What is the Time-of-Flight (ToF) sensor on a phone? What effect?

Newer phones are increasingly equipped with new and advanced sensor cameras. Typically, Time-of-Flight (ToF) camera technology is in vogue recently, and Huawei, Samsung, and OPPO have immediately applied it to their latest product lines. So what is this technology? Find out in the article below.

What is the Time-of-Flight (ToF) camera sensor on a phone?

A Time-of-Flight (ToF) camera uses infrared light (a laser invisible to the human eye) to determine depth information – the same way a bat perceives its surroundings.

The ToF camera will emit an infrared beam, which then affects the object you want to approach (the subject taking pictures) and reflects back to the sensor to process information.

The parameters of the movement of infrared rays will best represent the image of the object in the form of a 3D graph.

ToF’s sensors can reach up to 160 frames per second , so this technology is ideal for background blurring to focus on subjects in videos and images even while moving.

How does the Time-of-Flight (ToF) camera sensor work on a phone?

A ToF camera sensor can be used for distance and volume measurement, as well as for subject scanning, indoor navigation, obstacle avoidance, gesture recognition, object tracking.

Data from the sensor can also help sketch 3D images and improve augmented reality (AR) experiences . In the phone, the ToF camera sensor will likely be used for 3D, AR and especially portrait mode photography .

The ToF sensor will help identify where the subject is, where the background is and then offer the most natural and beautiful way to remove the font .

The ToF camera sensor can also assist in low-light situations – as the sensor uses infrared light to determine the distance to the subject and helps the smartphone focus even in the dark. .

Is the Time-of-Flight (ToF) camera sensor new?

ToF technology is not so new, as big-name technology companies have been experimenting with this sensor for the past decade.

Microsoft has also used ToF sensors in its second-generation Kinect devices. Self-driving car maker Lidar also often equips ToF sensors on its car products. Even drone companies are already using TeraRanger ToF cameras to monitor vineyards.

But only recently did we see ToF cameras appear in consumer smartphones for the first time. The technology was introduced with the newly launched Huawei Honor View 20 phone.

In the coming years, it is likely that many phone companies will also apply this interesting technology.

Which phone is the Time-of-Flight (ToF) camera sensor available on?

Huawei P30 Pro

Made in collaboration with Leica, the Huawei P30 Pro is considered the most complete phone camera setup ever, featuring the first 5x optical zoom telescope, wide-angle lens and focal length. standard, plus a combination of ToF sensor and LED flash.

Samsung Galaxy S10 5G

The upcoming extra-large Galaxy S10 is coming as the 6.7-inch Ultra version. This is also the only S10 model in the series to have ToF camera technology.

Oppo RX17 Pro

Oppo RX17 Pro offers impressive selfies with a 25-megapixel front camera and f/2.0 aperture . Meanwhile, the triple rear camera is set up with a ToF sensor.

Honor View 20

The phone of Huawei’s Honor View 20 with a punch-hole selfie camera has an impressive 48-megapixel dual-camera setup combined with a 3D ToF sensor and LED flash.

LG G8 ThinQ

The LG G8 ThinQ was announced at Mobile World Congress 2019, using ToF camera sensor technology.

iPhone 2020

Bloomberg confirms Apple’s next-generation iPhone in 2020 will be upgraded with a new TrueDepth system with 3D Time-of-Flight camera.

Apple aspires to provide a more detailed AR experience, complete with more precise depth perception and location of virtual objects to the user.

Above is an article explaining what the Time-of-Flight (ToF) sensor on a phone is and what it does. Hope this article provides you with useful and interesting information!