An imaging pixel may have a fully depleted charge transfer path between a pinned photodiode and a floating diffusion region. A pinned transfer diode may be coupled between the pinned photodiode and the floating diffusion region. The imaging pixel may be formed in upper and lower substrates with an interconnect layer coupling the upper substrate to the lower substrate. The imaging pixel may include one or more storage diodes coupled between the transfer diode and the floating diffusion region. The imaging pixel may be used to capture high dynamic range images with flicker mitigation, images synchronized with light sources, or for high frame rate operation.

A method that can detect targets is described. The method includes setting an integration time for each of a plurality of readout circuits based on a speed of the target. The readout circuits are configured to read pixels in an image detector. The pixels have a pitch of less than ten micrometers. The integration time is not more than five hundred microseconds and corresponds to a subframe of a fast frame image. The method also includes performing integrations of each readout circuit based on the integration time. Thus, a plurality of subframes are provided. A number of the subframes are averaged to provide the fast frame image.

A method that can detect targets is described. The method includes setting an integration time for each of a plurality of readout circuits based on a speed of the target. The readout circuits are configured to read pixels in an image detector. The pixels have a pitch of less than ten micrometers. The integration time is not more than five hundred microseconds and corresponds to a subframe of a fast frame image. The method also includes performing integrations of each readout circuit based on the integration time. Thus, a plurality of subframes are provided. A number of the subframes are averaged to provide the fast frame image.

An imaging device includes a unit pixel cell. The unit pixel cell captures first data in a first exposure period and captures second data in a second exposure period different from the first exposure period, the first exposure period and the second exposure period being included in a frame period. A sensitivity per unit time of the unit pixel cell in the first exposure period is different from a sensitivity per unit time of the unit pixel cell in the second exposure period. The imaging device outputs multiple-exposure image data including at least the first data and the second data.

An image sensor includes a unit pixel that includes a photoelectric converter configured to accumulate electric charges generated based on incident light, and an electric charger configured to store the electric charges transferred from the photoelectric converter, and a corrector configured to correct a signal corresponding to the electric charges output from the electric charger based on a transfer condition when the electric charges are transferred from the photoelectric converter to the electric charger.

In a sensor comprising active pixels including a photodiode PHD, a memory node MN and a read-out node SN, the memory node being provided to hold the charge generated by the photodiode at the end of an integration period enabling integration in global-shutter mode and a correlated double sampling read-out, provision is made for the charge-storage capacity of the memory node to be at least N times higher than the charge-storage capacity of the photodiode (N being an integer higher than or equal to 2) and provision is made to carry out, in each integration and read-out cycle, during the integration duration Tint(i), N transfers Tri.sub.1, Tri.sub.2, Tri.sub.3 of charge from the photodiode to the memory node, the N transfers being equally distributed over the integration duration. The dynamic range of the sensor is improved under high light levels.

In time-delay-and-integrate (TDI) imaging, a charge-couple device (CCD) integrates and transfers charge across its columns. Unfortunately, the limited well depth of the CCD limits the dynamic range of the resulting image. Fortunately, TDI imaging can be implemented with a digital focal plane array (DFPA) that includes a detector, analog-to-digital converter (ADC), and counter in each pixel and transfer circuitry connected adjacent pixels. During each integration period in the TDI scan, each detector in the DFPA generates a photocurrent that the corresponding ADC turns into digital pulses, which the corresponding counter counts. Between integration periods, the DFPA transfers the counts from one column to the next, just like in a TDI CCD. The DFPA also non-destructively transfers some or all of the counts to a separate memory. A processor uses these counts to estimate photon flux and correct any rollovers caused by saturation of the counters.

An image processing method is provided. The image processing method is applied in an electronic device. The array of photosensitive pixel units is controlled to expose with different exposure parameters and output multiple frames of color-block image. Each frame of color-block image includes image pixel units arranged in a preset array, each image pixel unit includes a plurality of original pixels, and each photosensitive pixel corresponds to one original pixel. The multiple frames of color-block image are merged to obtain a HDR color-block image. The HDR color-block image is converted to a simulation image using an interpolation algorithm. The simulation image includes simulation pixels arranged in an array, and each photosensitive pixel corresponds to one simulation pixel. An image processing apparatus and an electronic device are also provided.

An image processing method is provided. The image processing method is applied in an electronic device. The array of photosensitive pixel units is controlled to expose with different exposure parameters and output multiple frames of color-block image. Each frame of color-block image includes image pixel units arranged in a preset array, each image pixel unit includes a plurality of original pixels, and each photosensitive pixel corresponds to one original pixel. The multiple frames of color-block image are merged to obtain a HDR color-block image. The HDR color-block image is converted to a simulation image using an interpolation algorithm. The simulation image includes simulation pixels arranged in an array, and each photosensitive pixel corresponds to one simulation pixel. An image processing apparatus and an electronic device are also provided.

The present disclosure provides a control method. The method is applied to an imaging device including a pixel unit array composed of a plurality of photosensitive pixels, and the method includes: controlling the pixel unit array to measure ambient brightness values; determining whether a current scene is a backlight scene according to the measured ambient brightness values; when the current scene is a backlight scene, determining the ambient brightness value of a region in the pixel unit array according to the ambient brightness values measured by the photosensitive pixels, in which the region includes at least one photosensitive pixel; and controlling the photosensitive pixels in the region to shoot in a corresponding shooting mode, according to the ambient brightness value of the region and a stability of an imaging object in the region. A control apparatus, an imaging device and an electronic device are also provided.