Patent classifications
H04N5/335
Image sensors and related methods and electronic devices
An image sensor is provided including a pixel array, a correlated double sampling (CDS) unit, an analog-digital converting (ADC) unit, a control unit, and an overflow power voltage control unit. The pixel array includes at least one unit pixel that generates accumulated charges corresponding to incident light in a photoelectric conversion period and outputs an analog signal based on the accumulated charges in a readout period. The CDS unit generates an image signal by performing a CDS operation on the analog signal. An ADC unit converts the image signal into a digital signal. A control unit controls the pixel array, the CDS unit, and the ADC unit. An overflow power voltage control unit controls an overflow power voltage to have a low voltage level in the photoelectric conversion period and controls the overflow power voltage to have a high voltage level in the readout period.
Synchronized solid-state imaging element, imaging device, and electronic device
There is provided a solid-state imaging element in which a first substrate in which a pixel circuit including a pixel array unit is formed and a second substrate in which a plurality of signal processing circuits are formed are laminated, and a common reference clock is supplied to the plurality of signal processing circuits that are formed on the second substrate.
Data rate control for event-based vision sensor
In dynamic vision sensor (DVS) or change detection sensors, the chip or sensor is configured to control or modulate the event rate. For example, this control can be used to keep the event rate close to a desired rate or within desired bounds. Adapting the configuration of the sensor to the scene by changing the ON-event and/or the OFF-event thresholds, allows having necessary amount of data, but not much more than necessary, such that the overall system gets as much information about its state as possible.
Imaging device and signal processing device
The present disclosure relates to an imaging device and a signal processing device capable of expanding an application range of the imaging device. An imaging device includes an imaging element that includes one or more pixel output units that receive incident light from a subject incident without an intervention of an imaging lens or a pinhole and output one detection signal indicating an output pixel value modulated by an incident angle of the incident light, and outputs a detection signal set including one or more detection signals, and a communication unit that transmits imaging data including the detection signal set and position attitude data indicating at least one of a position or an attitude to a communication device by wireless communication. The present disclosure is applicable to, for example, a monitoring system and the like.
Methods and systems for coded rolling shutter
Methods and systems for coded rolling shutter are provided. In accordance with some embodiments, methods and system are provided that control the readout timing and exposure length for each row of a pixel array in an image sensor, thereby flexibly sampling the three-dimensional space-time value of a scene and capturing sub-images that effectively encode motion and dynamic range information within a single captured image.
Global shutter image sensor having extremely fine pitch
An image sensor having global shutter circuitry and an extremely fine pixel pitch. Disclosed image sensors combine global shutter circuitry with rolling shutter circuitry for respective subsets of sensor pixels to marry imaging benefits of global shutter circuitry with relatively small circuit overhead of rolling shutter circuitry. Such image sensors can achieve improved optical performance with smaller pixel pitch and optical resolution than existing global shutter image sensors.
Electronic device including tilt OIS and method for capturing image and processing captured image
In certain embodiments, an electronic device comprises a camera; a tilt optical image stabilizer (OIS) configured to rotate the camera with respect to the electronic device, about at least one axis; and at least one processor operatively connected to the camera and the tilt OIS, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: operate the camera and the tilt OIS such that the camera is rotated about the at least one axis and captures an image, and synthesize a plurality of images captured by the camera.
CMOS image sensor with shared sensing node
A CMOS image sensor has a pixel array provided with a plurality of unit pixels arranged in a matrix shape of rows and columns. Each of the unit pixels includes a photocharge generation means for generating photocharges by absorbing an external light; and a sensing node for receiving the photocharges transferred from the photocharge generation means, wherein the sensing node of the unit pixel in a previous scan line is shared with a sensing node of a unit pixel in a current scan line in response to a line select signal of the current line.
Image sensor pixel with memory node having buried channel and diode portions
A global shutter (GS) image sensor pixel includes a pinned photodiode connected to a memory node by a first transfer gate transistor, and a floating diffusion connected to the memory node by a second transfer gate transistor. The memory node includes a buried channel portion disposed under the first transfer gate transistor and a contiguous pinned diode portion disposed between the first and second transfer gate transistors, where the two memory node portions have different doping levels such that an intrinsic lateral electrical field drives electrons from the buried channel portion into the pinned diode portion. The floating diffusion node similarly includes a buried channel portion disposed under the second transfer gate transistor and a contiguous pinned diode portion that generate a second intrinsic lateral electrical field that drives electrons into the pinned diode portion of the floating diffusion. A 6T CMOS pixel is disclosed that facilitates low-noise CDS readout.
COLOR SEPARATION PRISM AND IMAGING DEVICE
A color separation prism includes a filter, a first prism, a second prism, and a third prism. The first prism allows incidence of light transmitted through the filter, and the first reflective film reflects a first color component of the visible light and a part of the invisible light, among the light beams incident on the first prism. The second prism emits the light reflected by a second reflective film, and the second reflective film reflects the second color component of the visible light and a part of the invisible light, among the light beams incident on the second prism. The third prism emits the light transmitted through the second reflective film. The first reflective film and the second reflective film allocate the invisible light and the visible light emitted from each prism so as to obtain approximately uniform amount of the light.