Sony Publishes Photo Taken With A Curved CMOS Sensor

Sensors for cameras, whether it be for DSLR, compact, or smartphones, tend to be flat. However Sony is hoping to change that perception (quite literally) by introducing a CMOS sensor that is curved. So why curved? Are there are advantages to having a curved sensor? Well according to Sony, it mimics the curvature of the human retina, thus potentially resulting in images that are are captured as how we look at them.

Sony has also recently published a photo taken by the curved sensor which you can check out in the image above (courtesy of Nikkei). According to Sony’s Device Manager, Yarn Soichiro, “The first idea was to mimic the eyes of the organism.” Other advantages besides being more “organic” in terms of design include less vignetting and aberration in the corners, which is typically found in flat sensors.

Now the good news is that if you were wondering if this is merely a prototype that is in its early stages, think again as Sony has stated that these sensors are actually ready for mass production. The sensors will be made using a custom machine that will flex the sensor to create the curvature. It will then be fortified with ceramic coating once it has been completed.

Sony expects that their curved sensors will be making its way into digital cameras and they have also created a smaller version that could fit into mobile devices. It’s an interesting design and we have to say that we’re curious as to its capabilities, at least compared to more traditional camera sensors.

Tyler Lee
Categories: Photo-Video
Tags: Social Hit, Sony