Page 9 - EE|Times Europe Magazine - December 2020

EE|Times EUROPE 9

State-of-the-Art Photography and Immersive AR/MR Experiences

Figure 6: High resolution,
ToF-assisted portraits with
perfect bokeh effects in low-
light situations

the gray value image and depth map for the which significantly reduces the costs of the pmdtechnologies is suitable for applications
creation of a beautifully blurred background. 3D camera system. Meanwhile, 3D imager such as real-time mixed reality, enhanced
Finally, the ToF assistance enables very features such as coded modulation and photography, 3D object scanning, and room
efficient image processing so that the increased configuration flexibility provide reconstruction. Effects such as background
beautification effects can also be applied in improved performance and robustness for blur in videos and moving scene images
real time to video streams. In conclusion, in various applications and multi-camera are easily achieved regardless of ambient
a suitably designed camera system, the sensor scenarios. The combination of performance, light conditions. In addition, high-quality
chip thus ensures reliable operation under all low power consumption, functionality, 3D depth data acquisition at a distance of
ambient light conditions, whether in strong size, and low cost makes ToF 3D sensors up to 10 meters is enabled, without losing
sunlight, in darkness, inside buildings or vehi- particularly suitable for reliable 3D camera resolution at shorter distances.
cles, or outdoors. applications in mobile devices. Always-on applications such as mobile
The advanced configurability of the mixed-reality games can benefit from the
The 3D image sensors can new REAL3™ 3D ToF sensor offers differ- new sensor’s lowest power consumption,
entiated camera performance to support
offering users a significantly longer run-
be dynamically configured different object distance ranges, ambient time. In applications such as 3D scanning
via the I²C interface. During light conditions, and use cases. Depending for room and object reconstruction or 3D
mapping for furniture design and
on requirements, the new sensor enables
operation, the frame rate techniques such as augmented reality in real similar applications such as architectural
time (capture the scene in 3D in a flash),
and industrial interior design, the sensor
thus can be adjusted just as long-range scanning, reconstruction of doubles the measurement range compared
easily as the exposure time or small objects, fast autofocus with low power with other commercially available sensor
consumption, and image segmentation. This
solutions. ■
predefined operating modes. allows effects such as background blurring in
videos and images to be realized easily and REFERENCES
independently of lighting conditions and 1 Strategy Analytics experts, October 2020.
The 3D image sensors can also be dynam- without the need for heavy post-processing 2 Frey, J.; Kref, H.; Möller, T.; Riedel, H.; and
ically configured via the I²C interface. of the images. Xu, Z. European Patent No. EP1585234B1.
During operation, the frame rate thus can be As a semiconductor manufacturer, pmdtechnologies AG, 2005.
adjusted just as easily as the exposure time Infineon currently offers its REAL3™ port- 3 Acknowledgments to Rothermel, T.,
or predefined operating modes, allowing for folio of image sensors for mobile and other pmdtechnologies; Bell, W. , Infineon; and
functionality optimized to the lighting and consumer applications as bare dies, while Tschinder, R. , Infineon.
operating environment. In addition, intelligent system design with its wide range of require-
power management ensures low power con- ments is covered by design partners. For its Eliana Brzozowski is senior
sumption. And with REAL3™ image sensors, part, pmdtechnologies provides the camera product marketing manager
ToF cameras can be reliably calibrated within driver software for the full range of REAL3™ for 3D Image Sensors at
seconds at the end of production. 3D ToF imagers, which enables the easy Infineon Technologies.
With an overall size of only 4.4 × 4.8 mm², configuration of the imagers via a compre-
the new long-range REAL3™ image sensor is hensive and versatile API for the above use Stefan Vogel is director of product
the perfect solution for compact 3D camera cases and beyond. marketing for 3D Image Sensors at
module designs in which board space is lim- Volume delivery for the new sensor chip Infineon Technologies.
ited. Thanks to the highly integrated CMOS will start in the second quarter of 2021.
image sensors and Infineon VCSEL driver, Demo kits are already available. Jochen Penne is a member
fewer components are used than are required To recap, the new sensor generation of the Executive Board at
in other commercially available 3D sensors, developed by Infineon in cooperation with pmdtechnologies.

www.eetimes.eu | DECEMBER 2020