Compact digital camera with segmented fields of view

• US 6,137,535 A
• Filed: 11/04/1996
• Issued: 10/24/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Meyers, Mark Marshall
• Primary Examiner(s): Garber, Wendy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Harrington, Alicia M.
• Application Number:
  US08/743,653
• Time in Patent Office: 1,450 Days
• Field of Search: 348/340, 348/336, 348/273, 348/291, 250/208.1, 250/216, 250/226
• US Class Current: 348/340
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 3/0031 Replication or moulding, e.g. hot embossing, UV-casting, injection moulding
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 3/0043 Inhomogeneous or irregular arrays, e.g. varying shape, size, height
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 3/0056 arranged along two different directions in a plane, e.g. honeycomb arrangement of lenses G02B3/0043 takes precedence; miniaturised objectives for electronic devices employing wafer level optics G02B13/0085
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/55 Optical parts specially adapted for electronic image sensors; Mounting thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/41 Extracting pixel data from a plurality of image sensors simultaneously picking up an image, e.g. for increasing the field of view by combining the outputs of a plurality of sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/778 comprising amplifiers shared between a plurality of pixels, i.e. at least one part of the amplifier must be on the sensor array itself

Abstract

A compact digital camera is formed with a lenslet array comprised of a plurality of lenslets, each lenslet has a decentration corresponding to its radial position in the lenslet array so that the axial ray of each lenslet views a different segment of a total field of view. A photosensor array comprised of a plurality of sub-groups of photodetectors is positioned such that each sub-group is located along the axial ray of a respective lenslet. A field limiting baffle comprised of at least one aperture plate is positioned such that the center of the apertures are located along the axial ray of a respective lenslet.

Claims

1. A compact digital camera, comprising:

a lenslet array comprised of a plurality of lenslets, each lenslet having a decentration corresponding to its radial position in the lenslet array so that the axial ray of each lenslet views a different segment of a total field of view;

a photosensor array comprised of a plurality of sub-groups of photodetectors, each sub-group comprising a plurality of photodetectors and being positioned along the axial ray of a respective lenslet;

a plurality of electronic arrays dispersed in the spaces between the spaced apart sub-groups of photodetectors, each of the arrays configured to one of the sub-groups for receiving the provided output signals from the sub-group that the array is associated with, the array having electronics to amplify, digitize, invert, and store, the provided output signals to facilitate image capture; and

a field limiting baffle comprised of at least one aperture plate where the center of the apertures are positioned to lie along the axial ray of a respective lenslet;

array electronics comprising;

a plurality of current multipliers, corresponding in number to the number of sub-groups of radiation sensors, each connected to a respective sub-group for receiving the outputs of the radiation sensors in the sub-group;

a corresponding plurality of analog-to-digital converters, each connected to an associated current multiplier;

a corresponding plurality of inverters for digitally inverting the sub-images from said analog-to-digital converters; and

a corresponding plurality of storage devices connected to receive the digitally inverted sub-images from corresponding inverters for storing the provided digitally inverted sub-images.

2. A compact digital camera, according to claim 1 wherein said lenslets have an a spherical surface.

3. A compact digital camera according to claim 2 wherein said lenslets additionally have an a spherical surface whose profile varies as a function of its radial position in the lenslet array.

6. A compact digital camera according to claim 2 wherein each of said lenslets has a surface that is a diffractive/refractive hybrid to eliminate chromatic aberration.

7. A compact digital camera according to claim 6 wherein said lenslets have a diffractive/refractive surface whose profile varies as a function of its radial position in the lenslet array.

4. A compact digital camera, comprising:

a lenslet array comprised of a plurality of lenslets, each lenslet having a decentration corresponding to its radial position in the lenslet array so that the axial ray of each lenslet views a different segment of a total field of view;

a color photosensor array comprised of a plurality of sub-groups of photodetectors wherein each sub-group of photodetectors is comprised of sets of Red, Green, and Blue color sensitive photodetectors, each sub-group of photodetectors being positioned along the axial ray of a respective lenslet;

a plurality of electronic arrays dispersed in the spaces between the spaced apart sub-groups of photodetectors, each of the arrays configured to one of the sub-groups for receiving the provided output signals from the sub-group that the array is associated with, the array having electronics to amplify, digitize, invert, and store, the provided output signals to facilitate image capture; and

a field limiting baffle comprised of at least one aperture plate where the center of the apertures are positioned to lie along the axial ray of a respective lenslet;

array electronics comprising;

a plurality of current multipliers, corresponding in number to the number of sub-groups of radiation sensors, each connected to a respective sub-group for receiving the outputs of the radiation sensors in the sub-group;

a corresponding plurality of analog-to-digital converters, each connected to an associated current multiplier;

a corresponding plurality of inverters for digitally inverting the sub-images from said analog-to-digital converters; and

a corresponding plurality of storage devices connected to receive the digitally inverted sub-images from corresponding inverters for storing the provided digitally inverted sub-images.

