Any technology will have its own unique advantages. Among several common technologies of depth camera, tof camera is widely used, and tof camera has more advantages than other technologies.
Low power consumption: ToF camera technology can directly measure depth and amplitude information in each pixel using only one infrared light source. In an actual scene, highly reliable distance information and a grayscale image of the complete scene can be obtained through the measured phase difference and amplitude value between the emitted light and the received light. During this process, ToF cameras can keep power consumption low and provide fast data acquisition for real-time operation. In addition, the depth data processing required by ToF cameras is less demanding than other algorithm-intensive depth sensing techniques such as structured light or stereo vision, so additional power can be saved on the application processor.
Small size: The inherent advantage of a ToF camera is that its camera module is simple and robust, consisting of only two key components: an imager and a single flash lighting assembly. As a result, its camera module is very small and suitable for space-critical applications such as smartphones, enabling stable mass production with ease.
Accurate and fast measurement: Compared with other distance sensors such as ultrasonic or laser, ToF camera can quickly synthesize a 3D image of the scene. Not only that, the ToF camera can detect objects accurately in a short time and is not affected by humidity, air pressure and temperature.
Long-distance measurement: Since ToF cameras use lasers, they are able to measure long distances with great precision. Therefore, the ToF camera can flexibly detect near and far objects of various shapes and sizes.
High safety: Many people may worry that the laser emitted by the ToF camera will hurt their eyes. In fact, there is no need to worry, because many ToF cameras use low-power infrared lasers, which have reached the Class 1 laser safety standard.
Cost-effective: Compared to other 3D depth range scanning technologies such as structured light camera systems or laser rangefinders, ToF cameras are relatively much less expensive.
