Image-capturing device

Abstract

An image-capturing device includes: a plurality of micro-lenses disposed in a two-dimensional pattern near a focal plane of an image forming optical system; an image sensor that includes a two-dimensional array of element groups each corresponding to one of the micro-lenses and made up with a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements which receive, via the micro-lenses light fluxes from a subject having passed through the photographic optical system and output image signals; and a synthesizing unit that combines the image signals output from the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements based upon information so as to generate synthetic image data in correspondence to a plurality of image forming areas present on a given image forming plane of the image forming optical system, the information specifying positions of the photoelectric conversion elements output image signals that are to be used for generating synthetic image data for each image forming area.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An image-capturing device, comprising:
 a plurality of micro-lenses;   a plurality of image-capturing pixels disposed at each of the plurality of micro-lenses; and   a processor that generates a synthetic image signal for generating a synthetic image at a given focus position of a subject based upon an output signal when the image-capturing pixels receive a light flux of a ring formed by the micro-lenses; wherein   each of the plurality of image-capturing pixels includes a cardinal-point pixel for each of the plurality of micro-lenses, the cardinal-point pixel being an image-capturing pixel for generating the synthetic image signal corresponding to a single pixel constituting the synthetic image,   
       wherein:
 the processor generates a synthesis pixel affiliated table for each cardinal pixel corresponding to a partial area that divides the ring, by associating positions of the image-capturing pixels included in the partial area with the micro-lenses corresponding to the partial area; 
 the synthesis pixel affiliated table is a table that specifies an arrangement of other image-capturing pixels that output signals to be added to the output signal of each of the cardinal-point pixels; and 
 the processor generates the synthetic image signal based upon output signals of the respective cardinal-point pixels and output signals from the image-capturing pixels identified by the synthesis pixel affiliated table. 
 
     
     
         2 . The image-capturing device according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 the output signals of the image-capturing pixels included in the partial area are integrated and added to the output signals of the cardinal-point pixels corresponding to the partial area.