Multi-array sensor with integrated sub-array for parallax detection and photometer functionality

• US 7,782,364 B2
• Filed: 08/21/2007
• Issued: 08/24/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aptina Imaging Corporation (ON Semiconductor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Aptina Imaging Corporation (ON Semiconductor Corporation)
• Inventors: Smith, Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Sinh
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lam; Hung H
• Application Number:
  US11/842,345
• Publication Number:
  US 20090051793A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,099 Days
• Field of Search: 348/14.16, 348/333.09, 348/218.1
• US Class Current: 348/218.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2209/048 having several pick-up sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/15 Image signal generation with circuitry for avoiding or correcting image misregistration
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/71 Circuitry for evaluating the brightness variation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/73 by influencing the exposure time
• 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

Abstract

Methods and systems of imaging to correct parallax. Color information is received from multi-array sensors. Luminance information is received from a sub-array sensor arranged with the multi-array sensors. Color information received from at least one of the multi-array sensors is correlated with the luminance information received from the sub-array sensor. Color information is shifted among the multi-array sensors, based on the correlation, to correct the parallax.

Claims

1. A method of correcting parallax in an imaging system comprising the steps of:

receiving color information from multi-array sensors arranged on a substrate;

receiving luminance information from a sub-array sensor arranged with the multi-array sensors on the substrate;

correlating color information received from at least one of the multi-array sensors with the luminance information received from the sub-array sensor; and

shifting the color information among the multi-array sensors, based on the correlation, to correct the parallax and

prior to receiving the color information from the multi-array sensors and luminance information from the sub-array sensor, the step includes;

setting a read out speed of the sub-array sensor faster than a read out speed of the multi-array sensors in a first time interval,

setting a read out speed of the sub-array sensor substantially equal to a read out speed of the multi-array sensors in a second time interval.

2. The method according to claim 1, after shifting the color information, the method comprising:

setting a read out speed of the sub-array sensor faster than a read out speed of the multi-array sensors;

receiving an amount of light onto the sub-array sensor; and

determining an exposure time for the multi-array sensors based on the amount of received light.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

detecting a low light condition based on at least one of the received color information or the received luminance information; and

combining the luminance information with the color information from the multi-array sensors when the low light condition is detected.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein receiving luminance information from the sub-array sensor includes filtering the luminance information by a color filter, and

correlating the color information includes correlating the color information received from the at least one of the multi-array sensors with the filtered luminance information received from the sub-array sensor.

5. A method of correcting parallax in an imaging system comprising the steps of:

receiving color information from multi-array sensors arranged on a substrate;

receiving luminance information from a sub-array sensor arranged with the multi-array sensors on the substrate;

correlating color information received from at least one of the multi-array sensors with the luminance information received from the sub-array sensor; and

shifting the color information among the multi-array sensors, based on the correlation, to correct the parallax;

wherein correlating the color information includes;

receiving a row of the luminance information from the sub-array sensor;

receiving two or more rows of the color information from the at least one multi-array sensor corresponding to the row of the luminance information;

binning the two or more rows of the color information;

correlating the binned color information with the row of the luminance information to determine a maximum correlation value;

determining a pixel shift in the at least one multi-array sensor from the maximum correlation value; and

determining average column shift values for the multi-array sensors from the pixel shift value for a number of rows of the luminance information; and

the color information is shifted based on the average column shift values.

6. An imaging system comprising:

multi-array sensors, arranged on a substrate, configured to produce color information per each array sensor;

a sub-array sensor;

arranged with the multi-array sensors on the substrate, configured to produce luminance information; and

a processor configured to (a) receive color information from at least one array sensor of the multi-array sensors and the luminance information from the sub-array sensor, and (b) correlate the received color information with the luminance information to detect parallax between the one array sensor and the sub-array sensor;

wherein the processor is configured to shift the color information among the multi-array sensors, based on the detected parallax; and

first and second clock readout control circuits are configured to separately control clock rates of the multi-array sensors and the sub-array sensor, respectively;

wherein the first and second clock rates are different in a first time interval and are the same in a second time interval.

7. The imaging system according to claim 6, wherein each array sensor includes a different monochromatic color filter to produce the corresponding color information.

8. The imaging system according to claim 6, wherein:

the sub-array sensor includes a color filter to filter the luminance information, and

the processor correlates the received color information with the filtered luminance information to detect the parallax between the at least one array sensor and the sub-array sensor.

9. The imaging system according to claim 6, wherein a resolution of the sub-array sensor is less than a resolution of the multi-array sensors.

10. The imaging system according to claim 6, further comprising:

the first and second column readout circuitry configured to reading out respective multi-array pixel signals of the multi-array sensors corresponding to a selected row and respective columns of the multi-array sensors;

the second column readout circuitry configured to read out a sub-array pixel signal of the sub-array sensor corresponding to the selected row and a respective column of the sub-array sensor;

amplifiers configured to output amplified multi-array pixel signals and a sub-array pixel signal received from the first and second column readout circuitry;

an analog-to-digital (ADC) converter configured to convert the amplified multi-array pixel signals and amplified sub-array pixel signal to respective digitized multi-array pixel signals and a digitized sub-array pixel signal; and

an image processor configured to combine the digitized pixel signals from the multi-array sensors into a digital image.

11. The imaging system according to claim 10, wherein the processor provides respective column shift values for at least one of the multi-array sensors to the image processor, and the image processor provides a control signal to the first column readout circuitry to shift the respective columns of the at least one of the multi-array sensors based on the column shift values.

12. A method of correcting parallax in an imaging system comprising the steps of:

in a first time interval;

setting a read out speed of a sub-array sensor faster than a read out speed of multi-array sensors, and

receiving an amount of light onto the sub-array sensor; and

in a second time interval;

setting a read out speed of the sub-array sensor substantially equal to the read out speed of the multi-array sensors,

receiving color information from the multi-array sensors and luminance information from the sub-array sensor, and

correcting the parallax in the received color information from the multi-array sensors based on a color information received from the multi-array sensors and the luminance information received from the sub-array sensor.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein, in the first time interval, receiving the amount of light onto the sub-array sensor includes:

determining an exposure time for the multi-array sensors based on the amount of received light; and

setting the exposure time for the multi-array sensors for the second time interval.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein, in the second time interval, correcting the parallax includes:

correlating the color information received from at least one of the multi-sensor arrays with the luminance information received from the sub-array; and

shifting the color information among the multi-array sensors, based on the correlation.

15. The method according to claim 14, further including combining the shifted color information from the multi-array sensors to generate an image.

16. The method according to claim 14, further including:

detecting a low light condition based on at least one of the received color information or the received luminance information;

combining the luminance information from the sub-array sensor with the shifted color information from the multi-array sensors when the low light condition is detected.

17. The method according to claim 14, wherein receiving luminance information from the sub-array sensors includes filtering the luminance information by a color filter, and

correlating the color information includes correlating the color information received from the at least one of the multi-array sensors with the filtered luminance information received form the sub-array sensor.