Camera arrangements for wide-angle imaging
AssigneeAmazon Technologies, Inc.
InventorLeo B. Baldwin
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Approaches are described for constructing a single camera by combining an array (or other arrangement) of multiple smaller and lower resolution cameras. Each of the smaller cameras is aimed in a different direction in order to provide a wider angle and higher resolution field of view (FOV) for the resulting composite camera. Images captured by all of the cameras in the array can be stitched together using software to produce a single composite photograph. This construction method can enable the camera unit to be thinner and potentially cheaper in construction costs than an equivalent single-piece camera that has been conventionally implemented in portable devices.
Claims19
A device, comprising:
- a housing that defines at least one radius;
- a plurality of cameras positioned with respect to the housing, the plurality of cameras includes a first camera associated with a first field of view and a second camera associated with a second field of view that overlaps at least a portion of the first field of view;
- at least one processor;
- and
- memory to store instructions and image data captured by the plurality of cameras, the image data having a first resolution, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to:
- generate composite image data based on the image data captured by the plurality of cameras, the composite image data having a second resolution that is a higher resolution than the first resolution.
A device, comprising:
- a first camera associated with a first optical axis and a first field of view, the first camera is configured to capture first image data having a first resolution;
- a second camera associated with a second optical axis and a second field of view that overlaps at least a portion of the first field of view, the second optical axis diverges from the first optical axis by an angle based on at least one radius associated with a housing, the second camera is configured to capture second image data having the first resolution;
- and
- a processor configured to generate composite image data having a second resolution that is a higher resolution than the first resolution, the composite image data includes at least a portion of the first image data and the second image data, wherein the composite image data represents a field of view larger than one or more of the first field of view or the second field of view.
A method, comprising:
- capturing first image data having a first resolution by a first camera associated with a first field of view, the first camera is positioned with respect to a housing that defines at least one radius;
- capturing second image data having the first resolution by a second camera associated with a second field of view that overlaps at least a portion of the first field of view, the second camera is positioned with respect to the housing and is aimed in a different direction relative to the first camera;
- and
- generating composite image data having a second resolution that is a higher resolution than the first resolution, the composite image data based on the first image data and the second image data, the composite image data represents at least a portion of the first image data and the second image data.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.