PHOTOBIT ILLUMINATES CMOS IMAGE SENSING.

From:=20: Sensor Business Digest=20
Date:=20: September 1, 2000=20
More results for:=20: "eric r fossum"

Companies mentioned:=20: Photobit Corp.; Show=20 more >>; << = Show=20 fewer links

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Photobit Corporation (Pasadena, CA, = 626-683-2200)(www.photobit.com),=20 which has an exclusive license to high-performance, convenient, = and=20 cost-effective image capture technology invented at NASA's Jet = Propulsion=20 Laboratory, is spearheading key advances in image sensor = technology that=20 foster the proliferation of digital imaging.

In contrast to incumbent CCD (charge coupled device) image = sensors,=20 which require a non-standard fabrication process, Photobit's CMOS = APS=20 (complementary metal oxide active pixel sensor), invented in the = '90s by=20 Photobit's founders, utilizes the same CMOS design and = manufacturing=20 process that is typically employed to produce microprocessors and = memory=20 chips. As a result, the APS sensor chip can contain control and = signal=20 processing microcircuitry for system-on-a-chip functionality in a=20 miniaturized, low-power consuming design. Moreover, CMOS APS = devices can=20 be produced cost-effectively in volume.

CCDs have been a prevailing technology in image capture for = around 30=20 years. However, Photobit notes that, by the late 1990s, = charge-coupled=20 devices began to be replaced by CMOS image sensors, which draw=20 considerably less power. CMOS image sensors enable end-products to = run=20 longer on batteries, a key benefit in portable applications, such = as PDAs=20 (personal data assistants) and video cell phones.

Dr. Sabrina Kemeny, chairman and a co-founder of Photobit, told = SBD=20 that the CMOS APS leverages the powerful CMOS manufacturing = infrastructure=20 to provide key advantages over CCDs in terms of power consumption, = cost,=20 and ease of integration of signal processing/control electronics. = The CMOS=20 APS is more convenient for a system integrator to use, since A/D=20 conversion circuitry can readily be integrated on the sensor chip = to=20 provide a digital output. She added that the CMOS APS can take the = place=20 of 3 or 4 CCD chips.

The APS' architecture was created by team of JPL engineers--led = by Dr.=20 Eric R. Fossum, vice chairman and chief technology officer at=20 Photobit--who embedded active transistor circuitry within each = pixel of=20 the image sensor and combined the pixel array with on-chip noise = reduction=20 CMOS circuitry. Founded in 1995, Photobit--which had revenues of = $4=20 million in 1999, and projects revenues of $20 million in 2000--has = designed over 40 off-the-shelf and custom CMOS image sensors. The = company=20 also performs R&D for the U.S. government.

Photobit's customers include Eastman Kodak, Gentex, Logitech, = Lucent=20 Technologies, and Schick Technologies. Applications for Photobit's = CMOS=20 image sensors include PC video cameras (including Logitech's = QuickCAM (TM)=20 Express); medical imaging (including Given Imaging's = "camera-in-a-pill");=20 dental radiography (Schick Technologies is a customer); imaging = systems=20 for the automotive industry (Gentex (Grand Rapids, MI) is a = customer and=20 business partner); and machine vision, where Photobit is = strategically=20 aligned with Basler AG (Ahrensburg Germany). Additional promising=20 applications include digital still cameras and video cell phones, = as well=20 as biometrics, toys, and laptop computers.

Photobit has designed an ultra-low power (<3 milliwatts) = CMOS image=20 sensor featuring a very minute silicon die for use in an=20 ingestible/disposable capsule-camera to be marketed by Given = Imaging Ltd.=20 (Yokneam, Israel). In this application, the sensor produces color = video of=20 the gastrointestinal tract.

The capsule with a video camera-on-a-chip, designed to be = swallowed=20 like a pill, takes images of the stomach and small bowel as the = device=20 passes through them unaided. The procedures (e.g., endoscopy and=20 radiological imaging) that are, at present, typically used for = such=20 internal-medicine applications can be expensive, have limited = inspection=20 capabilities, or cause patient discomfort.

The capsule, which measures 11 mm x 30 mm, addresses these = limitations.=20 For example, it would allow for inspecting areas of the small = intestine=20 that are elusive for conventional endoscopes.

