Abstract: A wiping system is disclosed for use with a circular sensor having a circular lens. The system may have an electric motor having an armature, and a wiping subsystem for wiping the lens in a circular motion. The wiping system may be driven rotationally by the armature of the electric motor and orientated so as not to obstruct a field of view of the circular sensor. The motor armature may be rotated at a speed in accordance with a circular scanning speed of the sensor.

Abstract: An imaging device includes: a first case having an opening; a substrate where a first terminal electrically connected with an imaging element is mounted, the substrate being provided in the first case; and a second case closing the opening. The second case includes an accommodation portion accommodating a second terminal designed to be electrically connected with the first terminal. A mating portion capable of being mated with the accommodation portion is secured to the substrate. Inside the mating portion, the first terminal extends along a mating direction of the accommodation portion and the mating portion. The first and second terminals are designed to come into contact with each other while sliding along the mating direction in a mating process of the accommodation portion and the mating portion, and to be elastically deformable in a first direction orthogonal to the mating direction upon contact with each other in the mating process.

Abstract: When the amplification ratio is low and strong incident light causes a large charge, the signal retrieved from regions where the incident light is weak is also weak, but when the amplification ratio is high in regions where the incident light is weak, the signal retrieved from regions where the incident light is strong becomes saturated. Therefore, the dynamic range of the imaging unit is narrow. Provided is an imaging unit comprising an imaging section that includes a first group having one or more pixels and a second group having one or more pixels different from those of the first group; and a control section that, while a single charge accumulation is performed in the first group, causes pixel signals to be output by performing charge accumulation in the second group a number of times differing from a number of times charge accumulation is performed in the first group.

Abstract: An electronic device includes: an imaging unit including a region having a pixel group that has a plurality of first pixels, and second pixels that are fewer than the first pixels in the pixel group; and a control unit that reads out the signals based upon exposure of the second pixels during exposure of the plurality of first pixels.

Abstract: There is provided an image sensor including a pixel unit, the pixel unit including a photodiode, a first color filter and a second color filter each disposed in a different position on a plane above the photodiode, and a first on-chip lens disposed over the first color filter and a second on-chip lens disposed over the second color filter.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus for processing signals read out from an image sensor that includes a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions for each of a plurality of micro-lenses, and can read out signals for each row selectively by either an addition readout operation, or a divisional readout operation. The image processing apparatus includes a first processing unit to perform offset correction on signals of a first row read out by the addition readout operation using signals in two or more rows that were read out by the addition readout operation before the first row, and a second processing unit to perform offset correction on signals of a second row read out by the divisional readout operation using the signals of the second row and a predetermined value.

Abstract: For cameras that capture several images in a burst mode, some embodiments of the invention provide a method that presents one or more of the captured images differently than the remaining captured images. The method identifies at least one captured image as dominant image and at least another captured image as a non-dominant image. The method then displays each dominant image different from each non-dominant image in a concurrent presentation of the images captured during the burst mode. The dominant images may appear larger than non-dominant images, and/or appear with a marking that indicates that the images are dominant.

Abstract: An image sensor pixel may include a photodiode, a charge storage region, a floating diffusion node, and a capacitor. A first transistor may be coupled between the photodiode and the charge storage region. A second transistor may be coupled between the charge storage region and the capacitor. The photodiode may generate image signals corresponding to incident light. Multiple image signals may be summed at the charge storage region. The second transistor may determine a portion of the image signal that may be sent to the capacitor for storage. The portion of the image signal that is sent to the capacitor may be a low gain signal. A remaining portion of the image signal may be a high gain signal. The image sensor pixel may also include readout circuitry that is configured to readout low and high gain signals stored at the floating diffusion node in a double-sampling readout operation.

Abstract: Digital imagery is composed or composited within a smartphone or other portable electronic device to merge foreground and background subject matter acquired simultaneously with different cameras or acquired at different times with the same camera. A processor stores the digital imagery along with information derived or used by an operation to differentiate the foreground subject matter from the background scene, which may be a digital matting operation, and/or may involve finding an edge or an outline of the foreground subject matter. The foreground subject matter and the background scene may be stored as different graphical layers in the memory. A user control such as a touchscreen may enable a user to select and resize or reposition the foreground subject matter on a background scene of a separately acquired image. The digital imagery may constitute a still image or a sequence of images representative of motion video.

Abstract: A display control apparatus includes one or more processors, a conversion unit configured to convert a color of the image based on a predetermined condition, and a display control unit configured to perform control such that, in a case where a non-color-converted image is displayed in which the color of the non-color-converted image is not converted, a display item is displayed at a superimposed position at which the display item is superimposed on the image, and in a case where a color-converted image is displayed in which the color of the color-converted image is converted, the display item is displayed at a non-superimposed position at which the display item is not superimposed on the color-converted image.

