Twolens

Twolens is an architectural term for an optical system that uses two separate lenses to capture two optical streams. In practice, twolens systems are designed to produce either stereo image pairs for depth perception or to provide complementary fields of view, focal lengths, or spectral channels. The two lenses can be arranged side by side with a fixed baseline, producing a stereo pair, or coaxially with a beam splitter to share a single sensor. In some designs, the lenses differ in focal length, enabling variable magnification or zoom-like effects without moving parts.

Data from the two lenses are captured in parallel and merged through software or dedicated hardware. Common outputs include disparity maps for depth estimation, augmented reality overlays powered by depth cues, and enhanced image quality via super-resolution or multi-view stitching. Calibration and synchronization are important; accurate lens alignment, intrinsic and extrinsic parameters, and temporal synchronization affect depth accuracy and image quality.

Twolens configurations are used in consumer devices such as dual-lens smartphones, in robotics and industrial machine vision for 3D sensing and scene understanding, in autonomous navigation, and in research on depth perception and light-field imaging.

Challenges include precise optical alignment, calibration complexity, parallax errors, and increased cost and power consumption. System designers balance baseline length, sensor resolution, and processing capabilities to achieve robust depth estimates.

Related topics include stereoscopy, depth sensing, and computational photography.