"Our goal has always been to commercialize a = minimally-invasive,=20 disposable imaging capsule for diagnosing small intestine = disorders,"=20 stated Dr. Gavriel D. Meron, Given Imaging's president and CEO.=20 "Photobit's sensor, with its ability to combine all camera = functions on=20 such an incredibly small chip, has made this dream a reality." =

"We're excited to be part of such a revolutionary medical = application,"=20 stated Dr. Kemeny. "We're excited to be part of such a = revolutionary=20 medical application. CMOS imaging technology, which can be used in = anything from PC video cameras to machine vision, is here helping = to=20 ensure a more pleasant experience for patients."

In the diagnostic process, the patient swallows the "M2A (TM)" = capsule=20 (the patented imaging device). The pill passes through the = digestive tract=20 and is naturally excreted. The capsule transmits signals to an = antenna=20 array attached to the patient, and the signals are recorded by a = wireless=20 recorder worn on a belt around the patient's waist. A computer=20 workstation, equipped with Given's proprietary RAPID (TM) = (reporting and=20 processing of images and data) software processes the data and = produces a=20 20-minute video clip of the images captured by the CMOS sensor in=20 synchronization with the capsule's trajectory as it passes through = the=20 body. The camera-in-a-pill is expected to undergo human trials in=20 September.

Schick Technologies (Long Island City, New York) uses = Photobit's CMOS=20 APS in their dental radiography equipment. By using a = scintillating layer=20 on top of silicon, the sensor serves as an X-ray detector.

Basler AG, which currently has a 16% stake in Photobit, uses = Photobit's=20 image sensor in their machine vision systems.

Kemeny noted that there are a host of highly promising = in-vehicle=20 automotive applications for image sensors, including collision = avoidance,=20 lane tracking, smart airbag sensors (where image sensors would be = used for=20 passenger recognition to help control the airbag's deployment), = black=20 boxes providing information for insurance companies, rain sensors, = and=20 blind spot detection.

Photobit's CMOS APS purportedly equals or exceeds CCDs with = respect to=20 image quality characteristics, such as sensitivity, dynamic range, = noise,=20 smear, and blooming. The power consumption of the CMOS APS devices = is=20 purportedly less than 5% of equivalent CCD devices; and portable = CMOS APS=20 camera systems are described as being capable of operating up to = 20 longer=20 than a CCD-based system.

Since they utilize VLSI (very large scale integration) = technology, APS=20 image sensors offer enhanced functionality. In addition to = standard camera=20 functions, such as auto exposure control and A/D = (analog-to-digital)=20 conversion, the sensor chip can contain value-added functions, = such as=20 dynamic range enhancements, image filtering, color encoding, and=20 compression.

Moreover, the APS allows random access to each pixel, enabling=20 high-performance features, such as windowing for on-chip = electronic=20 pan-and-tilt and electronic zoom functions. The windowing = capability=20 provides enhanced flexibility in applications requiring motion = detection,=20 target tracking, or compression.

The column-parallel high-speed A/D converter architecture, used = in=20 Photobit's sensors for certain applications, allows for digital = sensors=20 with very high frame rates. Moreover, this scheme, in which an = entire row=20 of data is processed at the same time, allows for using lower = power. For=20 some applications, Photobit uses a serial analog-to-digital = converter=20 architecture in their image sensors.

On November 23, 1999, a third patent (U.S. Patent #5,990,506) = covering=20 Photobit's image sensor technology was issued, and licensed to = Photobit by=20 the California Institute of Technology. Dr. Kemeny and Dr. Fossum = are=20 listed as co-inventors for the new patent, titled "Active-Pixel = Sensors=20 with Substantially Planarized Color Filtering Elements." The new = patent=20 covers the basic light-filtering process by which CMOS image = sensors=20 capture color. It is a broad patent governing the deposition of a = color=20 filter array on an active pixel sensor.

The latest patent, along with two other broad patents, = strengthens=20 Photobit's CMOS image sensor intellectual property portfolio, = which now=20 totals 15 patents, with over 70 patents pending. U.S. Patent = #5,471,515=20 for active pixel circuitry enabled high-performance CMOS imaging = by=20 placing an amplifier in each pixel; and U.S. Patent #5,841,126 for = camera-system-on-a-chip architecture addressed the combining of a = pixel=20 array and control circuitry on a single piece of silicon.

"Since we filed for these major patents, our engineering teams = have=20 reached several milestones using this technology," Kemeny stated. = "For=20 instance, we have produced the world's fastest megapixel CMOS = image=20 sensor, used in machine vision, and the world's lowest-power image = sensor,=20 which will enable video watches, among other devices."

