Method and apparatus providing pixel storage gate charge sensing for electronic stabilization in imagers
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An imaging device comprising:
- a plurality of pixels, each pixel comprising a photosensor and at least a first gate for storing charge from said photosensor when activated by a first control signal; and
a plurality of first circuits, each first circuit being connected to and associated with a respective first set of pixels, each first circuit generating the first control signal for all pixels in its respective first set and sensing an amount of charge stored under said first gates in the respective first set.
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Abstract
An imaging device that stores charge from a photosensor under at least one storage gate. A driver used to operate the at least one storage gate, senses how much charge was transferred to the storage gate. The sensed charge is used to obtain at least one signature of the image scene. The at least one signature may then be used for processing such as e.g., motion detection, auto-exposure, and auto-white balancing.
50 Citations
48 Claims
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1. An imaging device comprising:
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a plurality of pixels, each pixel comprising a photosensor and at least a first gate for storing charge from said photosensor when activated by a first control signal; and
a plurality of first circuits, each first circuit being connected to and associated with a respective first set of pixels, each first circuit generating the first control signal for all pixels in its respective first set and sensing an amount of charge stored under said first gates in the respective first set. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A system comprising:
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a processor; and
an imaging device communicating with said processor, said device comprising;
a plurality of pixels organized as an array of rows and columns, each pixel in said array comprising a photosensor and at least a first gate for storing charge from said photosensor when activated by a first control signal, and a plurality of first circuits, each first circuit being connected to and associated with a respective first set of pixels, each first circuit generating the first control signal for all pixels in its respective first set and sensing an amount of charge stored under said first gates in the respective first set. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. An imager pixel comprising:
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a photosensor;
a first gate for storing charge from said photosensor when activated by a first control signal; and
a second gate for storing charge from said photosensor when activated by a second control signal. - View Dependent Claims (34)
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35. A method of operating an imaging device, the imaging device comprising a plurality of pixels, each comprising a photosensor and at least a first storage gate, said method comprising the acts of:
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for each pixel, storing charge from the photosensor to the first gate;
for each pixel, sensing the charge stored on the first gate; and
using the sensed charges to obtain a first signature of a first image scene obtained by the imaging device, wherein the first signature is processed in at least one operation consisting of motion detection, automatic balancing and white balancing. - View Dependent Claims (36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48)
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Specification