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Samsung Semiconductor blog published a nice iconography on image sensors in smartphones:

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Engadget publishes a video interview of representative of Pelican Imaging, Samsung and Leap Motion from its Expand conference in NYC:

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PR Newswire: Omnivision announces the fourth sensor in 4 days, and the second one in PureCel family - the OV8858, a 1/4-inch 8MP, 1.12um pixel sensor for mainstream smartphone and tablet market. Compared to OmniVision's previous-generation 1/4-inch 8-megapixel sensor, the OV8858 has improved FWC and sensitivity, and also offers a significant reduction in power consumption and form factor.

The OV8858 has an active array of 3264 x 2448 pixels operating at 30fps. The sensor is capable of recording 1080p60 or 720p90 video, each with additional pixels for EIS. The OV8858, when paired with OmniVision's latest 2MP sensors, can provide full resolution picture-in-picture (ViV) snapshot images at 15fps and preview ViV video at 30fps. The OV8858 fits into an 8.5 x 8.5 mm camera module with a build height of approximately 4 mm. It is currently available for sampling and is expected to begin volume production in Q2 2014.

"Industry analysts expect the 8-megapixel sensor market to grow to about 440 million units in 2014, reflecting year-over-year growth of 20 percent[ according to TSR]. While there are a number of factors that contribute to this anticipation, the main driver is 8-megapixel cameras for mobile devices transitioning from a 1/3-inch optical format to a 1/4-inch optical format to meet consumers' demand for thinner and more cost-effective phones and tablets. On top of that, mainstream mobile devices are expected to upgrade from 1/4-inch 5-megapixel sensors to 1/4-inch 8-megapixel sensors in order to benefit from increased resolution while maintaining the same optical format," said Kalairaja Chinnaveerappan, senior product marketing manager at OmniVision.

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PRNewswire: Omnivision announces the OV13850, a 1.12um PureCel 13MP SOC sensor for mobile devices. The new brand PureCel is explained "PureCel image sensors by OmniVision use innovative proprietary packaging and pixel technology to deliver industry-leading photon conversion, full-well capacity (FWC) and light sensitivity, while significantly reducing power consumption compared to previous-generation image sensors. The result is dramatically enhanced image and video quality in both high- and low-light conditions. OmniVision views PureCel image sensors as the future of high-performance digital imaging solutions."

The 1/3.06-inch OV13850 has array of 4224 x 3136 pixels, operates at 30fps at full resolution and can seamlessly transition between recording video and still images. The sensor supports 4K2K UHD video at 30fps with full-horizontal FOV and EIS or 1080p HD video at 60fps with EIS. In addition, the OV13850 supports the timing for 1080p video at 30fps. The OV13850 fits into an industry standard 8.5 x 8.5 x 5 mm module. The sensor is currently sampling and is expected to enter volume production in Q4 2013.

The sensor is said to be consuming 223mW power, 40% lower than the company's previous generation. This makes it one of the lowest power sensors ever reported in literature (not counting smart sensors that scan only parts of the frame). The current state of the art is WKA-awarded NHK-Shuzuoka University-Brookman experimental 33MP/120fps/12b sensor consuming 2.45W at full speed. Another benchmark is Sony IMX117 12.4MP/35fps/12b sensor consuming 417mW. Sony and NHK sensors both have 12b ADC vs 10b one in Omnivision's PureCel. On the other hand, Omnivision integrates an ISP inside that neither Sony, nor NHK have. So, to me they look at least even in power, and it's nice to see so low power sensors reaching the mass production stage.

In another note, so far only Sony supplied 13MP sensors for smartphones. Now Omnivision and Samsung have them available. "Industry analysts predict 13-megapixel to be the fastest growing resolution within primary cameras for mobile devices in 2014, with the potential to reach sales of more than 330 million units in 2014 [according to TSR]. The low-power OV13850 delivers excellent high resolution video and images in an ultra-slim form-factor. Considering these end-user benefits, we expect the OV13850 to be a highly competitive offering for the next-generation smartphones and tablets. The OV13850 enables our customers to upgrade their cameras from 8-megapixels to 13-megapixels without sacrificing end-user experience or increasing system cost," said Harish Iyer, product marketing manager at OmniVision.

