Three-dimensional image-capturing apparatus

• US 20050231590A1
• Filed: 05/27/2005
• Published: 10/20/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Masanori Iwasaki
• Inventors: Iwasaki, Masanori
• Granted Patent: US 7,804,517 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/47
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/218 using spatial multiplexing

Abstract

A three-dimensional image-capturing apparatus includes an image-capturing device having a plurality of image-capturing regions and a plurality of optical systems for forming images of a subject in the image-capturing regions. The optical systems includes a plurality of reflectors for reflecting rays from the subject a number of times and at least a lens provided to be closer to the image-capturing device than the reflection means closest to the subject. The reflectors and the lens are used to form, in the image-capturing regions, separate images of the subject which are captured from different viewpoints.

Claims

1-7. -7. (canceled)

8. A three-dimensional image-capturing apparatus comprising:

a single solid-state image-sensing device having a plurality of image capturing regions, each image capture region simultaneously captures a different image on the single solid-state image-sensing device;

a plurality of optical systems for forming a different image of a subject in each image-capturing region, each one of the optical systems corresponding to a different one of the image-capturing regions, each optical system having;

an imaging-side reflection means located in front of the corresponding image-capturing region and directed in an obliquely outward direction;

a subject-side reflection means located outward from said imaging-side reflection means and directed in an obliquely inward direction;

a lens provided in an optical path between said imaging-side reflection means and said single solid-state image-sensing device;

imaging-side reflection means and said lens, the light-limiting means preventing incidence of flux of ambient light other than from rays forming each image of said subject; and

a light-limiting means provided in an optical path between the subject-side reflection means and the imaging-side reflection means and closer to the imaging-side reflection means than to the subject-side reflection means, the second light-limiting means preventing incidence of flux of ambient light on the corresponding image-capturing region; and

a light-shielding means provided normal to the single solid-state image-sensing device and at least between the single solid-state image-sensing device and the imaging-side reflection means so as to prevent optical cross talk between the optical systems, wherein the optical systems are used to form, in the corresponding image-capturing regions, separate and different images of said subject which are captured from different viewpoints having a distance therebetween.

10. A three-dimensional image-capturing apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a signal processing means for dividing a video signal from said single solid-state image-sensing device into video signals representing the different images of said subject captured in the image-capturing regions for capturing images of said subject from the different viewpoints.

11. A three-dimensional image-capturing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein parallax which is the distance between the viewpoints is one centimeter or greater.

9. A stereo-camera recording/reproducing system comprising:

a single solid-state image-sensing device having a plurality of image capturing regions, each image capture region simultaneously captures a different image on the single solid-state image-sensing device;

a plurality of optical systems for forming a different image of a subject in each image-capturing region, each one of the optical systems corresponding to a different one of the image-capturing regions, each optical system having;

an imaging-side reflection means located in front of the corresponding image-capturing region and directed in an obliquely outward direction;

a subject-side reflection means located outward from said imaging-side reflection means and directed in an obliquely inward direction;

a lens provided in an optical path between said imaging-side reflection means and said single solid-state image-sensing device; and

a light-limiting means provided in an optical path between the subject-side reflection means and the imaging-side reflection means and closer to the imaging-side reflection means than to the subject-side reflection means, the second light-limiting means preventing incidence of flux of ambient light on the corresponding image-capturing region; and

a light-shielding means provided normal to the single solid-state image-sensing device and at least between the single solid-state image-sensing device and the imaging-side reflection means so as to prevent optical cross talk between the optical systems, wherein the optical systems are used to form, in the corresponding image-capturing regions, separate and different images of said subject which are captured from different viewpoints having a distance therebetween.