Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America

Yoshiaki Sugitani

Masao Hiramoto

Masaaki Suzuki

Kazuya Yonemoto

Teruyuki Takizawa

Seiji Nishiwaki

Yusuke Monobe

Masahiro Inata

Kozo Ezawa

Masayuki Misaki

Shinji Uchida

Toshiya Fujii

Masayuki Kimura

Takashi Kawamura

Takeshi Shimamoto

Tatsuya Nakamura

Junichi Tagawa

Shinichi Wakabayashi

An image-capturing device disclosed in the present application includes: an image-capturing element including a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements arranged in two dimensions, wherein the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements are exposed through successive scanning and electrical signals are read out from the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements through successive scanning, thereby generating an image signal; a lens optical system including a focus lens for collecting light toward the image-capturing element; a driving section for driving one of the image-capturing element and the focus lens so as to change a distance between the image-capturing element and the focus lens; a displacement control section for outputting a command to the driving section so as to control displacement of the image-capturing element or the focus lens to be driven based on a predetermined displacement pattern; and a synchronizing section for controlling the displacement control section based on exposure timing of the image-capturing element, wherein: the predetermined displacement pattern represents a reciprocal displacement of the image-capturing element or the focus lens to be driven over an entire section between a first focus position of the focus lens or the image-capturing element at which focus is at a first object distance in an image-capturing scene and a second focus position of the focus lens or the image-capturing element at which focus is at a second object distance in the image-capturing scene; and the image-capturing element or the focus lens to be driven is reciprocally displaced an integer number of times within an exposure time for one image of the image-capturing scene for each of the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements.

Imaging device, semiconductor integrated circuit, and imaging method

A solid-state image sensor includes a photosensitive cell array and a dispersing element array. Each unit blockof the photosensitive cell array includes four photosensitive cellsand. The dispersing element array makes light, obtained by subtracting a light ray with a first color component (C) from incoming light (W) and adding a light ray with a second color component (C) thereto, incident on the first photosensitive cell, also makes light, obtained by subtracting the light ray with the second color component (C) from the incoming light (W) and adding the light ray with the first color component (C) thereto, incident on the second photosensitive cell, further makes light, obtained by subtracting a light ray with a third color component (C) from the incoming light (W) and adding the light rays with the first and second color components (C=C+C) thereto, incident on the third photosensitive cell, and further makes light, obtained by subtracting the light rays with the first and second color components (C) from the incoming light (W) and adding the light ray with the third color Component (c)thereto, incident on the fourth photosensitive cell 2

Solid-state imaging element and dispersing element array for improved color imaging

A solid-state image sensor according to the present invention includes a number of photosensitive cellsthat are arranged in between the first surfaceof a semiconductor layerand its second surface, which is opposite to the first surfaceand which receives incoming light. As viewed from the photosensitive cells, a reflecting portionis arranged on the same side as the first surfacein order to reflect an infrared ray that has been transmitted through the photosensitive celland make it incident on one of the photosensitive cells. As a result, the intensities of infrared rays to be converted photoelectrically by the photosensitive cellswill be different from each other. And by calculating the difference between the photoelectrically converted signals supplied from the photosensitive cells, the infrared ray component received by each photosensitive cell can be obtained. In addition, by arranging a color filteron the same side as the second surface, an infrared ray component and a color component can be obtained at the same time.

Solid-state imaging element and imaging device

A camera driving apparatus according to the present invention includes a camera section; a fixed unit including a protrusion sectionat least partially formed of a magnetic member and has a shape of at least a part of a spherical face; a movable unit, the movable unit including an attracting magnetfor generating a magnetic attracting force, and a conical contact face with which the protrusion section of the fixed unit is loosely engageable and contactable by the magnetic attracting force, the movable unit being freely pivotable with respect to a sphere center of the spherical face of the protrusion section; a panning driving section; a tilting driving section; a rolling driving section; a detector; and a line' spirally wound around the protrusion sectionfor connecting the camera section and an external circuit provided on the fixed unit to each other.

Camera drive device

A light reduction device for adjusting an amount of light reaching an imaging device includes: a light shielding plate in which light shielding parts are discretely formed for blocking the light, and a light transmission part is formed for transmitting the light; a first light reduction plate in which light reduction parts are discretely formed for reducing the amount of the light passing through, and a light transmission part is formed for transmitting the light; and a moving unit configured to move at least one of the light shielding plate and the first light reduction plate in a first direction which intersects with an incident direction of the light, in which the light shielding plate and the first light reduction plate overlap each other at least in part, when viewed from the incident direction of the light.

