CN107490842B

CN107490842B - Image pickup module, imaging apparatus, and image processing method

Info

Publication number: CN107490842B
Application number: CN201710882416.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李江涛
Original assignee: Beijing Horizon Information Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Beijing Horizon Information Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2017-09-26
Filing date: 2017-09-26
Publication date: 2024-03-05
Anticipated expiration: 2037-09-26
Also published as: CN107490842A

Abstract

Disclosed are an image pickup module, an imaging apparatus, and an image processing method. The camera module comprises: a first lens group having a first optical axis; a second lens group having a second optical axis; a photosensitive chip having an imaging surface, a first optical axis of the first lens group being non-perpendicular to the imaging surface, the imaging surface including a first imaging area on which a first light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the first lens group and a second imaging area on which a second light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the second lens group; and a first light guide device group for guiding the first light to be incident into the first lens group and guiding the outgoing light outgoing from the first lens group to be imaged on the first imaging region. Thus, the volume of the camera module can be reduced, and the cost of the camera module can be reduced.

Description

Image pickup module, imaging apparatus, and image processing method

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of imaging, and more particularly, to an imaging module, an imaging apparatus, and an image processing method.

Background

Currently, zoom double cameras become standard of a plurality of high-end mobile phone models. The double-shot combination is generally a tele lens and a wide/common lens. On one hand, the optical zoom with fixed ratio is realized in a limited volume, so that the resolution ratio of the remote detail is higher, and on the other hand, due to the existence of binocular parallax, a depth map can be obtained through a binocular matching algorithm, so that the depth of field effect under a large aperture of a single-lens/micro-lens camera is realized, the soft/virtual background is realized, and the effect of a shot subject is highlighted.

Disclosure of Invention

Because of the adoption of the long-focus lens and the wide-angle/common lens, the size of the zoom double-camera is difficult to reduce, which is in contradiction with the miniaturization, especially the thinning, of the current mobile phone. Meanwhile, as the use of dual cameras is becoming more and more widespread, it is more desirable to be able to reduce the cost of dual cameras.

The present application has been made in order to solve the above technical problems. Embodiments of the present application provide a camera module, an imaging apparatus, and an image processing method, which can reduce the volume of the camera module and reduce the cost of the camera module.

According to an aspect of the present application, there is provided a camera module, the camera module comprising: a first lens group having a first optical axis; a second lens group having a second optical axis; a photosensitive chip having an imaging surface, a first optical axis of the first lens group being non-perpendicular to the imaging surface, the imaging surface including a first imaging area on which a first light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the first lens group and a second imaging area on which a second light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the second lens group; and a first light guide device group for guiding the first light to be incident into the first lens group and guiding the outgoing light outgoing from the first lens group to be imaged on the first imaging region.

In one embodiment, the first light guide device group includes: a first mirror disposed at a first angle α1 to the imaging surface; and a second mirror disposed at a first position at the first angle α1 to the imaging surface, wherein in the first position, one end of the second mirror is located at a junction between the first imaging region and the second imaging region, the first lens group is located between the first mirror and the second mirror, the first optical axis is disposed at a second angle α2 to the imaging surface, and α2=90° +2×α1.

In one embodiment, the first light ray forms a first reflected light via the first mirror, the first reflected light is focused by the first lens group to form the outgoing light, the outgoing light forms a second reflected light via the second mirror, and the second reflected light is imaged on the first imaging region.

In one embodiment, the first angle is between 15 degrees and 75 degrees.

In one embodiment, the first angle is equal to 45 degrees.

In one embodiment, the focal length of the first lens group is greater than or equal to the length of the first imaging region.

In one embodiment, the second dimension of the second mirror is associated with the focal length of the first lens group and the dimension of the first imaging region.

In one embodiment, the second optical axis of the second lens group is disposed perpendicular to the imaging surface, and the second light ray is imaged on the second imaging area directly through the second lens group.

In one embodiment, an intersection of the second optical axis and the imaging surface is located at an intersection of the first imaging region and the second imaging region.

In one embodiment, the first light guide device group further comprises a driving member for driving the second mirror to move from the first position to a second position in which the second mirror blocks the first light ray but does not block the second light ray from being imaged on the first imaging region.

In one embodiment, the focal length of the first lens group is greater than the focal length of the second lens group.

In one embodiment, the camera module further comprises: and the second light guide device group is used for guiding the second light rays to enter the second lens group and guiding the emergent light emergent from the second lens group to be imaged on the second imaging area, and the second optical axis of the second lens group is not perpendicular to the imaging surface.

In one embodiment, the second light guide device group includes: a third mirror disposed at a third angle α3 to the imaging surface; and a fourth mirror disposed at the third angle α3 with the imaging surface, one end of the fourth mirror being located at a junction between the first imaging region and the second imaging region, the second lens group being located between the third mirror and the fourth mirror, the second optical axis being disposed at the fourth angle α4 with the imaging surface, α4=90° +2×α3.

In one embodiment, the first imaging region is one half the area of the imaging surface; and the second imaging region is one half of the area of the imaging surface.

In one embodiment, the first imaging area is one half the area of the imaging surface in the length direction; and the second imaging area is one half of the area of the imaging surface in the length direction.

In one embodiment, the photosensitive chip is imaged in a rolling shutter manner.

According to another aspect of the present application, there is provided an imaging apparatus including the image pickup module as described above.

According to still another aspect of the present application, there is provided an image processing method applied to an image capturing module as described above, and including: receiving an image shooting instruction, wherein the image shooting instruction points to at least one of the first lens group and the second lens group; acquiring an initial image acquired by a photosensitive chip; determining a lens group to which the image capturing instruction is directed; and processing the initial image according to the directed lens group to generate a processed image.

