An artifact caused by secondary reflection is reduced. An imaging device according to an embodiment includes: a diffuser (110) that converts incident light into scattered light whose diameter is expanded in accordance with a propagation distance and outputs the scattered light; and a light receiver (132) that converts light diffused by the diffuser into an electric signal.

Sensor interconnects and supports and methods of making them utilize phonon disruptors for increased thermal resistance while maintaining acceptable electrical signal quality in materials. Phonon disruptors include, but are not limited to, structural features such as interfaces, grain boundaries, and point scattering sites, for example, that are designed to scatter heat carriers while allowing electrons to pass through the material. Some embodiments herein involve designing selected stacks of alternating or sequential material pairs within sensor interconnects.

Current signals indicative of sensed physical quantities are collected from sensing transistors in an array of sensing transistors. The sensing transistors have respective control nodes and current channel paths therethrough between respective first nodes and a second node common to the sensing transistors. A bias voltage level is applied to the respective first nodes of the sensing transistors in the array and one sensing transistor in the array of sensing transistors is selected. The selected sensing transistor is decoupled from the bias voltage level, while the remaining sensing transistors in the array of sensing transistors maintain coupling to the bias voltage level. The respective first node of the selected sensing transistor in the array of sensing transistors is coupled to an output node, and an output current signal is collected from the output node.

A wearable environmental sensor includes an environmental sensor arranged on a wall surface of a housing including a sealed section, the wall being in contact with an environment, and a protective structure formed around the environmental sensor, wherein the protective structure includes a plurality of ventilating holes, a sensor surface of the environmental sensor is arranged to face an opening of at least one of the ventilating holes, and an attaching part for attaching the environmental sensor to the wall surface comes into contact only with an edge of a sensor substrate of the environmental sensor and with a portion of a back face of the sensor substrate.

Systems and methods for thermal radiation detection utilizing a thermal radiation detection system are provided. The thermal radiation detection system includes one or more Indium Antimonide (InSb)-based photodiode infrared detectors and a temperature sensing circuit. The temperature sensing circuit is configured to generate signals correlated to the temperatures of one or more of the plurality of infrared sensor elements. The thermal radiation detection system also includes a signal processing circuit.

An apparatus to detect the presence of a user includes, in one embodiment, an infrared sensor that passively detects infrared light radiated from an observation target, a heat source arranged proximate the infrared sensor, and a determinator that determines whether the observation target is present in response to information changing along with an operational situation of the heat source and infrared data detected by the infrared sensor. A method and a computer program product also perform functions of the apparatus.

An apparatus to detect the presence of a user includes, in one embodiment, an infrared sensor that passively detects infrared light radiated from an observation target, a heat source arranged proximate the infrared sensor, and a determinator that determines whether the observation target is present in response to information changing along with an operational situation of the heat source and infrared data detected by the infrared sensor. A method and a computer program product also perform functions of the apparatus.

An object of the present invention is to provide a radiation temperature measuring device capable of preventing reduction in the accuracy of temperature measurement due to an electromagnetic wave reflected by a measurement target. A radiation temperature measuring device includes a reflective polarizing plate configured to reflect a polarized wave of one direction in an electromagnetic wave radiated from an object to be measured and transmit or absorb a polarized wave of a direction perpendicular to the one direction and an infrared sensor configured to detect the polarized electromagnetic wave of the one direction reflected by the reflective polarizing plate.

An object of the present invention is to provide a radiation temperature measuring device capable of preventing reduction in the accuracy of temperature measurement due to an electromagnetic wave reflected by a measurement target. A radiation temperature measuring device includes a reflective polarizing plate configured to reflect a polarized wave of one direction in an electromagnetic wave radiated from an object to be measured and transmit or absorb a polarized wave of a direction perpendicular to the one direction and an infrared sensor configured to detect the polarized electromagnetic wave of the one direction reflected by the reflective polarizing plate.

A long-wave infrared detecting element includes a magnetic field generator configured to generate a magnetic field; a substrate on the magnetic field generator; a superparamagnetic material layer disposed to be separated from the substrate and magnetized by the magnetic field generated by the magnetic field generator; a support unit on the substrate to support the superparamagnetic material layer such that the superparamagnetic material layer separated from the substrate, such that the support unit and the superparamagnetic material layer generate heat by absorbing infrared radiation from the outside; and a magneto-electric conversion unit that generates an electrical signal proportional to both a strength of the magnetic field generated by the magnetic field generator and the magnetization of the superparamagnetic material layer.