US 8,228,417 B1Granted

Focused plenoptic camera employing different apertures or filtering at different microlenses

AssigneeAdobe Systems Incorporated

InventorsTodor G. Georgiev, Andrew Lumsdaine

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for capturing and rendering images with focused plenoptic cameras employing different filtering at different microlenses. In a focused plenoptic camera, the main lens creates an image at the focal plane. That image is re-imaged on the sensor multiple times by an array of microlenses. Different filters that provide different levels and/or types of filtering may be combined with different ones of the microlenses. A flat captured with the camera includes multiple microimages captured according to the different filters. Multiple images may be assembled from the microimages, with each image assembled from microimages captured using a different filter. A final image may be generated by appropriately combining the images assembled from the microimages. Alternatively, a final image, or multiple images, may be assembled from the microimages by first combining the microimages and then assembling the combined microimages to produce one or more output images.

Claims23

Dependent claims

A camera, comprising:

a photosensor configured to capture light projected onto the photosensor;
an objective lens, wherein the objective lens is configured to refract light from a scene located in front of the camera to form an image of the scene at an image plane of the objective lens;
a microlens array positioned between the objective lens and the photosensor, wherein the microlens array comprises a plurality of microlenses, wherein the plurality of microlenses are focused on the image plane and not on the objective lens, wherein each microlens of the microlens array is configured to project a separate portion of the image of the scene formed at the image plane by the objective lens onto a separate location on the photosensor;
and
an optical element array proximate to the microlens array, wherein the optical element array is configured to affect light that passes through the microlens array to the photosensor, wherein the optical element array comprises a plurality of optical elements, wherein each optical element in the optical element array corresponds to a particular one of the plurality of microlenses, and wherein at least one of the optical elements in the optical element array is configured to affect light differently than at least one other optical element in the optical element array.

2 more elements

A method, comprising:

receiving light from a scene at an objective lens of a camera;
refracting light from the objective lens to form an image of the scene at an image plane of the objective lens;
receiving light from the image plane at an array located between the objective lens and a photosensor of the camera and parallel to the image plane, wherein the array comprises a plurality of microlenses, wherein each of the plurality of microlenses is focused on the image plane and not on the objective lens, and wherein the array further comprises a plurality of filters or apertures, wherein each filter or aperture in the array corresponds to a particular one of the plurality of microlenses in the array, and wherein at least one subset of the filters or apertures affects light differently than at least one other subset of the filters or apertures in the array;
receiving light from the array at the photosensor, wherein the photosensor receives a separate portion of the image of the scene formed at the image plane by the objective lens from each microlens of the array at a separate location on the photosensor, and wherein at least one subset of the separate portions differs from at least one other subset of the separate portions according to the different effects of the filters or apertures in the array corresponding to the microlenses that projected the at least one subset of the separate portions onto the photosensor.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.