Mobile terminal and method for controlling the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9942453-B2
Application number	US-201514852129-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 11, 2015
Priority date	Oct 21, 2014
Publication date	Apr 10, 2018
Grant date	Apr 10, 2018

Abstract

Disclosed are a mobile terminal having a plurality of light emitting devices, and a method for controlling the same. The mobile terminal includes a camera; a light emitting portion including a plurality of light emitting units; and a controller configured to control the light emitting portion to emit light, such that depth information of an image received through the camera is extracted, wherein the controller determines the number of light emitting units which emit light among the plurality of light emitting units, based on a distance between a subject corresponding to the image and the camera.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A mobile terminal, comprising:
a camera;
a light emitting portion including a plurality of light emitting units, wherein each of the plurality of light emitting units includes a plurality of light emitting devices, each of the plurality of light emitting devices is a laser diode, and the plurality of light emitting units have a same pattern;
a plurality of lenses corresponding to the plurality of light emitting units, each of the plurality of lenses corresponding to a respective one of the plurality of light emitting units; and
a controller configured to:
cause the light emitting portion to emit light to obtain depth information of an image received via the camera;
control a number of light emitting units that emit light among the plurality of light emitting units based on a distance between a subject corresponding to the image and the camera such that the number of the light emitting units among the plurality of light emitting units increases as the distance increases;
control a first light emitting unit among the plurality of light emitting units to emit light when the distance is a first distance;
control the first light emitting unit and a second light emitting unit among the plurality of light emitting units to emit light when the distance is a second distance that is greater than the first distance; and
rotate at least part of the plurality of lenses based on the distance between the subject and the camera such that the light is irradiated to overlap the subject,
wherein the at least part of the plurality of lenses are rotated by a first angle when the distance is the first distance, and the at least part of the plurality of lenses are rotated by a second angle that is smaller than the first angle when the distance is the second distance.

2. The mobile terminal of claim 1 , wherein the number of light emitting units decreases when the distance becomes shorter.

3. The mobile terminal of claim 1 , wherein light emitting devices included in a same light emitting unit among the plurality of light emitting units have a same pattern.

4. The mobile terminal of claim 1 , wherein the number of light emitting units is determined further based on at least one of an amount of light emitted from the light emitting units and reflected from the subject or a condition of peripheral light.

5. The mobile terminal of claim 1 , wherein a pattern of light emitting devices included in one of the plurality of light emitting units is different from patterns of light emitting devices included in other light emitting units among the plurality of light emitting units.

6. The mobile terminal of claim 5 , wherein the controller is further configured to determine the number of light emitting units further based on a type of an operation mode related to the depth information.

7. The mobile terminal of claim 6 , wherein the determined number of light emitting units increases when the distance is increased.

8. The mobile terminal of claim 1 , wherein:
the plurality of light emitting units are grouped such that at least two of the plurality of light emitting units belong to a single group;
light emitting units included in each group have light emitting devices that have a same pattern; and
light emitting units included in different groups have light emitting devices that have different patterns.

9. The mobile terminal of claim 8 , wherein the controller is further configured to control the plurality of light emitting units by group based on at least one of the distance between the subject and the camera, an amount of light emitted from the plurality of light emitting units and reflected from the subject, a condition of peripheral light, or a type of an operation mode related to the depth information.

10. A method for controlling a mobile terminal comprising a camera and a light emitting portion, the method comprising:
receiving an image via the camera;
determining a distance between a subject corresponding to the image and the camera;
controlling a number of light emitting units that emit light among a plurality of light emitting units included in the light emitting portion based on a distance between the subject and the camera such that the number of the light emitting units among the plurality of light emitting units increases as the distance increases, the plurality of light emitting units having a same pattern;
controlling a first light emitting unit among the plurality of light emitting units to emit light when the distance is a first distance;
controlling the first light emitting unit and a second light emitting unit among the plurality of light emitting units to emit light when the distance is a second distance that is greater than the first distance; and
rotating at least part of a plurality of lenses corresponding to the plurality of light emitting units based on the distance between the subject and the camera such that the light is irradiated to overlap the subject,
wherein the at least part of the plurality of lenses are rotated by a first angle when the distance is the first distance, and the at least part of the plurality of lenses are rotated by a second angle that is smaller than the first angle when the distance is the second distance.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the number of light emitting units decreases when the distance becomes shorter.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein light emitting devices included in a same light emitting unit among the plurality of light emitting units have a same pattern.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein the number of light emitting units is determined further based on at least one of an amount of light emitted from the light emitting units and reflected from the subject or a condition of peripheral light.

14. The method of claim 10 , wherein a pattern of light emitting devices included in one of the plurality of light emitting units is different from patterns of light emitting devices included in other light emitting units among the plurality of light emitting units.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the number of light emitting units is determined further based on a type of an operation mode related to the depth information.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the determined number of light emitting units increases when the distance is increased.

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Shin Yunsup
• Ji Salkmann
• Jung Yungwoo

Classifications

• H04N23/74

  by influencing the scene brightness using illuminating means · CPC title

• H04N23/56

  provided with illuminating means · CPC title

• G01C3/085

  with electronic parallax measurement · CPC title

• H04N5/2256

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H04N13/0207

  Electricity · mapped topic