Dual Sensor Camera Module for Compact Digital Zoom
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing digital camera modules in host devices face challenges in achieving optical zooming without increasing size or cost, and existing dual sensor camera approaches lack detailed implementation for optimal performance.
Innovation Solution
A camera module with two sensors and lenses of different focal lengths, where one lens is designed for Extended Depth of Field (EDoF) processing, captures images with similar illuminance and exposure, allowing for interpolation to create a composite image with desired zoom, using image processing algorithms to combine and sharpen the images from both sensors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If optical zooming is implemented using a zoom lens to vary focal length, then image magnification is improved, but device size and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the imaging function into two separate sensor systems, each with its own lens and sensor combination. One sensor captures a wide-field image while the other captures a telephoto image, allowing the system to simulate zoom functionality without requiring a mechanical zoom lens. This segmentation enables digital zooming by selectively using or combining images from the two sensors.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical zoom lens system with a digital processing approach. Instead of mechanically moving lens elements to change focal length, the system uses image processing algorithms to combine or select between images captured by two fixed-focal-length lenses, thereby substituting mechanical zoom with digital zooming.
2Measurement precision
If optical zooming is implemented using a zoom lens, then image magnification is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the imaging function into two separate sensor systems, each with its own lens and sensor combination. One sensor captures a wide-field image while the other captures a telephoto image, allowing the system to simulate zoom functionality without requiring a mechanical zoom lens. This segmentation enables digital zooming by selectively using or combining images from the two sensors.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical zoom lens system with a digital processing approach. Instead of mechanically moving lens elements to change focal length, the system uses image processing algorithms to combine or select between images captured by two fixed-focal-length lenses, thereby substituting mechanical zoom with digital zooming.
3Volume of moving object
If digital zooming is used to approximate zoom effect, then device size is reduced, but image quality deteriorates due to pixel interpolation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the imaging function into two separate sensor systems, each with its own lens and sensor combination. One sensor captures a wide-field image while the other captures a telephoto image, allowing the system to simulate zoom functionality without requiring a mechanical zoom lens. This segmentation enables digital zooming by selectively using or combining images from the two sensors.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines images from two separate sensors to achieve zoom functionality. By merging the wide-field image from one sensor with the telephoto image from the other sensor, the system can produce high-quality zoomed images without relying solely on pixel interpolation, thereby maintaining image quality while keeping the device compact.
Data Source
AI summary
A dual sensor camera that uses two aligned sensors each having a separate lens of different focal length but the same f-number. The wider FOV image from one sensor is combined with the narrower FOV image from the other sensor to form a combined image. Up-sampling of the wide FOV image and down-sampling of the narrow FOV image is performed. The longer focal length lens may have certain aberrations introduced so that Extended Depth of Field (EDoF) processing can be used to give the narrow FOV image approximately the same depth of field as the wide FOV image so that a noticeable difference in depth of field is not see in the combined image.