Patents by Inventor Tomas Kovacovsky
Tomas Kovacovsky has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 11937000Abstract: The effect of ambient light on a measurement taken by an imaging pixel may be reduced by employing two optical filters. The two filters may have narrow passbands that are close to each other but do not overlap. The first filter may allow ambient and active light to pass. The second filter may allow ambient light to pass but may block active light. The ambient and active light that passes through the first filter may cause electrical charge to be generated in a photodiode of the pixel. The ambient light that passes through the second filter and strikes another pixel element may control the amperage of an electrical current that depletes charge from the photodiode. For instance, the other element may be a photoresistor, the light-dependent resistance of which controls the amperage, or may be a second photodiode that generates charge that controls a transistor that controls the amperage.Type: GrantFiled: October 28, 2022Date of Patent: March 19, 2024Assignee: Photoneo s.r.o.Inventors: Jan Zizka, Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly
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Publication number: 20230415345Abstract: Conventional automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRSs) are expensive, time consuming to implement, require an appreciable amount of space, and difficult to change after implementation. Accordingly, various mobile robots are described herein that provide on the spot retrieval, picking, and/or placement of items without relying upon any infrastructure to facilitate movement through an environment, thus simplifying deployment and providing a highly scalable solution to automate order fulfillment. In one example, a mobile picker apparatus includes movable platforms to load or unload boxes, a camera assembly to acquire imagery of the items in a box to locate an item for picking, and a picker robot to pick the item from the box and place the item in another box. In another example, a mobile runner apparatus includes a set of movable platforms to load or unload boxes and can be used with a stationary picker apparatus or a picking station.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 22, 2023Publication date: December 28, 2023Inventors: Jan Zizka, Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly
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Publication number: 20230073300Abstract: The effect of ambient light on a measurement taken by an imaging pixel may be reduced by employing two optical filters. The two filters may have narrow passbands that are close to each other but do not overlap. The first filter may allow ambient and active light to pass. The second filter may allow ambient light to pass but may block active light. The ambient and active light that passes through the first filter may cause electrical charge to be generated in a photodiode of the pixel. The ambient light that passes through the second filter and strikes another pixel element may control the amperage of an electrical current that depletes charge from the photodiode. For instance, the other element may be a photoresistor, the light-dependent resistance of which controls the amperage, or may be a second photodiode that generates charge that controls a transistor that controls the amperage.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 28, 2022Publication date: March 9, 2023Inventors: Jan Zizka, Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly
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Patent number: 11516415Abstract: The effect of ambient light on a measurement taken by an imaging pixel may be reduced by employing two optical filters. The two filters may have narrow passbands that are close to each other but do not overlap. The first filter may allow ambient and active light to pass. The second filter may allow ambient light to pass but may block active light. The ambient and active light that passes through the first filter may cause electrical charge to be generated in a photodiode of the pixel. The ambient light that passes through the second filter and strikes another pixel element may control the amperage of an electrical current that depletes charge from the photodiode. For instance, the other element may be a photoresistor, the light-dependent resistance of which controls the amperage, or may be a second photodiode that generates charge that controls a transistor that controls the amperage.Type: GrantFiled: December 17, 2021Date of Patent: November 29, 2022Assignee: PHOTONEO S.R.O.Inventors: Jan Zizka, Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly
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Publication number: 20220124265Abstract: The effect of ambient light on a measurement taken by an imaging pixel may be reduced by employing two optical filters. The two filters may have narrow passbands that are close to each other but do not overlap. The first filter may allow ambient and active light to pass. The second filter may allow ambient light to pass but may block active light. The ambient and active light that passes through the first filter may cause electrical charge to be generated in a photodiode of the pixel. The ambient light that passes through the second filter and strikes another pixel element may control the amperage of an electrical current that depletes charge from the photodiode. For instance, the other element may be a photoresistor, the light-dependent resistance of which controls the amperage, or may be a second photodiode that generates charge that controls a transistor that controls the amperage.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 17, 2021Publication date: April 21, 2022Applicant: Photoneo s. r. o.Inventors: Jan Zizka, Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly
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Patent number: 10965891Abstract: In illustrative implementations, a set of separate modulation signals simultaneously modulates a plurality of pixels in a superpixel by a set of separate modulation signals, such that each pixel in the superpixel is modulated by a modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel to vary over time. Each superpixel comprises multiple pixels. In some implementations, the sensitivity of a pixel to incident light is controlled by storage modulation or by light modulation. In some implementations, this invention is used for 3D scanning, i.e., for detection of the 3D position of points in a scene.Type: GrantFiled: February 21, 2020Date of Patent: March 30, 2021Assignee: Photoneo s. r. o.Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly, Jan Zizka
