SparkFun has a camera module and sample code:
http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/categories.php?cPath=23_102
$20 each is not much cheaper thana a webcam but easier
to interface to a PIC.

Also you might look at the Agilent sensors used in
many optical mice, there is documentation on the web
for them. They are 32x32 pixels monochrome.

Cheerful regards,

Bob

--- piclist@mmendes.com wrote:
> I've searched the internet for monochromo cmos image
> sensors and I've come up
> with a billion hits from manufactures, datasheet
> providers and component
> brokers but no one that has a few avaliable.
> 
> What I need is an monochrome cmos image sensor for
> with just a few frames per
> second, at them most 640x480.  This is for a proof
> of concept and I 
> need just 2
> or 3.  In fact, 640x480 might be overkill as I'm
> only going to be reading an
> array of maybe 10x10.
> 
> Does anyone have something like this in a parts bin
> in a corner somewhere just
> waiting for an excuse to use them and willing to
> part with one or two?
> 
> I know that I can get something like that from a
> cheap webcam, but I'm 
> trying to
> avoid paying 30 or 40 bucks on something to discard
> most of it just for 
> the chip
> itself.

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