Optoelectronic sensor and method of deflecting a light beam

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11486973-B2
Application number	US-201916572954-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 17, 2019
Priority date	Sep 19, 2018
Publication date	Nov 1, 2022
Grant date	Nov 1, 2022

Abstract

An optoelectronic sensor is provided having a light receiver, a reception optics arranged upstream of the light receiver, and a control and evaluation unit, wherein the reception optics has a beam deflection device having a plurality of switchable blaze gratings of different grating constants arranged behind one another, and wherein the control and evaluation unit is configured to switch a blaze grating on and off in accordance with a desired deflection angle of the beam deflection device have the same grating constants, but a mutually different blaze angle.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An optoelectronic sensor comprising:
a light receiver,
a reception optics arranged upstream of the light receiver, and
a control and evaluation unit, wherein the reception optics has a beam deflection device having a plurality of switchable blaze gratings of different grating constants arranged behind one another, and wherein the control and evaluation unit switches a blaze grating on and off in accordance with a desired deflection angle of the beam deflection device,
wherein at least two blaze gratings have the same grating constants, but a mutually different blaze angle.

2. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
wherein the control and evaluation unit switches only a respective one of the blaze gratings having the same grating constants in dependence on the desired deflection angle.

3. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
wherein the respective grating constant is a multiple of a base grating constant.

4. The sensor in accordance with claim 3 ,
wherein the grating constants are in a ratio of 2{circumflex over ( )}n to one another.

5. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
wherein the control and evaluation unit varies the deflection angle with an angular resolution over a reception angle range of the beam defection device.

6. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
wherein the light receiver is a single detector.

7. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
wherein the reception optics has a further beam deflection device having a plurality of switchable blaze gratings arranged after one another and having different grating constants among one another in an orientation of the blaze gratings crossed with respect to the beam deflection device.

8. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
wherein the beam deflection device is oblique to a central direction of incidence of received light.

9. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
wherein the beam deflection device has at least one waveplate.

10. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
that has a light transmitter and a transmission optics having a beam deflection device at the transmission side for transmitting a transmitted light beam at a desired deflection angle.

11. The sensor in accordance with claim 10 ,
wherein the beam deflection device at the transmission side has a plurality of switchable blaze gratings of different grating constants arranged behind one another.

12. The sensor in accordance with claim 11 ,
wherein the beam deflection device acts in a dual function as a beam deflection device at the transmission side.

13. The sensor in accordance with claim 1 ,
wherein the control and evaluation unit determines a time of flight of the transmitted light beam transmitted and received again by the light receiver.

14. A method of deflecting a light beam having an arrangement one after the other of a plurality of switchable blaze gratings of different grating constants through which the light beam consecutively passes, wherein specific blaze gratings are switched on and off in accordance with a desired deflection angle of the light beam, wherein only one of at least two blaze gratings of the same grating constants, but of mutually different blaze angles, is switched on in accordance with the deflection angle.

15. A method of optically scanning a monitored zone in which received light is consecutively received from different deflection angles, wherein the deflection angles are varied using a method of deflecting a light beam having an arrangement one after the other of a plurality of switchable blaze gratings of different grating constants through which the light beam consecutively passes, wherein specific blaze gratings are switched on and off in accordance with a desired deflection angle of the light beam, wherein only one of at least two blaze gratings of the same grating constants, but of mutually different blaze angles, is switched on in accordance with the deflection angle.

Assignees

• Sick Ag

Inventors

• Gimpel Hartmut
• Russ Thomas

Classifications

• G02B5/1823

  in an overlapping or superposed manner · CPC title

• G02B5/1828

  having means for producing variable diffraction (controlling the direction of light by means of one or more diffracting elements G02B26/0808; acousto-optical elements G02F1/11, G02F1/33; electro- or magneto-optical diffraction G02F1/292, G02F1/2955) · CPC title

• G01S17/10

  using transmission of interrupted, pulse-modulated waves (determination of distance by phase measurements G01S17/32) · CPC title

• G01S7/4817 Primary

  relating to scanning · CPC title

• G02F1/292

  by controlled diffraction or phased-array beam steering (controlled diffraction for optical switching G02F1/31) · CPC title