High-speed video camera using solid-state image sensor

• US 5,157,499 A
• Filed: 06/17/1991
• Issued: 10/20/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha N A C
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha N A C
• Inventors: Oguma, Kazuhiko, Saito, Yutaka, Suzuki, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Razavi, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Greening, Wendy R.
• Application Number:
  US07/716,630
• Time in Patent Office: 491 Days
• Field of Search: 358/225, 358/226, 358/213.11, 358/49, 358/50, 358/213.26
• US Class Current: 348/294
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/41 Extracting pixel data from a plurality of image sensors simultaneously picking up an image, e.g. for increasing the field of view by combining the outputs of a plurality of sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/745 Circuitry for generating timing or clock signals

Abstract

A high-speed video camera having a plurality of solid-state black-and-white image pickup elements to which same scene is projected, respectively, each of said image pickup elements consisting of a plurality of photoelectric conversion element rows, some of which are scanned at the same time. A high-speed color video camera having a plurality of solid-state black-and-white image pickup elements and a plurality of solid-state color image pickup elements to which same scene is projected, respectively, each of image pickup elements consisting of a plurality of photoelectric conversion element rows, some of which in the solid-state black-and-white image pickup elements are scanned at the same time so that a luminance signal component is obtained therefrom, and some of which in the solid-state color image pickup elements are scanned at the same time so that a color signal component is obtained therefrom. The luminance signal component and the color signal component are synthesized to form a color image.

Claims

1. A high-speed video camera comprising first and second solid-state image pickup elements each having a predetermined number of photoelectric conversion element rows, a mechanism for projecting an entire scene equally onto said first and second solid-state image pickup elements, a first scanning mechanism for scanning photoelectric conversion element rows of an arbitrary number in said first solid-state image pickup element, a second scanning mechanism for scanning photoelectric conversion element rows of an arbitrary number in said second solid-state image pickup elements being different from the above-mentioned rows in the first solid-state image pickup element scanned by said first scanning mechanism, said second scanning mechanism being synchronized in operation with said first scanning mechanism, and a mechanism for synthesizing signals obtained from said first and second scanning mechanisms in an image.

2. A high-speed video camera comprising first, second and third solid-state image pickup elements each having a predetermined number of photoelectric conversion element rows, a mechanism for projecting an entire scene equally onto said first, second and third solid-state image pickup elements, a first scanning mechanism for scanning photoelectric conversion element rows of an arbitrary number in said first solid-state image pickup element, a second scanning mechanism for scanning photoelectric conversion element rows of an arbitrary number in said second solid-state image pickup elements being different from the above-mentioned rows in the first solid-state image pickup element scanned by said first scanning mechanism, a third scanning mechanism for scanning photoelectric conversion element rows of an arbitrary number in said third solid-state image pickup elements being different from the above-mentioned rows in the first and second solid-state image pickup elements scanned by said first and second scanning mechanisms, respectively, said first, second and third scanning mechanism being synchronized in operation with one another, and a mechanism for synthesizing signals obtained from said first, second and third scanning mechanisms in an image.

3. A high-speed video camera comprising at least first and second solid-state black-and-white image pickup elements each having a plurality of photoelectric conversion element rows, at least first and second solid-state color image pickup elements each having a plurality of photoelectric conversion element rows, a mechanism for projecting an entire scene equally onto said first and second solid-state black-and-white image pickup elements and first and second solid-state color image pickup elements, a first scanning mechanism for scanning photo-electric conversion element rows of an arbitrary number in said first black-and-white and solid-state color image pickup elements, a second scanning mechanism for scanning photoelectric conversion element rows of an arbitrary number in said second solid-state black-and-white and color image pickup elements being different from the above-mentioned rows in the first black-and-white and color solid-state image pickup elements scanned by said first scanning mechanism, said second scanning mechanism being synchronized in operation with said first scanning mechanism, a mechanism for synthesizing signals obtained from said first and second scanning mechanisms for said first and second solid-state black-and-white image pickup elements in one frame to form a luminance signal component, a mechanism for synthesizing signals obtained from said first and second solid-state color image pickup elements in one frame to form a color signal component, and a mechanism for synthesizing the luminance signal component and the color signal component in a color image.