Earlier this year, we had reported on LG Innotek and Corning working on Liquid Lens technology that could seemingly benefit the smartphone photography. Now, an from the latter firm had touted the various benefits of this new lens technology.

In an interview with TheElec, Frederic Laune, business manager at Corning Varioptic Lenses stated that liquid lens can help with changing local lengths in cameras. The manager also added that the company is looking to expand the applications of this technology in various other industries like the medical and industrial fields. For those unaware, liquid lens is basically filled with liquid materials inside the physical lens that can change the curvature of the lens by using currents and voltages to control the focal length of the camera.

Laune stated that liquid lens can be used to solve the focal length changing issue, which is when the distance between the camera and subject is constantly changing. He said that the new lens technology can basically focus on a particular object even if there were varying distances in between. Conventional lens technology usually had the lens being placed close to the image sensor or further away from it to maintain the focus on the object. However, these mechanical solutions are vulnerable to external shock and increase the power consumption of devices while being slow.

So, liquid lens technology aims to be a power efficient alternative, which is more effective and quicker as well. Furthermore, this is the reason why industrial cameras rarely use these lens solutions, as per the Manager. Liquid lens is also durable against shakes external shocks, making it practical in various fields like augmented reality.

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The upcoming Xiaomi Mi Mix series smartphone has just been teased by the company. As per recent Weibo posts, a Chinese microblogging website, the device will feature a liquid lens on its rear camera module.

In the recent teasers (1,2) on the social media platform, the latest Mi Mix series device will feature a camera with a liquid lens. For those unaware, this lens technology, as the name implies, features a layer of liquid that enables its focus and focal length to change depending on the electrical voltage that is applied on this layer. Through this, the Chinese tech giant will be able to have one camera of the Mi Mix handset capable of taking telephoto to even macro shots as well.

Furthermore, its camera will also be able to offer fast auto focus as well. The new device is expected to be unveiled on 29th March 2021. While liquid lens isn’t a new technology, it is more commonly used in industrial applications where traditional lenses might wear out quickly due to moving mechanical parts. Although, due to their compact size, the lens technology has become appealing prospect for smartphone vendors in recent times.

Technically, a single camera sensor with a liquid lens can theoretically be capable of serving the purpose of various kinds of cameras, which are usually found on the rear of most flagship smartphone of today. Notably, even Huawei has been reportedly been planning on using liquid lens technology for its smartphones as well. So stay tuned for more, as we will be providing updates when additional information is available.

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Huawei is apparently pushing for innovation again with its upcoming flagship series. A new report has suggested that the company’s Huawei P50 series will feature liquid lens camera technology, which have a focusing time of just milliseconds.

According to a MyDrivers report, sources believe that these new liquid lens technology will be mass produced and commercialized next year. Furthermore, the new lenses will primarily used for the telephoto lenses, and the Chinese tech giant would also launch related products as well. The company has been known to be working with liquid lens technology for a while, with it applying a patent for the same back in 25th December 2019, which was published earlier this year in April.

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Earlier this year, we had also covered a patent that suggested that the Huawei P50 series will sport a ‘Liquid Lens Camera Module.’ Notably, this new lens offers certain advantages like extremely fast focusing speeds, which can level in just milliseconds similar to a human eye with an accuracy rate of almost 100 percent. To explain the liquid lens technology in brief, while traditional lenses achieves zooming and focusing by adjusting the focal length between two fixed focal length lenses, the liquid lens have electricity passed through it to change the shape of the liquid to control imaging.

This, in turn, would improve the time it takes to focus on a particular subject and could even help with the optical image stabilization (OIS) as well. If the Chinese tech giant manages to make the liquid lens technology more durable, then its reliability would also be improved under abnormal conditions or after impacts or accidental drops. Importunately, this is still an unconfirmed report so take it with a pinch of salt for now and stay tuned for more updates.

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Huawei is well-known for its smartphone photography for the past few years. Every year the company brings new innovations in this category. This year’s Huawei P40 series features the largest CMOS sensor on any phone. Now, a patent reveals the company to be working on liquid lens technology.

According to the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) portal, Huawei had filed a patent related to liquid lens camera module on December 25, 2019. The same has been approved on April 7, 2020.

As per the information available on portal, the patent includes a moving motor, camera placeholder, and electronic hardware to move the liquid lens.

As Huawei Central explains a stator is moved in the direction of the optical axis with the help of the motor. This stator is further connected with a liquid lens via spring. There’s also a limiter that Limits the connected spring in the direction of the optical axis when the altitude range changes.

This patented camera module for the liquid lens improves the stability and reliability of the motor under harsh conditions like impact or drop.

One might be wondering why Huawei has to implement such complex camera module into a smartphone. The answer is liquid lens offers faster autofocus and better stabilization. It takes less space than other lens and can eliminate the need for additional TOF sensor.

Since the patent has been only approved last week, we can expect this tech in Huawei P50 series in 2021 rather than Mate 40 series whose design might have been already finalized.

UP NEXT: Huawei may launch a triple camera phone with liquid lens technology this year

(Via)

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Ever heard of Liquid Lens Technology? No? That’s fine. We will explain. Liquid lens technology was developed more than two decades ago by French physicist Bruno Berge. Unlike a lot of cameras that use either a mechanical lens or software to change the focus, a camera with a liquid lens focuses by charging the liquid in the lens. This liquid which can be a mixture of oil and water changes shape when charged. The video below explains how it works compared to a traditional zoom lens.

There are lots of advantages it has over the lens found in a digital camera or a motorized mechanical lens. First is the speed and accuracy at which it changes focus. It is extremely fast and whatever object it focuses on is sharp. Second, because all it needs is a liquid, there is no need for moving parts. It also occupies a small area, so there are no bulky add-on lens or camera bumps. A liquid lens is also said to be cheap to make. And finally, it can achieve a large zoom range as all you have to do is change the voltage of the charge which determines the shape the liquid takes for the desired zoom range.

Liquid lenses have actually been used mainly in industrial cameras but latest report says Huawei has found a way to use it in mobile phones and even applied for a patent for it back in November 2018. According to the source, Huawei is developing a triple camera module that includes an RGB sensor, a monochrome sensor, and a TOF sensor. The insider who revealed the info added that the camera module has a liquid inside which points at it having a liquid lens. This camera module is also said to be arranged vertically along with the LED flash. Sadly, he wasn’t able to take pictures of the said camera module.

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It is believed that the liquid lens camera module will appear in a Huawei phone this year and the guess is the Mate 30 Pro and not the P30 Pro. If the Huawei Mate 30 Pro does come with a liquid lens, it could be a breakthrough for the mobile industry and help cement Huawei’s position as one of the biggest innovators in the industry.

(Via)

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