Researchers at SINTEF have developed an autofocus lens, which looks very similar to the human eye, to be used in mobile cameras.
Dag Wang and his colleagues at SINTEF have created an autofocus lens which mimics the human eye. Credit: Geir Mogen
Most recent mobile phones have built-in cameras. However, they only have considerable depth in focus and are inefficient in taking pictures under poor light. This happens due to lack of autofocus in the camera lens.
To achieve autofocus, researchers needed to create a curved lens or in other words replicate the lens in the human eye. In order to create a lens that would be soft and variable, they conceptualized an optical sandwich of ultra thin glass plates, a metal alloy which is flexible, a gel material and a polymer at a minute scale. In order to succeed in their efforts it was essential to make a material ring that would contract and expand without dispersing energy and also create a gel-based lens in the centre.
The scientists created a first prototype in 2006 and signed a contract with a Norwegian company called PoLight, which specializes in creating optical systems. In the beginning of 2011, SINTEF gave a demonstration of the autofocus lens by including it in mobile cameras. They exhibited this solution at the World Mobile Congress where several leading mobile phone manufacturers and subcontractors have expressed interest in the lens. The company expects to acquire a contract by the end of 2011.