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Pixart concisely reports its Q3 2013 results saying that the revenue increased by 15.6% QoQ to NT$1,350.7M (45.8M USD). The gross margin was improved to 42.8% in Q3 2013 from 40.9% in Q2 mainly due to a more favorable product mix. The company posted a Youtube presentation showing that optical mouse is still the main application for its sensors:


Another recent Pixart's video shows a gesture recognition sensor, a new product for the company:

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Himax reports Q3 2013 results. The company says about its image sensor business:

"CMOS images sensors' third quarter sales were supported by shipments of Himax's 1 mega-pixel sensor for tier-one laptop customers and growing demand for its 2 and 5 mega-pixel sensors from smartphone and tablet makers. The Company will launch a new 8 mega-pixel sensor this quarter targeting higher-end smartphone and tablet markets. The release of this product positions Himax as the pioneer of high-end image sensors among Taiwanese and Chinese suppliers, advancing it to one of the leaders in the world market."

Himax Nov. 2103 investor presentation shows image sensor as a company growth area:

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Business Wire: Toshiba's 8MP, 1.12um pixel T4K35, announced in January 2013, now goes into mass production. The 1/4-inch sensor features HDR and Color Noise Reduction (CNR). The mass production shipments will start on November 15.

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PR Newswire: Omnivision announces the OV10822, a new 10.5MP CameraChip sensor that brings DSC-level performance to smartphones and tablets. As a native 16:9 sensor, the OV10822 offers instant transition between video and image capture modes to capture still images while simultaneously recording HD video without any change in FOV. The 1/2.6-inch OV10822 utilizes 1.4um OmniBSI-2 pixel with improved high- and low-light performance, as well as alternate row HDR functionality. It records full-resolution 10.5MP (4320 x 2432 pixels) video at 30fps, as well as 4K2K (3840 x 2160 pixels) at 30fps with full horizontal FOV. Additionally, the OV10822 can support 1080p HD video at 60fps while maintaining FOV with binning functionality for RAW output.

The OV10822 features 4-lane MIPI interface, and fits into a camera module of 10 x 10 x 6.5 mm. With advancements in lens designs and autofocus actuator technology, the OV10822 will soon be fitting into camera modules that are under 6 mm in height. The OV10822 is currently available for sampling and is expected to enter volume production in Q1 2014.

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Axelis published a nice video lecture on high energy implants in image sensor manufacturing:

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PR Newswire: Omnivision announces the OV4689, a 4MP SOC sensor in a native 16:9 format for surveillance and security applications. Built on the 2um OmniBSI-2 pixel architecture, the OV4689 captures full-resolution 4-megapixel HD video at 90fps, 1080p HD at 120fps with electronic image stabilization (EIS), and 720p HD at 180fps. The OV4689's line-based staggered HDR ensures smooth motion capture under extreme variations of bright and dark conditions. Furthermore, the sensor's narrow CRA has been optimized specifically for security and surveillance applications.

"The OV4689 comes to market at a time when security and surveillance camera systems are transitioning from analog CCTV to high quality digital solutions," said Hasan Gadjali, VP of worldwide marketing and business development at OmniVision. "With its best-in-class low-light sensitivity, HDR and OmniBSI-2 pixel performance, the OV4689 sets a new benchmark in digital imaging for IP and security cameras. It is designed to meet customers' desire for higher resolution image capturing in the standard 1/3-inch optical size, while also providing superior low-light performance."

The 1/3-inch OV4689 is available in a 6.6 x 5.8 mm CSP package. It is currently being sampled and is expected to enter mass production in Q1 2014.

