Image sensor module and a method for sensing
AssigneeTower Semiconductors Ltd.
InventorsAmos Fenigstein, Tomer Leitner
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system that may include (a) a radiation source that is constructed and arranged to illuminate an object with radiation during consecutive time frames of microsecond-scale duration, wherein radiation emitted during one time frame differs by energy from radiation transmitted during an adjacent time frame; and (b) a CMOS sensor that may include a readout circuit and CMOS pixels. Each CMOS pixel may include a radiation sensing element and in-pixel memory elements. Different in-pixel memory elements are constructed and arranged to sample a state of the radiation sensing element during different time frames of the consecutive time frames.
Claims19
A system comprising:
- a radiation source that is constructed and arranged to illuminate an object with radiation during consecutive time frames of microsecond-scale duration, wherein radiation emitted during one time frame differs by energy from radiation transmitted during an adjacent time frame;
- and
- a CMOS sensor that comprises a readout circuit and CMOS pixels;
- wherein each CMOS pixel comprises a radiation sensing element and in-pixel memory elements;
- wherein each CMOS pixel comprises an in-pixel current source that is constructed and arranged to supply current to the different in-pixel memory elements only during (a) reset periods of the CMOS pixel, and (b) a sampling of the state of the radiation sensing element by each of the in-pixel memory elements;
- wherein different in-pixel memory elements are constructed and arranged to sample a state of the radiation sensing element during different time frames of the consecutive time frames;
- and
- wherein the readout circuits is constructed and arranged to read the in-pixel memory elements of the CMOS pixels during one or more read periods.
A CMOS sensor comprising multiple CMOS pixels, one or more column current sources, and a readout circuit;
- wherein each CMOS pixel comprises a radiation sensing element, an in-pixel current source, and in-pixel memory elements;
- wherein for each CMOS pixel, different in-pixel memory elements are constructed and arranged to sample a state of the radiation sensing element during different time frames of consecutive time frames of micro-second scale duration;
- wherein for each CMOS pixel, the in-pixel current source is constructed and arranged to supply current to the different in-pixel memory elements only during (a) reset periods of the CMOS pixel, and (b) a sampling of the state of the radiation sensing element by each of the in-pixel memory elements;
- wherein the readout circuits is constructed and arranged to read the in-pixel memory elements of the CMOS pixels during one or more read periods;
- wherein the one or more column current sources that are construed and arranged to supply current to each column of CMOS pixels while CMOS pixels of the column of CMOS pixels are read;
- and
- wherein the CMOS sensor is constructed and arranged to deactivate each in-pixel current source during the one or more read periods.
A method for acquiring multiple images of an object, the method comprises:
- illuminating, by a radiation source, an object with radiation during consecutive time frames of microsecond-scale duration, wherein radiation emitted during one time frame differs by energy from radiation transmitted during an adjacent time frame;
- sensing the radiation by radiation sensing elements of multiple CMOS pixel;
- for each CMOS pixel of the multiple CMOS pixels, sampling, by different in-pixel memory elements of the CMOS pixel, a state of the radiation sensing element during different time frames of the consecutive time frames;
- supplying, by an in-pixel current source of each CMOS pixel, supply current to the different in-pixel memory elements of the CMOS pixel only during (a) reset periods of the CMOS pixel, and (b) a sampling of the state of the radiation sensing element by each of the in-pixel memory elements and reading, by the readout circuits, the in-pixel memory elements of the CMOS pixels during one or more read periods.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.