Prototype video camera requires no power

Columbia University researchers led by Shree K. Nayar have developed the first video camera to be fully self-powered – its pixels not only measuring the incident light, but also converting it into electric power. The team is presenting its work next week at the International Conference on Computational Photography at Rice University in Houston.

“We are in the middle of a digital imaging revolution,” says Nayar. “I think we have just seen the tip of the iceberg. Digital imaging is expected to enable many emerging fields including wearable devices, sensor networks, smart environments, personalized medicine, and the Internet of Things. A camera that can function as an untethered device forever – without any external power supply – would be incredibly useful.”

Nayar explained that although digital cameras and solar panels have different purposes – one measures light while the other converts light to power – both are constructed from essentially the same components. At the heart of any digital camera is an image sensor, a chip with millions of pixels. The key enabling device in a pixel is the photodiode, which produces an electric current when exposed to light. This mechanism enables each pixel to measure the intensity of light falling on it. The same photodiode is also used in solar panels to convert incident light to electric power.

Nayar’s team used off-the-shelf components to fabricate an image sensor of 30 x 40 pixels. The pixels – each of which uses just two transistors – are used first to record and read out the image and then to harvest energy and charge the sensor’s power supply – in other words, the image sensor continuously toggles between image capture and power harvesting modes. He added that when the camera is not used to capture images, it can be used to generate power for other devices, such as a phone or a watch.

“A few different designs for image sensors that can harvest energy have been proposed in the past. However, our prototype is the first demonstration of a fully self-powered video camera,” Nayar said. “And, even though we’ve used off-the-shelf components to demonstrate our design, our sensor architecture easily lends itself to a compact solid-state imaging chip. We believe our results are a significant step forward in developing an entirely new generation of cameras that can function for a very long duration – ideally, forever – without being externally powered.”

Related:
Discuss this article in our forum
Cheap-and-cheerful pinhead camera doesn’t need lens
Laser camera peers around corners
Quantum camera takes pic using only entangled photons
Depth-of-field irrelevant with omni-focus camera

Source: Columbia University

, , , ,

Comments are closed.

New Woodpecker Dental i Sensor H1 / H2 Digital Imaging System RVG picture

New Woodpecker Dental i Sensor H1 / H2 Digital Imaging System RVG

$909.99



Sensor Digital Imaging Dental RVG X-Ray Sensor Size 1/ 1.5 picture

Sensor Digital Imaging Dental RVG X-Ray Sensor Size 1/ 1.5

$638.00



New Woodpecker Dental i Sensor H1 / H2 Digital Imaging System Rvg picture

New Woodpecker Dental i Sensor H1 / H2 Digital Imaging System Rvg

$854.99



Apixia Phosphor Plates Digital Imaging Size 2 PSP 12/Pack picture

Apixia Phosphor Plates Digital Imaging Size 2 PSP 12/Pack

$355.00



Dental Intraoral Camera USB Digital Imaging Intra Oral HD Camera 13.0 Mega Pixel picture

Dental Intraoral Camera USB Digital Imaging Intra Oral HD Camera 13.0 Mega Pixel

$51.91



Dental 1080P Wireless Oral Camera 8 LEDs HD Digital Imaging Intraoral Endoscope picture

Dental 1080P Wireless Oral Camera 8 LEDs HD Digital Imaging Intraoral Endoscope

$28.98



Dental Intraoral Camera USB HD Camera Digital Imaging Intra 13.0 Mega Pixel picture

Dental Intraoral Camera USB HD Camera Digital Imaging Intra 13.0 Mega Pixel

$51.91



Digital Imaging: Theory and Applications - Hardcover - GOOD picture

Digital Imaging: Theory and Applications - Hardcover - GOOD

$5.14



Dental Xray Sensor Intraoral Digital Imaging System X-Ray Sensor Size 2/1 USA picture

Dental Xray Sensor Intraoral Digital Imaging System X-Ray Sensor Size 2/1 USA

$729.99



Xray Sensor Digital Imaging Dental RVG X-Ray Sensor Size 1/ 1.5 UPS picture

Xray Sensor Digital Imaging Dental RVG X-Ray Sensor Size 1/ 1.5 UPS

$638.00



Powered by WordPress. Designed by WooThemes