Photobit's PB-1024 CMOS image sensor for machine vision and = motion=20 analysis, described as the world's fastest CMOS image sensor, = provides=20 1024H x 1024V image resolution and delivers 8-bit megapixel=20 progressive-scan digital video at over 500 frames per second (or = about 500=20 million pixels per second). The sensor also runs at lower frame = rates. Its=20 power consumption is 100 mW at 60 fps and less than 450 mW at 500 = fps. The=20 monochrome PB-1024 contains 10-micron-square active-pixel = photodiodes and=20 has a 1" optical format.

Suitable applications for the PB-1024 in the machine = vision/process=20 control and analysis area include robotic vision, scientific = imaging,=20 high-speed medical imaging, volume visualization, sorting systems, = and=20 flaw detection.

In motion analysis, the sensor records an event with a series = of images=20 taken at a high repetitive rate and allows for viewing such images = at=20 lower speeds. Motion analysis applications for the PB-1024 include = ballistics, sports performance, factory processes, automobile = crash tests,=20 and explosion analysis. The sensor is also suitable for biometrics = applications involving identifying individuals by cataloging eyes, = faces,=20 fingerprints, hands, or other body parts.

Major applications for the PB-1024 include high-speed cameras = for=20 industrial inspection, motion analysis, or special effects.

Photobit's PB-100 CMOS camera-on-a-chip, designed for PC=20 videoconferencing and other applications requiring small-format = image=20 capture, has a 1/5" optical format, power consumption of 100 mW at = maximum=20 frame speed, and produces full-frame 8-bit digital video at up to = 39=20 frames per second. The sensor supports low-bandwidth communication = over=20 phone lines and the Internet; and its CIF pixel format and optical = format=20 are suitable for promising emerging or expanding markets, such as = video=20 cell phones, biometrics (fingerprinting), handheld scanners, = interactive=20 children's products, and portable business tools. The PB-100 is = primarily=20 used in PC video cameras. Video cell phones represent a key future = application area for the PB-100.

Photobit's PB-300 CMOS camera-on-a-chip for multimedia = applications=20 outputs full-frame 8-bit digital video at up to 39 frames per = second in a=20 VGA-format pixel array (640H x 480V) and has a maximum data rate = of 24=20 megabytes per second (master clock 24 MHz). The sensor, whose = power=20 consumption is 300 mV at the maximum data rate, is well-suited to = portable=20 or battery products requiring excellent image quality. Suitable=20 applications for the PB-300 include high-end PC videoconferencing, = small-format digital still cameras, video cell phones, laptop = computers,=20 and handheld business tools. At present, the major applications = for the=20 PB-300 are PC cameras and low-end digital still cameras.

Kemeny noted that the major target markets/applications for = Phobit's=20 image sensors include PC video cameras, digital still cameras, = cell phone=20 video cameras, and machine vision cameras. Currently, most of = Photobit's=20 image sensors, in terms of unit volume, are used in PC video = cameras.

The civilian, open world market for optical image sensors = (including=20 elements and encased sensors) approached $1.09 billion in 1998 and = is=20 anticipated to exceed $1.52 billion in 2008, representing an = average=20 annual growth rate of about 3.4%, according to Intechno = Consulting's=20 Sensor Markets 2008 report.

In 1998, the world market for non-encased optical image sensor = elements=20 totaled $366.0 million, of which 75% was accounted for by arrays = and 25%=20 by CCDs. The world market for encased optical image sensors = totaled $722.5=20 million in 1998, of which 96% was attributed to arrays and 4% to = CCDs.=20

The civilian, open world market for optical image sensors in = the=20 household appliances and consumer electronics sector totaled $40.1 = million=20 in 1998 and is projected to reach $175.7 million in 2008, = representing a=20 compound annual growth rate of about 15.9%. The global market for = optical=20 image sensors in the medical sector totaled $15.9 million in 1998 = and is=20 predicted to reach $32.5 million in 2008, representing an average = annual=20 growth rate of about 7.4%.

COPYRIGHT 2000 Vital Information = Publications. This=20 material is published under license from the publisher through the = Gale=20 Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries = regarding=20 rights should be directed to the Gale Group. For permission to = reuse this=20 article, contact Copyright Clearance Center. =

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