Distance measuring device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11054522-B2
Application number	US-201515316935-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 28, 2015
Priority date	Jun 9, 2014
Publication date	Jul 6, 2021
Grant date	Jul 6, 2021

Abstract

In accordance with an irradiation position of pulsed light, a selecting unit outputs a first transfer signal to a first transfer electrodes and outputs a second transfer signal to a second transfer electrodes, to allow signal charges to flow into first and second signal charge-collecting regions of a pixel corresponding to the irradiation position, and outputs a third transfer signal to a third transfer electrodes to allow unnecessary charges to flow into an unnecessary charge-discharging regions of a pixel other than the pixel corresponding to the irradiation position. An arithmetic unit reads out signals corresponding to respective quantities of signal charges collected in the first and second signal charge-collecting regions of the pixel selected by the selecting unit, and calculates a distance to an object based on a ratio between a quantity of signal charges collected in the first signal charge-collecting regions and a quantity of signal charges collected in the second signal charge-collecting regions.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A ranging device comprising:
a scanning unit scanning an irradiation position on an object of pulsed light emitted from a light source;
a light receiving unit including a plurality of pixels arrayed in a one-dimensional direction, and into which reflected light of the pulsed light reflected off the object is incident;
a selecting unit selecting, from the plurality of pixels, a pixel from which a signal is to be read out, in accordance with the irradiation position of the pulsed light scanned by the scanning unit; and
an arithmetic unit reading out a signal from the pixel selected by the selecting unit, and calculating a distance to the object,
wherein each of the plurality of pixels includes:
a charge-generating region generating charges in accordance with incident light;
first and second signal charge-collecting regions disposed away from the charge-generating region, and collecting the charges generated in the charge-generating region, as signal charges;
an unnecessary charge-discharging region disposed away from the charge-generating region, and discharging the charges generated in the charge-generating region, as unnecessary charges;
a first transfer electrode disposed between the first signal charge-collecting region and the charge-generating region, and allowing the charges generated in the charge-generating region to flow into the first signal charge-collecting region as the signal charges in accordance with a first transfer signal;
a second transfer electrode disposed between the second signal charge-collecting region and the charge-generating region, and allowing the charges generated in the charge-generating region to flow into the second signal charge-collecting region as the signal charges in accordance with a second transfer signal different in phase from the first transfer signal; and
a third transfer electrode disposed between the unnecessary charge-discharging region and the charge-generating region, and allowing the charges generated in the charge-generating region to flow into the unnecessary charge-discharging region as the unnecessary charges in accordance with a third transfer signal different in phase from the first and second transfer signals,
wherein, in accordance with an irradiation position of the pulsed light scanned by the scanning unit, the selecting unit outputs the first transfer signal to the first transfer electrode and outputs the second transfer signal to the second transfer electrode, to allow the signal charges to flow into the first and second signal charge-collecting regions of the pixel corresponding to the irradiation position, from among the plurality of pixels, and outputs the third transfer signal to the third transfer electrode to allow the unnecessary charges to flow into the unnecessary charge-discharging region of the pixel other than the pixel corresponding to the irradiation position, from among the plurality of pixels,
wherein the arithmetic unit reads out a first quantity of the signal charges from the first signal charge-collecting region and a second quantity of the signal charges from the second signal charge-collecting region of the pixel selected by the selecting unit, and calculates a distance to the object based on a ratio between the first quantity and the second quantity,
wherein while the scanning unit scans the irradiation position of the pulsed light a plurality of times such that the reflected light of the pulsed light is incident on each pixel a plurality of times the selecting unit controls the first, second, and third transfer electrodes such that the first and second signal charge-collecting regions accumulate the signal charges, and
wherein the arithmetic unit reads out the charges accumulated by the plurality of scan from the first and second charge-collecting regions.

2. The ranging device according to claim 1 ,
wherein, in the selected pixel, the selecting unit outputs the first transfer signal to the first transfer electrode and outputs the second transfer signal to the second transfer electrode, to allow charges flow into the first and second signal charge-collecting region, at a timing different from a timing at which the signal charges are allowed to flow into the first and second signal charge-collecting regions, and at a timing at which the pulsed light is not emitted from the light source, and
wherein a first background noise is subtracted from the first quantity and a second background noise is subtracted from the second quantity prior to calculating the ratio, the first background noise corresponding to a third quantity of signal charges collected in the first signal charge-collecting region at the timing at which the pulsed light is not emitted from the light source, and the second background noise corresponding to a fourth quantity of signal charges collected in the second signal charge-collecting region at the timing at which the pulsed light is not emitted from the light source.

Assignees

• Hamamatsu Photonics Kk

Inventors

• Mase Mitsuhito
• HIRAMITSU Jun
• Shimada Akihiro

Classifications

• H04N25/70

  SSIS architectures; Circuits associated therewith · CPC title

• H10F39/8037

  the integrated elements comprising a transistor · CPC title

• H10F39/802

  Geometry or disposition of elements in pixels, e.g. address-lines or gate electrodes · CPC title

• G01S7/487

  Extracting wanted echo signals {, e.g. pulse detection} · CPC title

• G01S7/4816

  of receivers alone · CPC title