Based On Three Colors Patents (Class 348/280)
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Publication number: 20140375776Abstract: The present disclosure provides wavelength discriminating imaging systems and methods that spatially separate (over different depths) the wavelength constituents of an image using a dispersive lens system or element, such that this spectral information may be exploited and used. The wavelength constituents of an image are deconstructed and identified over different depths using a dispersive lens system or element.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 19, 2014Publication date: December 25, 2014Applicant: THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHARLOTTEInventors: Mehrdad ABOLBASHARI, Faramarz FARAHI
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Patent number: 8913165Abstract: A color image pickup device is provided with four pixel groups i.e. first to fourth pixel groups. The first pixel group is composed of nine pixels of 3×3 each having one of color filters, and the pixels are arranged in a Bayer pattern. The second pixel group is adjacent to the bottom of the first pixel group. The third pixel group is adjacent to the right of the second pixel group. The fourth pixel group is adjacent to the top of the third pixel group. The second pixel group, the third pixel group, and the fourth pixel group have such array patterns of the color filters that the array pattern of the first pixel group is turned by 90 degrees, 180 degrees, and 270 degrees counterclockwise, respectively. By using the pixels of 6×6 including the first to fourth pixel groups as a basic unit, an imaging surface is configured.Type: GrantFiled: March 25, 2014Date of Patent: December 16, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventor: Mitsuru Okigawa
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Patent number: 8908230Abstract: Provided is a control apparatus for controlling an image forming apparatus including an inline sensor. The control apparatus includes: a data analyzing section configured to extract color information contained in an image of a target page positioned a predetermined number of pages after a certain page, where the predetermined number of pages are pages to be printed during at least a period from print processing for the certain page to measurement of color information on the printed image of the certain page; a color patch creating section configured to create a color patch corresponding to the color information contained in the image of the target page and arrange the color patch in the certain page; and a control section configured to send image data of the certain page to the image forming apparatus so as to make the image forming apparatus perform print processing and measuring color information.Type: GrantFiled: January 9, 2014Date of Patent: December 9, 2014Assignee: Konica Minolta, Inc.Inventor: Tatsuro Yamamuro
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Patent number: 8885079Abstract: In a back-illuminated solid-state image sensing element, the areas of the front surface sides of individual pixels are the same as one another, regardless of the colors of light components dispersed by filters and entering the individual pixels, and the areas of the rear surface sides of pixels which a dispersed red light component enters are larger than the areas of the rear surface sides of pixels which a green or blue light component enters.Type: GrantFiled: September 24, 2013Date of Patent: November 11, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventor: Shu Takahashi
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Patent number: 8878970Abstract: A color imaging apparatus comprising: a color imaging element comprising a plurality of pixels and color filters of a color filter array arranged on the plurality of pixels, the color filter array including first filters corresponding to a first color that most contributes to obtaining luminance signals and second filters corresponding to two or more second colors, and the first filters including two or more sections adjacent each other in horizontal, vertical, and oblique directions; a direction determination unit acquiring pixel values of pixels of the two or more sections of the first filters near a target pixel of demosaicking processing and determining a correlation direction of luminance; a demosaicking processing unit that calculates a pixel value of another color at a pixel position of the target pixel and that uses one or more pixels of another color in the correlation direction to calculate the pixel value.Type: GrantFiled: July 27, 2012Date of Patent: November 4, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventor: Seiji Tanaka
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Publication number: 20140320710Abstract: An imaging apparatus includes: an image pickup device (14) including plural photoelectric conversion elements arrayed in a first direction and second direction; a color filter that has a repeatedly disposed basic array pattern of (N×M) pixels placed in a predetermined pattern in the first direction and the second direction (wherein N and M are integers of 3 or more); a line image data generation means that reads pixel signals from plural pixels at a set cycle from the image pickup device (14), and, from the read pixel signals, generates line image data configured from pixel signals of pixels, from out of the plural pixels, that are arrayed running along the second direction and are arrayed at a line cycle of (N?k) in the first direction (wherein 0<k<N); and an image data generation means that generates image data based on the line image data.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 26, 2014Publication date: October 30, 2014Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Hidekazu KURAHASHI, Noriko KAWAMURA, Hirofumi HORII
