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SonyGranted patentCameras & imagingInterest 6/10

Sony patents camera lens design that cuts glare and shrinks size

Sony describes a camera sensor design that uses a special glass cover with a textured surface to reduce unwanted light reflections. The design also allows the sensor to be stacked more tightly, potentially making the overall camera module smaller.

Why it mattersThis could lead to slimmer phones or cameras with better image quality by reducing glare without adding extra physical layers.

In the filing’s own words

A solid-state imaging device with high versatility having a cavity-less CSP structure capable of reducing the occurrence of flare and also being applied to chip size reduction, a method for manufacturing a cover glass, and an electronic apparatus. A solid-state imaging device includes: a sensor substrate in which a plurality of pixels is arranged; a semiconductor substrate having an upper surface on which the sensor substrate is mounted, the semiconductor substrate being configured to connect an electric signal converted by the pixel to a bump or an external connection terminal disposed on a lower surface; a microlens array disposed on an upper surface of the sensor substrate; a resin disposed on an upper surface of the microlens array; and a cover glass bonded to the microlens array via the resin and having a moth-eye structure on a surface of the cover glass.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. A solid-state imaging device, comprising: a sensor substrate in which a plurality of pixels that receives incident light and converts the incident light into an electric signal is arranged; a semiconductor substrate having an upper surface on which the sensor substrate is mounted, the semiconductor substrate being configured to be able to connect the electric signal converted by the pixel to a bump or an external connection terminal disposed on a lower surface; a microlens array disposed on an upper surface of the sensor substrate so as to correspond to each of the pixels; a resin disposed on an upper surface of the microlens array; and a cover glass bonded to the microlens array via the resin and having a moth-eye structure formed on a surface of the cover glass, wherein a refractive index of the resin is lower than a refractive index of the cover glass.

Facts

Company
Sony (SONY SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS CORPORATION)
Official title
Solid-state imaging device, method for manufacturing cover glass, and electronic apparatus
Patent number
US12736715B2
Application number
18548268
Filed
Feb 25, 2022
Granted
Sep 15, 2026
Inventors
2
Claims
20

Classified under

G02B 1/118 Physics & computingH04N 25/61 Electricity & electronicsH04N 25/62 Electricity & electronicsH10F 39/024 Electricity & electronicsH10F 39/12 Electricity & electronicsH10F 39/8053 Electricity & electronics
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.