# US 12,015,863 B2 · Imaging circuit, imaging device, and imaging method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,015,863 B2 - Document ID: US12015863B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/790,028 - Filed: 2021-01-14 - Published: 2022-12-08 - Granted: 2024-06-18 - Earliest claimed: 2020-02-18 - Assignees: Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation - Applicants: Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation - Inventors: Katsuhiko Hanzawa - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12015863B2 ## CPC - H04N 25/70: SSIS architectures; Circuits associated therewith - H04N 25/767: Horizontal readout lines, multiplexers or registers - H04N 25/47: Image sensors with pixel address output; Event-driven image sensors; Selection of pixels to be read out based on image data - H04N 25/78: Readout circuits for addressed sensors, e.g. output amplifiers or A/D converters - H04N: PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION ## Abstract Imaging circuits, devices and methods are disclosed. In one example, an imaging circuit includes circuit blocks each including a photoelectric conversion element configured to photoelectrically convert incident light to generate a photocurrent and a current-voltage conversion circuit configured to convert the photocurrent into a voltage signal, a quantizer configured to generate a detection signal of an address event in accordance with a result of comparing the voltage signal supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks with a threshold, a demultiplexer connected to a subsequent stage of the quantizer, and latch circuits connected to different output terminals of the demultiplexer. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An imaging circuit comprising: a plurality of circuit blocks each including a photoelectric conversion element configured to photoelectrically convert incident light to generate a photocurrent, and a current-voltage conversion circuit configured to convert the photocurrent into a voltage signal; a quantizer configured to generate a detection signal of an address event in accordance with a result of comparing the voltage signal supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks with a threshold; a demultiplexer connected to a subsequent stage of the quantizer; and a plurality of latch circuits connected to different output terminals of the demultiplexer, wherein the number of the latch circuits is equal to or larger than two and equal to or smaller than twice the number of the photoelectric conversion elements. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The imaging circuit according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of latch circuits is configured to store the address event detected by the quantizer. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The imaging circuit according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of circuit blocks includes a buffer circuit configured to perform impedance conversion, and a subtractor configured to convert the voltage signal into a differential voltage. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The imaging circuit according to claim 1, wherein the quantizer detects an ON event in a case where the voltage signal supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks exceeds a first threshold voltage. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The imaging circuit according to claim 4, wherein the quantizer detects an OFF event in a case where the voltage signal supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks falls below a second threshold voltage. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The imaging circuit according to claim 5, wherein the imaging circuit is configured to read both the ON events and the OFF events for at least some selected photoelectric conversion elements among the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements and store the ON events and the OFF events in the plurality of latch circuits. ### Claim 7 An imaging circuit comprising: a plurality of circuit blocks each including a photoelectric conversion element configured to photoelectrically convert incident light to generate a photocurrent, and a current-voltage conversion circuit configured to convert the photocurrent onto a voltage signal; a quantizer configured to generate a detection signal of an address event in accordance with a result of comparing the voltage signal supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks with a threshold; a demultiplexer connected to a subsequent stage of the quantizer; and a plurality of latch circuits connected to different output terminals of the demultiplexer, wherein the quantizer detects on ON event in a case where the voltage signal supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks exceeds a first threshold voltage, the quantizer detects an OFF event in a case where the voltage signal supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks falls below a second threshold voltage, the imaging circuit is configured to read both the ON events and the OFF events for at least some selected photoelectric conversion elements among the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements and store the ON events and the OFF events in the plurality of latch circuits, and the imaging circuit is configured to read both the ON events and the OFF events for the remaining photoelectric conversion elements among the plurality of photoelectric conversion elements after the ON events and the OFF events stored in the plurality of latch circuits are transferred via read lines and store the ON events and the OFF events in the plurality of latch circuits. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The imaging circuit according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the photoelectric conversion elements is arranged in a direction substantially perpendicular to read lines. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The imaging circuit according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the photoelectric conversion elements is arranged in a direction substantially parallel to read lines. ### Claim 10 An imaging device comprising: a plurality of imaging circuits, each of the imaging circuits including; a plurality of circuit blocks each including a photoelectric conversion element configured to photoelectrically convert incident light to generate a photocurrent, and a current-voltage conversion circuit configured to convert the photocurrent into a voltage signal; a quantizer configured to generate a detection signal of an address event in accordance with a result of comparing the voltage signal supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks with a threshold; a demultiplexer connected to a subsequent stage of the quantizer; and a plurality of latch circuits connected to different output terminals of the demultiplexer, wherein the plurality of latch circuits respectively included in separate ones of the imaging circuits is connected to a respective different read line of a plurality of read lines, the plurality if latch circuits within each of the imaging circuits are connected to a same read line of the plurality of read lines, and a storage unit is connected to a subsequent stage of the plurality of read lines, and wherein the imaging device is configured to alternately read an ON event or an OFF event stored in the respectively latch circuits and transfer the ON event or the OFF event to the storage unit for each of the imaging circuits. ### Claim 11 An imaging device comprising: a plurality of imaging circuits, each of the imaging circuits including: a plurality of circuit blocks each including a photoelectric conversion element configured to photoelectrically convert incident light to generate a photocurrent, and a current-voltage conversion circuit configured to convert the photocurrent into a voltage signal; a quantizer configured to generate a detection signal of an address event in accordance with a result of comparing the voltage supplied from at least one of the plurality of circuit blocks with a threshold; a demultiplexer connected to a subsequent stage of the quantizer; and a plurality of latch circuits connected to different output terminals of the demultiplexer, wherein the plurality of latch circuits respectively included in the imaging circuits is connected to some of a plurality of read lines, the plurality of latch circuits respectively included in the imaging circuits is divided into groups each connected to a same read line of the plurality of read lines, and the respective read lines to which the plurality of latch circuits is connected are different depending on the imaging circuits, and a storage unit is connected to a subsequent stage of the plurality of the read lines. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The imaging device according to claim 11, wherein the imaging device is configured to read the address event stored in one of the latch circuits belonging to each of the groups for a plurality of the imaging circuits and transfer the address event to the storage unit. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The imaging device according to claim 12, wherein the address event read from each of the imaging circuits and transferred to the storage unit includes both an ON event and an OFF event. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The imaging device according to claim 12, wherein the imaging device is configured to alternately read ON events or OFF events stored in the latch circuits and transfer the ON events or the OFF events to the storage unit for the plurality of imaging circuits. ### Claim 15 An imaging method comprising: outputting a voltage signal from at least one of a plurality of circuit blocks each including a photoelectric conversion element configured to photoelectrically convert incident light to generate a photocurrent and a current-voltage conversion circuit configured to convert the photocurrent into the voltage signal and supplying the voltage signal to a quantizer; generating, at the quantizer, a detection signal of an address event in accordance with a result of comparing the voltage signal with a threshold; outputting the detection signal generated by the quantizer while demultiplexing the detection signal into a plurality of systems at a demultiplexer; and latching the detection signal at a plurality of latch circuits corresponding to the plurality of systems, wherein the number of the latch circuits is equal to or larger than two and equal to or smaller than twice the number of the photoelectric conversion elements.