Yes, time of flight makes a direct distance measurement per-pixel. It's based on a phase shift principle; send out modulated light and compare the ingoing/outgo

Yes, time of flight makes a direct distance measurement per-pixel. It's based on a phase shift principle; send out modulated light and compare the ingoing/outgoing phases. The phase difference is proportional to the distance the wave travelled. The original Kinect is basically a one-camera stereo setup. The pattern is known and they perform correlation with a stored image of the pattern at a calibrated distance.