Patent: Stacked, Curved and Other Sensor Patents

[Canon Rumors Guy]

Canon continues to roll out the image sensor technology patents, as we get to see some new stacked and curved sensor patents. Canon News interprets all of these patents below.</p>
<p><strong>Japan Patent Application 2018-019270:</strong></p>
<blockquote><p>We have found another patent application dealing with some of the problems and issues with curved sensors from Canon.  Unlike some other recent cuved sensor patents, this is a fixed design with a set curve.</p>
<p>This is an overall patent discussing a curved sensor in general, and goes into specifics on the curving without talking about a method of manufacturing, but details an image sensor, including details of an actual sensor electronically. <a href="https://www.canonnews.com/another-curved-sensor-patent-application-from-canon">Read More…</a></p></blockquote>
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<p><strong>Japan Patent Application 2018-019227</strong>:</p>
<blockquote><p>When you stack or laminate a processing substrate and a sensor substrate as you can imagine you have heat generated from the processing substrate that can affect your image quality, especially in low light, or long exposure conditions.  Usually we use long exposure noise reduction which takes a second image (a dark frame) after your first image and removes the noise by subtraction.</p>
<p>This noise is called by what is called “dark current” and is usually purple-ish blobs in corners of your images, which shows where there was a heat source. <a href="https://www.canonnews.com/stacked-sensor-patent-application">Read More…</a></p></blockquote>
<p><strong>Japan Patent Application 2018-019314:</strong></p>
<blockquote><p>This patent deals with the problem of when  you share A/D and related circuitry across multiple pixels (a common strategy) your time to read the entire sensor increases because you have to reach each of those pixels one at a time because  you are switching between Pixel A to Pixel B to Pixel C. <a href="https://www.canonnews.com/a-couple-of-sensor-patent-applications-published">Read More…</a></p></blockquote>
<p><strong>Japan Patent Application 2018-019287</strong>:</p>
<blockquote><p>This patent application looks to solve the ongoing problem of increasing the frames per second with the increase of pixels that the industry faces on a ongoing basis.  It looks to increase the overall speed of digital value acquisition from the analog to digital converter <a href="https://www.canonnews.com/a-couple-of-sensor-patent-applications-published">Read More…</a></p></blockquote>
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[mistaspeedy]

I assume most of this stuff is at least 10+ years out.

We still need to wait for technologies they have showcased at various events, and have announced that the basic technology is coming like the following two things:

https://www.canon-europe.com/photokina/120-megapixel-eos/
https://www.canon-europe.com/photokina/8k-camera/

120 megapixel DSLR
8K @ 60fps video camera

These two products are still probably many years out, let alone tech that is just in a patent application.

Anyway, still interesting to see what they are working on.

 

[exquisitor]

I assume most of this stuff is at least 10+ years out.

Not necessary. It all depends on the idea described in the patent. For example the patent with reducing dark current noise described here uses just an filtering algorithm to suppress this noise. It could be implemented any time, as it is happening in the firmware and needs only minor hardware changes.

 

[Richard CR]

I assume most of this stuff is at least 10+ years out.

We still need to wait for technologies they have showcased at various events, and have announced that the basic technology is coming like the following two things:

https://www.canon-europe.com/photokina/120-megapixel-eos/
https://www.canon-europe.com/photokina/8k-camera/

120 megapixel DSLR
8K @ 60fps video camera

These two products are still probably many years out, let alone tech that is just in a patent application.

Anyway, still interesting to see what they are working on.

these things aren't linear progression. Also Canon can and does at times implement technologies before the patent application is published if they have a high degree of confidence the patent will pass. Legally the patent application submission sets the legal date of the invention in question.

tech that is "just in a patent application" means it's already gone through Canon's R&D to the level of detail necessary for a patent application, which depending in the patent means it could be implemented fairly quickly unless it's just a part of the bigger puzzle.

some of these patents are insanely complex and detailed especially the sensor related patents. In other words, they have most likely already been created in the fab as a prototype.

as far as the camera and video camera, canon's usual development for a camera body of a 1 series camera is over 3 years. They could be in development and still take 3 years or more depending in the complexity to release, it doesn't mean that's holding up everything.

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

Canon does something like 2000+ patents a year, or ~5+ a day. Most are not camera / lens patents, but even 1 a day is a huge amount.


A few have been implemented even before we see the publication, some will be implemented in the future, and the other 99+% will never be implemented, but may be a basis for a future patent that is implemented.

Canon patented a mirrorless FF to EF adapter some time ago. We never spotted a patent for the mirrorless mount, it may be on hold waiting for a announcement, and the adaptor patent accidentally slipped thru.