FujiFilm Lands Walter Kosonocky Award For Image Sensors Work
Press release from the issuing company
ELMSFORD, NY, July 2, 2001 – Fujifilm, a company renowned for its imaging and information innovations, was recently presented with the 2001 Walter Kosonocky Award for outstanding achievement in image sensor technology at the IEEE Workshop on CCDs and Advanced Image Sensors in Crystal Bay, Nevada.
The honor was bestowed in recognition of a white paper – A Progressive Scan CCD Image Sensor for DSC Applications -- Fujifilm developed as part of the research and development into its unique, Super CCD digital imaging technology which produces a higher resolution, increased dynamic range and a better signal-to-noise ratio, all vital elements in the color and quality of digital pictures. The award, given bi-annually for the best paper representing significant advancement in solid-state image sensors, commemorates the contributions made to the field by the late Dr. Walter Kosonocky.
Authored by Tetsuo Yamada, Katsumi Ikeda, Yong-Gwan Kim, Hideki Wakoh, Tetsuo Toma, Tomohiro Sakamoto, Kazuaki Ogawa, Eiichi Okamoto, Kazuyuki Masukane, Kazuya Oda and Masafumi Inuiya, the Super CCD paper was published in IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits, vol. 35 (12) December 2000 pp. 2044-2054.
"On behalf of Fujifilm, I am proud to accept this recognition for our work in the creation of the Super CCD imaging sensor," said, Tetsuo Yamada, Manager, CCD Design, VLSI Design Department, Fujifilm Microdevices Co., Ltd., which develops and manufactures electric devices for Fujifilm’s electronic imaging systems. "Fujifilm has a rich history of technological innovation and Super CCD is yet another example of our dedication to research and development."
Working with almost 70 years of photographic experience, Fujifilm is one of only a handful of marketers that both designs and manufactures the key capture elements of a digital camera -- the lens, charge coupled device (CCD) and image processing mechanisms. This total control of manufacturing allows for the strict adherence to technical specifications and leads to groundbreaking products.
For example, in 1988 Fujifilm was the first manufacturer to offer a digital camera with removable storage media. Then, in 1998, Fujifilm brought the world the first non-professional, megapixel-class digital camera, the MX-700. Fujifilm followed the next year with the MX-2700, the world’s first consumer-level, 2-megapixel digital camera. In 2000 the company debuted the FinePix 4700 Zoom, which featured Fujifilm’s honored Super CCD. This first Super CCD chip produced a 4.3-megapixel picture file using only 2.4-million sensors. The second generation, 3.3 million-sensor Super CCD found in the current FinePix 6800 Zoom and FinePix 6900 Zoom digital cameras generates a 6-megapixel picture file.