Solid state imaging apparatus and driving method of the solid state imaging apparatus using four pixel addition

• US 7,697,048 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2006
• Issued: 04/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamada, Tetsuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Ho; Tuan
• Assistant Examiner(s): WANG, KENT F
• Application Number:
  US11/394,108
• Publication Number:
  US 20060220933A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,474 Days
• Field of Search: 348/294, 358513-514
• US Class Current: 348/294
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/00 Circuitry of solid-state image sensors [SSIS]; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/46 by combining or binning pixels
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/702 SSIS architectures characterised by non-identical, non-equidistant or non-planar pixel layout
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/71 Charge-coupled device [CCD] sensors; Charge-transfer registers specially adapted for CCD sensors

Abstract

A solid state imaging apparatus of which spatial phases of pixels forming a first matrix of adjoining rows and adjoining columns are relatively different from each other is characterized by that an intersection of a line between two pixels to be added in a row direction and a line between two pixels to be added in a column direction approximately agreed with a center of four pixels to be added when the four pixels adjoining in the row and column directions are added, and phases of said centers of four pixels adjoining in the row direction or column direction are relatively different from each other in a second matrix consisted of a plurality of said centers of four pixels.

Claims

1. A solid state imaging apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of pixels forming a first matrix of adjoining rows and adjoining columns, wherein the pixels of adjoining rows and adjoining columns are relatively shifted from each other;

a plurality of vertical transfer devices that transfer signals of two rows of the pixels, the pixels of the two rows being relatively shifted from each other, in parallel as one line;

a line memory that receives and temporarily stores said one line of signal electric charges transferred in parallel;

a horizontal transfer device;

an impressing device that impresses a plurality of electrically independent control voltages, wherein said impressing device is configured to impress said control voltages such that said horizontal transfer device receives signal electric charges selectively read out from said line memory and transfers the signal electric charges serially in a horizontal direction; and

an output device that converts the signal electric charges transferred by the horizontal transfer device into voltage and outputs the voltage, wherein

signal electric charges of four pixels of said first matrix are added in said horizontal transfer device and said line memory, the four pixels consisting of two pixels adjacent in a row and two pixels adjacent in a column of said first matrix,

an intersection of a line between the two pixels in the row and a line between the two pixels in the column approximately corresponds with a center of the four pixels, and

said centers of four pixels form a second matrix of rows and columns, wherein the centers of four pixels of adjacent rows and adjacent columns are relatively shifted from each other.

2. A solid state imaging apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of pixels forming a first matrix of adjoining rows and adjoining columns, wherein the pixels of adjoining rows and adjoining columns are relatively shifted from each other;

a plurality of vertical transfer devices which transfer signals of two rows of the pixels, the pixels of the two rows being relatively shifted from each other, in parallel as one line;

a line memory that receives and temporarily stores said one line of signal electric charges transferred in parallel;

horizontal transfer device;

an impressing device that impresses a plurality of electrically independent control voltages, wherein said impressing device is configured to impress said control voltages such that said horizontal transfer device receives signal electric charges selectively read out from said line memory and transfers the signal electric charges serially in a horizontal direction; and

an output device that converts the signal electric charges transferred by the horizontal transfer device into voltage and outputs the voltage,

wherein said impressing device is configured to impress said control voltages such that a signal of one pixel (left P3) at a cycle of four-pixel signals of four pixels horizontally adjoining with each another in said one line of the signal electric charges is added to a signal of a preceding line (right P2) adjoining to said one line, said preceding line transferred before said one line and accumulated in said horizontal transfer device, wherein said four pixels form one group;

after all the signal electric charges in the horizontal transfer device are output, signals of the remaining three pixels (left P4, right P4, right P3) in said one group in said line memory are transferred to the horizontal transfer device and two pixels (right P3, left P4) are added in the horizontal transfer device to vacate said line memory, whereby two pixels (left P4, right P3) are transferred to the horizontal transfer device and then the third remaining pixel (right P4) is transferred to the horizontal transfer device and added to a pixel (right P3) in the horizontal transfer device, and simultaneously a succeeding line of signal electric charges accumulated in said vertical transfer device are transferred to said line memory; and

a signal of one pixel (right P1) at a cycle of four-pixel signals of four pixels horizontally adjoining with each another in said succeeding line of the signal electric charges, a spatial phase of said succeeding line being 180 degree different from a spatial phase of said one pixel in said one line, is selectively read out from said line memory to said horizontal transfer device and added to a signal of the non-added pixel (left P4) in said one group; and

after all the signal electric charges in the horizontal transfer device are output, signals of the remaining three pixels (left P2, left P1, right P2) in said succeeding line in said line memory are transferred to the horizontal transfer device and two pixels (left P1, left P2) are added in the horizontal transfer device, whereby two pixels (left P1, right P2) are transferred to the horizontal transfer device and then the third remaining pixel (left P2) is transferred to the horizontal transfer device and added to a pixel (left P1) in the horizontal transfer device.

