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Inivation publishes a company introduction video:Archives for July 2021
Inivation Company Introduction
July 3, 2021 By Leave a Comment
Nikon COOLPIX 100 retro review
July 2, 2021 By Leave a Comment
In 1996 Nikon entered the consumer digital camera market with the COOLPIX 100. It cost $500, had one third of a Megapixel and was built-into an industry-standard PCMCIA card, so you could simply slot the camera into a compatible laptop. 25 years later I review it once more!…
Samsung Explains PDAF Pixel Masking in its 108MP Nonacell Sensors
July 2, 2021 By Leave a Comment
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Electronic Imaging publishes Samsung paper "A new PDAF correction method of CMOS image sensor with Nonacell and Super PD to improve image quality in binning mode" by Yeongheup Jang, Hyungwook Kim, Kundong Kim, Sungsu Kim, Sungyong Lee, and Joonseo Yim."This paper presents a new PDAF correction method to improve the binning mode image quality in the world’s first 0.8um 108 mega pixel CMOS Image Sensor with Samsung Nonacell and Super PD technology.
The conventional PDAF correction method is based on bad pixel-correction (BPC), replacing AF pixel to adjacent normal pixels. Recently, in order to suppress AF artifact, sensor provide an advanced algorithm that detect the directionality of the image pattern near the PDAF pixel area, and determine which area to be referred for the correction. For example, when the algorithm detects no directionality in the pattern, the PDAF pixel will be replaced by referring to all of the same color-pixels within the kernel of 7x7 or 9x9 pixels. If Slash pattern is detected, PDAF correction will refer to the pixels which are located in only slash direction as shown in Table 2. In spite of the advanced algorithm, the AF artifact still occur because of a higher AF density, directional misrecognition or exceptional case of direction.
In order to overcome the limitation of conventional method, new correction method, named Dilution mode have been introduced. In Dilution mode, a Nonacell, which contains AF pixels, outputs its own seed value to a binning output and deliver AF information by embedded data, which is a PDAF Tail mode."
CIS Stacking Patent Invalidated due to PCB-Based Prior Art
July 2, 2021 By Leave a Comment
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Bloomberg: US Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) dismisses Cellect stacked patent lawsuit against Samsung on the grounds of existing PCB-style prior art from 1995. Cellect's patent US 9,198,565 "Reduced area imaging device incorporated within endoscopic devices" proposes image sensor stacking as a way to reduce endoscope footprint:
PTAB concludes that 1995 camera arrangement proposing to stack drivers on PCB underneath the imager, such as described here, is a known prior art:
Canon and IBM Japan form joint business operation utilizing volumetric video technology to promote the visual and performing arts, release video for inaugural project: a performance of the Noh play Lady Aoi, directed by the Hoshokai.
July 2, 2021 By Leave a Comment
Modeling of SPADs for LiDAR: Hold-off Time, Afterpulsing, Crosstalk, Pile-up Distortions
July 1, 2021 By Leave a Comment
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Politecnico di Milano publishes a MDPI paper "Statistical Modelling of SPADs for Time-of-Flight LiDAR" by Alfonso Incoronato, Mauro Locatelli, and Franco Zappa."Time-of-Flight (TOF) based Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) is a widespread technique for distance measurements in both single-spot depth ranging and 3D mapping. Single Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) detectors provide single-photon sensitivity and allow in-pixel integration of a Time-to-Digital Converter (TDC) to measure the TOF of single-photons. From the repetitive acquisition of photons returning from multiple laser shots, it is possible to accumulate a TOF histogram, so as to identify the laser pulse return from unwelcome ambient light and compute the desired distance information. In order to properly predict the TOF histogram distribution and design each component of the LiDAR system, from SPAD to TDC and histogram processing, we present a detailed statistical modelling of the acquisition chain and we show the perfect matching with Monte Carlo simulations in very different operating conditions and very high background levels. We take into consideration SPAD non-idealities such as hold-off time, afterpulsing, and crosstalk, and we show the heavy pile-up distortion in case of high background. Moreover, we also model non-idealities of timing electronics chain, namely, TDC dead-time, limited number of storage cells for TOF data, and TDC sharing. Eventually, we show how the exploit the modelling to reversely extract the original LiDAR return signal from the distorted measured TOF data in different operating conditions."
Sony Prepares All-Pixel AF HDR Sensor for Smartphones
July 1, 2021 By Leave a Comment
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Sony publishes 3 videos presenting a mobile image sensor with all-pixel AF and HDR. Such a product has not been officially announced yet. However, Sony presented a 48MP 0.8um pixel with all-pixel AF at IEDM 2019.