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Publication number: 20140313380Abstract: A color imaging element, includes a color filter array, in which the color filter array includes an array pattern of a 3×3 pixel group in which first filters corresponding to a green color and second filters corresponding to red and blue colors are arrayed, and the first filters are placed at a center and 4 corners in the 3×3 pixel group, and the array pattern is repeatedly placed in horizontal and vertical directions, and in a pixel group within a predetermined area of the color imaging element, phase difference detection pixels for acquiring phase difference information are placed in entire components of one direction among components in the horizontal direction and components in the vertical direction in the pixel group.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 30, 2014Publication date: October 23, 2014Inventors: Takashi AOKI, Kazuki INOUE, Seiji TANAKA, Hiroshi ENDO, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Yoichi IWASAKI
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Patent number: 8866945Abstract: An image capture apparatus that includes an array of color filters for green, red, and magenta colors arranged over a semiconductor substrate in the manner of a primary color Bayer pattern except a magenta color replaces the blue color. Light passing through the magenta color filter is integrated separately in a magenta pixel for a shallow photodiode signal and a deep photodiode signal in a first photodiode and a deeper second photodiode in the substrate, respectively. A mezzanine photodiode may be disposed between the first and second photodiodes and held at a fixed voltage level or reset multiple times during charge integration. A red pixel value for the magenta pixel is a function of the deep photodiode signal and an adjacent red pixel's red pixel signal. A minimum exists in its derivative with respect to the former at a value of the former that varies with the latter.Type: GrantFiled: September 24, 2011Date of Patent: October 21, 2014Inventor: Hiok Nam Tay
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Publication number: 20140307134Abstract: An image capturing apparatus comprises an image pickup device with a plurality of pixels each of which includes at least two photoelectric conversion portions, a readout unit configured to read out a first image signal and an added signal obtained by adding the first image signal and a second image signal, a subtraction unit configured to subtract the first image signal from the added signal, a focus detection unit configured to detect a focus state based on the first and the second image signal, and a limiter unit configured to suppress an output of the first photoelectric conversion portion and an output of the second photoelectric conversion portion not to exceed a predetermined threshold, wherein the limiter unit suppresses the output of the first photoelectric conversion portion and the second photoelectric conversion portion for different color filters.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 25, 2014Publication date: October 16, 2014Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Akihiko Kanda, Yumi Watanabe, Shun Nakamura
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Publication number: 20140307139Abstract: It is an imaging element in which pixels which are photoelectric conversion elements are placed at respective square lattice positions, in which, when, in a predetermined region where pixels of the imaging element are placed, a plurality of pairs are arranged in a first line which is any one line among lines and a second line which is parallel to the first line, each pair having pair pixels which are first and second phase difference detection pixels placed adjacent to each other to detect a phase difference among the pixels of the imaging element, the pairs in the first line are placed to be spaced apart from each other by at least two pixels, and the pairs in the second line are placed at positions, which correspond to positions where the pair pixels in the first line are spaced apart from each other.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 27, 2014Publication date: October 16, 2014Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Yoichi IWASAKI, Hiroshi ENDO, Takashi AOKI, Kazuki INOUE, Kenkichi HAYASHI
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Publication number: 20140307138Abstract: In the present invention, effective thinned reading is performed when using an imaging device provided with a color filter other than a Bayer array.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 26, 2014Publication date: October 16, 2014Inventors: Kenkichi HAYASHI, Seiji TANAKA, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Hidekazu KURAHASHI, Noriko KAWAMURA, Hirofumi HORII
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Publication number: 20140307135Abstract: A single-plate color imaging element configured by disposing color filters on pixels formed with photoelectric conversion elements, where the first filters are arranged along at least a diagonal line of the sub arrays, one or more of the second filters corresponding to each color of the second color are arranged in the horizontal and vertical directions of the array of the color filters in a basic array pattern, the basic array pattern being repeatedly arranged in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction in the array of the color filters, and corresponding to arbitrary 2N×2N pixels included in the array of the color filters, and the M is set to such a value that one or more of the first filters are arranged in horizontal, vertical, diagonal upper right and diagonal lower right directions of the array of the color filters.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 25, 2014Publication date: October 16, 2014Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Kenkichi HAYASHI
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Publication number: 20140307136Abstract: An AF evaluation value is computed with excellent precision.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 26, 2014Publication date: October 16, 2014Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Hidekazu KURAHASHI, Noriko KAWAMURA
