Systems and methods for power conservation in a CMOS imager
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An imaging system for electronically capturing optical images, wherein the imaging system comprises:
- a pixel array, wherein the pixel array comprises;
a first pixel group, wherein the first pixel group is associated with a first portion of an optical image and is associated with a first signal, and a second pixel group, wherein the second pixel group is associated with a second portion of the optical image and is associated with a second signal;
a first analog processing path, comprising a first analog to digital converter, wherein;
the first analog processing path converts the first signal to a first digital signal, and the first analog processing path operates in a first power mode; and
a second analog processing path, comprising a second analog to digital converter, wherein;
the second analog processing path converts the second signal to a second digital signal, the second analog processing path operates in a second power mode, and the first power mode consumes more power than the second power mode.
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Abstract
The present invention provides systems and methods capable of reducing power consumption in an imaging device. One imaging device includes two analog to digital converters that are separately programmable and can be in different power modes. Each digital to analog converter is capable of creating an image derived from a pixel array that has a full field of view, but lower resolution.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An imaging system for electronically capturing optical images, wherein the imaging system comprises:
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a pixel array, wherein the pixel array comprises;
a first pixel group, wherein the first pixel group is associated with a first portion of an optical image and is associated with a first signal, and a second pixel group, wherein the second pixel group is associated with a second portion of the optical image and is associated with a second signal;
a first analog processing path, comprising a first analog to digital converter, wherein;
the first analog processing path converts the first signal to a first digital signal, and the first analog processing path operates in a first power mode; and
a second analog processing path, comprising a second analog to digital converter, wherein;
the second analog processing path converts the second signal to a second digital signal, the second analog processing path operates in a second power mode, and the first power mode consumes more power than the second power mode. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for image acquisition with a CMOS imaging array, the method comprising steps of:
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generating a first analog signal representative of a first rectangular subset of pixels from the CMOS imaging array, wherein the first rectangular subset of pixels includes a first plurality of pixels;
converting the first signal into first digital data representative of the first signal;
generating a second analog signal representative of a second rectangular subset of pixels from the CMOS imaging array, wherein the second rectangular subset of pixels includes a second plurality of pixels; and
selectively converting the second analog signal into second digital data representative of the second analog signal when a power mode is selected. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. An imaging system for electronically capturing optical images, the imaging system comprising:
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a pixel array, wherein the pixel array comprises a first pixel and a second pixel, wherein the first pixel provides a first analog electrical signal associated with a first portion of an image, and wherein the second pixel provides a second analog signal associated with a second portion of the image;
a first analog to digital converter, wherein the first analog to digital converter converts the first analog electrical signal to a first digital electrical signal; and
a second analog to digital converter, wherein;
the second analog to digital converter converts the second analog electrical signal to a second digital electrical signal, and the second analog to digital converter is put into a reduced power mode when the first analog to digital converter is not in the reduced power mode. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification