Digital imager with dual rolling shutters

• US 8,223,235 B2
• Filed: 12/13/2007
• Issued: 07/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola Mobility, Inc. (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: John, George C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Fan, Chieh M
• Assistant Examiner(s): LE, QUANG V
• Application Number:
  US11/956,033
• Publication Number:
  US 20090153710A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,678 Days
• Field of Search: 348/296, 348/222.1, 382/295
• US Class Current: 348/296
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/68 for stable pick-up of the scene, e.g. compensating for camera body vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/689 Motion occurring during a rolling shutter mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/73 by influencing the exposure time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/531 by controlling rolling shutters in CMOS SSIS
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/76 Addressed sensors, e.g. MOS or CMOS sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/772 comprising A/D, V/T, V/F, I/T or I/F converters

Abstract

A method of forming an image of a moving object is provided. The method includes capturing a first digital image of a moving object using a first rolling shutter scanning in a first direction. Likewise, a second digital image of the moving object is captured using a second rolling shutter scanning in a second direction different from the first direction. The first and second digital images are processed to form a composite digital image of the moving image.

Claims

1. A method of forming an image of a moving object, comprising:

capturing a first digital image of the moving object within a scene using a first rolling shutter scanning in a first direction across a portion of the scene at a first sweep speed;

capturing a second digital image of the moving object within the scene using a second rolling shutter scanning in a second direction across the portion of the scene at a second sweep speed, the second direction different from the first direction;

processing the first and second digital images to form a composite digital image of the moving image using the first sweep speed and the second sweep speed; and

capturing a third digital image of the moving object using a third rolling shutter scanning in a third direction different from the first and second directions.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the first and second digital images are processed to remove distortion of the moving object.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the processing to remove distortion comprises identifying the moving object in each of the first and second images using image registration.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the processing is performed using as input data only the first and second images and the first sweep speed of the first rolling shutter and the second sweep speed of the second rolling shutter.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the second direction is opposite to the first direction.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the first and second rolling shutters sequentially read out selected rows of integrated pixels in the first and second directions, respectively, along a pixel array.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the first and second digital images are captured in overlapping periods of time.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the first and second digital images are captured in common periods of time.

9. An image processing device, comprising:

a digital image sensor having first and second rolling shutters configured to scan a portion of an image in a first direction using the first rolling shutter at a first sweep speed and to scan the portion of the image and in a second direction, different from the first direction, using the second rolling shutter at a second sweep speed; and

a processor configured to form a composite digital image from first and second images respectively captured using the first and second rolling shutters and to process the composite digital image using the first sweep speed and the second sweep speed,

wherein the digital image sensor includes at least a third rolling shutter that is configured to scan the image in a direction different from the first and second rolling shutters.

10. The image processing device of claim 9 wherein the processor is further configured to remove distortion of a moving object included in the composite digital image.

11. The image processing device of claim 9 wherein the image processing device is incorporated in one of a digital camera or a cellular telephone.

12. The image processing device of claim 9 wherein the digital image sensor is a CMOS pixel array.

13. The image processing device of claim 9 wherein the first and second rolling shutters are implemented by a rolling shutter circuit operationally coupled to the pixel array.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable medium encoded with instructions which, when executed by a processor, performs a method including:

capturing a first digital image of the moving object within a scene using a first rolling shutter scanning in a first direction across a portion of the scene at a first sweep speed;

capturing a second digital image of the moving object within the scene using a second rolling shutter scanning in a second direction across the portion of the scene at a second sweep speed, the second direction different from the first direction;

processing the first and second digital images to form a composite digital image of the moving image using the first sweep speed and the second sweep speed; and

capturing a third digital image of the moving object using a third rolling shutter scanning in a third direction different from the first and second directions.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14 wherein the first and second digital images are processed to remove distortion of the moving object.