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Publication number: 20140307137Abstract: Efficient thinned reading is performed in a case in which an image pickup device equipped with a color filter having an array different from a Bayer array is employed.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 26, 2014Publication date: October 16, 2014Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Hidekazu KURAHASHI, Noriko KAWAMURA
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Patent number: 8860857Abstract: A method of implementing high-performance color filter mosaic arrays (CFA) using luminance pixels. The introduction of luminance pixels greatly improves the accuracy of the image acquisition process for a given pixel and image sensor size.Type: GrantFiled: January 12, 2011Date of Patent: October 14, 2014Assignee: RJS Technology, Inc.Inventor: Sorin Davidovici
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Patent number: 8860100Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes: a first photodiode receiving light of a first color; a second photodiode that is arranged next to the first photodiode in a first direction and receives light of a second color; a third photodiode that is arranged next to the second photodiode in a second direction and receives light of the first color; a fourth photodiode that is arranged next to the third photodiode in the first direction and receives light of a third color; a first reset transistor for discharging a charge generated in the first photodiode and the second photodiode; and a second reset transistor for discharging a charge generated in the third photodiode and the fourth photodiode. The first photodiode and the third photodiode have a small difference in area.Type: GrantFiled: December 5, 2011Date of Patent: October 14, 2014Assignee: Seiko Epson CorporationInventor: Kazunobu Kuwazawa
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Patent number: 8860858Abstract: A solid-state image sensor, comprising a pixel array complying with a Bayer array, a first signal processor configured to process each of red-pixel and blue-pixel signals output from the pixel array, a second signal processor configured to process each of green-pixel signals output from the pixel array, and a control unit configured to control the pixel array, the first signal processor, and the second signal processor, wherein the solid-state image sensor selects a readout method, by changing timings of the control signals, from a progressive method, an interlace method, and a pseudo-progressive method.Type: GrantFiled: December 12, 2012Date of Patent: October 14, 2014Assignee: Canon Kabushiki KaishaInventor: Toshiaki Ono
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Patent number: 8850714Abstract: A chromaticity correction device corrects chromaticity of a video signal displayed on a display panel of a display device to correspond to a change in a luminance value of the display panel. The chromaticity correction device includes a luminance detection unit which detects the luminance value, a backlight driving level detection unit which detects a backlight driving level, a temperature detection unit which detects an internal device temperature or an ambient temperature, a reference luminance value calculation unit which estimates a reference luminance value in a characteristic of an initial state, a chromaticity calculation unit which obtains a chromaticity change amount of white point chromaticity and estimated white point chromaticity that is an estimated value of current white point chromaticity, a chromaticity correction value calculation unit which obtains a chromaticity correction value and a chromaticity correction circuit which corrects the chromaticity of the video signal.Type: GrantFiled: September 30, 2011Date of Patent: October 7, 2014Assignee: NEC Display Solutions, Ltd.Inventor: Katsuyuki Matsui
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Patent number: 8848073Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes: an R pixel provided with an R filter for transmitting red-color light; a B pixel provided with a B filter for transmitting blue-color light; an S1 pixel which is provided with an S1 filter with a visible light transmittance independent of wavelengths in a visible light region and has a sensitivity higher than that of the R pixel; and an S2 pixel which is provided with an S2 filter with a visible light transmittance independent of wavelengths in the visible light region and lower than the visible light transmittance of the S1 filter and has a sensitivity lower than the sensitivity of the S1 pixel.Type: GrantFiled: August 4, 2010Date of Patent: September 30, 2014Assignee: Sony CorporationInventor: Taichi Natori
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Patent number: 8842214Abstract: An image capturing element is provided with: a color filter in which a basic arrangement pattern having first and second arrangement patterns arranged to be symmetrical about a point is repeated. The first arrangement pattern comprises first filters arranged on pixels in 2×2 arrangement located at the upper-left portion and a pixel located at the lower-right in a 3×3 pixel square arrangement, second filters arranged on the center and lower end lines in the vertical direction of the square arrangement, and third filters arranged on the center and right lines in the horizontal direction of the square arrangement. The second arrangement pattern comprises the first filters having the same arrangement as in the first arrangement pattern, and the second filters and the third filters having the arrangements interchanged with each other compared to the arrangements in the first arrangement pattern.Type: GrantFiled: September 20, 2013Date of Patent: September 23, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventors: Takashi Aoki, Kenkichi Hayashi, Hiroshi Endo, Noriko Kawamura, Kazuki Inoue
