CMOS image sensor having a wide linear dynamic range
US9088739B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 10, 2011 |
| Grant date | Jul 21, 2015 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 7, 2033 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04N25/77
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The disclosure relates to a process of controlling a pixel cell of an image sensor of the CMOS type, comprising the steps of: initializing a sense node and a read node of the pixel cell; partially transferring electrical charges accumulated at the sense node to the read node; completely evacuating electrical charges accumulated at the read node; partially transferring electrical charges accumulated at the sense node to the read node; measuring the electrical charges accumulated at the read node to obtain a pixel signal corresponding to a quantity of electrical charges accumulated during a short integration period; completely transferring electrical charges accumulated at the sense node to the read node, without a prior initialization of the read node, and measuring the electrical charges at the read node to obtain a pixel voltage corresponding thus to the sum of the electrical charges accumulated during the short and long integration periods.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.