A system for imaging with a circularly symmetric multifocal aspheric lens is provided for obtaining an extended depth of field. The system includes a camera for capturing an image of at least one object through a circularly symmetric multifocal aspheric lens to provide a blurred image, and a computer system for processing the captured blurred image to provide a recovered image of the object having an extended depth of field. The recovered image may be outputted to a display or other peripheral device. Processing of the blurred image utilizes one of inverse filtering, convolution matrix (e.g., edge sharpening matrix), or maximum entropy. The computer system performing image processing may be in the camera or represent a computer system external to the camera which receives the blurred image. The extended depth of field is characterized by the object being in focus over a range of distances in the recovered image.

Imaging using a multifocal aspheric lens to obtain extended depth of field

A physical information acquisition method in which a corresponding wavelength region of visible light with at least one visible light detection unit coupled to an image signal processing unit is detected, each said visible light detection unit comprising a color filter adapted to transmit the corresponding wavelength region of visible light; a wavelength region of infrared light with at least one infrared light detection unit coupled to the image signal processing unit is detected; and, with the signal processing unit, a first signal received from the at least one visible light detection unit by subtracting a product from said first signal is corrected, said product resulting from multiplication of a second signal received from the at least one infrared light detection unit and a predetermined coefficient factor.

Physical information acquisition method, physical information acquisition device, and semiconductor device

A complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor and a method for fabricating the same are disclosed. The image sensor includes a sub-layer having a photodiode and a plurality of transistors formed thereon, a pad insulating layer formed on the sub-layer, a micro-lens formed on the pad insulating layer, the micro-lens including a first insulating layer having an uneven surface and a second insulating layer covering upper and side surfaces of a projected portion of the first insulating layer to form a dome shape, and a planarization layer formed on the micro-lens, and a color filter formed on the planarization layer.

CMOS image sensor and method for fabricating the same

The consumed power of a MOS type sensor including a floating diffusion (FD) amplifier in each pixel is reduced. For this purpose, drain regions (regions for supplying a pulse voltage to FD portions through reset transistors) of unit pixels are connected to different drain lines row by row, so as to selectively supply a power pulse to each row. The power pulse is set to a HIGH level potential at least during a period when signal charge stored in the FD portion is reset and a period when the signal charge stored in the FD portion is detected.

Solid state image sensor

Provided is a one-chip vitality measuring image sensor. The image sensor includes one chip where a plurality of IR pixels and a plurality of visible pixels are alternately disposed, IR pass filters which are disposed on the IR pixels, and color pass filters which are disposed on the visible pixels. In the image sensor, IR strength and color strengths are obtained from light which is incident to the IR pixels and the visible pixels, and a vitality of a subject is measured by comparing the IR strength with the color strengths.

One chip image sensor for measuring vitality of subject

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize a smaller device by adjusting the voltage applied to a semiconductor substrate by means of a voltage adjusting section, controlling the length of a depletion layer in a photoelectric transducing section, and electrically changing spectral sensitivity, without selecting the wavelength band of received light by a variable filter. SOLUTION: In a solid-state image-pickup device 1, electric charges accumulated in a photoelectric transducing section 11 are transferred by electric charge transferring sections 12. The photoelectric transducing section 11 is composed of an n+ region on the substrate surface side of a p-well region 10a in a substrate 10 made of n-type semiconductor, and the voltage applied to the substrate 10 is adjusted by a voltage- adjusting section 13. An overflow drain 14 is disposed on the opposite side of the photoelectric transducing section 11 to the electric charge transferring sections 12 corresponding to the photoelectric transducing section 11. A predetermined bias voltage is applied so as to adjust the saturated amount of signal of the photoelectric transducing section 11. A predetermined voltage is applied to the substrate 10 from the voltage-adjusting section 13, in response to a switching signal S, the height of an overflow barrier in the photoelectric transducing section is adjusted according to the voltage, and the length of a depletion layer is adjusted so as to control spectral sensitivity.

Solid-state image pickup device

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To utilize effectively both the sensitivity of a near infrared light region and the sensitivity of a visible light region in an image-pickup device, in an image-pickup unit with a solid-state image-pickup element having the sensitivity of both the near infrared ray and the visible light as an image-pickup device. SOLUTION: In an image-pickup unit with a solid-state image-pickup element 11, having sensitivity of an infrared light and a visible light as an image-pickup device, the unit is equipped with an infrared-ray filter 2 which mounts a color filter 1 transmitting a near-infrared light and an adjustment means 4 which adjusts the position of the infrared-ray filter 2 between a position, where an incident light passes the infrared-ray filter 2 and a position where it does not pass through.

Near-infrared light/visible light shared image-pickup device

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a solid state image sensor having good characteristics and exhibiting sufficient sensitivity to UV-rays, and a fabrication method thereof. SOLUTION: The solid state image sensor comprises layers 19, 20 and 21 including on-chip lenses on a sensor section 11 formed of an inorganic film transmitting UV-rays. The solid state image sensor is fabricated through a step for forming a planarized film 20 by etching or chemical mechanical polishing a first inorganic film, a step for forming a second inorganic film on the planarized film 20, and a step for forming on-chip lenses 21 by etching back a lens-shaped resist layer formed on the second inorganic film. COPYRIGHT: (C)2001,JPO

耕一原田

Papers

Solid-state image pickup device

Near-infrared light/visible light shared image-pickup device

Solid state image sensor and fabrication thereof

耕一 原田

Papers

Solid-state image pickup device

Near-infrared light/visible light shared image-pickup device

Solid state image sensor and fabrication thereof

耕一原田