The present invention provides a pixel circuit. A first S/H stage and the second S/H stage are connected in cascade between a buffer amplifier and an amplifier circuit. During a first and a second time period, a buffered output signal having a first voltage and a second voltage generated by the buffer amplifier are stored serially to the first S/H stage and the second S/H stage. The amplifier circuit senses the first voltage and the second voltage stored in the first S/H stage and the second S/H stage independently for generating a first output signal and a second output signal correspondingly. A calibrated signal is generated according to the first output signal and the second output signal.

The present technology relates to a signal processing device, an imaging device, and a signal processing method which are capable of recognizing a blinking target object reliably and recognizing an obstacle accurately, in a situation in which a luminance difference is very large. Signals of a plurality of images captured at different exposure times are added using different saturation signal amounts, and signals of a plurality of images obtained as a result of the addition are synthesized, and thus it is possible to recognize a blinking target object reliably and recognize an obstacle accurately, in a situation in which a luminance difference is very large. The present technology can be applied to, for example, a camera unit or the like that captures an image.

An imaging device including a pixel, and a controller that sets a sensitivity of the pixel according to an external signal, where the external signal includes sound, vibration or inclination.

An integrated image sensor for capturing a mixed structured-light image and regular image using an integrated image sensor are disclosed. The integrated image sensor comprises a pixel array, one or more output circuits, one or more analog-to-digital converters, and one or more timing and control circuits. The timing and control circuits are arranged to perform a set of actions including capturing a regular image and a structured-light image. According to the present invention, the structured-light image captured before or after the regular image is used to derive depth or shape information for the regular image. An endoscope based on the above integrated image sensor is also disclosed. The endoscope may comprises a capsule housing adapted to be swallowed, where the components of integrated image sensor, a structured light source and anon-structured light source are enclosed and sealed in the capsule housing.

An electronic device according to various embodiments of the present invention comprises an image sensor and a processor, wherein the image sensor comprises a microlens and a light-receiving sensor pixel capable of converting light having passed through the microlens into an electrical signal, the light-receiving sensor pixel comprises a first floating diffusion area and a second floating diffusion area, the light-receiving sensor pixel is set, as a first area and a second area having different sizes, in accordance with the activation of either the first floating diffusion area or the second floating diffusion area, a signal generated by the light-receiving sensor pixel can be classified and read out as a first signal corresponding to the first area and a second signal corresponding to the second area, and the processor can be set so as to: use the image sensor so as to activate the first floating diffusion area, thereby acquiring a first image of an external object; use the image sensor so as to activate the second floating diffusion area, thereby acquiring a second image of the external object; and synthesize at least a portion of the first image and at least a portion of the second image, thereby generating a third image having a resolution higher than that of the first or second image. Additional various embodiments are possible.

An electronic device is provided that includes an image sensor of first pixels receiving light for a first duration and second pixels receiving light for a shorter second duration, and a processor to acquire first and second raw data including first long pixel values through the first pixels and first short pixel values through the second pixels, second long pixel values through the first pixels and second short pixel values through the second pixels, and third raw data based on the first and second raw data. The third raw data includes third long pixel values and third short pixel values, and each of the third long pixel values is an average value of a first and a second long pixel value and each of the third short pixel values is a value obtained by gamma correcting a sum of a first and a second short pixel value.

In order to improve linearity characteristics in synthesis processing for expanding a dynamic range, an image pickup apparatus comprising an AD conversion unit for performing AD conversion of input signals by comparing a first ramp signal or a second ramp signal; a first synthesis unit for synthesizing a first signal AD converted using the first ramp signal and a second signal AD converted using the second ramp signal; a first correction unit for correcting a level difference between the first signal and the second signal when the first signal and the second signal are synthesized; an amplifier for amplifying pixel signals by different gains; a second synthesis unit for synthesizing the signals amplified by the different gains; and a second correction unit for correcting a level difference between the signals amplified by the different gains when the signals amplified by the different gains are synthesized.

An increase in memory capacity is suppressed in a solid-state imaging element that performs correlated double sampling processing. A pixel circuit sequentially generates each of a predetermined reset level and a plurality of signal levels corresponding to the exposure amount. An analog-to-digital converter converts a predetermined reset level into digital data and outputs the data as reset data, converts each of the plurality of pieces of signal data into digital data, and outputs the data as signal data. An arithmetic circuit holds a difference between the reset data and the signal data output first, as held data in a memory, and then adds the held data and the signal data output second and subsequent times together and causes the memory to hold the added data as new held data.

A radiation imaging apparatus includes a pixel array including a plurality of pixels, and a readout circuit configured to read out a signal from the pixel array, each of the plurality of pixels including a conversion element configured to convert a radiation into an electrical signal, and a sample-and-hold circuit configured to perform sampling-and-holding a plurality of times on a signal from the conversion element in response to the radiation. The radiation imaging apparatus further includes a processing unit configured to perform processing of determining timings of the plurality of times of the sampling-and-holdings based on information about temporal change in radiation energy of the radiation obtained based on a signal read out by the readout circuit, and a control unit configured to perform control so that the plurality of times of sampling-and-holdings is performed by the sample-and-hold circuit at the timings determined by the processing unit.

The present technology relates to a solid-state imaging device that detects both electrons and holes to perform high dynamic range imaging, obtaining a high-quality image, a method of driving the same, and an electronic apparatus. The solid-state imaging device includes a pixel having a photodiode that performs photoelectric conversion on incident light, and a driving control unit configured to control driving of the pixel. The pixel stores a first charge generated by the photoelectric conversion in the photodiode and stores a second charge generated by the photoelectric conversion in a first capacitor provided in a pixel separation portion. The driving control unit causes a pixel signal due to the second charge stored in the first capacitor to be output and then a pixel signal due to the first charge stored in the photodiode to be output. The present technology may be applied, for example, to a solid-state imaging device or the like that detects both electrons and holes to perform high dynamic range imaging.