IMAGE SENSOR, CONTROL METHOD THEREFOR, AND IMAGE CAPTURING APPARATUS

• US 20170272675A1
• Filed: 03/15/2017
• Published: 09/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Kobayashi, Hirokazu
• Granted Patent: US 10,205,904 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/63 applied to dark current
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/704 Pixels specially adapted for focusing, e.g. phase difference pixel sets
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/75 Circuitry for providing, modifying or processing image signals from the pixel array
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/778 comprising amplifiers shared between a plurality of pixels, i.e. at least one part of the amplifier must be on the sensor array itself

Abstract

An image sensor has a plurality of unit pixels each provided with a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions and a floating diffusion portion, and an analog-digital converter. The analog-digital converter is controlled to: convert a reset level of the floating diffusion portion by counting in a first or second direction to acquire a first noise signal, acquire a first optical signal by counting in the first direction an analog signal of a first photo charge accumulated in a first photoelectric conversion portion, acquire a second noise signal by counting in the second direction a potential that the floating diffusion portion has after the first optical signal is acquired, and acquire a second optical signal by counting in the first direction an analog signal of a second photo charge accumulated in a second photoelectric conversion portion.

Claims

1. An image sensor comprising:

a pixel portion in which a plurality of unit pixels each provided with a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions and a floating diffusion portion shared by the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions are arrayed in matrix form;

an analog-digital converter that compares an analog signal with a reference signal that changes over time at a predetermined gradient, and converts the analog signal to a digital signal by counting, in a first direction or a second direction that differs from the first direction, from a start of the comparison until a transition point of a result of the comparison; and

a control circuit that controls the analog-digital converter;

wherein the control circuit controls the analog-digital converter in a first mode to;

convert a reset level of the floating diffusion portion by counting in the first direction or the second direction to acquire a first noise signal,

acquire a first optical signal by counting, in the first direction, an analog signal obtained by transferring a first photo charge accumulated in one or more photoelectric conversion portions including at least a first photoelectric conversion portion, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion,

acquire a second noise signal by counting, in the second direction, a potential that the floating diffusion portion has after the first optical signal is acquired, and

acquire a second optical signal by counting, in the first direction, an analog signal obtained by transferring a second photo charge accumulated in at least a second photoelectric conversion portion not included in the one or more photoelectric conversion portions, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion.

2. The image sensor according to claim 1, further comprising:

a storage that stores the digital signal obtained by the analog-digital converter; and

a processor that selectively performs first processing for replacing the second noise signal stored in the storage with a predetermined value in a case where the second noise signal is smaller than a predetermined threshold and second processing for replacing the second noise signal stored in the storage with a value obtained by multiplying the second noise signal stored in the storage by a predetermined coefficient.

3. The image sensor according to claim 2,

wherein the predetermined value is 0.

4. The image sensor according to claim 2,

wherein the coefficient is a ratio of a time period taken to acquire the second noise signal and one of a time period from after conversion to the first noise signal until conversion of the second optical signal is started and a time period from after conversion to the first noise signal until the second photo charge accumulated in the second photoelectric conversion portion is transferred to the floating diffusion portion.

5. The image sensor according to claim 1, further comprising:

a storage that stores the digital signal obtained by the analog-digital converter; and

a processor that performs processing for replacing the second noise signal stored in the storage with a value obtained by multiplying the second noise signal stored in the storage by a coefficient set according to a magnitude of the first optical signal.

6. The image sensor according to claim 1, further comprising:

an output circuit that outputs the digital signal obtained by the analog-digital converter,

wherein the output circuit outputs a signal obtained by subtracting the first noise signal from the first optical signal, and a signal obtained by subtracting the first noise signal and the second noise signal from the second optical signal.

7. The image sensor according to claim 1, further comprising:

an output circuit that outputs the digital signal obtained by the analog-digital converter,

wherein the control circuit performs control to acquire the second optical signal by counting in the first direction, with a count of the second noise signal obtained by counting in the second direction as an initial value, and

the output circuit outputs a signal obtained by subtracting the first noise signal from the first optical signal, and a signal obtained by subtracting the first noise signal from the second optical signal.

8. The image sensor according to claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of microlenses,

wherein the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions each correspond a different one of the plurality of microlenses.

