US 2017/0366769 A1 · IMAGING SYSTEMS WITH HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE AND PHASE DETECTION PIXELS

Abstract

A pixel may include an inner sub-pixel group and an outer sub-pixel group. The inner sub-pixel group may have a smaller light collecting area than the outer sub-pixel group and therefore be less sensitive to light than the outer sub-pixel group. This may enable the pixel to be used to generate high dynamic range images, even with the sub-pixel groups using the same length integration time. The inner sub-pixel group may be nested within the outer sub-pixel group. Additionally, one or both of the inner sub-pixel group and the outer sub-pixel group can be split into at least two sub-pixels so that the sub-pixel group can be used to gather phase detection data. Adjacent pixels may have sub-pixel groups split in different directions to enable detection of vertical and horizontal edges in a scene.

Claims27

Dependent claims

A pixel array comprising a plurality of image pixels, wherein an image pixel in the pixel array comprises:

an inner sub-pixel group that includes at least one sub-pixel and that exhibits a first light sensitivity;
and
an outer sub-pixel group that includes at least one sub-pixel and that exhibits a second light sensitivity that is greater than the first light sensitivity, wherein the inner sub-pixel group is nested within the outer sub-pixel group, and wherein at least one of the inner sub-pixel group and the outer sub-pixel group comprises first and second sub-pixels that each have an asymmetric angular response to incident light and are configured to generate phase detection data.

A pixel array comprising a plurality of pixels, wherein each pixel of the plurality of pixels has a structure that follows a pattern, wherein the pattern comprises a repeating unit cell of two-by-two pixels that is repeated across the entire pixel array, and wherein the repeating unit cell of two-by-two pixels comprises:

first, second, third, and fourth pixels, wherein each pixel comprises an inner sub-pixel group that is nested within an outer sub-pixel group, wherein each outer sub-pixel group comprises first and second outer sub-pixels that are configured to generate phase detection data, wherein the first and second outer sub-pixels of the first pixel are horizontally adjacent, and wherein the first and second outer sub-pixels of the second pixel are vertically adjacent.

A pixel array comprising a plurality of pixels, wherein each pixel of the plurality of pixels has a structure that follows a pattern, wherein the pattern comprises a repeating unit cell of two-by-four pixels that is repeated across the entire pixel array, and wherein the repeating unit cell of two-by-four pixels comprises:

a first two-by-two group of pixels, wherein the first two-by-two group of pixels includes an upper left pixel, an upper right pixel, a lower left pixel, and a lower right pixel that each have first and second sub-pixels that are arranged in a respective orientation and are configured to generate phase detection data;
and
a second two-by-two group of pixels that is adjacent to the first two-by-two group of pixels, wherein the second two-by-two group of pixels includes an upper left pixel, an upper right pixel, a lower left pixel, and a lower right pixel that each have first and second sub-pixels that are arranged in a respective orientation and are configured to generate phase detection data, and wherein the orientations of the pixels in the second two-by-two group of pixels are the opposite of the orientations of the pixels in the first two-by-two group of pixels.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Imaging systems with high dynamic range and phase detection pixels

Life of this patent

Imaging systems with high dynamic range and phase detection pixels

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims27