innovation showcase : business innovation case studies : Regional Innovation Strategy - Breakthrough Zoom for Mobile Phone Cameras

Although mobile phone camera quality has improved – largely by capturing more megapixels – there’s an inherent limitation to the picture quality: the depth of the lens. With a thin, compact lens embedded in position, mobile cameras have never been able to match the quality of a standalone camera… until now.

Researchers in the US have developed a new type of mobile camera lens that could allow users to take high-definition close-up shots, effectively giving the mobile the power of a telephoto lens.

A team at the University of California have designed a lens which, although only 5mm thick, has the equivalent power of an optical system of 40mm. The design collects light and reflects it within the lens itself to create a 40mm optical path which then focuses onto the camera’s sensor.

The technology is based on a ‘folded optical system’ (already used in some telescopes), which uses a series of folded lenses and mirrors to increase the distance light travels before it hits the sensor – the focal length. The longer the focal length, the better the image quality.

Developers have taken this concept and incorporated it into the fine lens in a way that reflects the light 8 times within the lens. Taking a traditional lens as the starting point, delicate diamond machining was used to create the mirror surfaces within the lens material whilst calcium fluoride was used to coat the front and back of the lens to aid reflection. High-precision workmanship and precise alignment of mirrors makes for a powerful lens, all machined from one piece.

On testing, the new lens was found to perform almost as well as a conventional lens 10 times as long, with images only marginally less sharp than those taken with the normal lens. Although the research team are still working on prototypes, with some further development the technology could be applied to any situation where a small lightweight lens is required – whether it be a mobile phone, telescope, or a small portable camera.

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