Seoul, Korea — Samsung Electronics has developed two new CMOS image sensors — the S5K4E2 and the S5K5CA — that offer high-performance, HD-capable solutions for the mobile phone market.
Using its proprietary pixel technology Samsung Enhanced Energy Steering (SEES), the S5K4E2 imager is an ultra-sensitive 1/4-inch, 1.4 micron, 5-Mpixel chip with an integrated extended depth of field (EDoF) IP for crisp, sharp images. The EDoF enables in-focus range from 15 cm to infinity with optimum image quality, says Samsung. The new functionality supports the barcode and business card scanning features available in mobile operating systems.
The 5-Mpixel imager also can capture clear video images at up to 15 frames per second at full resolution. It also incorporates advanced noise removal logic to further improve image performance.
Designed to fit into a 6.5 x 6.5-mm module with a height dimension of 4.5 mm, the S5K4E2 imager is suitable for ultra-slim smart phones and other imaging applications, which require cost and size competitiveness compared to conventional auto-focus solutions. The S5K4E2 also supports 1.2-V digital power supply voltage for low-power consumption and has a four-channel anti-shading correction feature for image enhancement processing.
The S5K5CA is a 1/5-inch, 1.4 micron, 3-Mpixel imager that combines both the image signal processor (ISP) with the CMOS image sensor into a single system-on-chip (SoC) solution. As a result, Samsung is able to reduce the overall module size by 25 percent over its previous 3-Mpixel SOC imager, the quarter-inch 1.75-micron 3-Mpixel solution. This SoC is suitable for 6.5 x 6.5 mm fixed focus camera modules, which is the current small form factor requirement for slim mobile handsets, says Samsung.
Samsung says the S5K5CA’s embedded ISP performs sophisticated image processing functions to enrich user experience with outstanding image quality on par with an 1/4-inch, 3-Mpixel 1.75 micron imager as well as 720 progressive high definition (HD) video capabilities. The S5K5CA also offers a 10 percent improvement in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for better color precision compared to the previous 3-Mpixel imaging solution.
By including a new JPEG rotation feature that reduces frame buffer memory needed to rotate images, users can save JPEG runtime by up to two seconds, says Samsung.
Availability: The S5K4E2 is currently sampling and will be available in mass production by the end of the first quarter 2010. The S5K5CA is in volume production.