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The Official Microsoft Blog tells how the new ToF Kinect has been developed, largely based on ex-Canesta Cyrus Bamji sayings:

"When we take a relatively new technology, such as time-of-flight, and put it into a commercial product, there are a whole bunch of things that happen. There are things that we didn’t know how important they were until the product was made. For example, we know theoretically that motion blur in time of flight is a big problem, but just how important is only discoverable when you’re building a product with it and that product needs to deliver an excellent experience."

"We knew our time was limited. But we also had the advantage of being able to tap into Microsoft Research’s deep reservoir of technical expertise to get expert advice and help solve the various problems we encountered with new, cutting-edge solutions."

"It wasn’t like consultant mode, where we asked something and the researchers gave us an opinion. They really took charge of the project. They did all the tests. They built a whole infrastructure of software to deliver us a complete solution. Essentially, they took charge. We’re really grateful for that."

Via 123Kinect forum.

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ULIS announces the appointment of Dr. Christel-Loic (Chris) Tisse as CTO. French-Australian Dr. Tisse, 37, brings 13 years of specialist knowledge in optical (visible-light & thermal) imaging science to ULIS. Tisse joins ULIS from MTech-Imaging Pte Ltd., a Singapore-based company he cofounded that specializes in offering innovative low-light, night-vision and thermal infrared imaging technologies. He served as CTO for three years, where he raised more than EUR2.5M in research funding. He also grew the company from a 2-man start-up to a highly skilled team of 15.

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Heptagon announces that it increases its operations, process and production engineering capacity in Singapore.

Heptagon also announces that Ohad Meitav has joined the company as CTO. Mr. Meitav is based in Heptagon’s Silicon Valley office (Mountain View, CA), where currently he is adding dedicated specialists to its system, software and imaging teams. Meitav joined Heptagon from Zoran, where he collaborated with leading imaging, camera, mobile, and consumer electronics companies.

In addition, Markus Rossi has been appointed as Chief Innovation Officer, with a greater concentration on future technologies and related intellectual property expansion. Rossi has been with Heptagon since its acquisition of CSEM in 2000. Rossi will now lead Heptagon’s innovation efforts with an increased focus on augmenting its intellectual property assets.

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Trillion Sensors Summit 2013 published IMEC's presentation on the hyperspectral imagers:


Another interesting presentation is one by Rambus on disposable endoscope image sensor, the PicoCam, covered in an earlier post.

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Albert Theuwissen continues his educational series of posts, now talking about full well capacity measurements: part 1 and part 2. The second part explains the difference between the cases when the saturation is caused by clipping the signal in ADC or readout chain and cases when the pixel limits the signal.

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UBM Techonline published Samsung's whitepaper "Gesture Sensor for Mobile Devices" (requires registration to download). The paper reviews the 3D vision gesture technologies:


Then Samsung presents its own Dynamic Vision Sensor (DVS), "the most promising device for gesture sensor." While there is no explanation how DVS works, Samsung says:

DVS can effectively detect a moving object in a cost-effective way with fast response by providing events asynchronously on its edges:


The DVS sensor is said to have a resolution of 128 x 128, 40um pixel pitch and consume 23mW of power. Since only the edges are transmitted to the output, rather than full frames, image processing can be simplified and power reduced by using edge-detected images:


The dynamic range of DVS extends to 120 dB, so that DVS can detect the moving object in extreme low light and ultra high light, including outdoors.

Thanks to DM for the link!

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Electronic Imaging 2014 program has been published and has many nice image sensor papers. An incomplete sample of them is below:

A statistical evaluation of effective time constants of random telegraph noise with various operation timings of in-pixel source follower transistors
Akihiro Yonezawa, Rihito Kuroda, Toshiki Obara, Akinobu Teramoto, Shigetoshi Sugawa, Tohoku Univ. (Japan)

Abstract:

