An image sensor, comprising a pixel region in which a plurality of pixel units are arranged, each pixel unit having first and second photoelectric conversion portions, a first output portion that outputs, outside of the image sensor, a first signal based on a signal from the first photoelectric conversion portion of the pixel units, and a second output portion that outputs a second signal based on a signal from the first photoelectric conversion portion and a signal from the second photoelectric conversion portion of the pixel units, wherein output of the first signal from the first output portion and output of the second signal from the second output portion are performed in parallel.

A spot sub-pixel center positioning method based on pixel movement and cutting, the method includes driving the CCD image plane to move along the x direction and the y direction through a displacement platform, selecting target pixels to move and cut the spot, and recording the gray value change of the target pixels, constructing the mapping relationship between gray value and displacement, performing differential transformation on the gray value and displacement curve, and finally performing interpolation fitting to obtain the sub-pixel coordinate value of the center point of the light spot. The measurement accuracy can be maintained within ½ of the single-step displacement of cutting. The method is not only suitable for strong and weak distribution of light spots, but also for fully saturated light spots, and also for asymmetrically distributed and blurred edges. It also has a good measurement effect and can handle a variety of spot scenes.

A solid-state imaging device includes a photoelectric conversion unit, a light shielding unit and a transfer transistor. The photoelectric conversion unit generates charges by photoelectrically converting light. The light shielding unit is formed by engraving a semiconductor substrate on which the photoelectric conversion unit is formed, so as to surround an outer periphery of the photoelectric conversion unit. The transfer transistor transfers charges generated in the photoelectric conversion unit. During a charge accumulation period in which charges are accumulated in the photoelectric conversion unit, a potential that repels the charges is supplied to the light shielding unit and a gate electrode of the transfer transistor. During a charge transfer period in which charges are transferred from the photoelectric conversion unit, a potential that repels the charges is supplied to the light shielding unit and a potential that attracts the charges is supplied to the gate electrode of the transfer transistor.

An image sensor may have an array of pixels that include nested sub-pixels that each have at least one respective photodiode. An inner sub-pixel of a pixel with nested sub-pixels may have a relatively lower effective light collecting area compared to an outer sub-pixel of the pixel within which the inner sub-pixel is nested. A pixel circuit for the nested sub-pixels may include an overflow capacitor and/or a coupled gate circuit used to route charges from the photodiode in the inner sub-pixel. The lower light collecting area of the photodiode in the inner sub-pixel, with optional flicker mitigation charge routing from the coupled gates structure, may reduce the size of the capacitors required to capture photodiode and photodiode overflow charge responses. Flicker mitigation charge routing using a coupled gates structure may allow an adjustable proportion of the overflow charge to be stored in one or more storage capacitors.

An image sensor may include pixel having nested photosensitive regions. A pixel with nested photosensitive regions may include an inner photosensitive region that has a rectangular light collecting area. The inner photosensitive region may be formed in a substrate and may be surrounded by an outer photosensitive region. The pixel with nested photosensitive regions may include trunk circuitry and transistor circuitry. Trunk circuitry may include a voltage supply source, a charge storage node, and readout transistors. Trunk circuitry may be located in close proximity to both the inner and outer photosensitive regions. Transistor circuitry may couple the inner photosensitive region, the outer photosensitive region, and trunk circuitry to one another. Microlenses may be formed over the nested photosensitive groups. Hybrid color filters having a single color filter region over the inner photosensitive region and a portion of the outer photosensitive region may also be used.

An image sensing device includes: a pixel array including a plurality of pixels arranged at each cross point of rows and columns, wherein the pixel array comprises a plurality of pixel blocks, each including N pixels, N being a natural number equal to or greater than 2, wherein the pixel blocks sequentially output a plurality of pixel signals having pixel information on the same color N times during one or more single row times; a plurality of column lines suitable for sequentially transferring the plurality of pixel signals from the pixel blocks, each column line being shared by two adjacent columns and coupled to at least one of the pixel blocks; a plurality of averaging blocks suitable for grouping the pixel signals to overlap each other, into a plurality of pixel signal groups, and averaging the pixel signal groups to output a plurality of averaged pixel signals, wherein the number of the averaging blocks is smaller than the number of the column lines; and a plurality of conversion blocks suitable for converting the averaged pixel signals into a plurality of digital signals.

Capturing an image including: receiving an exposure time for an image sensor; measuring time to saturation for each sensel of a plurality of sensels of the image sensor; and calculating a number of electrons that would have been collected by each sensel with unlimited storage capacity using the time to saturation, the exposure time, and an electron collection capacity of a storage unit of each sensel. Key words include sensor saturation and high-dynamic range.

.[.The present invention relates to an.]. .Iadd.An .Iaddend.image processing apparatus which can restore, from a color and sensitivity mosaic image acquired using a CCD image sensor of the single plate type or the like, a color image signal of a wide dynamic range wherein the sensitivity characteristics of pixels are uniformized and each of the pixels has all of a plurality of color components .Iadd.is provided.Iaddend.. A sensitivity uniformization section uniformizes the sensitivities of pixels of a color and sensitivity mosaic image to produce a color mosaic image, and a color interpolation section interpolates color components of the pixels of the color mosaic image M to produce output images R, G and B. The .[.present invention.]. .Iadd.image processing apparatus .Iaddend.can be applied to a digital camera which converts a picked up optical image into a color image signal of a wide dynamic range.

A solid-state image sensor has a pixel array and a processor configured to process a signal from the pixel array, the pixel array including a light-receiving pixel having first and second photoelectric converters and a light-shielded pixel having third and fourth photoelectric converters. The processor outputs (a) a pixel signal corresponding to charges of the first photoelectric converter, (b) an added pixel signal corresponding to a sum of charges of the first photoelectric converter and charges of the second photoelectric converter, and (c) an added reference signal corresponding to a sum of charges of the third photoelectric converter and charges of the fourth photoelectric converter, and does not output (d) a reference signal corresponding to charges of the third photoelectric converter and a reference signal corresponding to charges of the fourth photoelectric converter.

A monocentric lens-based multi-scale imaging system is disclosed. Embodiments of the present invention comprise a monocentric lens as an objective lens that collects light from a scene. Monocentric lenses in accordance with the present invention include a spherical central lens element and a plurality of lens shell sections that collectively reduce at least one of spherical and chromatic aberration from the magnitude introduced by the spherical lens element itself. A plurality of secondary lenses image the scene through the objective lens and further reduce the magnitude of aberrations introduced by the objective lens. A plurality of sensor arrays converts optical sub-images of the scene into a plurality of digital images, which can then be used to form a composite image of the scene.