An apparatus includes a motion detection unit configured to detect a moving object in an angle of view based on an event signal indicating a location of a pixel where a luminance change occurs and time when the luminance change occurs, a shape detection unit configured to detect a shape of the moving object from frame data generated based on the event signal, and a control unit configured to change the angle of view, wherein in a case where the detected moving object is not currently detected, the shape detection unit detects the shape of the moving object by changing the angle of view by a predetermined value.

Various implementations disclosed herein include devices, systems, and methods that determine a control signal before synchronous readout of a frame (or part of the frame) is performed by a sensor. Various implementations disclosed herein include devices, systems, and methods that determine event density (e.g., a dense row signal or a dense frame signal) before synchronous readout is performed by the sensor. In some implementations, the event camera is capable of operating in a first readout mode and a second readout mode based on a number of events. In the second readout mode, less data per pixel may be readout.

A light detecting device includes a photoelectric conversion unit configured to generate a photoelectric charge, a first charge holding unit that includes a first capacitive element and holds the photoelectric charge generated by the photoelectric conversion unit, a second charge holding unit configured to hold the photoelectric charge transferred from the first charge holding unit, a first transistor arranged on a wiring connecting the first charge holding unit and the second charge holding unit to transfer the photoelectric charge held in the first charge holding unit to the second charge holding unit, and a second transistor configured to cause a pixel signal of a voltage value corresponding to a charge amount of the photoelectric charge held in the second charge holding unit to appear on a signal line.

A quantitative pulse count (event detection) algorithm with linearity to high count rates is accomplished by combining a high-speed, high frame rate camera with simple logic code run on a massively parallel processor such as a GPU or a FPGA. The parallel processor elements examine frames from the camera pixel by pixel to find and tag events or count pulses. The tagged events are combined to form a combined quantitative event image.

An image sensor may include an array of image pixels. The array of image pixel may be coupled to column readout circuitry. A given image pixel may generate a low light signal and a high light signal for a given exposure. A column line may couple the given image pixel to readout circuitry having amplifier circuitry. The column line may be coupled to an autozeroing transistor for reading out the high light signal and a source follower stage for readout out the low light signal. The amplifier circuitry may receive different common mode voltage depending on whether it is amplifying the low or high light signal. The gain and other operating parameters of the amplifier circuitry may be adjusted based on whether it is amplifying the low or high signal. If desired, separate amplifier circuitry may be implemented for the low and high light signals.

A solid-state imaging device capable of suppressing variations in reference voltages and improving performance of reference voltages is provided. According to one embodiment, the solid-state imaging device includes a pixel outputting a luminance signal voltage corresponding to an amount of incident light, reference voltages, a reference voltage generation circuit outputting a ramp signal and an inverse ramp signal, and an AD converter, and the AD converter includes a comparator including an amplifier coupled to one input terminal, a reference voltage and an input terminal coupled to each of the ramp signals via a capacitor, and an input terminal coupled to each of the reference voltage and the ramp signal via a capacitor, and a ramp current cancel circuit coupled to each of the reference voltages via a cancel capacitor.

An image capturing apparatus includes an area sensor on which photoelectric conversion elements are arranged two-dimensionally, and that includes a plurality of regions, a reading unit for reading, from the area sensor, signals photoelectrically converted by the photoelectric conversion elements, a focus detection unit for performing focus detection using the signals read by the reading unit, and a control unit for performing control as to from which region of the plurality of regions the reading unit preferentially reads the signals of the photoelectric conversion elements.

The present technology relates to a solid-state imaging device, a signal processing chip, and an electronic apparatus that make it possible to utilize the result of detecting an occurrence of an event in imaging. The solid-state imaging device includes: an event detection unit that detects, as an event, a change in an electrical signal generated by each pixel of a pixel array unit; a region-of-interest detection unit that detects, from a result of detecting the event, a region-of-interest of the pixel array unit; and a pixel signal generation unit that generates a pixel signal constituting an image of a region corresponding to the region-of-interest. The present technology is applicable to, for example, a sensor that detects an event that is a change in an electrical signal of a pixel.

An imaging device including a photoelectric converter that converts incident light into an electric charge; a transfer transistor; a first node coupled to the photoelectric converter via the transfer transistor; a first signal detection transistor having a gate coupled to the first node; a second signal detection transistor having a gate coupled to the photoelectric converter; a signal line coupled to one of a source and a drain of the first signal detection transistor; a first transistor coupled to the first node; and a second transistor coupled to the photoelectric converter, wherein one of the source and the drain of the first signal detection transistor is coupled to the first transistor, one of a source and a drain of the second signal detection transistor is coupled to the second transistor, and no transistor is coupled between the photoelectric converter and the gate of the second signal detection transistor.

An image sensing device and a fingerprint sensing method are provided. The image sensing device is suitable for being installed in an electronic device. The image sensing device includes a light sensor and a controller. The controller is coupled to the light sensor. When the electronic device is operated in a sleep mode, the controller operates the light sensor in a light sensing mode. The controller determines whether a number of signal intensity changes of a photosensitive signal output by the light sensor exceeds a predetermined number of intensity changes within a predetermined length of time, so as to switch the operation of the light sensor in a fingerprint sensing mode.