US Patent 10018726 Integrated illumination and detection for LIDAR based 3-D imaging

Methods and systems for performing three dimensional LIDAR measurements with a highly integrated LIDAR measurement device are described herein. In one aspect, the illumination source, detector, and illumination drive are integrated onto a single printed circuit board. In addition, in some embodiments, the associated control and signal conditioning electronics are also integrated onto the common printed circuit board. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the illumination drive and the illumination source are integrated onto a common Gallium Nitride substrate that is independently packaged and attached to the printed circuit board. In another aspect, the illumination light emitted from the illumination source and the return light directed toward the detector share a common optical path within the integrated LIDAR measurement device. In some embodiments, the return light is separated from the illumination light by a beam splitter. In some other embodiments, the optical design avoids losses associated with a beam splitter.