Interlaced readout of charge stored in charge-coupled image sensing array

• US 3,911,467 A
• Filed: 07/25/1974
• Issued: 10/07/1975
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/1974
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: James Edward Carnes, Peter Alan Levine
• Original Assignee: James Edward Carnes, Peter Alan Levine
• Inventors: Levine, Peter Alan, Carnes, James Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): Griffin, Robert L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Godfrey, R. John
• Application Number:
  US05/491,836
• Time in Patent Office: 439 Days
• Field of Search: 357/24 307/221D 250/553 178/7.7,7.1 358/41
• US Class Current: 257/231
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14831 Area CCD imagers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/46 by combining or binning pixels
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/71 Charge-coupled device [CCD] sensors; Charge-transfer registers specially adapted for CCD sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/72 using frame transfer [FT]

Abstract

Horizontal interlacing of charge patterns read from an image sensing array is achieved by combining the charge signals read from each I'"'"''"'"'th and (I + 1'"'"''"'"'th) column during alternate field times and combining the charge signals read from each I'"'"''"'"'th and (I 1'"'"''"'"'th) column during the remaining field times.

Claims

1. A method of interlacing both vertically and horizontally the information received by an image sensing array having Q columns and S rows of image sensing locations where each location comprises N image sensing elements in a column and where Q, S and N are integers greater than 1, and for placing the interlaced information in the stages of a shift register having Q/2 stages comprising the steps of:

sensing the image during a first integration time only at corresponding groups of M of the N elements at each location, where M is an integer equal to at least 1 and which is less than N, and converting the radiation sensed at each location into a charge proportional to the amount of said radiation;

shifting the charge accumulated during the first integration time into said output register with the charge stored in each pair of adjacent columns being concurrently shifted into a register stage for that pair of columns;

sensing the image during a second integration time only at the remaining groups of M-N elements at each location and converting the radiation sensed at each location into a charge proportional to the amount of said radiation; and

shifting the charge accumulated during the second integration time into said output register with the charge stored in each pair of adjacent columns being concurrently shifted into a register stage for that pair of columns, where each pair of columns selected for shifting the charge accumulated during the second integration time is different than each pair of columns selected for shifting the charge accumulated during the first integration time and includes one column taken from one pair and a Second column taken from a second pair of columns employed for shifting the charge accumulated during the first integration time.

2. A METHOD OF HORIZONTALLY INTERLACING A VERTICALLJY INTERLACED CHARGE PATTERN OF THE TYPE IN WHICH A FIRST PORTION OF THE PATTERN IS SHIFTED OUT OF AN IMAGE-SENSING ARRAY IN THE COLUMN DIRECTION DURING A FIRST TIME PERIOD TO PROVIDE ONE FIELD OF A FRAME AND A SECOND PORTION OF THE PATTERN, VERTICALLY INTERLACED WITH THE FIRST, IS SHIFTED OUT OF THE ARRAY IN THE COLUMN DIRECTION DURING A SECOND TIME PERIOD TO PROVIDE A SECOND FIELD OF THE FRAME, COMPRISING THE STEPS OF, DURING THE FIRST TIME PERIOD, CONBINING INTO A SINGLE CHARGE SIGNAL, EACH PAIR OF CHARGE SIGNALS PRESENT IN TWO ADJACENT COLUMNS, ALONG EACH ROW OF THE ARRAY, AND DURING THE SECOND TIME PERIOD, COMBINING INTO A SINGLE CHARGE SIGUAL, EACH PAIR OF CHARGE SIGNALS PRESENT IN THE TWO ADJACENT COLUMNS ALONG EACH ROW OF THE ARRAY, SHIFTED IN THE ROW DIRECTION RELATIVE TO THE ADJACENT REGIONS SELECTED DURING THE FIRST TIME PERIOD, BY ONE COLUMN.

