OmniVision Technologies has introduced two new image sensors, the OX1A10 and OX2A10, designed for side- and rear-view camera monitoring systems (CMS), respectively.
The systems are built on OmniVision‘s 4.2-micron OmniBSI pixel architecture with split pixel technology for high dynamic range (HDR).
Replacing mirrors with CMS can improve drivers’ line of sight by eliminating blind spots, reducing glare and allowing full panoramic and parking views. Additionally, CMS help improve fuel efficiency by reducing air resistance caused by side mirrors.
Because of these advantages, market research analysts expect CMS to replace rear- and side-view mirrors across a wide range of new vehicles by 2020.
However, with increasing use of LED in street lighting and headlights, a phenomenon known as ‘LED flicker’ is becoming an issue for display-based vision systems, causing a delay in widespread adoption.
“In regular HDR cameras, the short exposure time causes the image sensor to miss the LED ‘on’ pulse, giving the appearance of ‘flicker’ in the video stream on a display,” said OmniVision product marketing manager, Marius Evensen.
“Merely increasing the exposure time of normal pixel technology to capture the LED pulse does not solve the problem, but rather causes saturation and loss of dynamic range.”
“We designed the OX1A10 and OX2A10 image sensors with LED flicker–reduction technology to specifically mitigate this problem and enable mass adoption of e-mirrors in the automotive market.
“These sensors join our growing portfolio of automotive-specific digital imaging solutions targeted at both machine and vision display systems.”
