Imaging device, imaging method, electronic device, and program

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9503699-B2
Application number	US-201314395961-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 1, 2013
Priority date	May 14, 2012
Publication date	Nov 22, 2016
Grant date	Nov 22, 2016

Abstract

The present technique relates to an imaging device and an imaging method, an electronic device, and a program, which are configured to improve an SN ratio by combining addition reading and thin-out reading by signal processing similar to signal processing using thin-out reading.
First, as illustrated in the left side of the drawing, G pixel and B pixel, which are sub-colors, of the top row of regions Z 1 , Z 2 are subjected to thin-out reading. Next, for W pixels of the main color arranged in a checkerboard pattern in the regions Z 1 , Z 2 , two pixels tied by a straight line in the drawing are subjected to addition reading at the same tone timing. For W pixels of the main color arranged in a checkerboard pattern in regions Z 3 , Z 4 , two pixels tied by a straight line in the drawing are also subjected to addition reading at the same tone timing. R and G pixels, which are sub-colors, of the lower stage of the regions Z 3 , Z 4 are read.
According to a relative relation between the main color and the sub-colors of the regions Z 1 to Z 4 as illustrated in the center of the drawing, Bayer arrangement is obtained as illustrated in the right side of the drawing. The present technique can be applied to an imaging device.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An imaging device, comprising:
pixels arranged in a two dimensional matrix;
a main color filter of a predetermined color component of a luminance signal for the pixels;
additional color filters of other color components than the predetermined color of the luminance signal for the pixels; and
signal processing circuitry configured to, for the pixels in a subgroup of the matrix, thin out signals of the pixels to which the additional color filters are provided in a first half of the subgroup to output a first thinned out result, then add signals together of the pixels to which the main color filter is provided to output an addition result, and then thin out signals of the pixels to which the additional color filters are provided in a second half of the subgroup to output a second thinned out result.

2. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the signal processing circuitry is configured to use a correlation between the signals having been added and output of the pixels to which the main color filter is provided and the signals having been thinned out and output of the pixels to which the additional color filters are provided, and
the signal processing circuitry is configured to generate the signals having been thinned out and output of the pixels to which the additional color filters are provided.

3. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the predetermined color component is a white color, and other color components are red, green, and blue colors.

4. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the predetermined color component is a green color, and other color components are red and blue colors.

5. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the signal processing circuitry is configured to thin out the signals of the pixels provided with the additional color filters and to output the first thinned-out result during a first period of a former half of a period when the signals of the pixels arranged in the same row are output or to output the second thinned-out result during a second period of a latter half of the period when the signals of the pixels arranged in the same row are output, and
the signal processing circuitry is configured to then add the signals together of the pixel provided with the main color filter and an adjacent pixel, which is arranged in a row different from the same row and provided with the main color filter, and to output the addition result, during a third period different from the first period and the second period.

6. The imaging device according to claim 5 , wherein
the signals are output in the same order as that of signal processing where thin-out reading alone is performed without addition and outputting processing.

7. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the signal processing circuitry is configured to thin out the pixels provided with the additional color filters by doubling gain of each signal and to output the first thinned-out result during a first period of a former half of a period when the signals of the pixels arranged in the same row are output or to output the second thinned-out result during a second period of a latter half of the period when the signals of the pixels arranged in the same row are output, and
the signal processing circuitry is configured to then add the signals together of the pixel provided with the main color filter and an adjacent pixel, which is arranged in a row different from the same row and provided with the main color filter, with each signal having even gain, and to output the addition result during a third period different from the first period and the second period.

8. The imaging device according to claim 7 , wherein
the signal is output in such a manner that a range of analogue to digital (AD) conversion of the signal of the pixel is suitably changed.

9. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the signal processing circuitry is configured to perform floating diffusion (FD) addition of the signals of the pixels provided with the main color filter, and to output the addition result.

10. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the signal processing circuitry is configured to perform source follower addition of the signals of the pixels provided with the main color filter, and to output the addition result.

11. The imaging device according to claim 2 , wherein
a signal to noise (SN) ratio of the signals of the pixels having been thinned out and output is reduced.

12. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the signal processing circuitry is configured to add signals together of the pixels to which the main color filter is provided in the first half of the subgroup to output a first addition result, and
the signal processing circuitry is then configured to add signals together of the pixels to which the main color filter is provided in the second half of the subgroup to output a second addition result.

13. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the signal processing circuitry is configured fit the first thinned out result and the second thinned out result at a gravity-center position of the addition result to generate a Bayer arrangement.

14. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein
the subgroup includes sixteen of the pixels in four neighboring rows and four neighboring columns.

15. An imaging method of an imaging device including pixels arranged in a two dimensional matrix, a main color filter of a predetermined color component of a luminance signal for the pixels, and additional color filters of other color components than the predetermined color of the luminance signal for the pixels, the imaging method comprising, for the pixels in a subgroup of the matrix:
thinning out signals of the pixels to which the additional color filters are provided in a first half of a subgroup to output a first thinned out result,
then adding signals together of the pixels to which the main color filter is provided to output an addition result; and
then thinning out signals of the pixels to which the additional color filters are provided in a second half of the subgroup to output a second thinned out result.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing thereon a program that, when executed by a processor of a computer configured to control an imaging device including pixels arranged in a two dimensional matrix, a main color filter of a predetermined color component of a luminance signal for the pixels, and additional color filters of other color components than the predetermined color of the luminance signal for the pixels, causes the computer to perform operations comprising, for the pixels in a subgroup of the matrix:
thinning out signals of the pixels provided with the additional color filters in a first half of a subgroup to output a first thinned out result,
then adding signals of the pixels provided with the main color filter to output an addition result, and
then thinning out signals of the pixels provided with the additional color filters in a second half of the subgroup to output a second thinned out result.

17. An electronic device, comprising:
pixels arranged in a two dimensional matrix;
a main color filter of a predetermined color component of a luminance signal for the pixels:
additional color filters of other color components than the predetermined color of the luminance signal for the pixels; and
signal processing circuitry configured to, for the pixels in a subgroup of the matrix, thin out signals of the pixels to which the additional col

Assignees

• Sony Corp

Inventors

• Kawaguchi Shunji
• Hirota Isao
• Shoyama Hideki

Classifications

• H04N25/133

  including elements passing panchromatic light, e.g. filters passing white light · CPC title

• H04N25/135

  based on four or more different wavelength filter elements · CPC title

• H04N25/70

  SSIS architectures; Circuits associated therewith · CPC title

• H04N25/46

  by combining or binning pixels · CPC title

• H04N25/778

  comprising amplifiers shared between a plurality of pixels, i.e. at least one part of the amplifier must be on the sensor array itself · CPC title