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Patent number: 8842203Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes a plurality of pairs of a first photoelectric conversion element and a second photoelectric conversion element which have different spectral sensitivity characteristics. A wavelength range where the first photoelectric conversion element of each pair mainly has a spectral sensitivity and a wavelength range where the second photoelectric conversion element of each pair mainly has a spectral sensitivity respectively fall within a wavelength ranges of specific colors of visible light. The plurality of pairs include a plurality of types of pairs having different specific colors of visible light. The half width in the spectral sensitivity characteristic of the first photoelectric conversion element of the each pair is wider than a half width in the spectral sensitivity characteristic of the second photoelectric conversion element of the each corresponding pair.Type: GrantFiled: October 19, 2012Date of Patent: September 23, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventors: Tomoyuki Kawai, Seiji Tanaka, Tetsuro Ashida, Takehiro Kouguchi, Hisashi Endo, Tomoki Inoue
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Patent number: 8836815Abstract: A WB gain calculation unit 24 determines a light source of a Surface A on the basis of color distribution of the Surface A and a black body locus AD, determines a light source of a Surface B on the basis of color distribution of the Surface B and a black body locus BD and determines a light source of a Surface AB on the basis of color distribution of the Surface AB and a block body locus ABD and calculates the white balance gains on the basis of the determined light sources.Type: GrantFiled: November 27, 2012Date of Patent: September 16, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventors: Tetsuro Ashida, Tomoyuki Kawai, Seiji Tanaka, Hisashi Endo, Takehiro Kouguchi
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Publication number: 20140253767Abstract: A sensor has first pixels each including one of red, green and blue color filters, and second pixels each including one of red, green and blue color filters. In the first and second pixels including color filters of the same color, light transmittances of the light transmissive portions are different. A light transmittance of the light transmissive portion of the first pixel including the red color filter is lower than that of the light transmissive portion of the first pixel including the green color filter, and a light transmittance of the transmissive portion of the first pixel including the green color filter is lower than that of the light transmissive portion of the first pixel including the blue color filter.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 7, 2014Publication date: September 11, 2014Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHAInventors: Satoshi Kato, Hideo Kobayashi, Masanori Ogura, Yukihiro Kuroda
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Patent number: 8830364Abstract: The present invention relates to a driving method of a solid-state imaging device including: driving the pixel stacked with the red filter and the pixel stacked with the blue filter which are presented on one line for every four lines of one-side pixel lines of the pixel line extending toward right-upwardly inclined direction and the pixel line extending toward left-upwardly inclined direction, and the pixel stacked with the green filter which is most adjacent to pixel stacked with the red filter and the pixel stacked with the blue filter as a low-sensitivity pixel, and driving the rest of the pixels as a high-sensitivity pixel.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2012Date of Patent: September 9, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventor: Tetsu Wada
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Publication number: 20140247378Abstract: A method of operating an image sensor. Charge accumulated in a photodiode during a first sub-exposure may be selectively stored in a storage node responsive to a first control signal. Charge accumulated in the photodiode during a first reset period may be selectively discarded responsive to a second control signal. Charge accumulated in the photodiode during a second sub-exposure may be selectively stored responsive to the first control signal. Charge stored in the storage node from the first and second sub-exposures may be transferred to a floating diffusion node responsive to a third control signal.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 1, 2013Publication date: September 4, 2014Applicant: Apple Inc.Inventors: Anup K. Sharma, Xiaofeng Fan, Xiangli Li, Chung Chun Wan, Chiajen Lee, Terry L. Gilton
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Patent number: 8823845Abstract: A color filter array of an image sensor is disclosed. The color filter array includes a first filter to transmit wavelengths of a first region in a visible light region, a second filter to transmit wavelengths of a second region in the visible light region, a third filter to transmit wavelengths of a third region in the visible light region, and a mixed filter to transmit wavelengths of at least one of the first region, the second region and the third region, and wavelengths of an infrared region at the same time.Type: GrantFiled: September 23, 2011Date of Patent: September 2, 2014Assignee: SAMSUNG Electronics Co., Ltd.Inventors: Tae Chan Kim, Kwang Hyuk Bae, Kyu-Min Kyung
