Electronic device
AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsKatsuhito Sakurai, Itsutaku Sano
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An electronic device according to one or more embodiments of the present invention comprises an output line, a current mirror circuit and a comparator. Current signals from a plurality of signal sources are output to the output line. The current mirror circuit is electrically connected to the output line. The comparator is configured to compare a mirrored current signal from the current mirror circuit with a reference current signal. The comparator is configured to output a signal representing a comparison result of amplitudes of the mirrored current signal and the reference current signal.
Claims20
An electronic device comprising:
- an output line for current signals from a plurality of signal sources being output to the output line;
- a current mirror circuit electrically connected to the output line;
- and
- a comparator configured to compare a mirrored current signal from the current mirror circuit with a reference current signal, and to output a signal representing a comparison result of amplitudes of the mirrored current signal and the reference current signal.
An electronic device comprising:
- an output line for current signals from a plurality of signal sources being output to the output line;
- an impedance conversion portion electrically connected to the output line;
- and
- a comparator configured to compare a current signal from the impedance conversion portion with a reference current signal, and to output a signal representing a comparison result of amplitudes of the current signal from the impedance conversion portion and the reference current signal.
An electronic device comprising:
- an output line;
- a plurality of the signal sources, each of the plurality of the signal sources including a photoelectric conversion unit and an amplification unit configured to output, to the output line, a current signal based on an amount of charges generated by the photoelectric conversion unit;
- a current mirror circuit electrically connected to the output line;
- a ramp current signal source configured to output a ramp current signal,
- a comparator configured to compare a mirrored current signal from the current mirror circuit with the ramp current signal, and to output a signal representing a comparison result of amplitudes of the mirrored current signal and the ramp current signal;
- an analog to digital convertor configured to convert the mirrored current signal into a digital signal, based on a signal representing a comparison result output from the comparator;
- and
- a bias current source configured to provide each of the plurality of the signal sources with a bias current,
- wherein the current mirror circuit includes a gain control unit configured to control an amplification factor of the mirrored current signal to the current signal from the signal source,
- wherein the gain control unit is configured to control the amplification factor to be a first value for one of the plurality of the signal sources individually outputting the current signal, and to control the amplification factor to be a second value, smaller than the first value, for two or more of the plurality of the signal sources simultaneously outputting the current signals,
- wherein the bias current source is configured to provide a first bias current for one of the plurality of the signal sources individually outputting the current signal, and to provide a second bias current, having a larger amplitude than that of the first bias current, for two or more of the plurality of the signal sources simultaneously outputting the current signals, and
- wherein a number of the signal sources electrically connected to the output line is larger than a number of transistors connected to an output node of the comparator, the signal representing the comparison result being output to the output node.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.