Solid-state imaging apparatus for causing an FD capacitor value to be variable without increasing a number of elements

• US 9,214,491 B2
• Filed: 10/17/2014
• Issued: 12/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Okita, Akira
• Primary Examiner(s): PRABHAKHER, PRITHAM DAVID
• Application Number:
  US14/516,769
• Publication Number:
  US 20150035030A1
• Time in Patent Office: 424 Days
• Field of Search: 348294-324
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14609 Pixel-elements with integrated switching, control, storage or amplification elements scanning details of imagers (circuitry of solid-state image sensors H04N25/00); circuitry of imagers H04N25/70
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14643 Photodiode arrays; MOS imagers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/00 Circuitry of solid-state image sensors [SSIS]; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/42 by switching between different modes of operation using different resolutions or aspect ratios, e.g. switching between interlaced and non-interlaced mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/46 by combining or binning pixels
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/778 comprising amplifiers shared between a plurality of pixels, i.e. at least one part of the amplifier must be on the sensor array itself

Abstract

A solid-state imaging apparatus wherein an FD capacitor value is variable without increasing the number of elements. There is provided a solid-state imaging apparatus including a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements arranged in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction, for generating an electric charge by photoelectric conversion; a plurality of transfer transistors each connected to each of the photoelectric conversion elements, for transferring the electric charge generated by the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements; a plurality of floating diffusion regions for holding the electric charge transferred by the transfer transistors; a plurality of amplifiers each connected to each of the floating diffusion regions, for amplifying a signal based on the electric charge in the plurality of floating diffusion regions; and a connecting unit for connecting and disconnecting between the plurality of floating diffusion regions.

Claims

1. A solid-state imaging apparatus comprising:

a plurality of rows of photoelectric conversion elements for generating electric charges;

a plurality of transfer transistors each connected to each of the photoelectric conversion elements, for transferring the electric charges generated by the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements;

a plurality of floating diffusion regions for holding electric charges transferred by the plurality of transfer transistors;

a plurality of amplifying units each connected to each of the floating diffusion regions, for amplifying a signal based on an electric charge in the plurality of floating diffusion regions;

a plurality of switches for connecting the plurality of floating diffusion regions to each other, each of the plurality of switches being arranged correspondingly to each pair of the rows of the photoelectric conversion elements;

a scanning circuit for scanning each of said plurality of switches, the scanning circuit turning ON each of said plurality of switches by the scanning, in an order of arrangement of the switches, shifting successively from a one switch of a pair of rows of the photoelectric conversion elements to a next one switch of the next pair of rows of photoelectric conversion elements; and

a Bayer array color filter.

2. The solid-state imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a state of ON and OFF of a scanned switch is updated according to horizontal blanking period.

3. The solid-state imaging apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the scanning circuit has a shift register for controlling an operation of the switches and a memory element.

4. The solid-state imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electric charges transferred to the floating diffusion regions are added by turning a scanned switch ON.