Compared with the prior art, the camera module, the imaging device and the image processing method according to the embodiment of the application are adopted, and the camera module can comprise: a first lens group having a first optical axis; a second lens group having a second optical axis; a photosensitive chip having an imaging surface, a first optical axis of the first lens group being non-perpendicular to the imaging surface, the imaging surface including a first imaging area on which a first light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the first lens group and a second imaging area on which a second light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the second lens group; and a first light guide device group for guiding the first light to be incident into the first lens group and guiding the outgoing light outgoing from the first lens group to be imaged on the first imaging region. Therefore, the optical axis of the first lens group is not perpendicular to the imaging surface, and the light rays passing through the two lens groups are guided to be imaged on different imaging areas of the same photosensitive chip, so that the volume of the camera module can be reduced, and the cost of the camera module can be reduced.

Drawings

The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the present application will become more apparent from the following more particular description of embodiments of the present application, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of embodiments of the application and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate the application and not constitute a limitation to the application. In the drawings, like reference numerals generally refer to like parts or steps.

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic block diagram of an imaging module according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of one example of a camera module according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of one imaging example of a camera module according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of another imaging example of a camera module according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of another example of a camera module according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic block diagram of an imaging device according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 illustrates a schematic flow chart of an image processing method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 illustrates a schematic block diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, example embodiments according to the present application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be apparent that the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application and not all of the embodiments of the present application, and it should be understood that the present application is not limited by the example embodiments described herein.

Summary of the application

As described above, in the image pickup module, the size of a Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) light sensing chip and the performance of a lens directly determine the imaging quality of a camera. Also, in a smart phone, it is impossible to infinitely improve the size of a photosensitive chip and the optical performance of a lens group of a lens due to the limitations of volume and thickness. In this case, the imaging quality can be improved by adding a second camera.

For the combination of the double cameras, there are various types including using two identical cameras, using black and white and color cameras, using wide angle and common lenses, etc. Currently, the most popular solutions are zoom dual cameras, i.e. one tele lens (e.g. equivalent of around 50 mm) and one wide/normal lens (e.g. equivalent of 17mm-28 mm). On the one hand, the optical zoom with fixed ratio is realized in a limited volume, so that the resolution ratio of the remote detail is higher, and on the other hand, due to the existence of binocular parallax, a depth map can be obtained through a binocular matching algorithm, so that the depth of field effect under a large aperture of a single-lens/micro-lens camera is realized, the soft/virtual background is realized, and the effect of a shot subject is highlighted.

However, when the camera module of the dual camera adopts a tele lens and a wide/normal lens, the following problems may exist:

firstly, the material cost is improved, and because two lenses are adopted, the cost is twice that of the traditional single camera module;

second, hardware circuit design complexity is increased, for example, when a scheme of two photosensitive chips, such as CMOS image sensors, is adopted, more complicated hardware circuits such as power supply, data interface, etc. are required;

thirdly, a higher requirement is put forward on an Application Processor (AP), and a mobile phone with a front-end camera shooting function is considered to be provided with at least three cameras (for example, a rear-end double-camera shooting module and a front-end single-camera shooting module), and a main processor of the mobile phone also needs at least three camera data interfaces (generally a mobile industry processor MIPI interface), so that only part of high-end processors can support the mobile phone, and the cost of the double-camera mobile phone is further increased;

fourth, higher requirements are put forth on software and algorithms, the system needs to provide additional camera drivers and switching/simultaneous operation mechanisms of the drivers, and in addition, because the dual cameras are difficult to achieve time synchronization and matching of shooting/exposure parameters on hardware, additional calibration work is needed, and the rapid-motion scene processing effect is poor.

Aiming at the technical problems, the basic idea of the application is to provide a camera module, imaging equipment and an image processing method, which adopt special optical structures to guide light rays passing through two lens groups to image on different imaging areas of the same photosensitive chip, so that the effect of zooming double cameras is realized by a single photosensitive chip. In addition, since the optical axis of at least one of the lens groups is arranged not to be perpendicular to the imaging surface, the size of the image pickup module, particularly the thickness of the image pickup module in the optical axis direction, can be reduced. Furthermore, the above-described basic concept of the present application is not limited to be applied to a smart phone, but may be applied to other imaging apparatuses employing a dual camera.

Having described the basic principles of the present application, various non-limiting embodiments of the present application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Exemplary camera Module

Fig. 1 illustrates a schematic block diagram of an imaging module according to an embodiment of the present application.

As shown in fig. 1, an image capturing module 100 according to an embodiment of the present application may include: a first lens group 110 having a first optical axis; a second lens group 120 having a second optical axis; a photosensitive chip 130 having an imaging surface, the first optical axis of the first lens group 110 being non-perpendicular to the imaging surface, the imaging surface including a first imaging area on which a first light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the first lens group 110 and a second imaging area on which a second light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the second lens group 120; and a first light guide group 140 for guiding the first light to be incident into the first lens group 110 and guiding the outgoing light outgoing from the first lens group 110 to be imaged on the first imaging region.

In the image capturing module 100 according to the embodiment of the present application, the object is imaged on the first imaging area of the photosensitive chip 130 through the first lens group 110, and the object is imaged on the second imaging area of the same photosensitive chip 130 through the second lens group 120. Therefore, the camera module 100 according to the embodiment of the present application achieves the zoom dual camera effect using only a single photosensitive chip 130, thereby reducing costs and simplifying a hardware and software structure. In addition, since the camera module 100 according to the embodiment of the application does not need to use a specific lens group and a photosensitive chip, the scheme of hardware/system software of the mainstream single camera can be compatible, and the cost of the whole system is greatly reduced.

In addition, when the photosensitive chip is a CMOS image sensor, the CMOS image sensor has the rolling shutter characteristic, so that the time synchronization error of the double-shot images is within 0.1ms, and the rapid-motion scene effect is better.

