Low-power CMOS Image Sensor and DSP

Toshiba America Electronic Components/Taecp. has developed a CMOS image sensor that incorporates an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter and that's said to achieve the industry's lowest power consumption in this class of device. Available in both color (TCM5033T) and black and white (TCM5030T) versions, the sensor's small size and high level of performance is expected to meet growing demand for cellular phones and other portable devices with built-in cameras.

Digital camera systems bring together either a CMOS image sensor or charge-coupled device (CCD sensor) with an A/D converter and digital signal processor (DSP). Integration of the A/D converter and CMOS sensor into a single chip halves the package size and cuts power consumption to 60mW, only one-third that of a CCD camera system with external A/D converter.

Along with the CMOS image sensor, Toshiba is also introducing a complementary DSP (TC90A70F), allowing simple construction of a color digital camera system.

Toshiba's new sensor offers the highest level of performance in the 330,000-pixel class of device, including support for 10-bit digital output and a signal-to-noise ratio of 57 dB. This high level of contrast and reduced noise produces a higher quality picture fully compatible with the Video Graphics Array (VGA) standard for video-conferencing.

Toshiba reached a breakthrough in achieving CMOS pixel cells small enough for application in commercial products. The company's pixel-cell circuit structure shrinks cell size and achieve new levels of integration by incorporating such basic elements as photodiodes and transistors into a 5.6 square micron cell. In performance, the sensor is fully VGA-compatible, meeting the format's specification for a 640-horizontal by 480-vertical pixel frame with an effective pixel count of approximately 330,000 pixels.

The new sensor also incorporates a signal generator, and black and white versions of the sensor require no peripheral devices to configure a digital camera system. This is expected to provide a highly cost-effective solution for camera applications.

Samples of the TCM5033T color and TCM5030T black and white sensors will be available April 1, priced at $33 and $28 each, respectively, and sample chip sets including the color image sensor and the DSP are priced at $43 each. Commercial quantities will be available in June 2000 with production capacity of 100,000 units per month.

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