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Patent number: 8817142Abstract: A color image sensor includes a pixel array including CFA overlaying an array of photo-sensors for acquiring color image data. The CFA includes first color filter elements of a first color overlaying a first group of the photo-sensors and second color filter elements of a second color overlaying a second group of the photo-sensors. The first group of photo-sensors generate first color signals of a first color channel and the second group of photo-sensors generate second color signals of a second color channel. The color image sensor further includes a color signal combiner circuit (“CSCC”) coupled to receive the first and second color signals output from the pixel array. The CSCC includes a combiner coupled to combine the first and second colors signals to generate third color signals of a third color channel. An output port is coupled to the CSCC to output the color image data.Type: GrantFiled: November 27, 2012Date of Patent: August 26, 2014Assignee: OmniVision Technologies, Inc.Inventors: Hsin-Chih Tai, Yin Qian, Duli Mao, Vincent Venezia
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Patent number: 8804016Abstract: An image pickup device includes: a color filter having repeatedly disposed basic array patterns configured with first and second array patterns disposed symmetrically about a point, wherein the first array pattern has a first filter placed at the 4 corner and center pixels of a 3×3 pixel square array, a second filter placed in a line at the horizontal direction center of the square array, and a third filter placed in a line at the vertical direction center of the square array, and the second array pattern has the same placement of the first filter as the first array pattern and has placement of the second filter and placement of the third filter swapped over to that of the first array pattern; and phase difference detection pixels placed at positions corresponding to the first filter at a top and bottom edge sides in the array pattern.Type: GrantFiled: September 19, 2013Date of Patent: August 12, 2014Assignee: FujiFilm CorporationInventors: Kenkichi Hayashi, Hiroshi Endo, Noriko Kawamura, Takashi Aoki, Kazuki Inoue
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Patent number: 8804014Abstract: An imaging device includes an imagine lens, an imaging sensor having a color filter array with color filters of a plurality of colors having a plurality of pixels which are arranged on a light-receiving surface, a computing section obtaining a pixel value of an objective pixel by adding pixel values of a plurality of adjacent pixels which are adjacent to the objective pixel and which have one of the color filters of same color as the objective pixel among pixel values output from the imaging sensor, and a control section making the computing section compute, while shifting the objective pixel one by one in one direction, a pixel row formed of pixel values of the objective pixel in the one direction with respect to each predetermined pixel width in other direction, and generating an image thinned out at the predetermined pixel width in the other direction.Type: GrantFiled: January 19, 2010Date of Patent: August 12, 2014Assignee: Nikon CorporationInventor: Hideaki Kera
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Patent number: 8804025Abstract: According to one embodiment, a signal processing device includes a high spatial frequency range component evaluation unit configured to evaluate a high spatial frequency range component of each of basic colors for each of divided regions for an image picked up by an image pickup device, the divided regions being obtained by dividing an imaging surface of the image pickup device into a plurality of regions, a subject distance estimation unit configured to estimate a subject distance for each of the divided regions on the basis of the high spatial frequency range component, a filter coefficient generating unit configured to generate a filter coefficient for each of the divided regions on the basis of the subject distance, and a filter operation unit configured to perform a filter operation on the high spatial frequency range component by use of the filter coefficient.Type: GrantFiled: February 23, 2011Date of Patent: August 12, 2014Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha ToshibaInventors: You Yoshioka, Toshihiko Kaneshige
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Publication number: 20140218572Abstract: A solid-state image pickup device includes: a filter section including filters that are disposed corresponding to respective pixels, and each allowing light of a color that corresponds to corresponding one of the pixels to transmit therethrough, in which the pixels are each configured to receive the light of the predetermined color; and a microlens array section including a plurality of microlenses each configured to collect the light for corresponding one of the pixels, in which the microlenses are stacked with respect to the filter section, and are arranged in an array pattern corresponding to the respective pixels. The microlenses have two or more shapes that are different from one another corresponding to the respective colors of the light to be received by the pixels, and each having an end that is in contact with the end of adjacent one of the microlenses.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 30, 2014Publication date: August 7, 2014Applicant: Sony CorporationInventor: Yoichi Ootsuka
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Patent number: 8797432Abstract: An integrated circuit may have rows and columns of imaging pixel arrays. Row driver circuitry and column readout circuitry may be shared between the imaging pixel arrays. Control circuit blocks may bypass inactive pixel arrays and may shift signals between different signal paths on the integrated circuit. The control circuit blocks may include synchronizing circuitry for deskewing control signals and buffer circuitry for regenerating weak signals as they are distributed across the integrated circuit. An array of lenses may be associated with the integrated circuit. The spacing between imaging pixel arrays may differ at different parts of the integrated circuit. Images from multiple image sensor pixel arrays may be combined to form a single digital image. Image sensors may be provided with unique lenses, different color responses, different image pixels, different image pixel patterns, and other differences. Reference pixels may be interposed in the gaps between image sensor arrays.Type: GrantFiled: March 24, 2011Date of Patent: August 5, 2014Assignee: Aptina Imaging CorporationInventor: Kwang-Bo Cho