"RTN (Random Telegraph Noise) causes the image degradation in CMOS image sensor (CIS). At readout operation in CIS, the row selected pixel-SFs (source follower) turn on and not selected pixel-SFs operate at different bias conditions depending on the select switch position. In this work, we extract RTN time constants and amplitude with various pixel-SFs duty ratios and cyclic periods statistically. Some MOSFETs have RTN in different duty ratios. However other MOSFETs with RTN do not observed in different duty ratio. For MOSFETs which have large RTN amplitude in different duty ratios, the MOSFETs with RTN have almost the same RTN amplitude. It is considered that the RTNs of same MOSFET in different duty ratio caused by same oxide trap. The scatter plot of average time constant ratio (<τc> / <τe>) of different duty ratio widely distributed. Especially, when duty ratio = 1, the distribution of <τc> / <τe> at duty ratio = 1 tend to be smaller than that of <τc> / <τe> at duty ratio =7.1 times 10^-3. The probability of capture and emission of the carrier changes depending on the pixel-SF operation duty ratio. These results are important for the detection and analysis of in pixel-SF with RTN."

Pixel structure with 10 nsec fully charge transfer time for the 20M frame per second burst CMOS image sensor
Ken Miyauchi, Tohru Takeda, Katsuhiko Hanzawa, Yasuhisa Tochigi, Shin Sakai, Rihito Kuroda, Tohoku Univ. (Japan); Hideki Tominaga, Ryuta Hirose, Kenji Takubo, Yasushi Kondo, Shimadzu Corp. (Japan); Shigetoshi Sugawa, Tohoku Univ. (Japan)

Abstract:

"In this paper, we demonstrate the technologies related to the pixel structure achieving the fully charge transfer time of less than 10 nsec for the 20M frame per second burst CMOS image sensor. In the 30.0 umH X 21.3 umV fully-depleted pinned photodiode (PD), the floating diffusion (FD) and the transfer-gate-electrode (TG) are placed at the bottom center of the PD. The n-layer for the PD consists of the semicircular regions centered on the FD and the sector-shaped portions extending the edges of the semicircular regions. To create an electric field greater than average of 400 V/cm toward the FD direction in the entire PD region, the n-layer width of the sector-shaped portions becomes narrower from the proximal-end to the distal-end. We designed the PD structure, which included the n-layer shape and the PD dopant profile with the condition of three times n implantation, and the TG structure. An ultra-high speed CMOS image sensor with the abovementioned pixel structure has been fabricated. Through the experiments, we confirmed two key characteristics as follows; firstly, the entire PD area had sensitivity. Secondly, image lag was below the measurement limit."

Novel CMOS time-delay summation using single-photon counting for high-speed industrial and aerospace applications
Munir M. El-Desouki, King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (Saudi Arabia)

Abstract:

"Time-delay integration (TDI) is a popular imaging technique that is used in many applications such as machine vision, dental scanning and satellite earth observation. One of the main advantages of using TDI imagers is the increased effective integration time that is achieved while maintaining high frame-rates. Another use for TDI imagers is with moving objects, such as the earth's surface or industrial machine vision applications, where integration time is limited in order to avoid motion blurs. Such technique may even find its way in mobile and consumer based imaging applications where the reduction in pixel size can limit the performance during low-light and high speed applications. Until recently, TDI was only used with charge-coupled devices (CCDs) mainly due to their charge transfer characteristics. CCDs however, are power consuming and slow when compared to CMOS technology and are no longer favorable for mobile applications. In this work, we report on novel architectures that use single-photon counting based TDI techniques that are implemented in standard CMOS technology allowing for complete camera-on-a-chip solutions. The imager was fabricated in a standard CMOS 150 nm 5-metal digital process from LFoundry."

