Huawei Variable Aperture Camera Lens
In recent years we have witnessed smartphone camera quality gradually increasing. After using multiple camera solutions: wide-angle, periscope, big bottom lens, free-form lens, liquid lens, now what’s next. Huawei might have answers for this.
Earlier this year, Huawei Technologies filed a patent with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), according to a report from LetsGoDigital. The document, entitled – Variable Aperture Camera Lens, was released on August 19, 2021, and details how Huawei intends to equip future smartphone cameras with a variable aperture.
Samsung uses a wide-angle lens with a variable aperture in the Galaxy S9 and S10. More recently, Sony equipped the Xperia 1 III and Xperia 5 III with a variable telephoto lens (70mm-105mm) for continuous optical zoom, and OPPO also showed off an 85-200mm continuous optical zoom feature last week.
Huawei appears to want to apply aperture blade technology to adjust the incident light in the camera. To visualize this patented technology, graphic designer Technizo Concept has created a 3D rendering.
An aperture is the opening in a camera lens that, by adjusting it (making it variable), allows the phone to adjust how much light enters the camera. In this way, the depth of field and exposure in a photo can be accurately controlled. For the fixed focal length lenses used in most smartphone cameras today, the aperture can’t be set, which limits the possibility of changing the depth of field and exposure.
Huawei’s patented technology, Huawei uses at least 6 aperture blades that slide over each other to create a larger aperture. By using diaphragm blades, the amount of light reaching the camera can be adjusted.
The documentation describes that Huawei wanted to use technology similar to the system camera. However, due to the smartphone’s apparent small size, there is no room in the housing to apply ultrasonic motors or stepper motors. Huawei instead wants to use a miniature driver, supported by a drive coil and a drive magnet. Alternatively, a piezoelectric driver could be used.
The patent did not specify which lens will be equipped with a variable aperture, possibly multiple cameras – such as wide-angle and telephoto lenses. Only time will tell if Huawei intends to equip its future smartphone cameras with variable apertures, which is presumably still a strong possibility.