With a total size of just 17.5 millimeters (mm) square and 9.5mm high, the ultra small device is also small enough to be installed in planned future video cellular telephones and personal digital assistants and personal digital still cameras.

The entire unit is built onto a double-sided circuit board which sits inside the package, a 52-pin leadless chip carrier (LCC) ceramic package. The video pickup, a charge coupled device (CCD) type, and the condensor-resistor and lens are all housed on the upper surface of the chip. On the reverse side is the timing generator, sample and hold integrated circuit (IC), and analog to digital (A/D) converter.

Because of the inclusion of a 10-bit A/D convertor, the chip is able to provide a digital output which can be fed directly into the computer for processing by the software. The sensor is capable of delivering a 180,000 pixel (362 by 492 pixels) color image which conforms to the Common Intermediate Format (CIF) standard used widely in videoconferencing.

Commercialization of the unit is planned for next year, said a Sony spokesman, with shipment of samples hoped for in early 1997. Additionally, the company is also working on a companion integrated circuit that will include YUV digital output, auto white balance, automatic exposure, auto gain control, and other features.

The unit will get its first showing at the upcoming Windows World exhibition in Tokyo which begins tomorrow.

(Martyn Williams/19960625/Press contact: Aldo Liguori, Sony Corporation, +81-3-5448-2200/SONY960625/PHOTO)