High Definition, High Dynamic Range Color Camera Navy SBIR FY2010.3 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2010.3 Topic No.: N103-217 Topic Title: High Definition, High Dynamic Range Color Camera Proposal No.: N103-217-0416 Firm: Toyon Research Corp. 6800 Cortona Drive Goleta, California 93117-3021 Contact: Richard Cagley Phone: (805) 968-6787 Web Site: www.toyon.com Abstract: There are many orders of magnitude light intensity differentiation from a dark room to sunlight. Because standard linear CMOS and CCD image sensors can only offer up to approximately 60 dB of dynamic range, they are prone to saturation or darkness in high contrast scenes. Work in this proposed effort seeks to employ the latest in logarithmic sensors along with state-of-the-art image processing to provide a high contrast, 120 dB dynamic range sensor. While traditional high dynamic range (HDR) sensors offer a dramatic increase in performance over standard detectors, we seek several improvements over existing designs. First, we propose to employ a Photon Focus LINLOG detector that pairs linear low light response with logarithmic high intensity response to provide not only wide 120 dB dynamic light intensity range, but also excellent low-light sensitivity. Second, while HDR sensors do provide excellent dynamic range, this typically comes at the price of reduced contrast. Therefore, the latest in contrast enhancement, equalization, and scaling algorithms will be used to provide the best possible human viewable output. Finally, seeking to maximize integration and provide flexible back-end viewing options, we will employ the latest in Xilinx FPGAs. Benefits: Work in this effort promises to dramatically increase the ability for humans to detect and track objects in high contrast lighting conditions. The wide intensity range of over 120 dB paired with 1080p resolution at 30 Hz will offer unprecedented imaging performance. Because Toyon has chosen mature hardware components and decided to focus innovation on algorithm and resultant software development, the program has a high probability of near term success with the promise of later advancements as the algorithms are refined. With its high integration and low power consumption, the solution will work well for not only Navy periscopes but could find use in a range of other Navy and Marine applications, such as UAVs, as well as roles in other services. Return