Light reduction device and imaging apparatus

The solid-state image sensorincludes an array of photosensitive cells and an arrayof dispersing elements. The photosensitive cell array is comprised of unit blocks, each including four photosensitive cellsand. The dispersing element arraymakes light, obtained by subtracting a light ray with a first color component Cfrom the incoming light W and adding a light ray with a second color component Cto the remainder, incident on the first photosensitive cell, also makes light, obtained by subtracting the light ray with the second color component Cfrom the incoming light W and adding the light ray with the first color component Cto the remainder, incident on the second photosensitive cell, further makes light, obtained by subtracting the light rays with the first and second color components C+Cfrom the incoming light W, incident on the third photosensitive cell, and further makes light, obtained by adding the light rays with the first and second color components C+Cto the incoming light W, incident on the fourth photosensitive cell

Solid-state image capturing element, image capturing device and signal processing method

Light-splitting elements are arranged in at least two columns and two rows to form two pairsand. Each element splits incident light into light rays and makes them fall on a portion of a photosensing section right under itself and an adjacent photosensitive cell. The elementsplits the incident light so that a primary color ray Cand its complementary color ray Center an adjacent celland an underlying cell, respectively. The elementmakes a primary color ray Cand its complementary color ray Center an underlying celland an adjacent cell, respectively. The elementdoes the same as the element. And the elementmakes a primary color ray Cand its complementary color ray C' enter an adjacent celland an underlying cell, respectively. These photosensitive cellsperform photoelectric conversion, thereby outputting an electrical signal representing the intensity of the incident light. By carrying out simple calculations between the outputs of these cells, a color signal and a luminance signal are generated.

Solid-state imaging device including arrays of optical elements and photosensitive cells

A mirrortransmits a cyan (Cy) ray and reflects an R ray, and a mirrortransmits a yellow (Ye) ray and reflects a B ray. The mirrorsandare arranged inside a light-transmitting memberand are also tilted so that the light reflected from each of them is further reflected from the interface between the light-transmitting memberand the air and then incident on an adjacent photosensitive cell. Photosensitive cellsandreceive the light rays that have been transmitted through the mirrorsand, respectively. No mirrors are arranged over photosensitive cellsand. The photosensitive cellreceives directly incident light and the light ray reflected from the mirror. The photosensitive cellreceives the directly incident light and the light ray reflected from the mirror. Color information is obtained by making computations on the output signals of the respective photosensitive cells.

Imaging device

The solid state image sensor of this invention includes multiple units, each of which includes first and second photosensitive cellsand a dispersive elementfacing the first cell. The elementpasses a part of incoming light with a first color component to the second cell. The first cellreceives a smaller quantity of light with the first color component than that of the light with the first color component incident on the dispersive element. The second cellreceives a greater quantity of light with the first color component than that of the light with the first color component incident on the dispersive element. The quantity of that part of the incoming light with the first color component is calculated based on the difference between photoelectrically converted signals supplied from the first and second cellsandand information representing the ratio of the quantity of the light with the first color component received by the second cell to that of the part of the incoming light with the first color component.

Image capture device

A solid-state imaging device according to the present invention includes, on an imaging surface, a plurality of unit pixel regions being arrayed at a first pixel pitch along a Y direction and at a second pixel pitch along an X direction. One of two adjoining unit pixel regionsalong the Y first direction includes a first photodetecting portionhaving a first opening ratio, and the other includes a second photodetecting portionhaving a second opening ratio which is lower than the first opening ratio. When the first photodetecting portionis moved imaginarily by a first pixel pitch along the Y direction, the first photodetecting portioncovers the entire second photodetecting portion. At this time, a portion of the first photodetecting portionthat does not cover the second photodetecting portionfunctions as an imaginary third photodetecting portion. From a difference between signals output from the photodetecting portionsand, an imaginary pixel signal which is in accordance with an amount of light entering the imaginary third photodetecting portion is obtained.

Pixel shift type imaging device

A color representation technique to be effectively applicable to a pixel shifted arrangement to realize high sensitivity and high resolution is provided by using a dipersive prism or diffraction. A dispersive element is provided for an image sensor in which photosensitive cells are arranged to be shifted from each other by a half pitch both horizontally and vertically. The dispersive element makes at least G rays fall straight down to a pixel right under itself and also makes either R rays or B rays incident on an adjacent pixel. Meanwhile, a photosensitive cell, for which no dispersive element is provided, receives directly incident light, too. Color information can be obtained by making computations on photoelectrically converted signals provided by these pixels.

A camera driving apparatus capable of inclining a camera section including a lens barrel and an imaging element in a panning direction (yawing) and a tilting direction (pitching) and also capable of rotating the camera section around an optical axis thereof (rolling).

Growing community of inventors

Nara, Japan

Yoshiaki Sugitani