Five-Lens Camera System for Wide-Angle High-Resolution Imaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional small form factor cameras capture images at lower resolutions and with lower image quality due to limitations in compact imaging lens systems, necessitating a solution for high brightness and high resolution imaging within physical constraints.
Innovation Solution
A compact lens system with five refractive lens elements, providing a field-of-view of 110° to 140° and an F-number of 2.2 to 2.8, designed to achieve high resolution and wide-angle imaging while maintaining a compact form factor, utilizing a specific arrangement of lens elements with varying refractive powers and surface shapes for aberration correction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If conventional compact imaging lens systems are used in small form factor cameras, then the device size is reduced, but image quality and resolution deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The lens system is divided into five distinct lens elements with different refractive powers and surface shapes. This segmentation allows each element to contribute differently to the overall optical performance, enabling high-resolution imaging while maintaining a compact form factor that would be impossible with a single lens element.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the lens system have different properties: the first lens element has an aspheric object side surface, the fifth lens element has an aspheric image side surface with specific convex regions, and intermediate elements have specific convex or concave surfaces. This local variation in optical properties enables aberration correction across the entire field of view while keeping the overall system compact.
2Manufacturing precision
If lens elements are added to improve image quality, then imaging performance improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple lens elements are combined into a single integrated lens system with a total of five elements. This merging approach achieves high-resolution imaging performance that would be difficult to obtain with fewer elements, while the integrated design maintains a compact form factor suitable for mobile devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The lens system employs various curved surfaces including aspheric surfaces on the first and fifth lens elements, and specifically shaped convex or concave surfaces on intermediate elements. These curved geometries enable effective aberration correction and high-quality imaging while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure compared to systems using flat or less optimized surfaces.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables capturing sharp, high-resolution images with a wider field-of-view, reducing the likelihood of face clipping and allowing multiple users to be captured within a larger area, suitable for small and mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.
Implementation Method 1
a lens system configured to refract light from an object field located in front of the camera to form an image of a scene at an image plane
Data Source
AI summary
A camera includes a photosensor configured to capture light projected onto a surface of the photosensor and a lens system configured to refract light from an object field located in front of the camera to form an image of a scene at an image plane at or near the surface of the photosensor. The lens system comprises a plurality of refractive lens elements arranged along an optical axis of the camera. The lens system is configured to have a field-of-view (FOV) within a range of 110° to 140°, and the lens system has an F-number within a range of 2.2 to 2.8.