IMAGING ELEMENT

• US 20080284868A1
• Filed: 07/01/2008
• Published: 11/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Roger S. Kerr, Timothy J. Tredwell
• Original Assignee: Roger S. Kerr, Timothy J. Tredwell
• Inventors: Tredwell, Timothy J., Kerr, Roger S.
• Granted Patent: US 8,035,609 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/222.1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/026 based on the rotation of particles under the influence of an external field, e.g. gyricons, twisting ball displays based on orientable dipolar particles G02F1/172; based on electrophoresis G02F1/167
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/74 by influencing the scene brightness using illuminating means
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/32 Transforming X-rays cameras or camera modules for generating image signals from X-rays H04N23/30; circuitry of SSIS for transforming X-rays into image signals H04N25/30

Abstract

Imaging elements are provided. An imaging element has a wireless communication circuit adapted to detect a wireless communication signal and to generate a control signal; an illumination circuit having an illumination element, the illumination circuit being adapted so that the illumination element generates light at an intensity that is based upon the control signal and a body containing the wireless communication circuit and the light source, wherein the body occupies a space that is less than about five cubic millimeters. The imaging element can also incorporate radiation sensors and can provide wireless signals indicative of sampled radiation.

Claims

1-14. -14. (canceled)

15. An imaging element comprising:

a wireless communication circuit adapted to detect a wireless communication signal and to generate a control signal;

an illumination circuit having an illumination element, said illumination circuit being adapted so that the illumination element generates light at an intensity that is based upon the control signal; and

a body containing the wireless communication circuit and the light source;

wherein said body occupies a space that is less than about five cubic millimeters, wherein said imaging element is polarized for orientation when exposed to an electro-magnetic field.

16-17. -17. (canceled)

18. An imaging element comprising:

a radiation sensor adapted to sense radiation that is incident on the radiation sensor during an exposure period;

a sensor driver adapted to determine an amount of radiation incident on the radiation sensor during the exposure period;

an illumination circuit having an illumination element, the illumination circuit being adapted so that the illumination element generates light at an intensity that is based upon a control signal;

a wireless communication circuit adapted to detect a wireless communication signal and to generate a control signal based upon the wireless communication signal and further adapted to generate a wireless communication signal indicative of the amount of sensed radiation during an exposure period; and

a body containing the wireless communication circuit and the light source;

wherein said body occupies a space that is less than about five cubic millimeters.

19. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein said wireless communication circuit is further adapted to detect a wireless communication circuit having an address for the imaging element therein and to generate a control signal in response thereto and further adapted to generate a wireless communication signal having the address for the imaging element and indicative of the amount of sensed radiation.

20. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein said wireless communication circuit is adapted to extract power from a wireless signal for use in light sensing, light generation or wireless communication.

21. The imaging element of claim 18, further comprising conductive portions adapted to engage a power source that is external to the body so that power from the external power source is available for use by the illumination circuit, the radiation sensor, the sensor driver, or the wireless communication circuit.

22. The imaging element of claim 21, wherein said conductive portions are adapted to engage power source to obtain power for operation therefrom.

23. The imaging element of claim 18, further comprising a memory adapted to store at least one sensed light signal based upon the amount of light sensed by the light sensor during an exposure period.

24. The imaging element of claim 18, further comprising a memory adapted to store more than one sensed value signal based upon an amount of light sensed by the light sensor during a set of more than one exposure periods and wherein said wireless communication circuit is adapted to provide a wireless communication signal that contains one or more stored sensed value signals.

25. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein said imaging element is formed on a support with the radiation sensor and illumination element oriented in a common direction with respect to the support.

26. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein said imaging element comprises a base with the radiation sensor and light emitter oriented differently on the base.

27. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein said radiation sensor is operable to sense an amount of light emitted by the illumination element further comprising a calibration circuit adapted to adjust the amount of light emitted by the light source to correspond to an amount of light that is to be generated by the light source in response to the control signal.

28. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein said radiation sensor is adapted to sense at least eon of an amount of light emitted by other proximate imaging elements or an ambient amount of light and further comprises a compensation circuit adapted to adjust the amount of light radiated by the illumination element in response to a received illumination value based upon the sensed amount of light.

29. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein location information associating a location on the display with imaging elements is stored in a memory of the imaging elements.

30. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein location information associating a location on the display with imaging elements is stored in a memory on the display.

31. The imaging element of claim 18, wherein location information associating a location on the display with imaging elements is stored in a memory that is remote from the display.

33. The imaging element of claim 29, further comprising wireless communication circuit adapted to detect a wireless communication signal and to generate a control signal based upon an illumination value in the wireless communication signal, to generate a wireless communication signal indicative of the amount of sensed radiation during an exposure period and to receive a signal from an external device indicating a correction factor to be used in adjusting the amount of light emitted by the illumination element in response to the control signal.

34. The imaging element of claim 29, further comprising a sensor driver and radiation sensor that is adapted to sense light emitted by one of adjacent imaging elements in a display and ambient light levels, and an adjustment circuit that is adapted to adjust the amount of light emitted by an imaging element in response to a control signal, with such adjustments being based upon the sensed amount of light from the adjacent light levels and or the ambient light levels.

36. The imaging element of claim 34, wherein the radiation sensing and emitting material is disposed between a pair of conductors at least one of which is substantially transparent.

32. An imaging element comprising:

a radiation sensor adapted to sense radiation that is incident on the radiation sensor including the amount of light emitted by the illumination element;

a sensor driver adapted to determine an amount of radiation radiated by the illumination element based upon the sensed radiation during an exposure period;

an illumination circuit having an illumination element, the illumination circuit being adapted so that the illumination element generates light at an intensity that is based upon a control signal;

a calibration circuit adapted to monitor the amount of light sensed by the radiation sensor and to adjust the amount of light emitted by the illumination element in response to control signals so that the amount of light corresponds to an amount of light that is to be generated by the illumination circuit in response to the control signal; and

a body containing the wireless communication circuit and the light source.

35. An imaging element comprising:

a radiation sensing and emitting material operable to provide a signal indicative of radiation that is incident on the radiation sensor and to generate radiation when energy is introduced into the radiation sensing and emitting material;

a sensor driver adapted to determine an amount of radiation sensed by the radiation sensing and emitting material;

an illumination circuit, the illumination circuit being adapted to controllably introduce energy into the radiation sensing and emitting material so that the radiation sensing material generates emits radiation at an intensity that is based upon a control signal;

a wireless communication circuit adapted to detect a wireless communication signal and to generate a control signal based upon the wireless communication signal and further adapted to generate a wireless communication signal indicative of the amount of sensed radiation during an exposure period; and

a body containing the wireless communication circuit and the light source;

wherein said body occupies a space that is less than about five cubic millimeters.