RADIATION IMAGING APPARATUS, RADIATION IMAGING METHOD, AND STORAGE MEDIUM

• US 20200135780A1
• Filed: 10/21/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Hayashida, Shinsuke
• Granted Patent: US 10,971,532 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14612 involving a transistor
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14623 Optical shielding
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14645 Colour imagers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/30 for transforming X-rays into image signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/46 by combining or binning pixels
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/63 applied to dark current
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/633 by using optical black pixels
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/677 for reducing the column or line fixed pattern noise
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/75 Circuitry for providing, modifying or processing image signals from the pixel array

Abstract

A radiation imaging apparatus in which a pixel for obtaining an image based on radiation and a light shielded pixel which is shielded from light are arranged in an array, comprises: a setting unit configured to set a region including a plurality of pixels for obtaining the image based on the radiation and cause pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in the region to be output; and a correction unit configured to determine whether the light shielded pixel is included in the region, and correct the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in the region if the light shielded pixel is included in the region.

Claims

1. A radiation imaging apparatus in which a pixel for obtaining an image based on radiation and a light shielded pixel which is shielded from light are arranged in an array, comprising:

a setting unit configured to set a region including a plurality of pixels for obtaining the image based on the radiation and cause pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in the region to be output; and

a correction unit configured to determine whether the light shielded pixel is included in the region, and correct the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in the region if the light shielded pixel is included in the region.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the light shielded pixel is a pixel for obtaining an offset signal included in the image.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting unit sets a plurality of regions on a surface of a detection unit configured to detect the radiation, and causes the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels to be output for each of the plurality of regions.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein if the light shielded pixel is included in the region, the correction unit corrects the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in accordance with the number of the light shielded pixels in the region.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein if the light shielded pixel is included in the region, the correction unit amplifies the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in accordance with the number of light shielded pixels and the plurality of pixels in the region.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein based on an offset signal of the light shielded pixel, the correction unit corrects the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels.

7. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the correction unit corrects an offset signal of the light shielded pixel so that the radiation will be uniform on the surface of the detection unit configured to detect the radiation.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when binning imaging for setting the plurality of pixels as an aggregate and outputting a pixel signal of the aggregate is set, the setting unit sets the region including the plurality of pixels for obtaining the image based on the radiation, causes the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in the region to be output, and generates a binning image.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the correction unit determines based on position information of the light shielded pixel whether the light shielded pixel is included in the region.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in a binning size of the set region, the correction unit corrects, based on the pixel values of each peripheral binning image which does not include the light shielded pixel and pixel values of a binning image which includes the light shielded pixel, an offset signal of the light shielded pixel obtained after binning imaging.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein in a case in which a deficient pixel is included in the binning image, the correction unit does not use a pixel value of the deficient pixel in the correction of the offset signal of the light shielded pixel.

12. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein in the detection unit, the light shielded pixels are arranged so as not to be adjacent to each other.

13. A radiation imaging method of a radiation imaging apparatus in which a pixel for obtaining an image based on radiation and a light shielded pixel which is shielded from light are arranged in an array, the method comprising:

setting a region including a plurality of pixels for obtaining the image based on the radiation and causing pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in the region to be output; and

determining whether the light shielded pixel is included in the region, and correcting the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in the region if the light shielded pixel is included in the region.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein in the setting, a plurality of regions are set on a surface of a detection unit configured to detect the radiation, and the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels are output for each of the plurality of regions.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein in the correcting, if the light shielded pixel is included in the region, the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels are corrected in accordance with the number of the light shielded pixels in the region.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein in the correcting, if the light shielded pixel is included in the region, the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels are amplified in accordance with the number of light shielded pixels and the plurality of pixels in the region.

17. The method according to claim 13, wherein in the correcting, an offset signal of the light shielded pixel is corrected so that the radiation will be uniform on the surface of the detection unit configured to detect the radiation.

18. The method according to claim 13, wherein when binning imaging for setting the plurality of pixels as an aggregate and outputting a pixel signal of the aggregate is set, the region including the plurality of pixels for obtaining the image based on the radiation is set, the pixel values based on the plurality of pixels in the region are output, and a binning image is generated in the setting.

19. A storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute each step of a radiation imaging method defined in claim 13.