Driver monitoring brought to vehicles with shutter image sensor

The global automotive image sensor market is poised to experience accelerating growth as a result of increased automation and the new safety regulations imposed on level-3 semi autonomous vehicles. Semi autonomous vehicles use DSM totrack the driver’s eye gaze and allow the vehicle to take control when the driver becomes drowsy or distracted.

DSM is currently available in high end cars, but over the next few years, the feature will migrate into mainstream vehicles, a market segment that is much more cost sensitive.

“Upcoming mandates will require that all vehicles sold in the EU come equipped with driver-state monitoring, beginning with 2022 models,” said Thilo Rausch, Product Marketing Manager at OmniVision.

“The OV9284 is the industry’s first image sensor with the right balance of cost effectiveness, high quality imaging and advanced features, meeting the needs of the mainstream automotive market.”

The OV9284 also offers near-infrared (NIR) quantum efficiency (QE) in a driver-monitoring image sensor, with 12% at 940nm, which allows designers to achieve sufficient illumination with fewer LEDs, thus reducing total system cost and power consumption.

This sensor consumes only 90mW of power at 60 frames per second (fps), which is 30% lower than the nearest competitor. Additionally, the high speed global shutter sensor with OmniPixel3-GS technology offers 1280x800 resolution at video speeds of up to 120fps.

The sensor comes in a compact automotive chip-scale package, which measures 5237x4463µm for smaller lens designs. Its 27° chief ray angle with a low z height requirement provides a wider viewing angle in a thinner package, allowing for greater flexibility with camera placement.