Single-Chip CMOS Color Segmenter

78 Single-Chip CMOS Color Segmenter--Physical Optics Corporation, 20600 Gramercy Place, Suite 103, Torrance, CA 90501-1821; (310) 320-3088 Dr. Wayne Lian, Principal Investigator Ms. Patty Shaw, Business Official DOE Grant No. DE-FG03-97ER82452 Amount: $74,966 Determining colors is an inherent problem for many applications, including remote sensing, quality control of industrial and agricultural products, and automated object recognition. Existing instruments based on spectrometers are delicate and slow, yielding only marginally useful color information; acousto-optic devices are often expensive and require high voltages. This project will investigate the feasibility of a novel color measurement device that integrates color image sensors, analog-to-digital converters, and a digital neural network, all in a single electronic chip. If successful, it will lead to a color measurement device that is small portable, robust and user-friendly, and is low in power consumption and life cycle cost. Phase I of this project will a) demonstrate that a neural network is a viable tool for color classification, and b) establish the technical feasiblity of integrating all necessary components in one chip. Phase II will implement the single-chip color measurement device in CMOS, the most commonly integrated circuit technology used for chip fabrication. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: Applications of this color-segmentation device include agriculture product inspection, waste separation, environmental monitoring, and industrial quality control. The successful integration of optical detectors with signal-processing functions on a single-CMOS chip would represent a fundamental advance leading to a wide variety of other applications._