Dual-camera zoom reference design for mobile devices

OmniVision Technologies, Inc announced its collaboration with dual-camera technology pioneer Corephotonics in producing a new dual-camera zoom reference design for mobile devices. Combining OmniVision’s OV12A10 and OV13880 image sensors with Corephotonics’ proprietary zoom and Bokeh algorithms, the reference design brings best-in-class optical zoom capabilities commonly found in DSCs and DSLRs to smartphone camera applications. The reference design will be available for demonstrations at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, from February 27 through March 2, 2017.

According to a June 2016 market research report from Yole Développement, mobile devices with dual-camera configurations are expected to account for 20 percent of the total handset market by 2020. A dual-camera zoom configuration that combines an OV12A10-based wide-angle camera with an OV13880-based telephoto camera to achieve high-quality optical zoom is now available for adoption in high-end smartphones and is well-positioned to enter mainstream markets in 2017.

“Corephotonics is widely regarded as a world leader in dual-camera technology,” said Will Foote, senior partnership manager, OmniVision. “The rapid expansion of the dual-camera smartphone market gives us the perfect opportunity to combine our companies’ expertise. We are pleased to introduce our first joint reference design, and are excited about many more future collaborations based on OmniVision sensors and Corephotonics’ algorithm IP.”

“OmniVision has established itself as a leader in image sensors and image signal processing. We are confident that combining its imaging technologies with our proprietary algorithms can deliver a highly competitive dual-camera optical zoom solution for our customers,” said Eran Briman, VP marketing and business development, Corephotonics. “This unique collaboration can enable smartphone OEMs to leverage the system integration and image quality tuning effort already made, and achieve the fastest time to market.”

Dual-camera configurations in smartphones require advanced technologies that have not usually been found in single cameras, such as image registration, image fusion and depth map generation. These technologies can enable advanced features like the Bokeh portrait effect, which brings elements into sharp focus while blurring the background. In this reference design, Corephotonics works with OEMs and camera module integrators to integrate its proprietary algorithms specifically optimized for OmniVision’s sensors to deliver excellent image quality to the smartphone user. The Corephotonics algorithms fuse the images from the wide-angle cameras and telephoto cameras to deliver optical zoom, increase resolution, reduce SNR and enable smoother video transitions. OmniVision’s OV12A10 and OV13880 are optimized to deliver top tier performance in dual configurations. Key benefits include: 

• Slim form factor, which is enabled by reduced module height
• Superior performance enabled by PureCel® Plus 1.25-micron large pixel and 1.0-micron small pixel
• Dual-camera sync: master/slave capability to switch between sensors during zoom operation
• Ultra-low power using unique toggle mode to extend phone battery life

The reference design is now available for customer demonstrations.