Tokyo -- Toshiba Corporation today announced that it would start mass production of its latest series of VGA camera modules, the TCM8230MD series, in May this year. The modules, among the industry's smallest, integrate Toshiba's complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor and a digital signal processor (DSP) on a single chip.

Advances in process technology and design optimization have allowed Toshiba to reduce individual pixels from 5.4µm (microns) to 3.75µm. The miniaturization allows a total of 330,000 signal pixels to be arranged in a 492 (vertical) by 660 (horizontal) array on single chip with a 1/6 of an inch optical format. The resulting camera module is slimmer, smaller and consumes less power, but continues to offer 330,000-pixel image quality. As the mobile phone market seeks out smaller and slimmer designs that support integration of increasingly diverse applications, Toshiba's latest camera module directly meets the requirements of phone makers.

TCM8230MD, the latest of Toshiba's VGA camera modules, and the smallest yet, incorporates a double lens and the CMOS image sensor, and is embedded with a digital signal processor (DSP) that supports the VGA format. Use of CMOS process technology achieves excellent color reproduction through the module's primary color filter. The module is designed for cellular phones with camera.

Personal digital equipment, including portable PCs, PDAs and cellular phones with camera, are all moving toward built-in video- and still-image capabilities. CMOS image sensors are widely used in such products, as they enjoy advantages in size and power consumption. Consequently, demand is growing for CMOS sensors that offer upgraded performance while meeting the increasingly severe space limitations in digital equipment. Toshiba's new line-up directly addresses this concern. The new devices raise the benchmark for excellence in CMOS imaging, and are expected to solidify Toshiba's leadership in CMOS image sensors for cellular phones with camera, where the company led the world market with a share of approximately 30% in CY2002.

Samples of the new devices will be available from March 2004 and mass production will start in May 2004, at an initial volume of 1,000,000 modules a month. Samples are priced at 3,000 yen.

Outline of New VGA Camera Module

• Adoption of a square pixel, each 3.75 x 3.75 microns, realizes 330,000 pixels in a one-sixth inch optical format.
• Power consumption is reduced by one-third from Toshiba's current series.
• The camera module is 6mm(W) x 6mm(D) x 4.5mm(H) without socket, a 72% reduction in volume from Toshiba's current module.
• Camera signal processing circuit allows optimized system configuration for high image quality.
• Module can be separated and assembled by the socket which is suitable for the re-flow soldering.

Major Specifications