EP-4738002-A1 - VARIABLE APERTURE DEVICE, CAMERA MODULE AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE

EP4738002A1EP 4738002 A1EP4738002 A1EP 4738002A1EP-4738002-A1

Abstract

A variable aperture apparatus (32), a camera module (30), and an electronic device (100) are provided, and relate to the field of image shooting technologies. The variable aperture apparatus (32) includes: a base (1); a carrier (2); and a plurality of aperture blades (4) and a shutter blade (5). When the carrier (2) rotates relative to the base (1), the plurality of aperture blades (4) and the shutter blade (5) slide relative to the carrier (2), and rotate relative to the base (1); and movement positions of the plurality of aperture blades (4) include a first position and a second position, a light inlet hole (32a) enclosed by the plurality of aperture blades (4) becomes larger when the plurality of aperture blades (4) move from the first position to the second position, the shutter blade (5) completely blocks the light inlet hole (32a) at the first position, and the shutter blade (5) deviates from the light inlet hole (32a) at the second position. A global shutter is implemented through cooperation of the plurality of aperture blades (4) and the shutter blade (5).

Inventors

HONG, Nan
KUO, LI-TE
FU, Qianyan
LONG, Sichen

Assignees

Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260506
Application Date: 20240530

Claims (18)

A variable aperture apparatus, comprising: a base; a carrier, wherein the carrier is rotatably connected to the base; and a plurality of aperture blades and at least one shutter blade, wherein the plurality of aperture blades are disposed around a circumference of the carrier, and are configured to enclose a light inlet hole, the plurality of aperture blades and the at least one shutter blade are rotatably connected to the base, and the plurality of aperture blades and the at least one shutter blade are slidably connected to the carrier; when the carrier rotates relative to the base, the plurality of aperture blades rotate relative to the base, and slide relative to the carrier, to adjust a size of the light inlet hole; and movement positions of the plurality of aperture blades comprise a first position and a second position, the light inlet hole enclosed by the plurality of aperture blades becomes larger when the plurality of aperture blades move from the first position to the second position, the at least one shutter blade completely blocks the light inlet hole at the first position, and the at least one shutter blade deviates from the light inlet hole at the second position.
The variable aperture apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first position is a position at which the plurality of aperture blades enclose a minimum light inlet hole.
The variable aperture apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second position comprises a position at which the plurality of aperture blades enclose a maximum light inlet hole.
The variable aperture apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the at least one shutter blade comprises a first shutter blade, and the first shutter blade has a first side edge and a second side edge; the plurality of aperture blades comprise a first aperture blade, and the first aperture blade has a third side edge and a fourth side edge; when the plurality of aperture blades move to the second position, the first side edge is closer to a center of the light inlet hole than the second side edge, and the third side edge is closer to the center of the light inlet hole than the fourth side edge; and the movement positions of the plurality of aperture blades further comprise a third position between the first position and the second position; when the plurality of aperture blades move from the first position to the third position, the first side edge intersects with the third side edge; and when the plurality of aperture blades move from the first position to the third position, a movement speed of the first shutter blade is greater than a movement speed of the first aperture blade.
The variable aperture apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the variable aperture apparatus further comprises: a drive apparatus, wherein the drive apparatus is connected to the base and the carrier, and the drive apparatus is configured to drive the carrier to rotate relative to the base, to drive the plurality of aperture blades and the at least one shutter blade to move.
The variable aperture apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the drive apparatus comprises: a coil and a magnet, wherein one of the coil and the magnet is disposed on the carrier, and the other is disposed on the base.
The variable aperture apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the at least one shutter blade comprises the first shutter blade and a second shutter blade; the first shutter blade comprises a first contact surface, and the second shutter blade comprises a second contact surface; and when the plurality of aperture blades move from the second position to the first position, the first contact surface and the second contact surface are close to each other, and the first contact surface and the first contact surface are in contact at the first position, so that the first shutter blade and the second shutter blade block the light inlet hole.
The variable aperture apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the at least one shutter blade comprises the first shutter blade and a second shutter blade; the first shutter blade and the second shutter blade are sequentially disposed in a direction consistent with an axial direction of the light inlet hole; and when the plurality of aperture blades move to the first position, an orthographic projection of the first shutter blade on the second shutter blade at least partially overlaps the second shutter blade.
The variable aperture apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the plurality of aperture blades comprise a first group of aperture blades and a second group of aperture blades; and the first group of aperture blades and the second group of aperture blades are disposed in a stacked manner in the direction consistent with the axial direction of the light inlet hole; and in a movement process of the plurality of aperture blades, there is a gap between every two adjacent aperture blades in the first group of aperture blades, and the second group of aperture blades comprises an aperture blade opposite to the gap and blocks the gap.
The variable aperture apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the light inlet hole enclosed by the plurality of aperture blades has a light inlet side and a light outlet side, and the first group of aperture blades is closer to the light inlet side than the second group of aperture blades; and the at least one shutter blade is disposed between the first group of aperture blades and the second group of aperture blades; or the at least one shutter blade is disposed on a side that is of the first group of aperture blades and that is close to the light inlet side; or the at least one shutter blade is disposed on a side that is of the second group of aperture blades and that is close to the light outlet side.
The variable aperture apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the at least one shutter blade is rotatably connected to the base by using a hinged structure separately; each hinged structure comprises a first rotating hole and a rotating shaft rotatably disposed in the first rotating hole, and an axial direction of the rotating shaft is consistent with the axial direction of the light inlet hole; and the first rotating hole is provided on the at least one shutter blade, and the rotating shaft is disposed on the base.
The variable aperture apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the plurality of aperture blades comprise the first aperture blade, a second rotating hole is provided on the first aperture blade, the at least one shutter blade comprises the first shutter blade, the first rotating hole is provided on the first shutter blade, the first rotating hole communicates with the second rotating hole, and the rotating shaft passes through the first rotating hole and the second rotating hole, so that both the first shutter blade and the first aperture blade are rotatably connected to the base.
The variable aperture apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the at least one shutter blade is slidably connected to the carrier by using a sliding structure separately; each sliding structure comprises a first guide groove and a slide pin slidably disposed in the first guide groove; and the first guide groove is provided on the at least one shutter blade, and the slide pin is disposed on the carrier.
The variable aperture apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of aperture blades comprise the first aperture blade, a second guide groove is provided on the first aperture blade, the at least one shutter blade comprises the first shutter blade, the first guide groove is provided on the first shutter blade, and the slide pin passes through the first guide groove and the second guide groove, so that both the first shutter blade and the first aperture blade are slidably connected to the carrier.
A camera module, comprising: the variable aperture apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 14; and a lens, wherein the lens is disposed on a light outlet side of the aperture hole of the variable aperture apparatus.
An electronic device, comprising: the camera module according to claim 15; and a controller, wherein the controller is electrically connected to the camera module.
A control method for a variable aperture apparatus, wherein the variable aperture apparatus comprises a plurality of aperture blades and a shutter blade; and the control method comprises: receiving a first instruction; and controlling, according to the first instruction, the plurality of aperture blades and the shutter blade to move to a first position, and controlling the plurality of aperture blades and the shutter blade to move from the first position to a second position, wherein the shutter blade completely blocks a light inlet hole enclosed by the plurality of aperture blades at the first position, and the shutter blade deviates from the light inlet hole enclosed by the plurality of aperture blades at the second position.
The control method for the variable aperture apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the control method further comprises: receiving a second instruction; and controlling, according to the second instruction, the plurality of aperture blades and the shutter blade to move to a target position between the first position and the second position, wherein at the target position, the light inlet hole enclosed by the plurality of aperture blades is used as a target aperture hole, and the shutter blade deviates from the target aperture hole.