3. A solid state imaging apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of pixels forming a first matrix of adjoining rows and adjoining columns, wherein the pixels of adjoining rows and adjoining columns are relatively shifted from each other;

a plurality of vertical transfer devices for transferring signals of two rows of the pixels, the pixels of the two rows being relatively shifted from each other, in parallel as one line;

a line memory for receiving and temporarily storing said one line of signal electric charges transferred in parallel;

a horizontal transfer device;

an impressing device a plurality of electrically independent control voltages;

wherein said impressing device is configured to impress said control voltages such that said horizontal transfer device receives the signal electric charges selectively read out from said line memory and transfers the signal electric charges serially in a horizontal direction; and

an output device for converting the signal electric charges transferred by the horizontal transfer device into voltage and outputting the voltage, characterized in that

said impressing device is configured to impress said control voltages such that a signal of one pixel (left P3) at a cycle of four-pixel signals of four pixels horizontally adjoining with each other in said one line of the signal electric charges is added to three signals (left P2, left P1, right P2) of a preceding line adjoining to said one line, said preceding line transferred before said one line and accumulated in said horizontal transfer device;

wherein said four pixels form one group;

the remaining signals of three pixels (left P4, right P4, right P3) in said one group in said line memory is transferred to the horizontal transfer device to vacate said line memory, and simultaneously a succeeding line of signal electric charges accumulated in said vertical transfer device are transferred to said line memory; and

a signal of one pixel (right P1) at a cycle of four-pixel consisting of one group of four signals of four pixels horizontally adjoining with each other in said succeeding line of the signal electric charges, are selectively read out from said line memory to said horizontal transfer device and added to said signals of three pixels (left P4, right P4, right P3) previously transferred.

4. A method of adding signal electric charges of a solid state imaging apparatus, said solid state imaging apparatus comprising:

a plurality of pixels forming a first matrix of adjoining rows and adjoining columns, wherein the pixels of adjoining rows and adjoining columns are relatively shifted from each other;

the method comprising

transferring signals of two rows of the pixels, the pixels of the two rows being relatively shifted from one another, in parallel as one line from a plurality of vertical transfer devices;

receiving and temporarily storing said one line of signal electric charges transferred in parallel in a line memory;

impressing a plurality of electrically independent control voltages to a horizontal transfer device, said horizontal transfer device receiving signal electric charges selectively read out from said line memory and transferring the signal electric charges serially in a horizontal direction; and

converting the signal electric charges transferred by the horizontal transfer device to an output device into voltage and outputting the voltage from the output device, characterized in that

an impressing device is configured to impress said control voltages such that a signal of one pixel (left P3) at a cycle of four-pixel signals of four pixels horizontally adjoining with each other in said one line of the signal electric charges is added to a signal of a preceding line (right P2) adjoining to said one line, said preceding line transferred before said one line and accumulated in said horizontal transfer device, wherein said four pixels form one group;

after all the signal electric charges in the horizontal transfer device are output, signals of the remaining three pixels (left P4, right P4, right P3) in said one group in said line memory are transferred to the horizontal transfer device and two pixels (right P3, left P4) are added in the horizontal transfer device to vacate said line memory, whereby two pixels (left P4, right P3) are transferred to the horizontal transfer device and then the third remaining pixel (right P4) is transferred to the horizontal transfer device and added to a pixel (right P3) in the horizontal transfer device, and simultaneously a succeeding line of signal electric charges accumulated in said vertical transfer device are transferred to said line memory;

a signal of one pixel (right P1) at a cycle of four-pixel signals of four pixels horizontally adjoining with each other in said succeeding line of the signal electric charges, a spatial phase of said one pixel of said succeeding line being 180 degree different from a spatial phase of said one pixel in said one line, is selectively read out from said line memory to said horizontal transfer device and added to a signal of the non-added pixel (left P4) in said one group; and

after all the signal electric charges in the horizontal transfer device are output, signals of the remaining three pixels (left P2, left P1, right P2) in said succeeding line in said line memory are transferred to the horizontal transfer device and two pixels (left P1, left P2) are added in the horizontal transfer device, whereby two pixels (left P1, right P2) are transferred to the horizontal transfer device and then the third remaining pixel (left P2) is transferred to the horizontal transfer device and added to a pixel (left P1) in the horizontal transfer device.

5. A method of adding signal electric charges of a solid state imaging apparatus, said imaging apparatus comprising:

a plurality of pixels forming a first matrix of adjoining rows and adjoining columns, wherein the pixels of adjoining rows and adjoining columns are relatively shifted from each other, the method comprising;

transferring signals of two rows of the pixels, the pixels of the two rows being relatively shifted from one another, in parallel as one line from a plurality of vertical transfer devices;

receiving and temporarily storing said one line of signal electric charges transferred in parallel in a line memory;

impressing a plurality of electrically independent control voltages to a horizontal transfer device, said horizontal transfer device receiving the signal electric charges selectively read out from said line memory and transferring the signal electric charges serially in a horizontal direction; and

an output device converting the signal electric charges transferred by the horizontal transfer device to an output device into voltage and outputting the voltage,

characterized in that

an impressing device is configured to impress said control voltages such that a signal of one pixel (left P3) at a cycle of four-pixel signals of four pixels horizontally adjoining with each other in said one line of the signal electric charges is added to three signals (left P2, left P1, right P2) of a preceding line adjoining to said one line, said preceding line transferred before said one line and accumulated in said horizontal transfer device;

wherein said four pixels form one group;

the remaining signals of three pixels (left P4, right P4, right P3) in said one group in said line memory is transferred to the horizontal transfer device to vacate said line memory, and simultaneously a succeeding line of signal electric charges accumulated in said vertical transfer device are transferred to said line memory; and

a signal of one pixel (right P1) at a cycle of four-pixel consisting one group of four signals of four pixels horizontally adjoining with each other in said succeeding line of the signal electric charges, are selectively read out from said line memory to said horizontal transfer device and added to said signals of three pixels (left P4, right P4, right P3) previously transferred.