Visibility of a license plate and color reproducibility of a vehicle body are improved in a monitoring camera.

A vehicle body area detection unit detects a vehicle body area of a vehicle from an image signal. A license plate area detection unit detects a license plate area of the vehicle from the image signal. A vehicle body area image processing unit performs processing of the image signal corresponding to the detected vehicle body area. A license plate area image processing unit performs processing different from the processing of the image signal corresponding to the vehicle body area on the image signal corresponding to the detected license plate area. A synthesis unit synthesizes the processed image signal corresponding to the vehicle body area and the processed image signal corresponding to the license plate area.

The present technology relates to a solid-state imaging device that can achieve a higher resolution while increasing sensitivity, and an electronic apparatus. In a pixel array unit, pixels are two-dimensionally arranged, and the pixels are formed with a combination of: a first pixel that performs photoelectric conversion on light of a first color component with a first photoelectric conversion unit, and photoelectric conversion on light of a third color component with a second photoelectric conversion unit, the light of the third color component having passed through a first color filter and the first photoelectric conversion unit, the first color filter being designed to pass light of a second color component; a second pixel that performs photoelectric conversion on light of the first color component with a first photoelectric conversion unit, and photoelectric conversion on light of a fifth color component with a second photoelectric conversion unit, the light of the fifth color component having passed through a second color filter and the first photoelectric conversion unit, the second color filter being designed to pass light of a fourth color component; and a third pixel that performs photoelectric conversion on light of the first color component with a first photoelectric conversion unit, and photoelectric conversion on light of a sixth color component with a second photoelectric conversion unit, the light of the sixth color component having passed through the first photoelectric conversion unit. The first color component and the sixth color component are mixed, to generate white (W).

An imaging method includes receiving electromagnetic radiation with a plurality of qualities from a scene to be captured at a mask and passing a first portion of the received electromagnetic radiation having the plurality of qualities present in the received electromagnetic radiation through the mask. One or more qualities of the received electromagnetic radiation is removed from a second portion of the received electromagnetic radiation, and the second portion of the received electromagnetic radiation absent the one or more removed qualities is passed through the mask.

One embodiment provides an image sensor comprising: a plurality of phase difference detection pixels; and a plurality of image detection pixels disposed in a grid pattern along with the plurality of phase difference detection pixels, wherein the plurality of phase difference detection pixels comprise a first pixel group having a shield area biased toward one side from a line connecting two points facing each other in an oblique direction, and thus focus adjustment accuracy may be increased in a diagonal area in which phase difference detection is difficult.

An image sensor may have a pixel array, and the pixel array may include a plurality of image pixels that gather image data and a plurality of phase detection pixels that gather phase information. The phase detection pixels may be arranged in phase detection pixel blocks, and each phase detection pixel group may include edge pixels. The edge pixels of each phase detection pixel group may be covered by microlenses that also cover a portion of a center pixel. The pixel array may also include high dynamic range pixel blocks. Each high dynamic range pixel block may include pixels within the phase detection pixel block and other pixels (e.g., corner pixels). A subset of the plurality of image pixels in the pixel array may be arranged in pixel blocks. Each pixel block may include a phase detection pixel block and a high dynamic range pixel block.

An imaging device, comprising: a pixel group in which unit pixels including a plurality of pixels receiving light fluxes having passed through different pupil areas of a photographing lens are provided in a form of a matrix; a plurality of types of color filters with different spectral transmittances provided in correspondence with the unit pixels; a microlens provided in correspondence with the color filter; a color information detection circuit which detects subject color information; and a pixel signal readout circuit which reads out a focus detection signal from the pixel group and reads out only a signal of the unit pixel in correspondence with a color filter associated with subject color information detected by the color information detection circuit.

The imaging device includes a first pixel group and a second pixel group that include a plurality of pixels each having a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions that are separated by an isolation portion and arranged in a first direction and a plurality of transfer gates that transfer charges of the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions. A position of at least a part of the isolation portion within each of the pixels of the first pixel group and a position of at least a part of the isolation portion within each of the pixels of the second pixel group are shifted relative to each other in the first direction. Respective widths of portions where the plurality of separated photoelectric conversion portions overlap with the plurality of transfer gates in a planar view are the same.

A multi-aperture imaging system comprising a first camera with a first sensor that captures a first image and a second camera with a second sensor that captures a second image, the two cameras having either identical or different FOVs. The first sensor may have a standard color filter array (CFA) covering one sensor section and a non-standard color CFA covering another. The second sensor may have either Clear or standard CFA covered sections. Either image may be chosen to be a primary or an auxiliary image, based on a zoom factor. An output image with a point of view determined by the primary image is obtained by registering the auxiliary image to the primary image.

Various technologies described herein pertain to combining high dynamic range techniques to enable rendering higher dynamic range scenes with an image sensor. The image sensor can implement a combination of spatial exposure multiplexing and temporal exposure multiplexing, for example. By way of another example, the image sensor can implement a combination of spatial exposure multiplexing and dual gain operation. Pursuant to another example, the image sensor can implement a combination of temporal exposure multiplexing and dual gain operation. In accordance with yet another example, the image sensor can implement a combination of spatial exposure multiplexing, temporal exposure multiplexing, and dual gain operation. The image sensor can be formed on a single wafer or the image sensor can be a 3D-IC image sensor that includes at least two vertically integrated layers.

Visibility of a license plate and color reproducibility of a vehicle body are improved in a monitoring camera. A vehicle body area detection unit detects a vehicle body area of a vehicle from an image signal. A license plate area detection unit detects a license plate area of the vehicle from the image signal. A vehicle body area image processing unit performs processing of the image signal corresponding to the detected vehicle body area. A license plate area image processing unit performs processing different from the processing of the image signal corresponding to the vehicle body area on the image signal corresponding to the detected license plate area. A synthesis unit synthesizes the processed image signal corresponding to the vehicle body area and the processed image signal corresponding to the license plate area.