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Publication number: 20140204249Abstract: A color image pickup device is provided with four pixel groups i.e. first to fourth pixel groups. The first pixel group is composed of nine pixels of 3x3 each having one of color filters, and the pixels are arranged in a Bayer pattern. The second pixel group is adjacent to the bottom of the first pixel group. The third pixel group is adjacent to the right of the second pixel group. The fourth pixel group is adjacent to the top of the third pixel group. The second pixel group, the third pixel group, and the fourth pixel group have such array patterns of the color filters that the array pattern of the first pixel group is turned by 90 degrees, 180 degrees, and 270 degrees counterclockwise, respectively. By using the pixels of 6x6 including the first to fourth pixel groups as a basic unit, an imaging surface is configured.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 25, 2014Publication date: July 24, 2014Applicant: FUJIFILM CorporationInventor: Mitsuru OKIGAWA
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Patent number: 8786740Abstract: An imaging device includes: first green pixels; and second green pixels adjacent to the respective first green pixels in a first direction, which is the direction in which electric charge accumulated in the pixels is read, wherein the dimension of the first and second green pixels in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction is twice the dimension of the first and second green pixels in the first direction.Type: GrantFiled: June 4, 2010Date of Patent: July 22, 2014Assignee: Sony CorporationInventors: Sanghoon Ha, Hiroaki Ishiwata
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Patent number: 8780238Abstract: An imager may be configured to perform pixel binning on captured images. Pixel binning may be performed by forming groups of pixels and combining sampled values from the pixels in each group. The sampled values from the pixels may be combined by assigning weights to each pixel, scaling the sampled values by the corresponding weights, and summing the scaled values. The groups of pixels and pixel weights may be selected to produce binned images with even spatial distribution. The pixel binning operation may be performed by processing circuitry that receives captured image data from the imager. The pixel binning operation may also be separated into a horizontal binning step and a vertical binning step that are performed by image readout circuitry during image readout. During the horizontal binning step, pixels of a particular row may be combined. During the vertical binning step, pixel rows may be combined.Type: GrantFiled: May 31, 2011Date of Patent: July 15, 2014Assignee: Aptina Imaging CorporationInventor: Gabriel Bowers
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Patent number: 8780239Abstract: In an aspect of the present invention, only by storing the first correction coefficients corresponding to the colors of the color filters of the image pickup element and the second correction coefficients corresponding to the relative positions of the pixels to the position of the specific circuit element of the image pickup element, in the storage device, an adequate combination of the first correction coefficients and the second correction coefficients is selected for each pixel, and a calculation with it is performed with respect to the signal value of each of the pixels. Therefore, with an essential minimum number of correction coefficients, it is possible to quickly and accurately correct the variation in signal values caused by the color array for the color filters of the image pickup element and the variation in signal values caused by the structure in which multiple pixels share the specific circuit element.Type: GrantFiled: December 12, 2013Date of Patent: July 15, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventor: Hayato Yamashita
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Patent number: 8773556Abstract: A signal processing device includes a preprocessing unit interpolating a G color component to positions of a pixel of interest and a pixel having the same color component as the pixel of interest so as to produce a first G interpolation signal; a proximity G pixel G color difference and R/B pixel producing unit producing a first R-G/B-G color difference signal on the positions of the pixel of interest and the pixel having the same color component, producing a second R-G/B-G color difference signal on a position of a proximity G pixel, and interpolating the R/B color component to the position of the proximity G pixel; a G color difference re-constitution processing unit re-constituting a third R-G/B-G color difference signal on the position of the pixel of interest; and a G color difference interpolation processing unit interpolating an R-G/B-G color difference signal to a position of a predetermined pixel.Type: GrantFiled: August 12, 2010Date of Patent: July 8, 2014Assignee: Sony CorporationInventors: Yuya Yamaguchi, Manabu Kawashima
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Publication number: 20140184863Abstract: A method for correcting pixel information of color pixels on a color filter array of an image sensor includes: establishing an M×M distance factor table, selecting M×M pixels of the color filter array, calculating a red/green/blue-color contribution from the red/green/blue pixels to a target pixel in the selected M×M pixels, calculating a red/blue/green-color pixel performance of the target pixel, calculating a red/blue/green-color correcting factor, obtaining a corrected pixel information of each of the red/green/blue pixels, by applying the red/green/blue-color correcting factor to the measured pixel information of each of the red/green/blue pixels.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 28, 2012Publication date: July 3, 2014Applicant: VisEra Technologies Company LimitedInventors: Zong-Ru TU, Wu-Cheng KUO, Chin-Chuan HSIEH, Yu-Kun HSIAO
