Friday, January 30, 2015

Intel Releases More Details on its F200 RealSense Camera

Intel publishes more info on its F200 structured light front camera.

RealSense F200 camera

The IR Laser Projector emits a structured pattern of Class 1 infrared light used to determine the dimensional characteristics of objects by the depth camera:

Laser projected structured light patterns are quite unusual

Intel explains that the right (green) pattern is, in fact, changing at fast speed, so that if one makes a picture of it at 1/30s exposure, it blurs into the left (gray) pattern. EETimes says that the projector emits 16 different patterns.

A Youtube video talks about the camera capabilities:


  1. So if the pattern is changing that fast and you have something that is moving fast (say a hand), then can it capture 3D for gesture at all? Or is it only good for stationary objects? And what happens when there is outdoor sunlight changing in the scene (say it is in a car moving at high speed?). Or sunlight at all? How much baseline is required for anything over a meter? What is the minimum baseline - could it be used in anything smaller than a laptop or across a largish tablet?

    1. Just to clarify, F200 is a front side camera designed for close range user interface applications. The RealSense rear camera is called R200, designed for the longer range, and based on a different technology, not covered in this post.

  2. Is there not an eye damage risk using a class 1 laser device? I can so see a child holding the phone/tablet right in front of its face.

  3. Not really, since it projects a relatively wide angle pattern not a fixed collimated beam.

  4. the IR-pattern must be visible to the IR sensor to create the depth map. How come one does not see an IR-pattern/a blur of patterns in the IR image made available by the camera?


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