A Chip to Shutter Film Forever?

Zardon · Jan 2, 2003, 11:14 PM

After five years of research and development, Foveon Corporation may have finally developed a digital camera imaging sensor capable of obviating 35 mm film.

At last February's Photo Marketing Association (PMA) conference in Orlando, Fla., Foveon formally announced a single chip CCD that could find its way into the first truly affordable film-quality digital cameras.
Founded by microchip pioneer Carver Mead as a joint venture by National Semiconductor and Synaptics, Foveon's new F7 image sensor with X3 technology will capture up to three times more information per pixel than today's digital at similar megapixel resolutions.

While current digital cameras capture only one color per pixel, Foveon's new CCD will capture red, green, and blue — or, "RGB" information — in each pixel location.

How does it do this? The answer lies in the basic properties of silicon. Because photons across the light spectrum penetrate silicon at different measurable depths, Foveon has developed an imaging assembly that can capture all the RGB information at each individual pixel.

By contrast, current digital cameras utilize a mosaic filtering process that approximates adjacent pixel color combinations of RGB to create realistic images. This process of interpolation not only slows down the speed of image rendering, but reduces the accuracy and clarity of image captured.

Foveon claims that its new imaging sensor can grab nearly triple the amount of information on the same amount of silicon, reducing both file sizes and chip costs. Although Foveon's F7 image sensor is only rated as a 3.53-megapixel camera, it captures images that are comparable to 7-megapixel equivalents in regular digital cameras.

Looking at sample image photos produced by the F7 sensor, it was difficult to differentiate between regular 35-mm color 8x10 prints and the results of the Foveon images.

It is unlikely that Foveon's new CCD will completely replace film in the near term. Even Foveon admits that regular film is bound to be around for a long time.

The company will have to go head-to-head with big competitors like Sony and Agilent Technology to get its technology adopted into the heavily entrenched mainstream digital camera market.

But that does not mean that you won't see a Foveon-based digital camera soon.

Sigma Corporation is currently building a digital SLR camera based on Foveon X3 technology for release in May. With a native resolution of 2304x1536, Sigma's new camera will have an equivalent resolution of 7 megapixels and sell for somewhere around $3,000.

Foveon is working on a version of the chip for the under-$1,000 mainstream camera market that could be released later this year.

The chip will also be able to handle video applications in the near future, at qualities currently seen only in 3-chip CCD cameras that cost upwards of $2,000. The chip will actually have the ability to group together pixels to capture video at standard video resolution, 640x480.

What's more, the chip will also be able to change back to standard photograph resolution, which will give users the ability to capture still images while shooting video. techtv

DriveEuro · Jan 3, 2003, 04:49 AM

Oh, I enjoy my old Cannon AE-1... Have to set the apterture, manually focusing. Setting the film speed. Setting the f-stops. FUCK DIGITAL CAMERAS!!! hehe jk. I love my Cannon AE1 from 1979

Jan 2, 2003, 11:14 PM	#1
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 179	A Chip to Shutter Film Forever? After five years of research and development, Foveon Corporation may have finally developed a digital camera imaging sensor capable of obviating 35 mm film. At last February's Photo Marketing Association (PMA) conference in Orlando, Fla., Foveon formally announced a single chip CCD that could find its way into the first truly affordable film-quality digital cameras. Founded by microchip pioneer Carver Mead as a joint venture by National Semiconductor and Synaptics, Foveon's new F7 image sensor with X3 technology will capture up to three times more information per pixel than today's digital at similar megapixel resolutions. While current digital cameras capture only one color per pixel, Foveon's new CCD will capture red, green, and blue — or, "RGB" information — in each pixel location. How does it do this? The answer lies in the basic properties of silicon. Because photons across the light spectrum penetrate silicon at different measurable depths, Foveon has developed an imaging assembly that can capture all the RGB information at each individual pixel. By contrast, current digital cameras utilize a mosaic filtering process that approximates adjacent pixel color combinations of RGB to create realistic images. This process of interpolation not only slows down the speed of image rendering, but reduces the accuracy and clarity of image captured. Foveon claims that its new imaging sensor can grab nearly triple the amount of information on the same amount of silicon, reducing both file sizes and chip costs. Although Foveon's F7 image sensor is only rated as a 3.53-megapixel camera, it captures images that are comparable to 7-megapixel equivalents in regular digital cameras. Looking at sample image photos produced by the F7 sensor, it was difficult to differentiate between regular 35-mm color 8x10 prints and the results of the Foveon images. It is unlikely that Foveon's new CCD will completely replace film in the near term. Even Foveon admits that regular film is bound to be around for a long time. The company will have to go head-to-head with big competitors like Sony and Agilent Technology to get its technology adopted into the heavily entrenched mainstream digital camera market. But that does not mean that you won't see a Foveon-based digital camera soon. Sigma Corporation is currently building a digital SLR camera based on Foveon X3 technology for release in May. With a native resolution of 2304x1536, Sigma's new camera will have an equivalent resolution of 7 megapixels and sell for somewhere around $3,000. Foveon is working on a version of the chip for the under-$1,000 mainstream camera market that could be released later this year. The chip will also be able to handle video applications in the near future, at qualities currently seen only in 3-chip CCD cameras that cost upwards of $2,000. The chip will actually have the ability to group together pixels to capture video at standard video resolution, 640x480. What's more, the chip will also be able to change back to standard photograph resolution, which will give users the ability to capture still images while shooting video. techtv

Jan 3, 2003, 04:49 AM	#2
DriveEuro HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Gurnee Illinois Posts: 4,677 Rep Power: 0	Oh, I enjoy my old Cannon AE-1... Have to set the apterture, manually focusing. Setting the film speed. Setting the f-stops. FUCK DIGITAL CAMERAS!!! hehe jk. I love my Cannon AE1 from 1979 __________________ [color=orange]ASUS P4P800 Deluxe [color=black]-[/color] 2.4C --> 3300mhz [color=black]-[/color] Mushkin PC3200 at 220 5-2-2-2 (cpu limited) [color=black]-[/color] BBAti 9800Pro at 430/375 [/color] [color=black]3[/color][color=gray]D[/color]M[color=black]a[/color][color=gray]r[/color]k[color=yellow]01[/color] [color=black]3[/color][color=gray]D[/color]M[color=black]a[/color][color=gray]r[/color]k[color=yellow]03[/color] 16001200 12801024