Foveon, Inc., is the company that makes the Foveon X3 sensor

Foveon X3 sensor

The Foveon X3 sensor is a CMOSimage sensor for digital cameras, designed by Foveon, Inc. and manufactured by National Semiconductorand Dongbu Electronics....

, which captures images in digital single-lens reflex cameras

Single-lens reflex camera

A single-lens reflex camera is a camera that typically uses a semi-automatic moving mirror system that permits the photographer to see exactly what will be captured by the film or digital imaging system, as opposed to pre-SLR cameras where the view through the viewfinder could be significantly...

 such as the Sigma Corporation

Sigma Corporation

is a Japanese company founded in 1961, manufacturing cameras, lenses, flashes and other photographic accessories. All Sigma products are produced in the company's own Aizu factory in Bandai, Fukushima, Japan...

 SD9

Sigma SD9

The Sigma SD9 is a digital SLR camera produced by the Sigma Corporation of Japan. The camera was launched at the Photo Marketing Association Annual Show on February 18, 2002. It was Sigma's first digital camera, and was the first production camera to use the unique Foveon X3 image sensor, which...

, SD10

Sigma SD10

The Sigma SD10 is a digital SLR camera produced by the Sigma Corporation of Japan. It was announced on October 27, 2003 and is an evolution of the previous SD9 model, addressing many of the shortcomings of that camera...

, SD14

Sigma SD14

The Sigma SD14 is a digital single-lens reflex camera produced by the Sigma Corporation of Japan. It is fitted with a Sigma SA mount which takes Sigma SA lenses....

 and SD15

Sigma SD15

The Sigma SD15 is an updated version of Sigma SD14 DSLR produced by the Sigma Corporation of Japan and featuring the improved TRUE II image processing engine, but with the same image sensor as its predecessor. As such, the SD15 features the 14.7MP Foveon X3 sensor...

 as well as in the compacts DP1

Sigma DP1

The Sigma DP1 is a high-end compact digital camera introduced by the Sigma Corporation. It features a 14-megapixel Foveon X3 sensor , a fixed 16.6 mm F4.0 lens , a 2.5” LCD and a pop-up flash...

, DP2

Sigma DP2

The Sigma DP2 is a high-end compact digital camera introduced by the Sigma Corporation. It features a 14-megapixel Foveon X3 sensor , the same sensor used in its predecessor, the Sigma DP1 and in the Sigma SD14 DSLR, a fixed 24.2mm F2.8 lens , a 2.5” LCD and a pop-up flash.With its predecessor, the...

 and Polaroid

Polaroid Corporation

Polaroid Corporation is an American-based international consumer electronics and eyewear company, originally founded in 1937 by Edwin H. Land. It is most famous for its instant film cameras, which reached the market in 1948, and continued to be the company's flagship product line until the February...

 X530.

The company was founded in 1997 by Carver Mead

Carver Mead

Carver Andress Mead is a US computer scientist. He currently holds the position of Gordon and Betty Moore Professor Emeritus of Engineering and Applied Science at the California Institute of Technology , having taught there for over 40 years.Mead studied electrical engineering at Caltech, getting...

, Richard Lyon

Richard Francis Lyon

Richard Francis Lyon , is an American inventor,scientist, and engineer, noted for having invented the optical mouse.He has worked in many aspects of signal processing and was a co-founder of Foveon Inc.,...

, Richard B. Merrill

Richard B. Merrill

Richard Billings Merrill was an American inventor, engineer, and photographer.Merrill was born in New York City, the son of Dr. Frederick Hamilton Merrill and Joan Williams Merrill. He was the adoptive grandson of Richard Billings Richard Billings Merrill (aka Dick Merrill) (1949–2008) was an...

, Richard Turner, and others. It is based in Santa Clara, California

Santa Clara, California

Santa Clara , founded in 1777 and incorporated in 1852, is a city in Santa Clara County, in the U.S. state of California. The city is the site of the eighth of 21 California missions, Mission Santa Clara de Asís, and was named after the mission. The Mission and Mission Gardens are located on the...

. Foveon was initially known for their high-end digital portrait camera systems built around a color-separation beam-splitter prism assembly. Both the prism system and the X3 technology derive their benefit from using all the light and sensing all colors at all locations.

Foveon, Inc. was previously known as Foveonics. The name is derived from the fovea

Fovea

The fovea centralis, also generally known as the fovea , is a part of the eye, located in the center of the macula region of the retina....

 of the human eye, which enables sharp imaging while reading or watching television.

George Gilder

George Gilder

George F. Gilder is an American writer, techno-utopian intellectual, Republican Party activist, and co-founder of the Discovery Institute...

 has written The Silicon Eye, which tells the story of Foveon and of Carver Mead and the other founders. Foveon had no public comment on the book.

On 11 November 2008, all shares

Share (finance)

A joint stock company divides its capital into units of equal denomination. Each unit is called a share. These units are offered for sale to raise capital. This is termed as issuing shares. A person who buys share/shares of the company is called a shareholder, and by acquiring share or shares in...

 of Foveon stock

Stock

The capital stock of a business entity represents the original capital paid into or invested in the business by its founders. It serves as a security for the creditors of a business since it cannot be withdrawn to the detriment of the creditors...

 were acquired by Sigma Corporation

Sigma Corporation

is a Japanese company founded in 1961, manufacturing cameras, lenses, flashes and other photographic accessories. All Sigma products are produced in the company's own Aizu factory in Bandai, Fukushima, Japan...

. The company continues today in a new location as a wholly owned portion of Sigma.