Next, the first light guide device group 140 will be described in detail.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of one example of an image capturing module according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 2, the image capturing module includes a first lens assembly 210, a second lens assembly 220, and a photosensitive chip 230, and the first light guiding device assembly includes a first reflecting mirror 240 and a second reflecting mirror 250. When the image capturing module is used to image a subject, the incident light enters from the left side of fig. 2, and is reflected by the first reflecting mirror 240 to form first reflected light, the first reflected light is focused by the first lens group 210 to form the outgoing light, and the outgoing light forms second reflected light by the second reflecting mirror 250, and the second reflected light is imaged on the first imaging area of the photosensitive chip 230, that is, the upper half area of the photosensitive chip 230 in fig. 2.

Because the first mirror 240 and the second mirror 250 each reflect light in a plane, the incident angles of the light on the first mirror 240 and the second mirror 250 are equal to the exit angles, respectively, and therefore, based on this, the angles of the first mirror 240, the second mirror 250, and the first lens group 210, respectively, with respect to the imaging surface can be calculated. Assuming that the angle between the first mirror 240 and the imaging surface is α1, the angle between the second mirror 250 and the imaging surface is also α1, and the angle between the first lens group 210 and the imaging surface is 90++2×α1.

Also, in the image capturing module according to the embodiment of the present application, in order to prevent the subject image formed on the first imaging area and the subject image formed on the second imaging area from interfering with each other, the second mirror may be provided to optically separate the first imaging area and the second imaging area from each other. That is, one end of the second mirror may be located at an interface of the first imaging region and the second imaging region such that light rays directly imaged on the second imaging region through the second lens group and light rays imaged on the first imaging region through the first lens group are separated from each other.

Therefore, in the above-mentioned camera module, the first light guide device group includes: a first mirror disposed at a first angle α1 to the imaging surface; and a second mirror disposed at a first position at the first angle α1 to the imaging surface, wherein in the first position, one end of the second mirror is located at a junction between the first imaging region and the second imaging region, the first lens group is located between the first mirror and the second mirror, the first optical axis is disposed at a second angle α2 to the imaging surface, and α2=90° +2×α1.

In the above-mentioned image capturing module, the first light beam forms a first reflected light beam via the first reflecting mirror, the first reflected light beam is focused by the first lens group to form the outgoing light beam, the outgoing light beam forms a second reflected light beam via the second reflecting mirror, and the second reflected light beam is imaged on the first imaging region.

Here, it is understood by those skilled in the art that, in the image capturing module according to the embodiment of the present application, the angles of the first mirror and the second mirror with respect to the imaging surface may be set within a certain range so that the subject is imaged in the first imaging area of the photosensitive chip by the first lens group.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of an imaging example of an imaging module according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 3, the essence of optical imaging of the image capturing module according to the embodiment of the present application can be regarded as that the first imaging area CT (for example, the area from the center point C to the upper end point T of the photosensitive chip) of the photosensitive chip is projected as the virtual imaging plane CT 'by the mirror area of the second mirror (the area from one end point C to the other end point D of the second mirror), so that the outgoing light passing through the first lens group is imaged on the virtual imaging plane CT'. The point T is the upper edge point of the photosensitive chip, and the point T' is the symmetry point of the T with respect to the mirror surface. And, the outgoing light passing through the second lens group is imaged on a second imaging area at the lower part of the photosensitive chip.

Here, when the first angle α1 is 45 degrees, the virtual imaging plane CT' is perpendicular to the first imaging region CT, thereby dividing the photosensitive chip into the first imaging region and the second imaging region in a direction perpendicular to the photosensitive chip. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the point C dividing the first imaging region and the second imaging region may be located at the center of height of the photo-sensing chip to enable the CMOS to image light passing through the two lens groups separately in the same size imaging region to obtain two images of the same size. Alternatively, the point C may be located elsewhere for different designs to obtain image pairs of different sizes.

Although fig. 3 illustrates the first angle α1 as 45 degrees, the first angle α1 may be within a predetermined range centered on 45 degrees. If the angle is set too small, the outgoing light focused by the first lens group may be blocked by the first imaging area of the photosensitive chip, thereby affecting the imaging quality on the first imaging area; and if the angle is set too large, it is difficult for the second reflecting mirror to reflect the entire outgoing light focused by the first lens group onto the first imaging area, and the imaging quality on the first imaging area is also affected.

Therefore, in the above-described image pickup module, the first angle α1 may vary between 15 degrees and 75 degrees, and preferably between 30 degrees and 60 degrees. More preferably, in the above image capturing module, the first angle α1 may be equal to 45 degrees.

In addition, let point M be the intersection point of the line O1T 'of the optical center O1 of the first lens group (lens 1) and the point T' (i.e., the left boundary of the field of view of the first lens group) and the second mirror CD, and f1 be the focal length of the first lens group. In the case where the first angle α1 between the second reflecting mirror and the imaging surface is equal to 45 degrees, in order to make the outgoing light of the first lens group totally reflected onto the first imaging region without leaking outside the first imaging region, as shown in fig. 3, the focal length f1 of the first lens group may be made greater than or equal to the length CT of the first imaging region. In other words, the minimum value of the focal length f1 of the first lens group is the length CT of the first imaging region. For this purpose, the focal length f1 of the first lens group may be a relatively large value, i.e. the first lens group is selected as a mid/tele lens. Of course, when the focal length f1 of the first lens group is selected, if the value thereof is too large, the dimension of the image capturing module in the height direction (i.e., the up-down direction in fig. 3) will also become large, and the longer the focal length, the more the cost of the lens will be increased. Therefore, the focal length f1 of the first lens group can be comprehensively selected by combining the two factors.