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Publication number: 20140184800Abstract: An imaging device includes an optical filter. The optical filter has a configuration in which a polarization filter layer and a spectral filter layer are laminated in light transmission direction. Of the polarization filter layer and the spectral filter layer, the layer on the lower side in lamination direction has an uneven top face in the lamination direction. The optical filter is formed by filling the uneven top face with a predetermined filling material so as to even out the top face and then forming other layer.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 24, 2012Publication date: July 3, 2014Inventors: Hideaki Hirai, Yasuhiro Sato
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Patent number: 8767088Abstract: A white balancing method includes capturing an original image with red (R), green (G) and blue (B) color channels; computing and converting the R, G and B color channels into original color histogram; stretching the original color histograms over the entire grayscale width from 0 to 255 values; and adjusting a color of the original image based on the stretched color histograms to obtain a white balanced image. In the computing and converting the original color histograms, a sampling length follows a formula of spanm=min{(2h, H), (2w, W)}, wherein h=[log2 H]+1, w=[log2 W]+1, H represents a height of the original image, W represents a width of the original image, [ ] is the Gaussian symbol, ( ) is greatest common divisor function, and min{ } means selecting the minimum value. An image capturing device using the white balancing method is also provided.Type: GrantFiled: December 26, 2012Date of Patent: July 1, 2014Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.Inventor: Kuo-Hung Lin
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Publication number: 20140176680Abstract: In one embodiment of the invention, an apparatus is disclosed including an image sensor, a color filter array, and an image processor. The image sensor has an active area with a matrix of camera pixels. The color filter array is in optical alignment over the matrix of the camera pixels. The color filter array assigns alternating single colors to each camera pixel. The image processor receives the camera pixels and includes a correlation detector to detect spatial correlation of color information between pairs of colors in the pixel data captured by the camera pixels. The correlation detector further controls demosaicing of the camera pixels into full color pixels with improved resolution. The apparatus may further include demosaicing logic to demosaic the camera pixels into the full color pixels with improved resolution in response to the spatial correlation of the color information between pairs of colors.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 25, 2014Publication date: June 26, 2014Applicant: Intuitive Surgical Operations, Inc.Inventors: Jeffrey DiCarlo, David D. Scott, Wenyi Zhao
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Patent number: 8743246Abstract: A color filter array includes a basic array pattern P1 constituted by a square array pattern corresponding to 3×3 pixels. In the color filter array, basic array pattern P1 is arranged in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction repeatedly. G filters that are brightness system pixels are arranged at the four corners and the center, that is, arranged on the both diagonal lines. The G filters are in each line of horizontal, vertical, and diagonal directions of the color filter array, and the color filter array includes a square array that corresponds to 2×2 pixels that are constituted by the G filters. A ratio of the number of G pixels that help most to obtain a brightness signal of the basic array pattern P1 is greater than each ratio of the number of R pixels and the number of B pixels that correspond to the color other than G.Type: GrantFiled: June 28, 2013Date of Patent: June 3, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventors: Kenkichi Hayashi, Seiji Tanaka, Tomoyuki Kawai
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Patent number: 8736743Abstract: Interpolation precision of phase difference detection pixels is raised. An image pickup device includes: a color filter disposed with a repeating basic array pattern configured by 3×3 pixel square arrays of a first array pattern and a second array pattern disposed symmetrically about a point; a first phase difference detection pixel that is placed at a position of a pixel corresponding to 1 corner portion out of the 4 corner portions of at least one array pattern in 1 pair of the first array pattern and the second array pattern out of 2 pairs of the first array pattern and the second array pattern configuring the basic array pattern; and a second phase difference detection pixel that is placed at a position of a pixel corresponding to 1 corner portion out of the 4 corner portions in the array pattern, out of the first array pattern.Type: GrantFiled: September 23, 2013Date of Patent: May 27, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventors: Hiroshi Endo, Takashi Aoki, Yoichi Iwasaki, Kazuki Inoue, Kenkichi Hayashi, Seiji Tanaka, Noriko Kawamura
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Publication number: 20140139709Abstract: A method for image processing according to one aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter includes: a step of acquiring an image taken by an imaging device including an image sensor having pixel configuration with repeating cycles of M×N (M, N: integers of 2 or more) pixels; (a) a step of setting a target pixel in the acquired image and extracting K×L (K, L: integers of M<K and N<L) pixels based on the target pixel; (b) a step of calculating a pixel value of the target pixel with an operation with use of a filter which has a K×L filter size and which has specified filter coefficients arrayed therein; and a step of repeatedly executing the step (a) and the step (b) while moving the target pixel one pixel at a time with respect to the acquired image.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 24, 2014Publication date: May 22, 2014Applicant: FUJIFILM CorporationInventor: Seiji TANAKA
