Electronic imaging system and sensor for use therefor with a nonlinear distribution of imaging elements

• US 5,739,852 A
• Filed: 08/09/1995
• Issued: 04/14/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Richardson, Charles Patrick, Stuckman, Bruce Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): GARBER, WENDY RAE
• Application Number:
  US08/512,876
• Time in Patent Office: 979 Days
• Field of Search: 348/335, 348/340, 348/294, 348/311, 348/315, 348/91, 348/342, 257/231
• US Class Current: 348/315
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/61 the noise originating only from the lens unit, e.g. flare, shading, vignetting or "cos4"
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/702 SSIS architectures characterised by non-identical, non-equidistant or non-planar pixel layout

Abstract

An electronic imaging system for capturing an image comprising a lens and an imaging sensor. The lens produces an optical image. The imaging sensor has a surface in optical communication with the lens, for converting the optical image into a corresponding output signal. The imaging sensor includes a plurality of imaging elements, the plurality of imaging elements having a distribution on the surface representable by a nonlinear function. The distribution of imaging elements has a relatively low density at a center point of the surface and a relatively high density at a point along a periphery of the surface.

Claims

1. An electronic imaging system for capturing an image, the system comprising;

a lens for producing a optical image; and

an imaging sensor, having a surface in optical communication with the lens, for converting the optical image into a corresponding output signal, the imaging sensor comprising a plurality of imaging elements, the plurality of imaging elements having a distribution on the surface representable by a nonlinear function;

wherein the distribution of imaging elements has a relatively low density at a center point of the surface and a relatively high density at a point along a periphery of the surface and wherein each of the plurality of imaging elements is addressable by a two-dimensional address.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of imaging elements includes a pixel of a charge-coupled device.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of imaging elements are in a two-dimensional array.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the nonlinear function can be represented by:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">rho=rho.sub.0 (1-(rT/180R'"'"').sup.2).sup.-1/2

where r is a radial distance of a selected imaging element from the center point of the two-dimensional array, rho₀ is the density of the distribution of imaging elements, R'"'"' corresponds to a maximum radius r of the two-dimensional array and where T is the maximum angle captured by the wide-angle lens (in degrees).

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the output signal is a video signal.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the output signal includes a plurality of image data.

7. The system of claim 1 further comprising a display, responsive to the output signal, for displaying the image.

8. The system of claim 1 further comprising a image processing unit, responsive to the output signal and a user command signal, for selectively magnifying a first region of the image.

9. The system of claim 8 further comprising a image processing unit, responsive to the output signal and a user command signal, for selectively panning from a second region of the image to a third region of the image.

10. The system of claim 8 further comprising a user interface device, coupled to the image processing unit, for generating the user command signal.

17. The system of claim 1 wherein the lens includes a wide-angle lens.

11. A sensor for use in an electronic imaging system having a lens that produces a optical image, the sensor comprising;

a surface in optical communication with the lens; and

a plurality of imaging elements, coupled to the surface, for converting the optical image into a corresponding output signal, the plurality of imaging elements having a distribution on the surface representable by a nonlinear function;

wherein the distribution of imaging elements has a relatively low density at a center point of the surface and a relatively high density at a point along a periphery of the surface and each of the plurality of imaging elements is electronically addressable by a two-dimensional address.

12. The sensor of claim 11 wherein each of the plurality of imaging elements includes a pixel of a charge-coupled device.

13. The sensor of claim 11 wherein the plurality of imaging elements are in a two-dimensional array.

14. The sensor of claim 11 wherein the nonlinear function can be represented by:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">rho=rho.sub.0 (1-(rT/180R'"'"').sup.2).sup.-1/2

where r is a radial distance of a selected imaging element from the center point of the two-dimensional array, rho₀ is the density of the distribution of imaging elements, R'"'"' corresponds to a maximum radius r of the two-dimensional array and where T is the maximum angle captured by the lens (in degrees).

15. The sensor of claim 11 wherein the output signal is a video signal.

16. The sensor of claim 11 wherein the output signal includes a plurality of image data.

18. The sensor of claim 11 wherein the lens includes a wide-angle lens.

19. An image sensor comprising:

a first set of imaging elements within a first region of a surface of the sensor, the first region including a center point of the surface of the sensor, the first set of imaging elements having a first distribution density; and

a second set of imaging elements within a second region of the surface of the sensor, the second region not including the center point of the surface of the sensor, the second set of imaging elements having a second distribution density, the second distribution density exceeding the first distribution density, each of the imaging elements in the first and second set of imaging elements addressable by two-dimensional coordinates.

20. The image sensor of claim 19, wherein the second region includes a peripheral point of the surface of the image sensor.

21. The image sensor of claim 19, wherein each of the imaging elements includes a pixel of a charge-coupled device.

22. The image sensor of claim 19, wherein the imaging elements are electronically addressed by the two-dimensional coordinates and the coordinates are rectangular coordinates.

23. An image sensor comprising:

a plurality of imaging elements arranged in a rectangular two-dimensional array, the plurality of imaging elements including;

a first set of imaging elements within a first region of a surface of the sensor, the first region including a center point of the surface of the sensor having a first distribution density; and

a second set of imaging elements within a second region of the surface of the sensor, the second region not including the center point of the surface of the sensor, the second set of imaging elements having a second distribution density, the second distribution density exceeding the first distribution density.