Spectral-based blind image restoration method for thin TOMBO imagers

With the recent advances in microelectronic fabrication technology, it has now become now possible to fabricate thin imagers, less than half a millimeter thick. Dubbed TOMBO (an acronym for Thin Observation Module by Bound Optics), a thin camera-on-a-chip integrates micro-optics and photo-sensing elements, together with advanced processing circuitry, all on a single silicon chip. Modeled after the compound-eye found in insects and many other arthropods, the TOMBO imager simultaneously captures a mosaic of low resolution images. In this paper, we describe and analyze a novel spectral-based blind algorithm that enables the restoration of a high resolution image from the captured low resolution images. The proposed blind restoration method does not require prior information about the imaging system nor the original scene. Furthermore, it alleviates the need for conventional de-shading and rearrangement processing techniques. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can restore images for Signal-to-Noise Energy Ratio (SNER) lower than 3 dB.