Optical design tools for reflective optical systems

2002 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph M. Howard
Keyword(s):  
Optical Design ◽  
Optical Systems ◽  
Design Tools

Differentiable Compound Optics and Processing Pipeline Optimization for End-to-end Camera Design

2021 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Ethan Tseng ◽  
Ali Mosleh ◽  
Fahim Mannan ◽  
Karl St-Arnaud ◽  
Avinash Sharma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Image Processing ◽  
Optical Design ◽  
Neural Nets ◽  
Fine Tuning ◽  
Optical Systems ◽  
Design Tools ◽  
End To End ◽  
Application Specific ◽  
Network Processing

Most modern commodity imaging systems we use directly for photography—or indirectly rely on for downstream applications—employ optical systems of multiple lenses that must balance deviations from perfect optics, manufacturing constraints, tolerances, cost, and footprint. Although optical designs often have complex interactions with downstream image processing or analysis tasks, today’s compound optics are designed in isolation from these interactions. Existing optical design tools aim to minimize optical aberrations, such as deviations from Gauss’ linear model of optics, instead of application-specific losses, precluding joint optimization with hardware image signal processing (ISP) and highly parameterized neural network processing. In this article, we propose an optimization method for compound optics that lifts these limitations. We optimize entire lens systems jointly with hardware and software image processing pipelines, downstream neural network processing, and application-specific end-to-end losses. To this end, we propose a learned, differentiable forward model for compound optics and an alternating proximal optimization method that handles function compositions with highly varying parameter dimensions for optics, hardware ISP, and neural nets. Our method integrates seamlessly atop existing optical design tools, such as Zemax . We can thus assess our method across many camera system designs and end-to-end applications. We validate our approach in an automotive camera optics setting—together with hardware ISP post processing and detection—outperforming classical optics designs for automotive object detection and traffic light state detection. For human viewing tasks, we optimize optics and processing pipelines for dynamic outdoor scenarios and dynamic low-light imaging. We outperform existing compartmentalized design or fine-tuning methods qualitatively and quantitatively, across all domain-specific applications tested.

scholarly journals Flowline Optical Simulation to Refractive/Reflective 3D Systems: Optical Path Length Correction

Photonics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angel García-Botella ◽  
Lun Jiang ◽  
Roland Winston
Keyword(s):  
Vector Field ◽  
Path Length ◽  
Optical Design ◽  
Radiant Energy ◽  
Computation Time ◽  
Optical Path Length ◽  
Optical Path ◽  
Optical Systems ◽  
Optical Simulation ◽  
Reflective Systems

Nonimaging optics is focused on the study of techniques to design optical systems for the purpose of energy transfer instead of image forming. The flowline optical design method, based on the definition of the geometrical flux vector J, is one of these techniques. The main advantage of the flowline method is its capability to visualize and estimate how radiant energy is transferred by the optical systems using the concepts of vector field theory, such as field line or flux tube, which overcomes traditional raytrace methods. The main objective this paper is to extend the flowline method to analyze and design real 3D concentration and illumination systems by the development of new simulation techniques. In this paper, analyzed real 3D refractive and reflective systems using the flowline vector potential method. A new constant term of optical path length is introduced, similar and comparable to the gauge invariant, which produces a correction to enable the agreement between raytrace- and flowline-based computations. This new optical simulation methodology provides traditional raytrace results, such as irradiance maps, but opens new perspectives to obtaining higher precision with lower computation time. It can also provide new information for the vector field maps of 3D refractive/reflective systems.

scholarly journals Efficient Robust Design Optimization of Optical Systems

2019 ◽  
Vol 215 ◽  
pp. 02001
Author(s):  
Stephanie Kunath
Keyword(s):  
Design Optimization ◽  
Robust Design ◽  
Optical Design ◽  
Simulation Software ◽  
Robust Design Optimization ◽  
Optical Systems ◽  
Optical Simulation ◽  
Optimization Approach ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Virtual Product Development

To accelerate the virtual product development of using optical simulation software, the Robust Design Optimization approach is very promising. Optical designs can be explored thoroughly by means of sensitivity analysis. This includes the identification of relevant input parameters and the modelling of inputs vs. outputs to understand their dependencies and interactions. Furthermore, the intelligent definition of objective functions for an efficient subsequent optimization is of high importance for multi-objective optimization tasks. To find the best trade-off between two or more merit functions, a Pareto optimization is the best choice. As a result, not only one design, but a front of best designs is obtained and the most appropriate design can be selected by the decision maker. Additionally, the best trade-off between output variation of the robustness (tolerance) and optimization targets can be found to secure the manufacturability of the optical design by several advanced approaches. The benefit of this Robust Design Optimization approach will be demonstrated.

Optical design and unification of optical systems of objectives for microscopes

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olga A. Vinogradova ◽  
Vladimir N. Frolov ◽  
Pavel S. Vakulov ◽  
Dmitry N. Frolov
Keyword(s):  
Optical Design ◽  
Optical Systems

scholarly journals Ultrathin Tunable Lens Based on Boundary Tension Effect

Sensors ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (18) ◽  
pp. 4018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ao Yang ◽  
Jie Cao ◽  
Fanghua Zhang ◽  
Yang Cheng ◽  
Qun Hao
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Film ◽  
Small Volume ◽  
Optical Design ◽  
Optical Systems ◽  
Light Weight ◽  
Fabrication Method ◽  
Processing Mode ◽  
Liquid Lenses ◽  
Working Principle ◽  
Tunable Lens

Solid and liquid lenses are commonly used in optical design. Such lenses have suitable thicknesses due to their working principle and processing mode. Thus, zoom optical systems comprising solid and liquid lenses are extremely large. This work presents a new ultrathin tunable lens (UTL) comprising two liquid film lenses (LFLs) obtained through aspheric deformation and produced from the surface of a micro-liquid under gravity and boundary tension. The UTL can flexibly change focal lengths between positive and negative lenses when the device thickness is merely 2.15 mm. The proposed lens has the advantages of small volume, light weight, simple fabrication, and independence from external force during zooming. This research makes up for the drawback that traditional solid and liquid lenses cannot further reduce their thicknesses. The proposed UTL provides a new lens form and fabrication method, and can be used to replace solid and liquid lenses for designing miniature zoom optical systems.

Regionally different optical systems in the compound eye of the water-flea Polyphemus (Cladocera, Crustacea)

1983 ◽  
Vol 217 (1207) ◽  
pp. 163-175 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Regional Differences ◽  
Compound Eye ◽  
Focal Length ◽  
Complex Refractive Index ◽  
Optical Design ◽  
Optical Systems ◽  
Refractive Index Gradient ◽  
Water Flea ◽  
Central Type ◽  
Index Gradient

Polyphemus pediculus (L.) is a small (1 mm long) predatory crustacean that lives in bodies of standing freshwater. It has a single fused compound eye, which occupies most of its head. The eye comprises 130 ommatidia with five distinct types of crystalline cones. Four of these cone types were found to focus light by means of gradient index optics (lens cylinders). The edge ommatidia differ by having the focus displaced below the distal rhabdom tip. This was found to be correlated with their special type of rhabdom, which is characterized by its short, broad shape and the absence of a palisade. The central-type crystalline cone, contributing to a zone of acute vision, is functionally different from the other four cone types. The focusing on the rhabdom tip is in this case achieved by a prism, inside the cone, corrected for optical aberration with a complex refractive index gradient. The prism is interpreted as a way of compressing a long focal length into a short optical system, i. e. to enable high resolution in spite of the small size of the eye. Extreme regional differences in interommatidial angles were found to be the main reason for the different optical design between central and peripheral ommatidia.

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