US 11,700,441 B1
Position sensor architecture for cameras
Shahrooz Shahparnia, Monte Sereno, CA (US); and Anish Bhide, San Francisco, CA (US)
Assigned to Apple Inc., Cupertino, CA (US)
Filed by Apple Inc., Cupertino, CA (US)
Filed on Apr. 22, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/237,896.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/014,644, filed on Apr. 23, 2020.
Int. Cl. H04N 5/232 (2006.01); G03B 5/00 (2021.01); G01R 33/07 (2006.01); H04N 23/55 (2023.01); G01R 33/09 (2006.01); H04N 23/68 (2023.01)
CPC H04N 23/55 (2023.01) [G01R 33/07 (2013.01); G01R 33/072 (2013.01); G01R 33/098 (2013.01); H04N 23/685 (2023.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A camera system, comprising:
an optics assembly comprising one or more lenses;
an image sensor;
a plurality of position sensors including a first position sensor and a second position sensor configured to produce a first sensor signal and a second sensor signal based at least in part on a first magnetic field of a first magnet and a second magnetic field of a second magnet respectively, wherein the first and second position sensors are coupled in parallel in a first configuration or a second configuration to produce a combined sensor output, wherein in the first configuration, (a) the first magnet and the second magnet are arranged proximate the first position sensor and the second position sensor with opposite polarities and (b) the first position sensor and the second position sensor are coupled in parallel with reverse polarities, and wherein in the second configuration, (c) the first magnet and the second magnet are arranged proximate the first position sensor and the second position sensor with same polarities and (d) the first and second position sensor are coupled in parallel with same polarities; and
a signal processing circuit configured to determine, based at least in part on the combined sensor output, position information for the at least one of the optics assembly or the image sensor.