Abstract: An image capturing apparatus comprises an image sensor and a generation unit configured to generate a signal of each of the pixels from the signals respectively read out from the plurality of charge accumulation units. The image sensor includes a plurality of pixels, each of the pixels including: a photoelectric conversion unit; a plurality of charge accumulation units for accumulating a charge generated in the photoelectric conversion unit; a control unit configured to control accumulation of charge in each of the plurality of charge accumulation units; and a readout unit configured to read out a signal corresponding to the charge from each of the plurality of charge accumulation units. The photoelectric conversion unit is formed in a first chip, and the plurality of charge accumulation units, the control unit, and the readout unit are formed in a second chip.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a an electronic device such as a digital camera 300 that includes a deletion mode whereby a camera/electronic device user can delete captured images or data files that have already been transferred in order to make room in the electronic device or digital camera memory for capturing further images. In one embodiment a digital camera keep track of which images have already been transferred to an external storage device and presents those to the user as potential images to be deleted. In another embodiment, the user is presented with a “delete all transferred images” which when selected deletes all the captured images that have already been transferred. In still another embodiment, a deletion criteria is used to prioritize which images are deleted first.

Abstract: An image pickup apparatus includes an image data production unit which produces data of images of a plurality of resolutions, from an image frame obtained by picking up an image of a target object as a moving picture for each pixel string which configures a row, and an image sending unit which extracts, from the data of the images of the plurality of resolutions, pixel strings of a region requested from a host terminal and connect the extracted pixel strings for each number of pixels determined in accordance with a given rule to produce a stream and then transmit the stream to the host terminal. The image sending unit adjusts a connection pixel number of data of an image of a particular resolution such that, where N is an integer, data for 1/(N+1) frame are transmitted with respect to one frame of data of an image of the other resolution.

Abstract: The invent on relates to a multichannel optics image capturing apparatus wherein at least a first channel includes anamorphic mapping optics and the first channel has an at least partial field of view overlap with a second channel. Additionally, the invention relates to a multichannel optics image capturing apparatus including at least a first channel and a second channel, wherein the first channel has an at least partial field of view overlap with the second channel, and the second channel includes a first two-dimensional arrangement of detector pixels and the second channel includes a second two-dimensional arrangement of detector pixels, and the first two-dimensional arrangement is incongruent with respect to the second two-dimensional arrangement. The suggested solution achieves that the resolution of an overall image composed of individual images of the channels is essentially distance-independent with respect to an object to be captured.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus, for mounting and using a filter over an image sensor are described as well as camera modules and apparatus incorporating the filter mount. Also described is a sensor and filter assembly which can be formed by combining the sensor, filter, filter mount, and a mounting board which can be shipped and integrated into a camera module and/or camera. A filter is placed in a filter well of a filter mount. By using a well to support the filter over a sensor, the top of the filter can be level or below the top of sidewalls of the filter mount. Use of a well to mount the filter reduces the risk of stray or unintentionally reflected light reaching the sensor and degrading captured images while protecting the filter from downward pressure or sideways contact.

Abstract: A mobile terminal including a camera configured to obtain an image; a display configured to display the obtained image; and a controller configured to receive a zoom input for zooming in on the displayed image, display a zoomed image on a portion of the displayed image in response to the zoom input, and capture at least one of the displayed image and the zoomed image in response to a predetermined input.

Abstract: A combination mirror and camera for viewing areas that are difficult to see, such as the rear of a user's head. The present invention includes a housing having a digital display on a first side thereof and a mirror on a second side thereof. The housing is disposed on a handle that can be conveniently grasped. A camera is connected to the housing and is adjustably positioned on an elongated, flexible, and adjustable cable. The flexible cable can retain its shape once disposed in a desired position. The housing further includes a recessed channel along the perimeter thereof that can receive the flexible cable and the camera in a stored position. The flexible cable and camera are removable from the recessed channel so as to position the camera in a desired location. The video captured by the camera is displayed on the digital display.

Abstract: An image pickup apparatus includes a pixel array including a plurality of pixels arranged in a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns, and a plurality of column signal processing circuits provided respectively for the columns of the pixel array, each being configured to receive output signals from the pixels and an analog signal varying with time. The plurality of column signal processing circuits include a first column signal processing circuit and a second column signal processing circuit configured such that each of the first column signal processing circuit and the second column signal processing circuit is configured to be independently switched between a driving state and a power saving state. A signal line for supplying the analog signal to the first column signal processing circuit and a signal line for supplying the analog signal to the second column signal processing circuit are electrically isolated from each other.

Abstract: According to an embodiment, an amplifier which amplifies a first signal to output a second signal includes the following elements. The comparator compares the first signal with a third signal to output a fourth signal. The delay circuit delays a fifth signal by a delay time to generate a sixth signal. The first capacitor is connected between a voltage source and a first node that provides the third signal. The second capacitor is connected between the first node and a second node that provides the second signal. The first switch is connected between the second node and a constant current source, and is controlled by the fourth signal and the fifth signal. The second switch is connected between the first node and the second node, and is controlled by the fifth signal and the sixth signal.

Abstract: A flicker detection apparatus and method where flickers in the video images are detected based on the mean detection values obtained from pairs of neighboring frames in the current frame and the former n frames, which is able to perform flicker detection efficiently, and the detection results are accurate.