CAMERA MODULE

• US 20080316329A1
• Filed: 06/18/2008
• Published: 12/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Inventors: Choi, Won Tae, KIM, Byung Hoon
• Application Number:
  US12/141,668
• Publication Number:
  US 20080316329A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/222.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/45 for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/54 Mounting of pick-up tubes, electronic image sensors, deviation or focusing coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/57 Mechanical or electrical details of cameras or camera modules specially adapted for being embedded in other devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/63 by using electronic viewfinders
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/81 for suppressing or minimising disturbance in the image signal generation

Abstract

There is provided a camera module including: first and second image sensors having different optical characteristics and sensing images; first and second auxiliary image processors electrically connected to the first and second image sensors, respectively, and correcting optical defects of the images sensed by the first and second sensors, respectively; and an image signal processing section selecting at least one image between the images corrected by the first and second auxiliary image processors, and processing the selected image into an image signal that can be displayed, wherein at least one of the first and second image sensors may include: a center pixel array having a square shape; and first to fourth pixel arrays having one set of sides connected to sides of the center pixel array and having the same length as the sides of the center pixel array.

Claims

1. A camera module comprising:

first and second image sensors having different optical characteristics and sensing images;

first and second auxiliary image processors electrically connected to the first and second image sensors, respectively, and correcting optical defects of the images sensed by the first and second sensors, respectively; and

an image signal processing section selecting at least one image between the images corrected by the first and second auxiliary image processors, and processing the selected image into an image signal that can be displayed,

wherein at least one of the first and second image sensors comprises;

a center pixel array having a square shape; and

first to fourth pixel arrays having one set of sides connected to sides of the center pixel array and having the same length as the sides of the center pixel array.

2. The camera module of claim 1, wherein the first to fourth pixel arrays have the same area and shape.

3. The camera module of claim 2, wherein each of the first to fourth pixel arrays has an aspect ratio of 6:

1 between a side contacting the center pixel array and a side perpendicular to the side.

4. The camera module of claim 1, wherein the first image sensor is an image-capturing image sensor, and

the second image sensor is a video-communication image sensor.

5. The camera module of claim 1, wherein the image signal processing section comprises:

a selector selecting one corrected image between the images corrected by the first and second auxiliary image processors according to a control signal; and

a main signal processor processing the corrected image selected by the selector into the image signal.

6. The camera module of claim 1, further comprising:

first and second lenses having different optical characteristics and connected to the first and second image sensors, respectively.

7. The camera module of claim 6, further comprising:

color filters connected to the first and second lenses, filtering the images from the first and second lenses by predetermined colors, and transmitting the filtered images to the first and second image sensors, respectively.

8. The camera module of claim of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second auxiliary image processors corrects the shade of the image.

9. The camera module of claim 8, wherein each of the first and second auxiliary image processors corrects a dead pixel of the image among the optical defects of the image.

10. The camera module of claim 1, wherein the first image sensor and the first auxiliary image processor are formed in a first IC, and

the second image sensor and the second auxiliary image processor are formed in a second IC.

11. The camera module of claim 10, further comprising:

a board having one surface and the other surface opposing the one surface,

wherein the first IC is mounted to the one surface of the board,

the second IC is mounted to the other surface of the board, and

the image signal processing section is mounted to the one surface or the other surface of the board.