Meanwhile, in order for the second mirror to be able to reflect all of the outgoing light passing through the first lens group without interception, the length CD of the second mirror needs to be greater than or equal to the length CM as shown in fig. 3. The length of the second mirror is discussed above in the dimension of the cross-sectional view of the CMOS, and it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the width of the mirror also needs to be considered in the view of the top view of the CMOS.

Therefore, in the above image capturing module, the focal length of the first lens group is greater than or equal to the length of the first imaging area. In the image capturing module, the second dimension of the second mirror is associated with the focal length of the first lens group and the dimension of the first imaging region.

Furthermore, the angle of view of the first lens group is actually determined by the focal length of the first lens group, and when the focal length f1 of the first lens group increases, the angle of view of the first lens group correspondingly decreases, and vice versa. Theoretically, when the focal length f1 of the first lens group is equal to the length CT of the first imaging region, the focal length of the first lens group is at the limit minimum; and the viewing angle is at a limit maximum of 2 x arctan (1/2).

Of course, if the angle of view of the first lens group is larger than the angle of view θ1 shown in fig. 3, the light focused after passing through the first lens group cannot be entirely imaged on the virtual imaging plane CT', so that only a part of the subject is imaged on the first imaging region, and a larger CMOS device needs to be selected. Of course, if it is not necessary to achieve complete imaging, the viewing angle of the first lens group may also be set larger than the viewing angle θ1 shown in fig. 3, while keeping the size of the CMOS device unchanged.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 3, the second lens group (lens 2) may be simply provided so as to directly perform imaging on the imaging surface without guidance of the light guide device group. In other words, light from the subject directly enters the second lens group and is projected directly onto the second imaging region of the photosensitive chip after being focused via the second lens group.

Therefore, in the above image capturing module, the second optical axis of the second lens group is disposed perpendicular to the imaging surface, and the second light ray is directly imaged on the second imaging area through the second lens group.

With respect to the second lens group, since there is no case where the lens group is blocked by the reflecting mirror, there is no particular limitation on the focal length f2 of the second lens group. In order to obtain a thinner dimension of the image capturing module in the thickness direction (i.e., the left-right direction in fig. 3), the focal length f2 of the second lens group may be a relatively small value, i.e., the second lens group is selected to be a wide angle/normal lens. Also, similarly to the angle of view θ1 of the first lens group, a case where the outgoing light focused by the second lens group is entirely projected onto the second imaging area is shown in fig. 3, in which the intersection point of the optical axis of the second lens group and the imaging surface is located at the center of the second imaging area, and the angle of view θ2 and the focal length f2 of the second lens group enable complete imaging on the second imaging area. However, if incomplete imaging can be allowed, there is also no limitation on the angle of view θ2 of the second lens group.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of another imaging example of an imaging module according to an embodiment of the present application. Fig. 4 differs from fig. 3 in that in fig. 3, the intersection of the first optical axis and the imaging surface is located at the center of the second imaging region, so that the second light rays passing through the second lens group are imaged only on the second imaging region. In fig. 4, the intersection point of the first optical axis and the imaging surface is located at the intersection point of the first imaging region and the second imaging region on the imaging surface, for example, on the center line of the imaging surface in the length direction, that is, the center position of the whole of the first imaging region and the second imaging region, so that the second light rays passing through the second lens group can be imaged not only on the second imaging region but also on the first imaging region. That is, in the above-mentioned image capturing module, an intersection point of the second optical axis and the imaging surface is located at an intersection point of the first imaging area and the second imaging area. This way, when the second mirror is in the first position shown in fig. 3 (one end of the second mirror is located at the intersection of the first imaging region and the second imaging region), the second light will be blocked from imaging on the first imaging region, so that it will only image on the second region, i.e. a portion of the field of view will be blocked. However, if the second mirror is movable away from the first position without blocking the second light rays from being imaged on the first imaging region, the second mirror can achieve a larger imaging range and thus a larger size image.

Accordingly, the first light guide device group further comprises a driving component for driving the second reflector to change positions, so that the second reflector is moved out of the projection range of the emergent light passing through the second lens group on the imaging surface of the photosensitive chip. For example, as shown in fig. 2, the second mirror 250 is moved from an initial first position to a second position shown as a broken line portion 250' by driving of the driving part (this may be achieved by, for example, moving first in an upward left direction and then rotating about a point as an axis). On the one hand, the moved second mirror 250' no longer forms any barrier to the light rays exiting the second lens group, enabling it to be imaged completely on the first imaging area, instead of only half; on the other hand, the second reflecting mirror 250' completely shields the light rays emitted from the first lens group from being imaged on the first imaging area, so that the image capturing module according to the embodiment of the present application is used as a single image capturing module, and a larger-sized image is obtained.

That is, in the above-described image capturing module, the first light guiding device group further includes a driving member for driving the second reflecting mirror to move from the first position to the second position, the second reflecting mirror blocking the first light ray at the second position without blocking the second light ray from being imaged on the first imaging area.

Therefore, the camera module according to the embodiment of the application has a switching mechanism for switching between the single camera module and the dual camera module. When the double cameras are not needed, the shot object can be imaged only through the first lens group, so that the pixels of the photosensitive chip are fully utilized, and the imaging quality is improved; on the other hand, when two cameras are needed, the two lens groups can be used for respectively imaging the shot object, so that the dynamic structure of the shooting module group with the flexible purpose is realized.

As described above, conventionally, in the manufacturing process of an image pickup module, particularly for a zoom lens, the focal length of the lens greatly limits the size of the image pickup module in the focal length direction, i.e., the direction perpendicular to the imaging surface of the photosensitive chip. Therefore, in the image capturing module according to the embodiment of the application, by making the optical axis of the first lens group not perpendicular to the imaging surface of the photosensitive chip, the thickness of the image capturing module in the optical axis direction can be reduced.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, in the case that the first angle is 45 degrees, the optical axis direction of the first lens group is parallel to the direction of the imaging surface, and thus, the thickness of the image capturing module is substantially determined by the focal length of the second lens group. Therefore, in order to reduce the thickness of the image pickup module to the maximum extent, a lens group having a smaller focal length, for example, a wide angle/normal lens, may be used as the second lens group.