Pixel structure for asymmetry removal in ToF 3D camera
Byong Min Kang, Jungsoon Shin, Jaehyuk Choi, Dokyoon Kim, Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology (Korea, Republic of)

Abstract:

"Most of time-of-flight (ToF) cameras have a two-tap pixel structure for demodulating a reflected near infrared (NIR) from objects. In order to eliminate the asymmetry between two taps in the pixel, a ToF camera needs another measurement, which collects photo-generated electrons from reflected NIR by inverting the phase of clock signals to transfer gates. This asymmetry removal needs additional frame memories and suppresses the frame rate due to the additional timing budget. In this paper, we propose novel asymmetry removal scheme without timing and area overheads by employing 2×2 shared two-tap pixels with cross-connected transfer gates. The 2-tap pixel is shared with neighbor pixels and transfer gates in the pixel are cross-connected between upper and lower pixels. In order to verify the proposed pixel architecture, we designed the prototype sensor chip and the camera system, which generates color and depth images alternately.. The sensor with cross-connected transfer gates has 1280×960 pixels (640×480 with 2×2 binning), which has been fabricated using 0.11 μm CMOS process. The camera system mounting the sensor chip uses 16 MHz modulation frequency, f/1.6 lens, NIR LED array with 850 nm, and 20 msec integration time."

Review of ADCs for imaging
Juan A. Leñero-Bardallo, Jorge Fernández-Berni, Ángel B. Rodríguez-Vázquez, IMSE-CNM (Spain), Univ. de Sevilla (Spain)

Abstract:

"The presentation will be focus on ADCs for imaging. We will describe the state-of-the-art and discuss the special specifications that ADCs for vision sensors must satisfy. Firstly, we will establish what are the ADCs requirements for modern imaging: number of bits, area, fix pattern noise, and power consumption. We will discuss how some of these specifications can be relaxed, depending on the application, to save power or area consumption. We will review briefly the main ADCs topologies employed for imaging nowadays: SAR, cyclic, slope, and SD. Their advantages and disadvantages will be discussed. Their limitations depending on the desired frame rate, the required conversion speed, and area consumption will be explained. Examples of how a bad design of an ADC for imaging can degrade image quality will be shown. Thirdly, we will mention the most relevant recent publications. Their performance will be compared based on a FOM. The main trends in ADC for imaging will be presented. Some design considerations for future ADC integration in 3D technologies will be explored. Finally, we will draw some conclusions about the current and future trends of ADC design for imaging. We will conclude justifying the need of designing specific ADCs for imaging."

A high fill-factor low dark leakage CMOS image sensor with shared-pixel design
Min-Woong Seo, Keita Yasutomi, Keiichiro Kagawa, Shoji Kawahito, Shizuoka Univ. (Japan)

Abstract:

"We have proposed and evaluated the high-responsivity and low dark leakage CMOS image sensor with the ring-gate shared-pixel design. A ring-gate shared-pixel design with a high fill-factor makes it possible to achieve the low-light imaging. As eliminating the shallow trench isolation (STI) in the proposed pixel, the dark leakage current is significantly decreased because one of major dark leakage sources is removed. By sharing the in-pixel transistors such as a reset (RT), select (SL) transistors and source follower (SF) amplifier, each pixel has a high fill-factor of 43 % and high sensitivity of 144.6 ke-/lx•sec and its conversion gain is a 22.9-μV/e-. In addition, the effective number of transistors per pixel is 1.75. The proposed imager achieved the relatively low dark leakage current of about 104.5 e-/s (median), corresponding to a dark current density J [proposed] of about 30 pA/cm^2. In contrast, the conventional type test pixel has a large dark leakage current of 2450 e-/s (median), corresponding to J [conventional] of about 700 pA/cm^2. Both pixels have a same pixel size of 7.5×7.5 μm^2 and are fabricated by a same process."

A CMOS time-of-flight range image sensor using draining only modulation structure
Sangman Han, Keita Yasutomi, Keiichiro Kagawa, Shoji Kawahito, Shizuoka Univ. (Japan)

Abstract:

