Time delay integration sensor with increased aperture area
AssigneesPixart Imaging Inc., Taiwan Space Agency
InventorsRen-Chieh Liu, Yi-Che Yen
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Abstract
The present disclosure provides a time delay integration (TDI) sensor using a rolling shutter. The TDI sensor includes multiple pixel columns. Each pixel column includes multiple pixel groups arranged in an along-track direction, wherein one pixel of each of the pixel groups in every pixel column has an extension in the along-track direction. The extension is equal to a pixel height without the extension multiplied by a time ratio of a line time difference of the rolling shutter and a frame period, or is a the pixel height divided by N, wherein N is a number of pixels in each pixel column.
Claims20
A time delay integration (TDI) complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor, configured to capture an image frame using a rolling shutter and move with respect to a scene in an along-track direction, the image sensor comprising:
- a pixel array, comprising multiple pixel columns, each of the pixel columns comprising multiple pixels arranged in the along-track direction, and one pixel of each pixel group of the multiple pixels having an extension in the along-track direction to compensate a line time difference of using the rolling shutter,
- wherein each pixel group has a first pixel and a second pixel, and the first pixel is longer than the second pixel by the extension in the along-track direction.
A time delay integration (TDI) complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor, configured to capture an image frame using a rolling shutter and move with respect to a scene in an along-track direction, the image sensor comprising:
- a pixel array, comprising multiple pixel columns, each of the pixel columns comprising multiple pixels arranged in the along-track direction, and a first aperture area of a first pixel of each pixel group of the multiple pixels is longer than a second aperture area of a second pixel of the each pixel group by an extension in the along-track direction to compensate a line time difference of using the rolling shutter,
- wherein adjacent pixel groups in the same pixel column are adjacent to each other without a separation space therebetween in the along-track direction.
An image sensor, comprising:
- a pixel array, comprising multiple pixel columns, each of the pixel columns comprising multiple pixel groups, each of the multiple pixel groups comprising a first pixel and a second pixel, wherein a first aperture area of the first pixel is longer than a second aperture area of the second pixel by an extension in a column direction of the multiple pixel columns to compensate a line time difference of using a rolling shutter;
- a first readout circuit, coupled to first pixels of the multiple pixel groups in the multiple pixel columns, and configured to read pixel data of the first pixels;
- and
- a second readout circuit, coupled to second pixels of the multiple pixel groups in the multiple pixel columns, and configured to read pixel data of the second pixels,
- wherein adjacent pixel groups in the same pixel column are adjacent to each other without a separation space therebetween in the column direction.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.