Description

This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202310802495.9, filed with the China National Intellectual Property Administration on June 30, 2023 and entitled "VARIABLE APERTURE APPARATUS, CAMERA MODULE, AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE", which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD This application relates to the field of electronic device image shooting technologies, and in particular, to a variable aperture apparatus, a camera module having the variable aperture apparatus, and an electronic device including the camera module. BACKGROUND A shutter is a structure used by an image shooting device to control exposure time of a photosensitive element. Exposure modes include a rolling shutter (Rolling Shutter) and a global shutter (Total Shutter). In an existing electronic device, for example, a mobile phone, an electronic shutter is used to implement the rolling shutter, and the rolling shutter is performed through progressive scanning and exposing until all pixels are exposed. However, if a shoot object moves at a high speed or vibrates quickly relative to the image shooting device, an electronic shutter manner of controlling the rolling shutter is used for shooting. Because a progressive scanning speed is insufficient, a shooting result may be "skew", "wobble", or "partial exposure". A phenomenon that occurs in this rolling shutter mode for shooting is defined as a jello effect. In addition, in indoor lighting, preview and video recording are prone to a time-domain aliasing phenomenon caused by interaction between a 50 Hz or 60 Hz power frequency and a rolling shutter mechanism, resulting in a banding (Banding) phenomenon. On the contrary, the global shutter uses a feature of simultaneously exposing all pixels to compensate for the foregoing phenomena such as the jello effect and the banding and flicker phenomenon. For example, a mechanical shutter that can implement the global shutter is usually integrated into the image shooting device, but the technologies may lead to problems such as a significant increase in a device size and a significant increase in costs. SUMMARY This application provides a variable aperture apparatus, a camera module having the variable aperture apparatus, and an electronic device including the camera module. A main purpose is to integrate a mechanical shutter that can control a global shutter into a structure of the variable aperture apparatus. In this way, a significant increase in a device size and a significant increase in costs are not caused due to introduction of the mechanical shutter. To achieve the foregoing objectives, the following technical solutions are used in embodiments of this application. According to one aspect, this application provides a variable aperture apparatus. For example, the variable aperture apparatus may be applied to an electronic device having a photographing or video shooting function. The variable aperture apparatus includes a base; a carrier; and a plurality of aperture blades and at least one shutter blade, where the carrier is rotatably connected to the base, the plurality of aperture blades are disposed around a circumference of the carrier, and are configured to enclose a light inlet hole, the plurality of aperture blades and the at least one shutter blade are rotatably connected to the base, and the plurality of aperture blades and the at least one shutter blade are slidably connected to the carrier; when the carrier rotates relative to the base, the plurality of aperture blades and the at least one shutter blade slide relative to the carrier, and rotate relative to the base, and the plurality of aperture blades rotate relative to the base, and slide relative to the carrier, to adjust a size of the light inlet hole; and movement positions of the plurality of aperture blades include a first position and a second position, the light inlet hole enclosed by the plurality of aperture blades becomes larger when the plurality of aperture blades move from the first position to the second position, the at least one shutter blade completely blocks the light inlet hole at the first position, and the at least one shutter blade deviates from the light inlet hole at the second position. Alternatively, the light inlet hole enclosed by the plurality of aperture blades may become smaller when the plurality of aperture blades moves from the second position to the first position; the at least one shutter blade deviates from the light inlet hole at the second position, so that the light inlet hole can receive external light; and the at least one shutter blade blocks the light inlet hole at the first position, so that the light inlet hole cannot receive the external light. The variable aperture apparatus provided in this application not only includes the plurality of aperture blades that can adjust a size of the light inlet hole, but also includes the shutter blade that can move with the aperture blade. When the aperture