by The world’s smallest video camera is so tiny it could easily get lost in your pocket! Developed by some smartass researchers at the University of Washington and brought to life by the gang at OmniVision Technologies, this little camera is absolutely ridiculous.
So how small are we talking about? It’s a whopping 0.65 x 0.65 x 1.158mm, which is about the size of a grain of sand! So you probably don’t want to take it to the beach with you.
The camera is built on a metasurface composed of over 1.6 million cylindrical posts that act like a camera sensor. Each post acts as an optical antenna, receiving light and shaping the optical wavefront, which is seriously some next-level stuff.
Despite its tiny size, this camera can capture images with a resolution of 200 x 200 (that’s 40,000 pixels) at 30 frames per second. To put that in perspective, this is even better than a Gameboy screen, and it’s in color too!
Sure it’s not HD, but let’s loosen it up a bit. The camera is specially designed to fit inside human veins to help doctors diagnose and operate, which is pretty crazy! It’s amazing what technology can do these days.
Oh yes, it’s also the Guinness World Record winner for “The Smallest Commercially Available Image Sensor”.
Here are the details that were shared:
OMNIVISION’s OVM6948 CameraCubeChip®® is a fully packaged, wafer-level camera module measuring 0.65mm x 0.65mm with a z-height of just 1.158mm, ideal for single-use devices that operate on the smallest part of the anatomy. The camera module is derived from an ultra-small image sensor, the OV6948, winner of the Guinness World Record for “The smallest commercially available image sensor*” measuring 0.575mm x 0.575mm. This complete module can be integrated into a disposable guidewire, catheter or endoscope as small as 1.0mm in diameter. The small size of this camera and the high resolution of 200 x 200 or 40Kpixel with backlighting allows high quality images from the body’s smallest blood vessels for neuro, ophthalmological, ENT, cardiac, spinal, urological, gynecological, and arthroscopic procedures are included.
The OVM6948 is the only ultra-small backlit chip-on-tip camera that offers excellent image quality and better low-light performance to reduce LED heat, as well as improved sensitivity. It offers a compact, high-quality solution for single-use guidewires, catheters and endoscopes, which are in growing demand for their ability to reduce cross-contamination risks, downtime and costs associated with repairs, preoperative testing and sterilization of reusable endoscopes. The sensor’s low power consumption of only 25 mW means less heat is generated, which ensures better patient comfort and flexible treatment times.
Other key features of this camera module include a wide 120 degree field of view and an extended focus range of 3mm to 30mm. Its image array is capable of capturing 200 x 200 resolution images and video at up to 30 frames per second, and its analogue output can transmit over 4 meters with minimal noise.
* Current Guinness World Record title for OMNIVISION Technologies, Inc.: Smallest commercially available image sensor. The smallest commercially available image sensor is the OV6948 with dimensions of 0.575 mm x 0.575 mm x 0.232 mm, manufactured by OMNIVISION Technologies, Inc. (USA). The record is based on product testing and market research conducted by Transparency Market Research on April 10, 2019 in Pune, India.
