Solid-state imaging device
AssigneeNational University Corporation Shizuoka University
InventorShoji Kawahito
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A solid-state imaging device includes: a light source; a green pixel, a red pixel, and a blue pixel configured to each generate a charge corresponding to visible light; a near-infrared pixel configured to generate a charge corresponding to near-infrared light; and a gate driver circuit configured to supply, to the green pixel, the red pixel, the blue pixel, and the near-infrared pixel, a first transfer control pulse to control transfer of the charge. Each of the green pixel, the red pixel, the blue pixel, and the near-infrared pixel includes a photoelectric conversion region, a reading unit configured to receive the transfer of the charge, and a charge discharging region configured to discharge the charge from the photoelectric conversion region.
Claims15
A solid-state imaging device comprising:
- a light source configured to generate pulsed light having a wavelength component of near-infrared light;
- a first pixel configured to receive first light including at least a wavelength component of visible light so as to generate, by a first pixel circuit unit, a charge corresponding to the first light;
- a second pixel configured to receive second light including at least the wavelength component of the near-infrared light so as to generate, by a second pixel circuit unit, a charge corresponding to the second light;
- and
- a charge transfer control unit configured to supply, to the first pixel and the second pixel, a control pulse to control transfer of the charge, wherein
- each of the first pixel circuit unit and the second pixel circuit unit includes a photoelectric conversion region configured to generate the charge, a reading unit configured to receive the transfer of the charge from the photoelectric conversion region in response to the control pulse, and a charge discharging region configured to discharge the charge from the photoelectric conversion region in response to the control pulse, and
- the charge transfer control unit is configured to supply, to the first pixel circuit unit, the control pulse to discharge the charge from the photoelectric conversion region of the first pixel circuit unit to the charge discharging region of the first pixel circuit unit in an entire period overlapping with an irradiation period of the pulsed light.
A solid-state imaging device comprising:
- a light source configured to generate pulsed light having a wavelength component of near-infrared light;
- a first pixel configured to receive first light including at least a wavelength component of visible light so as to generate, by a first pixel circuit unit, a charge corresponding to the first light;
- a second pixel configured to receive second light including at least the wavelength component of the near-infrared light so as to generate, by a second pixel circuit unit, a charge corresponding to the second light;
- a charge transfer control unit configured to supply, to the first pixel and the second pixel, a control pulse to control transfer of the charge;
- and
- a light source driver circuit for the light source, wherein
- each of the first pixel circuit unit and the second pixel circuit unit includes a photoelectric conversion region configured to generate the charge, a reading unit configured to receive the transfer of the charge from the photoelectric conversion region in response to the control pulse, and a charge discharging region configured to discharge the charge from the photoelectric conversion region in response to the control pulse,
- the charge transfer control unit is configured to permit discharge of the charge from the photoelectric conversion region of the first pixel circuit unit to the charge discharging region of the first pixel circuit unit,
- the light source driver circuit starts irradiation of the pulsed light after the charge transfer control unit permits the discharge of the charge to the charge discharging region,
- the light source driver circuit stops the irradiation of the pulsed light after a predetermined period has elapsed from the start of the irradiation of the pulsed light, and
- the charge transfer control unit is configured to prohibit, after the light source driver circuit stops the irradiation of the pulsed light, the discharge of the charge from the photoelectric conversion region of the first pixel circuit unit to the charge discharging region of the first pixel circuit unit.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.