5. A compact digital camera, according to claim 4 and further comprising:

a plurality of baffles extending between each lenslet and a corresponding sub-group of photodetectors so as to prevent stray light from one lenslet impinging on one or more of the photodetectors in an adjacent sub-group of photodetectors.

8. A compact image capture device comprising:

an array of spaced apart sub-groups of radiation sensors for providing output signals that arc a function of the incident radiation from an image onto each radiation sensor of a sub-group, each sub-group having a plurality of radiation sensors;

a plurality of electronic arrays dispersed in the spaces between the spaced apart sub-groups of radiation sensors, each of the arrays configured to one of the sub-groups for receiving the provided output signals from the sub-group that the array is associated with, the array having electronics to amplify, digitize, invert, and store, the provided output signals to facilitate image capture;

a lens array positioned so as to focus the radiation of an image to be captured onto said radiation sensors;

array electronics comprising;

a plurality of current multipliers, corresponding in number to the number of sub-groups of radiation sensors, each connected to a respective sub-group for receiving the outputs of the radiation sensors in the sub-group;

a corresponding plurality of analog-to-digital converters, each connected to an associated current multiplier;

a corresponding plurality of inverters for digitally inverting the sub-images from said analog-to-digital converters; and

a corresponding plurality of storage devices connected to receive the digitally inverted sub-images from corresponding inverters for storing the provided digitally inverted sub-images.

9. The compact image capture device according to claim 8 further comprising:

a plurality of multiplexing means each connecting the radiation sensors of an associated sub-group to an associated current multiplier.

10. The compact image capture device according to claim 8 and further comprising:

an associated multiplying current mirror for each of the sub-groups;

a plurality of multiplexing means each connecting the radiation sensors of a sub-group to the associated multiplying current mirror.

11. The compact image capture device according to claim 8 and further comprising:

means for stitching together the sub-image pixel signals from each sub-group of radiation sensors so as to form a group of pixel signals that may be used to replicate the captured image.

12. An image capturing device comprising:

an array of spaced apart groups of radiation sensors for providing output signals that are a function of the color of incident radiation from an image onto each radiation sensor;

a plurality of electronic arrays dispersed in the spaces between the spaced apart groups of radiation sensors, each of the arrays configured to one of the groups for receiving from the group that the array is associated with, the array having electronics for amplifying, digitizing, inverting, and storing the provided output signals; and

a lens array positioned so as to focus the radiation from an image to be captured onto associated ones of the radiation sensors in each of the groups of said radiation sensors such that each radiation sensor in a group provides an output signal that is stored as a function of the color of the sensed radiation;

array electronics comprising

a plurality of current multipliers, corresponding in number to the number of sub-groups of radiation sensors, each connected to a respective sub-group for receiving the outputs of the radiation sensors in the sub-group;

a corresponding plurality of analog-to-digital converters, each connected to an associated current multiplier;

a corresponding plurality of inverters for digitally inverting the sub-images from said analog-to-digital converters; and

a corresponding plurality of storage devices connected to receive the digitally inverted sub-images from corresponding inverters for storing the provided digitally inverted sub-images.

13. A compact digital camera, comprising:

a lenslet array comprised of a plurality of lenslets, each lenslet having a decentration corresponding to its radial position in the lenslet array so that the axial ray of each lenslet views a different segment of a total field of view;

a photosensor array comprised of a plurality of spaced apart sub-groups of photodetectors such that there are a plurality of photodetectors associated with each sub-group, each sub-group positioned along the axial ray of a respective lenslet for providing output signals as a function of incident light;

a plurality of electronic circuits formed in the space between the spaced apart sub-groups, each of the electronics circuits being dedicated to one of the sub-groups and connected to receive, amplify, and invert the output signals provided by the photodetectors of that respective sub-group;

a field limiting baffle comprised of at least one aperture plate having a plurality of apertures, corresponding in number to the number of lenslets, where the center of each aperture is positioned to lie along the axial ray of a respective lenslet;

means for receiving the amplified and inverted output signals from said electronic circuits and for stitching the output signals together so as to enable the viewing of a continuous image when the stitched output signals are used to drive an output display device;

array electronics comprising;

a plurality of current multipliers, corresponding in number to the number of sub-groups of radiation sensors, each connected to a respective sub-group for receiving the outputs of the radiation sensors in the sub-group;

a corresponding plurality of analog-to-digital converters, each connected to an associated current multiplier;

a corresponding plurality of inverters for digitally inverting the sub-images from said analog-to-digital converters; and

a corresponding plurality of storage devices connected to receive the digitally inverted sub-images from corresponding inverters for storing the provided digitally inverted sub-images.

14. The compact digital camera according to claim 13 herein said electronic circuits further comprise:

an inverter for inverting the output signals from said photosensor array.

15. The compact digital camera according to claim 13 and further comprising:

storage means formed in the space between the spaced apart sub-groups of photodetectors for storing the amplified and inverted output signals from said electronic circuits.