Therefore, in the above image capturing module, the focal length of the first lens group may be greater than the focal length of the second lens group.

In the dual camera module, for example, the first lens group may be a tele lens equivalent to about 50mm, and the second lens group may be a wide/normal lens equivalent to 17mm-28 mm.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of another example of an image capturing module according to an embodiment of the present application. The image capturing module shown in fig. 5 is different from the image capturing module shown in fig. 2 in that, similarly to the first lens group, the optical axis of the second lens group is also not perpendicular to the imaging surface of the photosensitive chip, but the outgoing light of the second lens group is guided by the second light guiding device group to be imaged on the second imaging area.

Specifically, the image capturing module 300 of fig. 5 includes a first lens group 310, a second lens group 320, a photosensitive chip 330, a first light guiding device group composed of a first mirror 340 and a second mirror 350, and a second light guiding device group composed of a third mirror 360 and a fourth mirror 370. The first lens group 310, the second lens group 320, the photosensitive chip 330, the first mirror 340 and the second mirror 350 are similar to the corresponding elements in fig. 2, and are not repeated here.

The imaging principle of the third mirror 360 and the fourth mirror 370 is similar to that of the first mirror 340 and the second mirror 350, and the specific arrangement of the third mirror 360 and the fourth mirror 370 is also similar to that of the first mirror 340 and the second mirror 350.

Therefore, the above-mentioned camera module further includes: and the second light guide device group is used for guiding the second light rays to enter the second lens group and guiding the emergent light emergent from the second lens group to be imaged on the second imaging area, and the second optical axis of the second lens group is not perpendicular to the imaging surface.

In the above camera module, the second light guide device group includes: a third mirror disposed at a third angle α3 to the imaging surface; and a fourth mirror disposed at the third angle α3 with the imaging surface, one end of the fourth mirror being located at a junction between the first imaging region and the second imaging region, the second lens group being located between the third mirror and the fourth mirror, the second optical axis being disposed at the fourth angle α4 with the imaging surface, α4=90° +2×α3.

Wherein the third angle may be between 15 degrees and 75 degrees, preferably between 30 degrees and 60 degrees, and more preferably the third angle is 45 degrees.

Compared with fig. 2, the example of the image capturing module according to the embodiment of the present application uses a mirror for both lenses to reflect the focused outgoing light, so that the focal length of the lens cannot be set too short, and the wide-angle lens is not greatly affected, and the view angle and the zoom range of the wide-angle lens are affected to some extent. However, since neither lens group is disposed in the direction perpendicular to the imaging surface, the size of the image pickup module in the direction perpendicular to the imaging surface can be further reduced, which contributes to further reduction in thickness of the terminal when disposed in a mobile terminal such as a smart phone. And, this also increases the base line (baseline) distance between the two lenses, making the parallax larger, so that a better binocular matching result can be obtained.

It has been mentioned above that, in dividing the imaging surface of the photosensitive chip into the first imaging region and the second imaging region, the first imaging region and the second imaging region may be divided in any manner. Preferably, however, the first imaging region and the second imaging region are each one half the area of the imaging surface. In this way, the image obtained on the first imaging region may have the same size as the image obtained on the second imaging region, thereby facilitating subsequent image processing.

That is, in the above-described image pickup module, the first imaging area is one half of the area of the imaging surface; and, the second imaging region is one half of the area of the imaging surface.

In addition, the photosensitive chips adopted in the current camera modules are all rectangular in shape, so that an image with the aspect ratio of 4:3 or 16:9 is realized. In the image capturing module according to the embodiment of the present application, it is preferable that the imaging surface of the photosensitive chip is divided into a first imaging area and a second imaging area from the length direction. For example, taking a 16:9 photosensitive chip as an example, the first imaging region and the second imaging region are respectively 8:9 with an aspect ratio, so that more imaging information can be accommodated, and subsequent image processing is facilitated.

That is, in the above-described image pickup module, the first imaging area is one half of the area of the imaging surface in the longitudinal direction; and, the second imaging area is one half of the area of the imaging surface in the length direction.

Moreover, in the image capturing module according to the embodiment of the application, since the photosensitive chip can image according to a rolling shutter (rolling shutter), exposure can be performed according to rows, so that a time synchronization error of two images imaged by the first lens group and the second lens group is within 0.1ms, and a scene effect on rapid movement is better.

It can be seen that, compared with the prior art, with the camera module, the imaging device and the image processing method according to the embodiments of the present application, the camera module may include: a first lens group having a first optical axis; a second lens group having a second optical axis; a photosensitive chip having an imaging surface, a first optical axis of the first lens group being non-perpendicular to the imaging surface, the imaging surface including a first imaging area on which a first light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the first lens group and a second imaging area on which a second light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the second lens group; and a first light guide device group for guiding the first light to be incident into the first lens group and guiding the outgoing light outgoing from the first lens group to be imaged on the first imaging region. Therefore, the optical axis of the first lens group is not perpendicular to the imaging surface, and the light rays passing through the two lens groups are guided to be imaged on different imaging areas of the same photosensitive chip, so that the volume of the camera module can be reduced, and the cost of the camera module can be reduced.

Specifically, in the embodiment of the application, by utilizing the zoom double-shot and specific characteristics, a special optical structure is adopted, and the effect of zooming the double-shot is realized by matching with a single CMOS image sensor, so that the cost is reduced, the software and hardware structure is simplified, the scheme of hardware/system software of the main stream single-shot is compatible, and the cost of the whole system is greatly reduced. In addition, the time synchronization error of the double-shot images is reduced by utilizing the characteristic of the rolling shutter of the CMOS, and the rapid-motion scene effect is better.