"This paper presents new structure and method of charge modulation for CMOS TOF range image sensor using pinned photodiodes. Proposed pixel structure allows us to achieve high-speed charge transfer by generating lateral electric field from the pinned photo-diode (PPD) to the pinned storage-diode (PSD). And generated electrons by PPD are transferred to the PSD or drained off through the charge draining gate (TXD). This structure allows us to realize a trapping less when the charges transfer between PPD and PSD. Therefore, it can reduce the noise that is caused by a transfer gate (TX). The pixel consists of a PPD, a PSD, a TXD, a TX for readout between the PSD and the floating diffusion (FD) with MOS capacitor for increasing the full well capacity, a reset transistor and a source follower amplifier transistor. A TOF range imager prototype is designed and implemented with 0.11um CMOS image sensor. The accumulated signal intensity in PSD as a function of the TD gate voltage is measured. The ratio of the signal for the TD off to the signal for the TD on is 33:1. And the response of the pixel output as a function of the light pulse delay has been also measured."

Thanks to AT for giving me a heads-up!

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Sharp reports a 26% growth of its image sensor sales for Apr 1 - Sept 30, 2013 period, the first half of its financial year (the last line in the table below, note the relative scale with respect to other businesses):


The company also reports "strong sales of camera modules for mobile devices" although no numbers are given.

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AV Science publishes a report from SMPTE Annual Meeting mostly talking about UHD/4K issues: "many presenters agreed that increasing the resolution has less impact than other factors on the viewing experience. What's more important—what produces a real "wow" factor—is increasing the dynamic range, color gamut, color subsampling, color bit depth, and frame rate." The color gamut extension was the hot topics at the meeting. The current HDTV's Rec.709 gamut is extended to UHD's Rec.2020 one:


Some propose to extend it even farther to XYZ one to cover all visible colors and beyond: "the system would be entirely future-proof, accommodating any display technology that might be developed without having to create a new system all over again."


For image sensors, these wider gamuts are quite incompatible with small pixels due to a higher color crosstalk. If wider gamuts indeed manage to produce the "wow" factor, it could become a boost for a new generation of low-crosstalk pixels and color filter technology.

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Chipworks reverse engineering revealed that both front and rear cameras in the new Apple iPad Air use Omnivision's image sensors: 5MP 1.4um pixel in the rear and 1.2MP 1.75um pixel in the front ones:

iSight Camera

FaceTime Camera

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Digitimes: Above 10MP will become the mainstream resolution level for camera modules in smartphones and tablets in 2014, Largan CEO Lin En-ping said at an October 31 investors conference.

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Sharp announces 8 new progressive scan CCDs in its iSHartina family:


RJ31N3AA0DT: 1/1.8-inch 2MP Color CCD (25fps @60MHz)
RJ31N3AD0DT: 1/1.8-inch 2MP Color CCD (50fps @65MHz)
RJ31N4AA0DT: 1/1.8-inch 2MP B/W CCD (25fps @60MHz)
RJ31N4AD0DT: 1/1.8-inch 2MP B/W CCD (50fps @65MHz)
RJ32S3AA0DT: 2/3-inch 5MP Color CCD (9fps @60MHz)
RJ32S3AD0DT: 2/3-inch 5MP Color CCD (15fps @60MHz)
RJ32S4AA0DT: 2/3-inch 5MP B/W CCD (9fps @60MHz)
RJ32S4AD0DT: 2/3-type 5MP B/W CCD (15fps @60MHz)

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PR Newswire: BeSang announces a patent license agreement with SK hynix. The license agreement covers a broad range of 3D IC products offered by SK hynix Inc. One of BeSang's 3D technologies covers image sensors:

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SeekingAlpha's Sony quarterly earnings transcript updates on its image sensor business status:

"Next is Devices. Sales for the fiscal year are expected to be below the August forecast due to lower-than-expected sales of image sensors. We also expect sales to decrease year-on-year. Operating income is expected to be below the August forecast due to the decrease in sales and we expect operating income to decrease significantly year-on-year."

Daniel Ernst - Hudson Square Research:

"And then second question on the weakness that you noted in image sensors, can you parse that between image sensors sold into the digital still camera market versus image sensors sold into the smartphone market. Are the 2 diverging i.e., DSC sales are going down but image sales to smartphones continues to be strong, or not?"

