Sheba Microsystems has unveiled the groundbreaking Sharp-7, the world’s premier autofocus automotive camera. Representing Sheba’s inaugural foray into automotive-specific solutions, the Sharp-7 integrates an automotive-grade, high-resolution 8-megapixel sensor with a fully integrated MEMS driver.
Sheba’s patented MEMS actuators power the Sharp-7, delivering unprecedented consistent, high-quality imaging across automotive temperature range. This sets a new standard for Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS) cameras, paving the way for increased adoption of higher resolution image sensors.
Automotive cameras often encounter difficulties maintaining image quality and focus stability during temperature changes due to the thermal expansion of the optics and camera components. As the automotive sensor market moves towards higher-resolution sensors, this issue becomes more prominent because of the smaller pixel size.
Smaller pixels necessitate precise alignment of the optics to ensure accurate focusing on each pixel, and any misalignment caused by thermal expansion or contraction can result in blurriness or distortion, which is especially problematic for automotive cameras due to the wide temperature range.
Sheba’s innovative technology addresses thermal expansion by adjusting the sensor position rather than the lenses. With the image sensor accounting for just 2-3% of the lens weight, our system delivers ultra-fast and accurate autofocus, even in fluctuating temperatures. This pioneering approach unleashes the potential of high-resolution sensors in automotive cameras, enabling precise object detection (such as pedestrians, animals, and road signs) and digital zooming.
“Over the past two decades, we have all seen how high-resolution sensors have dramatically improved the cameras on our phones. A key enabler for such high-resolution imaging was the adoption of autofocus actuators,” said Dr. Faez Ba-Tis, PhD, CEO and co-founder of Sheba. “But the absence of reliable autofocus actuator technology that can operate in the automotive environment, coupled with the problem of thermal expansion, has been a decades-long blocker and has limited the adoption of high-resolution sensors in automotive cameras.”
“With the Sharp-7 camera, we wanted to demonstrate not only how Sheba MEMS technology solves for thermal expansion and produces consistent, high-quality imaging from existing 8 MP sensors but also how our technology paves the road towards the adoption of even higher resolution image sensors, which will ultimately keep everyone on the road safer, especially with today’s advancements in autonomous vehicle technology. Our mobile phones should not have better cameras than our cars.”
Sheba’s electrostatic actuators are the optimal solution for addressing thermal expansion concerns. These actuators demonstrate exceptional thermal stability, ensuring consistent performance in temperatures ranging from -40 to 150 degrees Celsius.
In addition, they offer rapid, precise, and energy-efficient operation within a compact form factor. Sheba’s MEMS technology has successfully undergone rigorous reliability testing, including assessments for the drop, thermal shock, thermal cycling, vibration, mechanical shock, tumble, and micro drop resilience. Furthermore, their high ruggedness enables them to uphold image focus in automotive settings despite encountering shocks.