3. The combination of:

a charge coupled, image sensing array having Q columns and S rows of image sensing locations, the columns comprising the channels of the array, and each location including N electrode means along a channel, where Q, S and N are all integers greater than 1;

an output register having Q/2 stages, one stage for each pair of columns;

means during one integration time for sensing the image at corresponding groups of M of the N electrode means at each location, and for accumulating a charge signal proportional to the amount of radiation sensed, where M is an integer less than N and equal to at least 1;

means during the following integration time for sensing the image at the remaining groups of N-M electrode means at each location, and for accumulating a charge signal proportional to the amount of radiation sensed;

means for sequentially transferring, after the first integration time, the charge signals accumulated in each pair of columns I and (I+1) to the (I+1)/2 register stage and for sequentially transferring, after the second integration time, the charge signals accumulated in each pair of columns (I+1) and (I+2) to the (I+1)/2 register stage, where I is an odd integer equal to 1, 3 . . . (Q-1); and

means, after each transfer of a row of charge signals to said register, for sequentially shifting said signals out of said register.

4. A method of horizontally interlacing two sequential fields of a charge pattern read in the column direction from a charge transfer image sensing array comprising the steps of:

combining the charge signals read from each I'"'"''"'"'th and (I+1'"'"''"'"'th) columns of the array for each alternate field; and

combining the charge signals read from each I'"'"''"'"'th and (I-1'"'"''"'"'th) columns of the array for each remaining field, where I is an even integer equal to 2, 4 . . . Q, and where the array includes at least Q columns.

5. A method of horizontally interlacing two sequential fields of a charge pattern read in the column direction from a charge transfer image sensing array comprising the steps of:

horizontally displacing a row of the second field relative to a row in the first field by, for each resolution element in said row in said second field, combining the charge signals read from a first group of N adjacent columns, and for each corresponding resolution element in said row in said first field, combining the charge signals read from a second group of N adjacent columns, where N is an integer equal to at least 2 and where each first group of columns includes at least one but less than all of the columns in the second group.

6. A method as set forth in claim 5 where N-1 of the columns of the second group are common to the first group.

7. A method as set forth in claim 6 where N 2.

8. A method as set forth in claim 6, where the two sequential fields comprise vertically interlaced fields.

9. The combination of:

a charge coupled, image sensing array having Q columns and S rows of image sensing locations, the columns comprising the channels of the array, and each location including N electrode means along a channel, where Q, S and N are all integers greater than 1;

an output register having Q/2 stages, one stage for each pair of columns;

means during one integration time for sensing the image at corresponding groups of M of the N electrode means at each location, and for accumulating a charge signal proportional to the amount of radiation sensed, where M is an integer less than N and equal to at least 1;

means during the following integration time for sensing the image at the remaining group of N-M electrode means at each location, and for accumulating a charge signal proportional to the amount of radiation sensed;

means for transferring, after the first integration time, the charge signals for one row accumulated in each pair of columns I and (I+1) to the (I+1)/2 register stage and for transferring to the (I+1)/2 register stage, after the second integration time, the charge signals for a second row accumulated in each pair of columns (I+1) and (I+2) said second row to be adjacent to said first row, when interlaced therewith, where I is an odd integer equal to 1, 3 . . . (Q-1); and

means, after each transfer of a row of charge signals to said register, for sequentially shifting said signals out of said register.

10. In a charge transfer image sensing system which includes a photosensing array having Q columns of storage elements, a temporary storage array having the same number of columns of storage elements, and an output register connected to the columns of the temporary storage array, the improvement comprising:

said output register having a number of stages equal to a sub-multiple Q/N of the columns in said temporary storage array, where N is an integer equal to at least 2;

means during one time interval for shifting the contents of each I'"'"''"'"'th first group of N columns, into the I'"'"''"'"'th output register stage, where I 1, 2, 3 . . . Q/N; and

means during another time interval for shifting the contents of each I'"'"''"'"'th second group of N columns, into the I'"'"''"'"'th output register stage, where each I'"'"''"'"'th first group has at least one column not in the I'"'"''"'"'th second group and at least one column which is in the I'"'"''"'"'th second group.