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Publication number: 20200195865Abstract: In illustrative implementations, a set of separate modulation signals simultaneously modulates a plurality of pixels in a superpixel by a set of separate modulation signals, such that each pixel in the superpixel is modulated by a modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel to vary over time. Each superpixel comprises multiple pixels. In some implementations, the sensitivity of a pixel to incident light is controlled by storage modulation or by light modulation. In some implementations, this invention is used for 3D scanning, i.e., for detection of the 3D position of points in a scene.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 21, 2020Publication date: June 18, 2020Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly, Jan Zizka
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Patent number: 10638111Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: GrantFiled: November 14, 2018Date of Patent: April 28, 2020Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Patent number: 10616510Abstract: In illustrative implementations, a set of separate modulation signals simultaneously modulates a plurality of pixels in a superpixel by a set of separate modulation signals, such that each pixel in the superpixel is modulated by a modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel to vary over time. Each superpixel comprises multiple pixels. In some implementations, the sensitivity of a pixel to incident light is controlled by storage modulation or by light modulation. In some implementations, this invention is used for 3D scanning, i.e., for detection of the 3D position of points in a scene.Type: GrantFiled: May 20, 2019Date of Patent: April 7, 2020Assignee: Photoneo s. r. o.Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly, Jan Zizka
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Patent number: 10616554Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: GrantFiled: November 14, 2018Date of Patent: April 7, 2020Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Patent number: 10574969Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: GrantFiled: November 11, 2018Date of Patent: February 25, 2020Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Patent number: 10542246Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: GrantFiled: November 12, 2018Date of Patent: January 21, 2020Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Publication number: 20190281236Abstract: In illustrative implementations, a set of separate modulation signals simultaneously modulates a plurality of pixels in a superpixel by a set of separate modulation signals, such that each pixel in the superpixel is modulated by a modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel to vary over time. Each superpixel comprises multiple pixels. In some implementations, the sensitivity of a pixel to incident light is controlled by storage modulation or by light modulation. In some implementations, this invention is used for 3D scanning, i.e., for detection of the 3D position of points in a scene.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 20, 2019Publication date: September 12, 2019Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly, Jan Zizka
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Patent number: 10334190Abstract: In illustrative implementations, a set of separate modulation signals simultaneously modulates a plurality of pixels in a superpixel by a set of separate modulation signals, such that each pixel in the superpixel is modulated by a modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel to vary over time. Each superpixel comprises multiple pixels. In some implementations, the sensitivity of a pixel to incident light is controlled by storage modulation or by light modulation. In some implementations, this invention is used for 3D scanning, i.e., for detection of the 3D position of points in a scene.Type: GrantFiled: January 15, 2018Date of Patent: June 25, 2019Assignee: Photoneo, s.r.o.Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly, Jan Zizka
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Publication number: 20190104296Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 14, 2018Publication date: April 4, 2019Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Publication number: 20190098285Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 12, 2018Publication date: March 28, 2019Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Publication number: 20190098284Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 11, 2018Publication date: March 28, 2019Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Publication number: 20190082163Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 14, 2018Publication date: March 14, 2019Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Patent number: 10158844Abstract: An imaging system with a light source controls the sensitivity of pixels to light, by performing both superpixel modulation and curtain modulation. The superpixel modulation may facilitate rapid data acquisition. The curtain modulation may suppress the effect of ambient light. In superpixel modulation, each pixel set may be modulated by a separate superpixel modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel set to light to vary over time, and each superpixel may include a pixel from each pixel set. The curtain modulation may cause pixels in only a small region of the photodetector to be sensitive to light. The curtain modulation may cause the small region to move to track the dot of light, by changing which pixels are in the region. This invention may be used for 3D scanning.Type: GrantFiled: March 3, 2017Date of Patent: December 18, 2018Assignee: Photoneo s.r.o.Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Jan Zizka, Michal Maly
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Publication number: 20180139398Abstract: In illustrative implementations, a set of separate modulation signals simultaneously modulates a plurality of pixels in a superpixel by a set of separate modulation signals, such that each pixel in the superpixel is modulated by a modulation signal that causes sensitivity of the pixel to vary over time. Each superpixel comprises multiple pixels. In some implementations, the sensitivity of a pixel to incident light is controlled by storage modulation or by light modulation. In some implementations, this invention is used for 3D scanning, i.e., for detection of the 3D position of points in a scene.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 15, 2018Publication date: May 17, 2018Inventors: Tomas Kovacovsky, Michal Maly, Jan Zizka