9. The image sensor according to claim 1,

wherein the control circuit further controls the analog-digital converter in a second mode to:

convert the reset level of the floating diffusion portion by counting in the first direction to acquire the first noise signal, and

convert an analog signal obtained by transferring electric charges accumulated in the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions to the floating diffusion portion by counting in the first direction to acquire a third signal, and

the control circuit controls readout of a predetermined region of the photoelectric conversion portions arrayed in matrix form in the first mode, and controls readout of a region other than the predetermined region in the second mode.

10. The image sensor according to claim 9,

wherein a readout cycle of the photoelectric conversion portions for one row in the first mode is twice as long as a readout cycle of the photoelectric conversion portions for one row in the second mode.

11. An image capturing apparatus in which an image sensor is mounted, wherein the image sensor comprising:

a pixel portion in which a plurality of unit pixels each provided with a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions and a floating diffusion portion shared by the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions are arrayed in matrix form;

an analog-digital converter that compares an analog signal with a reference signal that changes over time at a predetermined gradient, and converts the analog signal to a digital signal by counting, in a first direction or a second direction that differs from the first direction, from a start of the comparison until a transition point of a result of the comparison; and

a control circuit that controls the analog-digital converter;

wherein the control circuit controls the analog-digital converter in a first mode to;

convert a reset level of the floating diffusion portion by counting in the first direction or the second direction to acquire a first noise signal,

acquire a first optical signal by counting, in the first direction, an analog signal obtained by transferring a first photo charge accumulated in one or more photoelectric conversion portions including at least a first photoelectric conversion portion, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion,

acquire a second noise signal by counting, in the second direction, a potential that the floating diffusion portion has after the first optical signal is acquired, and

acquire a second optical signal by counting, in the first direction, an analog signal obtained by transferring a second photo charge accumulated in at least a second photoelectric conversion portion not included in the one or more photoelectric conversion portions, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion.

12. An image sensor comprising:

a pixel portion in which a plurality of unit pixels each provided with a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions and a floating diffusion portion shared by the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions are arrayed in matrix form; and

a control circuit that controls the pixel portion;

wherein the control circuit performs control to;

reset the floating diffusion portion, and acquire a first noise signal based on a potential that the floating diffusion portion has after the resetting,

transfer a first photo charge accumulated in one or more photoelectric conversion portions including at least a first photoelectric conversion portion, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion, and acquire a first optical signal based on the potential of the floating diffusion portion to which the first photo charge was transferred,

acquire a second noise signal based on the potential that the floating diffusion portion has after the first optical signal is acquired, and

transfer a second photo charge accumulated in at least a second photoelectric conversion portion not included in the one or more photoelectric conversion portions, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion, and acquire a second optical signal based on the potential of the floating diffusion portion to which the second photo charge was transferred.

13. A control method of an image sensor having a pixel portion in which a plurality of unit pixels each provided with a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions and a floating diffusion portion shared by the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions are arrayed in matrix form, and an analog-digital converter that compares an analog signal with a reference signal that changes over time at a predetermined gradient, and converts the analog signal to a digital signal by counting, in a first direction or a second direction that differs from the first direction, from a start of the comparison until a transition point of a result of the comparison, the analog-digital converter:

converting a reset level of the floating diffusion portion by counting in the first direction or the second direction to acquire a first noise signal,

acquiring a first optical signal by counting, in the first direction, an analog signal obtained by transferring a first photo charge accumulated in one or more photoelectric conversion portions including at least a first photoelectric conversion portion, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion,

acquiring a second noise signal by counting, in the second direction, a potential that the floating diffusion portion has after the first optical signal is acquired, and

acquiring a second optical signal by counting, in the first direction, an analog signal obtained by transferring a second photo charge accumulated in at least a second photoelectric conversion portion not included in the one or more photoelectric conversion portions, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion.

14. A control method of an image sensor having a pixel portion in which a plurality of unit pixels each provided with a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions and a floating diffusion portion shared by the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions are arrayed in matrix form, the method comprising:

resetting the floating diffusion portion, and acquiring a first noise signal based on a potential that the floating diffusion portion has after the resetting,

transferring a first photo charge accumulated in one or more photoelectric conversion portions including at least a first photoelectric conversion portion, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion, and acquiring a first optical signal based on the potential of the floating diffusion portion to which the first photo charge was transferred,

acquiring a second noise signal based on the potential that the floating diffusion portion has after the first optical signal is acquired, and

transferring a second photo charge accumulated in at least a second photoelectric conversion portion not included in the one or more photoelectric conversion portions, among the plurality of photoelectric conversion portions, to the floating diffusion portion, and acquiring a second optical signal based on the potential of the floating diffusion portion to which the second photo charge was transferred.