Spatial resolution can be improved in multi-lens digital cameras. Each lens can have the same or similar field of view, but can be associated with different modulation transfer functions defining varying sharpness based on location within the field of view. The image information received from each lens can be combined to form an image based on the sharpness of the image information received from each lens.

Provided is an image pickup apparatus comprising: a light control mirror element (ace CME) having a function of splitting an incident light flux (LF) into a first LF from reflection and a second LF from transmission and a function of switching between a semi-transmissive/semi-reflective state (s-t/s-rS) and a totally reflective state (TRS); a LF splitting unit causes first and second LFs to be emitted from first and second exit surfaces (ES), respectively; an electrochromic element (EE) switches between a state of transmitting light having a first wavelength range (WR) out of first LF (first state) and a state of transmitting light having a second WR out of first LF (second state); and a control device conducts switching control between a first mode in which LCME is in s-t/s-rS and EE is in first state and a second mode in which LCME is in TRS and EE is in second state.

A sensing device with an odd-symmetry grating projects near-field spatial modulations onto an array of closely spaced pixels. Due to physical properties of the grating, the spatial modulations are in focus for a range of wavelengths and spacings. The spatial modulations are captured by the array, and photographs and other image information can be extracted from the resultant data. Pixels responsive to infrared light can be used to make thermal imaging devices and other types of thermal sensors. Some sensors are well adapted for tracking eye movements, and others for imaging barcodes and like binary images. In the latter case, the known binary property of the expected images can be used to simplify the process of extracting image data.

HD color video using monochromatic CMOS image sensors integrated in a 3D package is provided. An example 3DIC package for color video includes a beam splitter to partition received light of an image stream into multiple light outputs. Multiple monochromatic CMOS image sensors are each coupled to one of the multiple light outputs to sense a monochromatic image stream at a respective component wavelength of the received light. Each monochromatic CMOS image sensor is specially constructed, doped, controlled, and tuned to its respective wavelength of light. A parallel processing integrator or interposer chip heterogeneously combines the respective monochromatic image streams into a full-spectrum color video stream, including parallel processing of an infrared or ultraviolet stream. The parallel processing of the monochromatic image streams provides reconstruction to HD or 4K HD color video at low light levels. Parallel processing to one interposer chip also enhances speed, spatial resolution, sensitivity, low light performance, and color reconstruction.

The luminance information of an image captured by a multi-lens camera system can be improved by selecting a luminance information source for each portion of the captured image. Each lens of the camera system can capture an initial image. For each portion of a final image, a corresponding initial image portion can be selected as the luminance information source. The portions of the final image and initial images can be pixels, groups of pixels, or other image portions. The luminance information from the selected initial image portions is combined to form final image luminance information. Chrominance information can also be selected from the initial images to form final image chrominance information, and the final image chrominance information and the final image luminance information can be combined to form a final image.

An electronic device includes a lens, an optical filter asymmetric to an optical axis of the lens, and an image sensor including a visible light image sensor and a non-visible light image sensor. The optical filter has an opening and is configured to transmit visible light and block at least one type of non-visible light. The visible light image sensor is configured to sense the visible light and the non-visible light image sensor is configured to sense the at least one type of non-visible light.

A multi-aperture imaging system comprising a first camera with a first sensor that captures a first image and a second camera with a second sensor that captures a second image, the two cameras having either identical or different FOVs. The first sensor may have a standard color filter array (CFA) covering one sensor section and a non-standard color CFA covering another. The second sensor may have either Clear or standard CFA covered sections. Either image may be chosen to be a primary or an auxiliary image, based on a zoom factor. An output image with a point of view determined by the primary image is obtained by registering the auxiliary image to the primary image.

Provided are color splitter structures, methods of manufacturing the color splitter structures, image sensors including the color splitter structures, methods of manufacturing the image sensors, and optical apparatuses including the image sensors. A color splitter may include a plurality of color splitter elements configured to divide an incident light into a plurality of exit lights according to wavelengths, and at least one of the color splitter elements may include a first element portion; a second element portion disposed to shift to the first element portion so as to partially overlap with the first element portion; and an etch stop layer provided between the first and second element portions.

A dual-aperture zoom camera comprising a Wide camera with a respective Wide lens and a Tele camera with a respective Tele lens, the Wide and Tele cameras mounted directly on a single printed circuit board, wherein the Wide and Tele lenses have respective effective focal lengths EFL.sub.W and EFL.sub.T and respective total track lengths TTL.sub.W and TTL.sub.T and wherein TTL.sub.W/EFL.sub.W>1.1 and TTL.sub.T/EFL.sub.T<1.0. Optionally, the dual-aperture zoom camera may further comprise an optical OIS controller configured to provide a compensation lens movement according to a user-defined zoom factor (ZF) and a camera tilt (CT) through LMV=CT*EFL.sub.ZF, where EFL.sub.ZF is a zoom-factor dependent effective focal length.

An imaging system includes a visible light source configured to output visible light and a near infrared laser light source configured to output an excitation laser light. The system also includes a camera assembly having: a housing with an opening configured to receive a combined light, which includes visible light and infrared fluorescence light. The combined light entering the housing along a combined light path, the combined light may include visible light and infrared fluorescence light; an aperture mechanism having an adjustable opening disposed along the combined light path; a beamsplitter configured to split the combined light into the visible light along a visible light path and the infrared fluorescence light along an infrared light path; a visible light sensor configured to receive the visible light and to generate visible light image data; and an infrared sensor configured to receive the infrared fluorescence light and to generate infrared fluorescence image data.