Patent ID: 7679041

Claim:
An electronic imaging device for capturing an image, comprising: a first plurality of sensor elements that output signals based on the amount of light received by each of said sensor elements in said first plurality of sensor elements; a second plurality of sensor elements that output signals based on the amount of light received by each of said sensor elements in said second plurality of sensor elements; and an aperture mask layer disposed proximate said first and second plurality of sensor elements, wherein said aperture mask layer defines a first plurality of openings and a second plurality of openings, and wherein each opening in said first plurality of openings has a first area and each opening in said second plurality of openings has a second area, and wherein said first area is different than said second area; wherein said first plurality of openings limit the amount of light that can be received by each of said sensor elements in said first plurality of sensor elements forming a first light acceptance angle for each of said sensor elements in said first plurality of sensor elements, and said second plurality of openings limit the amount of light that can be received by each of said sensor elements in said second plurality of sensor elements forming a second light acceptance angle for each of said sensor elements in said second plurality of sensor elements; and wherein said signals from said first plurality of sensor elements are combined with said signals from said second plurality of sensor elements to produce a composite image.