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Publication number: 20140139708Abstract: An imaging device includes: a plurality of pixel portions including color filters and photoelectric conversion portions, respectively, each of the photoelectric conversion portions generating charge according to light incident thereon, the color filters being provided on a light incidence side of the respective photoelectric conversion portions, a distance between the photoelectric conversion portions and the color filters being shorter than or equal to 3 ?m; and a separation wall which is provided between adjoining ones of the color filters and separates the color filters from each other.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 2, 2014Publication date: May 22, 2014Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATIONInventor: Motoari OTA
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Patent number: 8730360Abstract: When a central pixel having a red component is generated by interpolation, mixing is performed using red-component pixels lying along the diagonal directions thereof. When a central pixel having a green component is generated by interpolation, mixing is performed using green-component pixels located above, below and to the left and right thereof. When a central pixel having a blue component is generated by interpolation, no mixing processing is executed. A reduction in image size is performed at the same time as pixel interpolation.Type: GrantFiled: June 28, 2013Date of Patent: May 20, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventor: Seiji Tanaka
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Patent number: 8723994Abstract: A color pixel array includes a plurality of micropixels. Each micropixel includes a photosensitive element and a filter element optically aligned with the photosensitive element such that incident light passes through the filter element prior to reaching the photosensitive element. The micropixels are organized into triangular macropixels that each includes multiple micropixels. A perimeter shape of each of the triangular macropixels forms a triangle. The triangular macropixels have a repeating pattern across the color pixel array.Type: GrantFiled: November 1, 2012Date of Patent: May 13, 2014Assignee: OmniVision Technologies, Inc.Inventor: Dominic Massetti
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Patent number: 8723991Abstract: An image pickup device includes: a color filter having basic array patterns with first and second array patterns disposed symmetrically, wherein the first array pattern has a first filter at the 4 corner and center pixels of a 3×3 pixel square array, a second filter in a line at the horizontal direction center of the square array, and a third filter placed in a line at the vertical direction center of the square array, and the second array pattern has the same placement of the first filter as the first array pattern and has placement of the second filter and placement of the third filter swapped to that of the first array pattern; and phase difference detection pixels placed on pixels corresponding to positions of centers of at least 1 pair of patterns out of 2 pairs of the first array pattern and the second array pattern.Type: GrantFiled: September 19, 2013Date of Patent: May 13, 2014Assignee: FUJIFILM CorporationInventors: Noriko Kawamura, Kazuki Inoue, Hiroshi Endo, Takashi Aoki, Seiji Tanaka, Kenkichi Hayashi
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Publication number: 20140125810Abstract: An imaging device includes an image sensor and an array of wafer lenses. The image sensor has rows and columns of pixels partitioned into an array of sensor subsections. The array of wafer lenses is disposed over the image sensor. Each of the wafer lenses in the array of wafer lenses is optically positioned to focus image light onto a corresponding sensor subsection in the array of sensor subsections. Each sensor subsection includes unlit pixels that do not receive the image light focused from the wafer lenses and each sensor subsection also includes lit pixels that receive image the image light focused by the wafer lenses. A rectangular subset of the lit pixels from each sensor subsection are arranged to capture images.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 7, 2012Publication date: May 8, 2014Applicant: Google Inc.Inventors: Sam D'Amico, Xiaoyu Miao
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Patent number: RE44983Abstract: Methods to zoom a region of interest from a digital image have been achieved. The methods invented support according to the scale of zooming the decrease or the increase of the resolution of digital images. The region of interest to be zoomed is variable; the destination image has a fixed size. In case of a decrease of the resolution of the region of interest the method invented combines interpolating source pixels to calculate the color values of the destination pixels and omitting some rows of source pixels. In case of enlargement the method invented combines interpolation of the source pixels to calculate the color values of the destination pixels, extrapolation of the destination pixels being close to the edge of the image, and replication of some of the interpolated rows of the destination image to gain additional rows according to the scale of the increase of resolution (enlargement) of a digital image.Type: GrantFiled: May 4, 2011Date of Patent: July 1, 2014Assignee: Youliza, Gehts B.V. Limited Liability CompanyInventor: Detlef Schweng