Imaging system and method for driving imaging system
AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsKazuhiro Saito, Yasushi Matsuno
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method drives an imaging system including: a plurality of pixels; an amplifier having an input node connected to the plurality of pixels via an input capacitor, and an output node connected to the input node via a feedback capacitor; and a reset unit configured to reset the input node to a base potential. The method includes the steps of: causing the input capacitor to hold noise output from one of the plurality of pixels; adding signals output from the two or more pixels in the feedback capacitor; and obtaining a difference between a signal applying a gain to a base signal output from the amplifier according to the reset of the input node of the amplifier and the signal added in the feedback capacitor.
Claims9
An imaging system comprising:
- a plurality of pixels;
- an amplifier including an input node connected to the plurality of pixels via an input capacitor, and an output node connected to the input node via a feedback capacitor;
- a reset unit configured to reset the input node to a base potential,
- a signal level adjusting unit, and
- wherein the imaging system is operative of operating in an addition mode adding signals from the plurality of pixels to the feedback capacitor,
- wherein the amplifier is configured to hold a noise output from one of the plurality of pixels in the input capacitor in the addition mode, and thereafter adds the signals output from two or more of the plurality of pixels to the feedback capacitor, and
- wherein the signal level adjusting unit is configured to obtain a difference between a signal obtained by applying a gain to a base signal output from the amplifier according to the reset of the input node of the amplifier by the reset unit and a signal added to the feedback capacitor.
A method for driving an imaging system including a plurality of pixels and, an amplifier having an input node connected to the plurality of pixels via an input capacitor, and an output node connected to the input node via a feedback capacitor, the method comprising;
- causing the input capacitor to hold noise output from one of the plurality of pixels;
- adding signals output from two or more pixels of the plurality of pixels in the feedback capacitor;
- and
- obtaining a difference between a signal obtained by applying a gain to a base signal output from the amplifier according to the reset of the input node of the amplifier to a base potential and a signal added to the feedback capacitor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.