Samsung Patented an Optical Sensor – Under Display Camera

Samsung has been leading the charge in smartphone innovation, with its foldable smartphone designs setting the tech world abuzz.

But what if we told you that the company is planning to increase the screen-to-body ratio in its future foldable and rollable smartphones by integrating an optical sensor with an under-display camera?

Thanks to an exclusive collaboration with David from @xleaks7, we've uncovered a patent that showcases examples of how future screens might look.

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The Patent

The patent addresses the issue of reduced image quality and user experience in electronic devices with under-display cameras (UDCs).

These areas often have fewer pixels to allow light to reach the camera, leading to noticeable differences in image quality and disrupting the user's visual experience.

The patent describes an electronic device with a display panel that includes an under-display camera. It features a display driver IC that adjusts the output of images in the area over the camera based on their luminance and gradation values.

This system either powers off pixels in the camera area or displays a different image to minimize the visual impact of the camera area, thereby improving the user's immersive experience.

Also, the patent mentions that such innovation can be applied to both foldable and rollable screens:

(15) Referring to FIG. 1, the electronic device 101 according to various embodiments of the disclosure is illustrated by way of non-limiting example as a bar-type electronic device, but may be implemented as an electronic device such as a slidable, rollable, or foldable type electronic device.

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Key Features

• Electronic Device Components: The device includes a camera, a screen with two sections (one section covers the camera, and the other does not), and a special chip that controls the display (called the Display Driver IC or DDI)

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• Display Driver IC Functionality: This special chip (DDI) checks how bright or detailed the image is in the section of the screen that covers the camera

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• Image Control Based on Values: The DDI decides if it needs to change the image in the camera-covered section based on the brightness or detail it finds

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• Output Adjustment: The image in the camera area can be adjusted in two ways: by turning off the pixels (making them black) or by showing a different image

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• Luminance and Gradation Values: Brightness (luminance) and detail (gradation) values help adjust the display to look better overall

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• Enhanced User Experience: This control mechanism makes the area over the camera less visible, making the screen look more seamless and immersive

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• Organic Light-Emitting Displays: The device uses a type of display called organic light-emitting displays (OLEDs), which are efficient and fast because they don’t need separate light sources

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• Pixel Density Difference: The section over the camera has fewer pixels to let more light through, and the DDI manages this to keep the display looking good

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