Exemplary imaging apparatus

Fig. 6 illustrates a schematic block diagram of an imaging device according to an embodiment of the present application.

As shown in fig. 6, an imaging apparatus 400 according to an embodiment of the present application includes an image capturing module 410, and the image capturing module 410 includes: a first lens group 411 having a first optical axis; a second lens group 412 having a second optical axis; a photosensitive chip 413 having an imaging surface, the first optical axis of the first lens group 411 being non-perpendicular to the imaging surface, the imaging surface including a first imaging area on which a first light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the first lens group 411 and a second imaging area on which a second light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the second lens group 412; and a first light guide device group 414 for guiding the first light to be incident into the first lens group 411 and guiding the outgoing light outgoing from the first lens group 411 to be imaged on the first imaging area.

In one example, the first light guide device group 414 includes: a first mirror disposed at a first angle α1 to the imaging surface; and a second mirror disposed at a first position at the first angle α1 to the imaging surface, wherein in the first position, one end of the second mirror is located at a junction between the first imaging region and the second imaging region, the first lens group is located between the first mirror and the second mirror, the first optical axis is disposed at a second angle α2 to the imaging surface, and α2=90° +2×α1.

In one example, the first light ray forms a first reflected light via the first mirror, the first reflected light is focused by the first lens group to form the outgoing light, the outgoing light forms a second reflected light via the second mirror, and the second reflected light is imaged on the first imaging region.

In one example, the first angle is between 15 degrees and 75 degrees.

In one example, the first angle is equal to 45 degrees.

In one example, a focal length of the first lens group is greater than or equal to a length of the first imaging region.

In one example, the second dimension of the second mirror is associated with a focal length of the first lens group and a dimension of the first imaging region.

In one example, the second optical axis of the second lens group is disposed perpendicular to the imaging surface, and the second light ray is imaged on the second imaging region directly through the second lens group.

In one example, an intersection of the second optical axis and the imaging surface is located at an intersection of the first imaging region and the second imaging region.

In one example, the first set of light guides further includes a drive member for driving the second mirror from the first position to a second position in which the second mirror blocks the first light ray but does not block the second light ray from being imaged on the first imaging region.

In one example, the focal length of the first lens group is greater than the focal length of the second lens group.

In one example, the camera module further includes: and the second light guide device group is used for guiding the second light rays to enter the second lens group and guiding the emergent light emergent from the second lens group to be imaged on the second imaging area, and the second optical axis of the second lens group is not perpendicular to the imaging surface.

In one example, the second light guide device group includes: a third mirror disposed at a third angle α3 to the imaging surface; and a fourth mirror disposed at the third angle α3 with the imaging surface, one end of the fourth mirror being located at a junction between the first imaging region and the second imaging region, the second lens group being located between the third mirror and the fourth mirror, the second optical axis being disposed at the fourth angle α4 with the imaging surface, α4=90° +2×α3.

In one example, the first imaging region is one half of the area of the imaging surface; and, the second imaging region is one half of the area of the imaging surface.

In one example, the first imaging region is one half of the area of the imaging surface in the length direction; and, the second imaging area is one half of the area of the imaging surface in the length direction.

In one example, the photosensitive chip is imaged in a rolling shutter manner.

The specific functions and operations of the respective units and modules in the image pickup module 410 of the above-described imaging apparatus 400 have been described in detail in the image pickup module described above with reference to fig. 1 to 5, and thus, repetitive descriptions thereof will be omitted.

Further, the imaging apparatus 400 may be any imaging apparatus equipped with a camera module, not limited to a smart phone.

Exemplary image processing method

Fig. 7 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an image processing method according to an embodiment of the present application.

As shown in fig. 7, the image processing method according to the embodiment of the present application is applied to the image capturing module as described above, and includes: s501, receiving an image shooting instruction, wherein the image shooting instruction points to at least one of a first lens group and a second lens group; s502, acquiring an initial image acquired by a photosensitive chip; s503, determining a lens group pointed by the image shooting instruction; and S504, processing the initial image according to the pointed lens group to generate a processed image.

As described above, the image pickup module according to the embodiment of the present application has two lens groups, and also a single image pickup module mode in which only one lens group is activated and a dual image pickup module mode in which both lens groups are activated simultaneously can be selected by the driving means, as shown by the broken lines in fig. 2. Thus, the image capturing instruction involves capturing with a single camera module or capturing with a dual camera module.

When the imaging module is used as a single imaging module, the initial image obtained from the photosensitive chip can be directly output, so that the subsequent image processing is performed. When imaging as a dual camera module, the image capture instructions may further involve capturing with one of the two lens groups or capturing with both lens groups simultaneously. In the latter case, whether the lens group to be directed is one or two, in principle the first and second imaging areas of the photosensitive chip are imaged simultaneously by the first lens group and the second lens group, so that the initial image obtained is still one image, but it essentially comprises two parts imaged via the two lens groups, respectively, and preferably the image content of the two parts may be at least partially identical for facilitating the compositing process.

Specifically, in the case of the dual camera module, whether the user only needs to output the imaging result of one lens group or the imaging result of two lens groups can be judged according to the image shooting instruction sent by the user. For example, when the two lens groups are a telephoto lens and a wide-angle lens, respectively, if the user wishes to obtain a telephoto image, only the image obtained by the telephoto lens may be output; if the user wishes to obtain a close-up image, only the image obtained by the wide-angle lens may be output; if the user wishes to obtain a composite image with a certain processing effect, it is possible to output images obtained by the telephoto lens and the wide-angle lens simultaneously, and perform the composite processing for special purposes such as parallax ranging or background blurring.

