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US 10,873,714 B2Granted
Image sensor with multiple pixel access settings
AssigneeSemiconductor Components Industries, LLC
InventorsKoji Hizume, Mariko Hirano
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An image sensor may include an array of pixels arranged in rows and columns. Row control circuitry may be coupled to the array of pixels to reset, control charge transfer, and read out operations. Pixel access circuitry in processing circuitry may provide control signals to row control circuitry to access the array of pixels using multiple pixel access settings. In particular, by using multiple pixel access setting, the array of pixels may successively and efficiently generate image frames of different types.
Claims19
An image sensor, comprising:
- an array of image pixels;
- row control circuitry coupled to the array of image pixels;
- and
- pixel access control circuitry configured to control the row control circuitry to provide a first control signal to a first pixel in the array of image pixels based on a first pixel access mode and to provide a second control signal to a second pixel in the array of image pixels based on a second pixel access mode, wherein the row control circuitry is configured to assert the first control signal received by the first pixel to perform a shutter operation based on the first pixel access mode during a given time period, and the row control circuitry is configured to assert the second control signal received by the second pixel to perform a readout operation based on the second pixel access mode during the given time period.
1 more element
An image sensor, comprising:
- an array of image pixels;
- row control circuitry coupled to the array of image pixels;
- and
- context switching circuitry coupled to the row control circuitry, wherein the context switching circuitry controls the array of image pixels to generate first, second, and third consecutive image frames using the row control circuitry, the first and second image frames having at least one differing frame property, wherein the context switching circuitry is configured to provide control signals associated with a context to the row control circuitry, and wherein the row control circuitry is configured to control the array to generate the first and third image frames using a shutter operation and a readout operation based on the context.
1 more element
An image sensor, comprising:
- an array of image pixels having a plurality of active pixels arranged in a first set of rows and a plurality of inactive pixels arranged in a second set of rows, the plurality of active pixels comprising a given active pixel;
- row control circuitry coupled to the first set of rows and the second set of rows;
- and
- context switching circuitry coupled to the row control circuitry, wherein the context switching circuitry controls the row control circuitry to access the given active pixel using a first pixel access setting during a first time period and to access the given active pixel using a second pixel access setting during a second time period.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.