Apple Inc.

Milan Maksimovic

Miodrag Scepanovic

Sébastien Bolis

Refael Della Pergola

Gershon Rosenblum

Keith Lyon

Emanuel Mordechai

Arnaud Laflaquière

Marjorie Trzmiel

Maoz Ovadia

Omer Korech

Brian Mccall

In some embodiments, the camera system comprises: an optical assembly to create an optical image from the optical wavefront; a deformable phase plate (DPP) to receive the optical image from the optical assembly and to adjust the optical image in accordance with a control signal, the DPP including a deformable surface suspended over a cavity filled with optical fluid, and electrical actuation elements configured to change a shape of the deformable surface based on the control signal, the electrical actuation elements arranged in a pattern in the cavity and, when activated, provide an electrostatic force on the deformable surface; an image sensor to convert the adjusted optical image into electrical signals; an image signal processor to generate a digital image from the electrical signals; and an estimator to estimate an aberration or tilt correction of the digital image and to generate the control signal based on the estimated aberration or tilt correction.

Miniaturized adaptive optics with deformable phase plate for digital tilt and aberration correction

An image sensing device includes a detector assembly, which includes a matrix of optical sensing elements having a predefined pitch. Each optical sensing element includes an active area having a width that is less than 90% of the pitch. An array of optical apertures are respectively aligned with the optical sensing elements such that each optical aperture is positioned at a distance from a respective optical sensing element that is no less than twice the width of the active area. Objective optics are configured to focus light from a scene onto the detector assembly.

Imaging array with directional response

An optical image system may include a monocentric lens optically coupled to a fiber bundle and an image sensor. The fiber bundle may provide a curved face towards the monocentric lens and a flat face towards an image sensor. The fiber bundle may transfer light passing through the monocentric lens to the image sensor. The optical image system may include an optical correction structure having a diffractive optical element (DOE), which may be located between the monocentric lens and the fiber bundle. The optical correction structure may increase light in-coupling between the monocentric lens and fiber bundle by reducing or eliminating light reflection at the curved face of the fiber bundle.

Optical elements for enhanced light in-coupling in fiber-coupled imagers

Growing community of inventors

Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Milan Maksimovic