Accordingly, it is possible to first determine whether the captured initial image is associated with a single lens group or two lens groups based on the image capturing instruction, and then generate a processed image by processing the initial image.

Since the positional relationship of the first imaging region and the second imaging region on the imaging surface of the photosensitive chip is known, it is possible to determine which part in the initial image corresponds to the image imaged by the first lens group and which part corresponds to the image imaged by the second lens group, based on the positional relationship of the first imaging region and the second imaging region, thereby dividing the initial image.

Here, it is understood by those skilled in the art that since different images, such as a tele image and a wide image, are formed via the first lens group and the second lens group in the dual image pickup module. In the image synthesizing process, it is necessary to know what images the two parts of the object are, respectively, in addition to the two parts of the image included in the initial image, for example, the image imaged on the first imaging area is a tele image and the image imaged on the second imaging area is a wide image. Therefore, in the image processing method according to the embodiment of the present application, it is necessary to certainly correspond to the relationship between the image portion in the initial image and the lens group imaged thereby.

Therefore, in the above image processing method, processing the initial image according to the directed lens group to generate a processed image includes: acquiring the position relationship between the first imaging area and the second imaging area; cutting the initial image into a first image portion and a second image portion according to the positional relationship, the first image portion being an image acquired on a first imaging region, the second image portion being an image acquired on a second imaging region; and selecting an image portion corresponding to the directed lens group as the processed image.

Specifically, selecting, as the processed image, an image portion corresponding to the pointed lens group includes: selecting, as the processed image, a first image portion or a second image portion corresponding to the pointed lens group in response to the pointed lens group being the first lens group or the second lens group; and synthesizing the first image portion and the second image portion as the processed image in response to the directed lens group being both the first lens group and the second lens group.

It can be seen that by the image processing method according to the embodiment of the present application, it is possible to determine whether the above-described image capturing module is imaged as a single image capturing module or as a dual image capturing module. In addition, when the image is formed by the double-camera module, images corresponding to different lens groups can be segmented from an initial image obtained directly from the photosensitive chip, so that subsequent image processing can be performed, for example, a depth map is obtained through a binocular matching algorithm. When the imaging module is used as a single imaging module, the initial image obtained from the photosensitive chip can be directly output, so that the subsequent image processing is performed.

Specifically, the image processing method according to the embodiment of the application can enable the camera module according to the embodiment of the application to be compatible with the scheme of hardware/system software of the main stream single camera, and the overall cost of the camera module is reduced.

Here, the image processing method according to the embodiment of the present application may be implemented as an electronic device.

Exemplary electronic device

Next, an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application is described with reference to fig. 8. The electronic device may be a hardware implementation device of the image processing method described above.

Fig. 8 illustrates a block diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application.

As shown in fig. 8, the electronic device 600 includes one or more processors 610 and memory 620.

The processor 610 may be a Central Processing Unit (CPU) or other form of processing unit having data processing and/or instruction execution capabilities and may control other components in the electronic device 600 to perform desired functions.

Memory 620 may include one or more computer program products that may include various forms of computer-readable storage media, such as volatile memory and/or non-volatile memory. The volatile memory may include, for example, random Access Memory (RAM) and/or cache memory (cache), and the like. The non-volatile memory may include, for example, read Only Memory (ROM), hard disk, flash memory, and the like. One or more computer program instructions may be stored on the computer readable storage medium that can be executed by the processor 610 to implement the image processing methods described above and/or other desired functions. Various contents such as an initial image, a positional relationship of the first and second imaging areas, and a processed image may also be stored in the computer-readable storage medium.

In one example, the electronic device 600 may further include: input device 630 and output device 640, which are interconnected by a bus system and/or other forms of connection mechanisms (not shown).

For example, the input device 630 may be an image capturing module according to an embodiment of the present application. In addition, the input device 630 may also include, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, and the like.

The output device 640 may output various information to the outside, including processing an image, and the like. The output device 640 may include, for example, a display, speakers, a printer, and a communication network and remote output device connected thereto, etc.

Of course, only some of the components of the electronic device 600 that are relevant to the present application are shown in fig. 8 for simplicity, components such as buses, input/output interfaces, etc. are omitted. In addition, the electronic device 600 may include any other suitable components depending on the particular application.

In addition to the methods and apparatus described above, the image processing methods according to embodiments of the present application may also be implemented as a computer program product comprising computer program instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the steps in the image processing methods described above.

The computer program product may write program code for performing the operations of embodiments of the present application in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Java, C++ or the like and conventional procedural programming languages, such as the "C" programming language or similar programming languages. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computing device, partly on the user's device, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computing device, partly on a remote computing device, or entirely on the remote computing device or server.

Furthermore, the image processing method according to the embodiments of the present application may also be implemented as a computer-readable storage medium, on which computer program instructions are stored, which, when being executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the steps in the image processing method according to the various embodiments of the present application described above.

The computer readable storage medium may employ any combination of one or more readable media. The readable medium may be a readable signal medium or a readable storage medium. The readable storage medium may include, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or a combination of any of the foregoing. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the readable storage medium would include the following: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable disk, a hard disk, random Access Memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), optical fiber, portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

The basic principles of the present application have been described above in connection with specific embodiments, however, it should be noted that the advantages, benefits, effects, etc. mentioned in the present application are merely examples and not limiting, and these advantages, benefits, effects, etc. are not to be considered as necessarily possessed by the various embodiments of the present application. Furthermore, the specific details disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and understanding only, and are not intended to be limiting, as the application is not intended to be limited to the details disclosed herein as such.

