US Patent 9674415 Time-of-flight camera system with scanning illuminator

A time of flight camera system is described. The time of flight camera system includes an illuminator. The illuminator has a movable optical component to scan light within the time-of-flight camera's field of view to illuminate a first region within the field of view that is larger than a second region within the time-of-flight camera's field of view that is illuminated at any instant by the light. The illuminator also includes an image sensor to determine depth profile information within the first region using time-of-flight measurement techniques.