sensor element in said matrix is connected to a processing branch adapted to detect the variations in the illumination sequence measured at each sensor element, and calculating from the known angle between the projection and imaging axes, the position in the sensor matrix, and t