Masaru Kato - Sony CFO:

"On the image sensor questions, yes, we have lowered somewhat the forecast for the semiconductor business. And in image sensors, what you said is correct in that it is mainly due to the decline in the digital still cameras. Now this is an industry-wide phenomenon. So since we have a very nice market share in this area, if the market goes down, our sales will be affected. On the smartphone side, this is still a growing market for us."

Timothy Lash - Third Point LLC:

"One follow-up on electronics -- on electronics, your semiconductor business, your Devices business is lower than forecast. You've sort of kept your CapEx in line. Any thought to adjusting your capital spending in that unit as the revenue forecasts come down?"

Masaru Kato - Sony CFO:

"Okay. Now, we have -- in the semiconductor area, most of the CapEx is in image sensors. We do have other areas, such as logic, LSIs and gaming chipsets. But these areas do not carry big CapEx. And it is image sensors. Here in this image sensors, in the long term, we still see growth. But since we have already made a lot of investment, we do have the manufacturing base for growth in this area. So yes, we will continue to invest in image sensors as necessary but it might not be in the kind of magnitude that we have been doing in the past several years."

From Sony presentation slides:

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Sony patent application US20130277535 "Solid-state image sensor and electronic device" by Takeshita Kaneyoshi and Nomoto Kazuki presents two CCD-like structures to implement CMOS GS pixel:

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Tech-On: Dentsu ScienceJam developed a wearable camera that automatically takes a short video when the wearer becomes curious about something. The camera, named "neurocam," has a "brain wave sensor" by NeuroSky Inc. And based on the brain activity measurement, the value of an index called "Curiosity Degree" is calculated. When the value exceeds a certain threshold, the camera automatically starts shooting a five-second video (GIF animation) and saves it.

Neurocam by Densu ScienceJam

NeuroSky's Brainwave sensor

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Renesas announces the development of video codec IP supporting HEVC/H.265 encoding and decoding. The new hardware IP supports up to 4K2K resolution (4096 × 2160) at a frame rate of 30fps or 2-channel Full HD 1080p at 60fps (one 1060p60 channel, according to other source). Data processing has been optimized to reduce the latency from the point at which data input starts to the point when the corresponding output starts to as little as 3 ms.

Sales of the new IP are expected to start in November this year.

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PRNewswire: TI is introducing three new DaVinci video processors, the DM388, DMVA3 and DM383. DM388 is an enhanced version of the older DM385 processor for 1080p60 security camera. It adds 3D motion compensated noise reduction to ISP with H.264 encoder of the older chip. DMVA3 is a programmable vision coprocessor to run video analytics algorithms in security systems. DM383 is an image processor for the automotive dashboard cameras.

TI DM388 Block Diagram

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Transparency Market Research is known by its controversial market reviews, such as US Image Sensor Market report. The new report is called "Global Camera Module Market - Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast, 2013- 2019." The global camera module market was worth $12.00B in 2012 and is expected to reach $43.06B in 2019, growing at a CAGR of 19.7% from 2013 to 2019. Asia Pacific was the largest market for camera modules in 2012 due to countries such as China, India, Taiwan, Korea, Japan and Singapore supporting their growth. North America was the second largest market. However, later in the PR Europe is called the second largest market for camera modules and is expected to see growth rate of 19.3 % from 2013 to 2019.

Among different applications, smartphone and tablet PC sector is the largest and is expected to grow at the rate of 21.9% from 2013 to 2019, followed by consumer electronics (excluding smartphone and tablet PC) in 2012. The global shipments of camera modules in smartphones were about 80% of the global market in 2012. LG Innotek enjoys the maximum revenue share at present.

Transparency Market Research believes that CCD-based camera modules take 8.7% of the total market value:

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Sony announces 4.1MP 1/1.8-inch CCDs for Industrial Cameras featuring the industry's smallest 3.1µm pixel with improved sensitivity and smear. The new ICX808ALA (B&W) and ICX808AQA (color) CCDs have 2-channel output and deliver 18fps at full resolution.

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