High resolution thin multi-aperture imaging systems

Abstract

A multi-aperture imaging system comprising a first camera with a first sensor that captures a first image and a second camera with a second sensor that captures a second image, the two cameras having either identical or different FOVs. The first sensor may have a standard color filter array (CFA) covering one sensor section and a non-standard color CFA covering another. The second sensor may have either Clear or standard CFA covered sections. Either image may be chosen to be a primary or an auxiliary image, based on a zoom factor. An output image with a point of view determined by the primary image is obtained by registering the auxiliary image to the primary image.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A multi-aperture imaging system comprising:
 a) a first camera that provides a first camera image, the first camera having a first sensor with a first plurality of sensor pixels covered at least in part with a non-standard color filter array (CFA) used to increase a specific color sampling rate relative to a same color sampling rate in a standard CFA, wherein the nonstandard CFA includes a repetition of a n×n micro-cell where n=4 and wherein each micro-cell includes a BBRR-RBBR-RRBB-BRRB color filter order;   b) a second camera that provides a second camera image, the second camera having a second sensor with a second plurality of sensor pixels, the second plurality of sensor pixels being either Clear or covered with a standard CFA, wherein the second camera image has an overlap area with the first camera image; and   c) a processor configured to process the first and second camera images into a fused output image, wherein in the overlap area pixels of the second camera image are registered with corresponding pixels of the first camera image.   
     
     
       2. A multi-aperture imaging system comprising:
 a) a first camera that provides a first camera image, the first camera having a first sensor with a first plurality of sensor pixels covered at least in part with a non-standard color filter array (CFA) used to increase a specific color sampling rate relative to a same color sampling rate in a standard CFA. wherein the non-standard CFA includes a repetition of a nxn micro-cell where n= 6  and wherein each micro-cell includes a color filter order selected from the group consisting of RBBRRB-RWRBWB-BBRBRR-RRBRBB-BWBRWR-BRRBBR, BBGRRG-RGRBGB-GBRGRB-RRGBBG-BGBRGR-GRBGBR, RBBRRB-RGRBGB-BBRBRR-RRBRBB-BGBRGR-BRRBBR and RBRBRB-BGBRGR-RBRBRB-BRBRBR-RGRBGB-BRBRBR;   b) a second camera that provides a second camera image, the second camera having a second sensor with a second plurality of sensor pixels, the second plurality of sensor pixels being either Clear or covered with a standard CFA, wherein the second camera image has an overlap area with the first camera image; and   c) a processor configured to process the first and second camera images into a fused output image, wherein in the overlap area pixels of the second camera image are registered with corresponding pixels of the first camera image.   
     
     
       3. The multi-aperture imaging system of  claim 1 , wherein the first camera is a Wide camera with a field of view FOV w  and wherein the second camera is a Tele camera with a field of view FOV T  smaller than FOV w . 
     
     
       4. A method of acquiring images by a multi-aperture imaging system, the method comprising:
 a) providing a first image generated by a first camera of the imaging system, the first camera having a first field of view (FOV 1 );   b) providing a second image generated by a second camera of the imaging system, the second camera having a second field of view (FOV 2 ) such that FOV 2 <FOV 1 , the second image having an overlap area with the first image; and   c) fusing the first and second images into a fused image, wherein the fusing includes applying a registration process between the first and second images, the registration process including:
 i. extracting a first Luma image from the first image 
 ii. extracting a second Luma image from the second image, 
 iii. applying low-pass filtering on the second Luma image in order to match its spatial frequency content to that of the first Luma image and to generate a low-pass second Luma image, and 
 iv. applying registration on the low-pass second Luma image and the first Luma image, 
   wherein the non-standard CFA includes a repetition of a n×n micro-cell where n=4 and   wherein each micro-cell includes a BBRR-RBBR-RRBB-BRRB color filter order.   
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 4 , wherein n=6 instead of n=4 and wherein instead of each micro-cell including a BBRR-RBBR-RRBB-BRRB color filter order, each micro-cell includes a color filter order selected from the group consisting of RBBRRB-RWRBWB-BBRBRR-RRBRBB-BWBRWR-BRRBBR, BBGRRG-RGRBGB-GBRGRB-RRGBBG-BGBRGR-GRBGBR, RBBRRB-RGRBGB-BBRBRR-RRBRBB-BGBRGR-BRRBBR and RBRBRB-BGBRGR-RBRBRB-BRBRBR-RGRBGB-BRBRBR. 
     
     
       6. A multi-aperture imaging system comprising:
 a) a first camera that provides a first camera image, the first camera having a first field of view (FOV1) and a first sensor with a first color filter array (CFA);   b) a second camera that provides a second image, the second camera having a second field of view (FOV2) smaller than FOV1 and a second sensor with a second CFA, the first sensor having an overlap area with the second sensor and a non-overlap area; and   c) a processor configured to provide an output image using the first image and the second image,
 wherein a CFA pattern of the first CFA in the overlap area differs from a CFA pattern of the first CFA in the non-overlap area, wherein the CFA pattern of the first CFA in the overlap area includes white pixels, and wherein a CFA pattern of the second CFA is different from the CFA pattern of the first CFA in the overlap area. 
   
     
     
       7. The multi-aperture imaging system of claim 6, wherein the second CFA is a Bayer CFA. 
     
     
       8. The multi-aperture imaging system of claim 7, wherein the first image has a first resolution and wherein the output image has a second resolution higher than the first resolution. 
     
     
       9. A multi-aperture imaging system comprising:
 a) a first camera that provides a first camera image, the first camera having a first field of view (FOV1) and a first sensor with a first color filter array (CFA);   b) a second camera that provides a second image, the second camera having a second field of view (FOV2) and a second sensor with a second CFA, the first sensor having an overlap area with the second sensor and a non-overlap area; and   c) a processor configured to provide an output image using the first image and the second image,
 wherein a CFA pattern of the first CFA in the overlap area differs from a CFA pattern of the first CFA in the non-overlap area, wherein the CFA pattern of the first CFA in the overlap area has a first red color pixel and a second red color pixel adjacent to the first red color pixel and a first blue color pixel and a second blue color pixel adjacent to the first blue color pixel, and wherein a CFA pattern of the second CFA is different from the CFA pattern of the first CFA in the overlap area. 
   
     
     
       10. The multi-aperture imaging system of claim 9, wherein the second CFA has white or clear pixels. 
     
     
       11. The multi-aperture imaging system of claim 10, wherein FOV1 is greater than FOV2. 
     
     
       12. The multi-aperture imaging system of claim 10, wherein the first red color pixel and the second red color pixel are disposed in a first direction, and wherein the first blue color pixel and the second blue color pixel are disposed in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. 
     
     
       13. The multi-aperture imaging system of claim 10, wherein the first image has a first resolution and wherein the output image has a second resolution higher than the first resolution.