DxO Licenses its ISP to Anapass

DXO Labs announces that it has licensed its ISP to Korea-based Anapass Inc.

"We are very pleased to team up with DxO Labs, the reference company for image quality, to bring up Anapass application processors," says Kyeong Ho Lee, CEO, Anapass Inc. "The DxO ISP will offer to our mobile application customers its high-performing image pipeline along with his great expertise, delivering cameras with stunning images and great quality videos."

"We are excited to partner with Anapass to bring to market our latest generation of DxO ISP camera image processing hardware" says Jerôme Ménière, Chairman and CEO of DxO Labs. "The camera system is an essential feature of a mobile device. End-users are now considering their smartphones as their primary camera. Only DxO, with its years-long experience in designing imaging pipelines for DSLR, digital compact and smartphone cameras, can deliver a complete high-end solution for mobile device’s camera sub-system."

FLIR Announces First Consumer Thermal Camera

FLIR announces FLIR One - a $350 thermal imaging camera that clips on back of iPhone 5 or 5s:

The camera has two sensors - an IR one with unknown resolution and a visible light VGA sensor that "adds visible spectrum detail to thermal images and enhances resolution":

A promotional Youtube video talks about the new camera applications:



Thanks to SF for the link!

Update: FLIR also announces Lepton thermal imaging camera core - similar in size, weight, and power consumption to a conventional CMOS cell phone camera module, said to be the world's smallest microbolometer-based thermal imaging camera core currently available. Lepton is used in FLIR One camera. It has "a breakthrough lens fabricated in wafer form, a microbolometer FPA, and advanced thermal image processing on an ASIC. Lepton is fully compatible with FLIR’s patented multi-spectral imaging (MSX) technology, which allows visible and thermal image streams to be combined for sharper, more visually pleasing hybrid images."

FLIR Lepton Module

Altasens Reveals 1080p60 WDR Automotive-Grade Sensor

PR Newswire: AltaSen will soon offer its first 1080p60 WDR sensor fully meeting all specifications at operational temperatures up to 85°C.
The AL30205C-85 and its supporting ASIC have already been fully qualified to JESD-47 along with Qualification of Integrated Circuits and elements per JESD22, JESD85, and JESD78, and will be fully qualified by early 2014 to AEC-Q100 Grade 3. Sensors and ASICs qualified from zero to 60°C are already in mass production.

The HD chipset delivers WDR HD video at 1080p30 through 1080p60 with up to 120 dB dynamic range with a minimum of motion artifacts as enabled by its U.S. Pat. No. 8,605,177.

Toshiba Announces 240fps Video Sensor Technology

Business Wire, PR Newswire: Toshiba announces “Bright Mode” CMOS image sensor technology that allows smartphones and tablets to record Full HD video at 240fps, the industry’s highest frame rate, according to the company. Regular high frame rate requires a short exposure time, resulting in underexposed images. “Bright Mode” technology doubles the exposure time by adopting interlaced video output, instead of a progressive one. Toshiba will also provide an interlace-progressive conversion program to make high quality progressive video with low deterioration, without changing frame rate.

“Bright Mode” also employs charge binning, which doubles the electrical charge of each pixel. The technology also realizes 240 fps equivalent Full HD video recording. “Bright Mode” sensors can playback high quality video in slow motion at one-eighth standard speed, bringing new dimensions to imaging.

Sample sensors incorporating “Bright Mode” will be available in Q1 2014.

Aptina, Omnivision Announce Image Sensors for Automotive Applications

Business Wire: Aptina announces the 1/5-inch VGA ASX350AT SOC and the 1/4-inch 1MP AR0140AT image sensor for automotive applications. The VGA-resolution 3.75um pixel ASX350AT SOC is aimed to cost effective single-chip rear view cameras (RVC) to comply with potential requirements from the NHTSA. It supports NTSC/PAL interfaces and features dynamic overlay capability, an on-chip temperature sensor for system feedback and additional optical pixels to assist lens alignment during camera manufacturing. The sensor features DR-Pix dual gain pixel technology with responsivity of 6.67 V/lux-s in high gain mode and 2.44 V/lux-s in low gain mode (at 550nm). The DR is 82.2dB.

Aptina ASX350AT SOC

The 1MP AR0140AT provides tier-1 auto manufacturers with HDR capture of up to 96dB or linear capture, and a low light sensitive 3.0-µm pixel with DR-PIX technology. The on-chip statistics engine and temperature monitoring improves overall camera system control and protection. When combined with Aptina’s co-processor, the AP0100AT, the AR0140AT enables a 720p rear view camera solution with multiple dynamic colored overlays, perspective and lens distortion correction, extended de-warp capabilities with options for front/side viewing and images to assist the driver that are split into three sections (Triptych viewing).

The ASX350AT and the AR0140AT are AEC-Q100 qualified with an operating temperature range of -40ºC to +105ºC and are in production now.

PR Newswire: OmniVision announces the OV10626 AutoVision sensor for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). The OV10626 supports both NTSC analog and digital outputs, as well as dual dynamic overlay functions. The sensor has color HDR mode of up to 120 dB and low-light sensitivity of 15 V/Lux-sec.