The block diagrams of the devices, apparatuses, devices, systems referred to in this application are only illustrative examples and are not intended to require or imply that the connections, arrangements, configurations must be made in the manner shown in the block diagrams. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, the devices, apparatuses, devices, systems may be connected, arranged, configured in any manner. Words such as "including," "comprising," "having," and the like are words of openness and mean "including but not limited to," and are used interchangeably therewith. The terms "or" and "as used herein refer to and are used interchangeably with the term" and/or "unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The term "such as" as used herein refers to, and is used interchangeably with, the phrase "such as, but not limited to.

It is also noted that in the apparatus, devices and methods of the present application, the components or steps may be disassembled and/or assembled. Such decomposition and/or recombination should be considered as equivalent to the present application.

The previous description of the disclosed aspects is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present application. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects without departing from the scope of the application. Thus, the present application is not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

The foregoing description has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. Furthermore, this description is not intended to limit the embodiments of the application to the form disclosed herein. Although a number of example aspects and embodiments have been discussed above, a person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize certain variations, modifications, alterations, additions, and subcombinations thereof.

Claims

1. The utility model provides a module of making a video recording, its characterized in that, the module of making a video recording includes:

a first lens group having a first optical axis;

A second lens group having a second optical axis;

a photosensitive chip having an imaging surface, a first optical axis of the first lens group being non-perpendicular to the imaging surface, the imaging surface including a first imaging area on which a first light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the first lens group and a second imaging area on which a second light ray incident from the outside is imaged through the second lens group; and

a first light guide device group comprising: a first mirror for guiding the first light to be incident into the first lens group; and a second reflecting mirror for guiding the outgoing light outgoing from the first lens group to be imaged on the first imaging area,

the first lens group is located between the first mirror and the second mirror.

2. The camera module of claim 1, wherein the first mirror is disposed at a first angle α1 to the imaging surface;

the second reflecting mirror is arranged at a first position at the first angle alpha 1 with the imaging surface, one end of the second reflecting mirror is positioned at the junction of the first imaging area and the second imaging area at the first position, the first optical axis is arranged at a second angle alpha 2 with the imaging surface, and alpha 2 = 90 degrees +2 x alpha 1; and

The photosensitive chip is rectangular.

3. The camera module of claim 2, wherein the first light beam forms a first reflected light beam via the first mirror, the first reflected light beam is focused by the first lens group to form the outgoing light beam, the outgoing light beam forms a second reflected light beam via the second mirror, and the second reflected light beam is imaged on the first imaging region.

4. A camera module according to claim 3, wherein said first angle is between 15 degrees and 75 degrees.

5. The camera module of claim 4, wherein the first angle is equal to 45 degrees.

6. The camera module of claim 2, wherein a focal length of the first lens group is greater than or equal to a length of the first imaging region.

7. The camera module of claim 6, wherein the second dimension of the second mirror is associated with a focal length of the first lens group and a dimension of the first imaging region.

8. The camera module of claim 2, wherein a second optical axis of the second lens group is disposed perpendicular to the imaging surface, the second light ray being imaged directly through the second lens group onto the second imaging region.

9. The camera module of claim 8, wherein an intersection of the second optical axis and the imaging surface is located at an intersection of the first imaging region and the second imaging region.

10. The camera module of claim 9, wherein the first set of light guides further comprises a drive member for driving the second mirror from the first position to a second position in which the second mirror blocks the first light ray but does not block the second light ray from being imaged on the first imaging region.

11. The camera module of claim 8, wherein a focal length of the first lens group is greater than a focal length of the second lens group.

12. The camera module of claim 1, wherein the camera module further comprises:

and the second light guide device group is used for guiding the second light rays to enter the second lens group and guiding the emergent light emergent from the second lens group to be imaged on the second imaging area, and the second optical axis of the second lens group is not perpendicular to the imaging surface.

13. The camera module of claim 12, wherein the second set of light guide devices comprises:

A third mirror disposed at a third angle α3 to the imaging surface; and

and a fourth reflecting mirror disposed at the third angle α3 with the imaging surface, wherein one end of the fourth reflecting mirror is located at the junction of the first imaging region and the second imaging region, the second lens group is located between the third reflecting mirror and the fourth reflecting mirror, the second optical axis is disposed at the fourth angle α4 with the imaging surface, and α4=90° +2×α3.

14. The camera module of claim 1, wherein the camera module comprises a camera module,

the first imaging region is one half of the area of the imaging surface; and

the second imaging region is one half the area of the imaging surface.

15. The camera module of claim 14, wherein the camera module,

the first imaging area is one half of the area of the imaging surface along the length direction; and

the second imaging area is one half of the area of the imaging surface in the length direction.

16. The camera module of any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein the photosensitive chip is imaged in a rolling shutter manner.

17. An image forming apparatus, characterized in that the image forming apparatus comprises:

The camera module of any one of claims 1 to 16.

18. An image processing method, characterized in that the method is applied to the camera module according to any one of claims 1 to 16, and includes:

receiving an image shooting instruction, wherein the image shooting instruction points to at least one of the first lens group and the second lens group;

acquiring an initial image acquired by a photosensitive chip;

determining a lens group to which the image capturing instruction is directed; and

the initial image is processed according to the directed lens group to generate a processed image.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein processing the initial image according to the directed lens group to generate a processed image comprises:

acquiring the position relationship between the first imaging area and the second imaging area;

cutting the initial image into a first image portion and a second image portion according to the positional relationship, the first image portion being an image acquired on a first imaging region, the second image portion being an image acquired on a second imaging region; and

an image portion corresponding to the directed lens group is selected as the processed image.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein selecting as the processed image the portion of the image corresponding to the directed lens group comprises:

selecting, as the processed image, a first image portion or a second image portion corresponding to the pointed lens group in response to the pointed lens group being the first lens group or the second lens group; and

in response to the directed lens group being both the first lens group and the second lens group, the first image portion and the second image portion are synthesized as the processed image.