"Conventionally, HDR and high sensitivity have been mutually exclusive in automotive imaging. With the OV10626, however, we now offer both features in a compact, single-chip solution," said Inayat Khajasha, senior product marketing manager for automotive products at OmniVision.

The OV10626 is packaged in OmniVision's proprietary AutoVision chip-scale package (aCSP), which is said to be the industry's most compact and efficient package available.

PR Newswire: Omnivision also announces the 720p30 OV9762 CameraChip for front-facing cameras in smartphones and tablets, featuring OmniVision's first 1.87um OmniBSI-2 pixel. The OV9762 records 1.3MP (1376 x 960 pixel ) video at 30fps, or 720p30 HD video with EIS. "By using this new, slightly larger pixel, we developed an image sensor that offers dramatically improved HD video in a package that is pin-to-pin compatible with the previous generation OV9760," said Archie de Guzman, senior product marketing manager at OmniVision.

The OV9762 fits into a 4.3 x 4.1 mm package and is currently in volume production.

Sony Reports 50% Market Share in Image Sensors for Digital Cameras and Camcorders

Sony Imaging Technology web page says: "Sony is the world's No. 1 manufacturer of image sensors for digital cameras and video recorders (based on Sony research from April 2012 to March 2013 that shows Sony has a 50% market share)."

Caltech Sues Omnivision Over Patents Infringement

PriorSmart: In Sept. 2013, California Institute of Technology filed a lawsuit against OmniVision on the infringement of its 8 patents:

• 6,570,617: "CMOS active pixel sensor type imaging system on a chip" by Fossum et. al. Filed 1/2/2001 & Granted 5/27/2003.
• 7,369,166: "Single substrate camera device with CMOS image sensor" by Fossum et. al. Filed 4/15/2003 & Granted 5/6/2008.
• 5,841,126: "CMOS active pixel sensor type imaging system on a chip" by Fossum et. al. Granted 11/24/1998.
• 5,990,506: "Active pixel sensors with substantially planarized color filtering elements" by Fossum et. al. Granted 11/23/1999.
• 6,549,235: "Single substrate camera device with CMOS image sensor" by Fossum et. al. Filed 7/21/1998 & Granted 4/15/2003.
• 7,615,808: "Structure for implementation of back-illuminated CMOS or CCD imagers" by Pain et. al. Granted 11/10/2009.
• 7,749,799: "Back-illuminated imager and method for making electrical and optical connections to same" by Pain. Granted 7/6/2010.
• 6,606,122: "Single chip camera active pixel sensor" by Shaw et. al. Granted 8/12/2003.

California Institute of Technology v. OmniVision Technologies

LFoundry Rousset Fab Closed

EETimes Europe reports that LFoundry Rousset, France fab has been declared bankrupt and closed. Its 600 employees have been laid off. The fab used to offer 0.15um and 0.11um CIS processes:

Lfoundry bought the Rousset plant from Atmel in 2010 for €1, and Atmel was the main customer for Rousset until mid-2013. Now, the only active LFoundry's fab is the one in Avezzano, Italy, bought from Micron in June 2013. The Avezzano fab offers CIS process to customers. It also enjoys a 4 years wafer supply agreement with Aptina. It's a 50:50 joint venture between LFoundry Europe and Marsica Innovation SpA, a company owned by the Italian fab's management.

ON Semiconductor Sues CMOSIS Over 4 Patents

Law360: ON Semiconductor sues CMOSIS and others for allegedly infringing four of its patents covering image sensor technology, including two patents by one of CMOSIS's co-founders, Guy Meynants, according to the court documents. The U.S. patents are 5933190, 6011251, 7408195 and 7608516.

Update: ON Semi also sued San Diego-based AlliedSens LLC, CMOSIS distributor in the US, and German Leica Camera AG, which uses CMOSIS sensors into one of its cameras. ON Semiconductor sent CMOSIS a cease-and-desist letter in late September 2013, but the CMOSIS denied that its products infringe the asserted patents, the complaint says.

Pyreos Announces Gesture Control Products, $4M Investment

EETimes Europe: Edinburgh, Scotland-based Pyreos announces its first gesture control products using PIR image sensors. The PY01430 a dedicated mobile application solution, enables gesture commands at up to 20cm and comes in a very small consumer electronics friendly package for ease of integration. The PY01471 enable the use of very low cost Fresnel lens to extend the range of the gesture sensor to greater than 1 meter whilst consuming the same low power as it sister device PY01430. The sensors are said to consume microwatts of power.

Jeff Gray, VP of Sales and Marketing says: "I believe we have truly opened the door for our customers to simply make the right decision to use gesture sensors in their mobile devices without the concern of significant battery drain, caused by LED based gesture sensors. Our customer have long since told us that the biggest concern with gesture was power consumption based on their test of a number of LED based solution, this has cause a delay in adopting gesture technology, they further state that they would not be able to offer the consumer true gesture functionality because of this. Well today that all changes thanks to Pyreos new gesture family of products. The ability to offer significantly low power features like always on and wake on motion, will at last give the consumer a true touchless experience."

The company announces a new funding round of $4M, led by Robert Bosch Venture Capital, Seraphim Capital, Siemens Technology Accelerator and the Scottish Investment Bank (SIB).

A Youtube video explains Pyreos' approach:



A year-old company presentation emphasizes the strong points of the technology: