Semiconductor Components Industries, LLC

Ay Dee Kay LLC

Aptina Imaging Corporation

Marko Mlinar

Brian W Keelan

Tomas Geurts

Douglas Fettig

Simon Srot

Ulrich C Boettiger

Richard A Mauritzson

Danny Elad

Dan Corcos

Swarnal Borthakur

Roger Panicacci

Manuel H Innocent

Andrew Eugene Perkins

Bartosz Piotr Banachowicz

Robert Michael Gravelle, Jr

Kai Yau Mok

Balwinder Kaur

An image sensor may perform hybrid pixel binning. In pixel binning, pixel values from multiple pixels are combined into a single representative binning value. In a hybrid pixel binning scheme, different pixel groups may be binned in different ways in a single image sensor. When the range of values in a pixel group is low (indicating a flat surface), a mean or median binning scheme may be used. When the range of values in a pixel group is high (indicating an edge), a spatial weighting binning scheme may be used. When a pixel group has an intermediate range, a blend of the median/mean and spatial weighting may be used to avoid undesired blinking in the binning output. The hybrid binning scheme may reduce noise while still preserving high-frequency detail.

Image sensor with hybrid binning

A radar detection method with receive antenna calibration includes: forming a detection matrix from signals detected by an arrangement of receive antennas in response to chirps transmitted by an arrangement of transmit antennas, the detection matrix having multiple rows corresponding to the chirps, multiple columns corresponding to a sample of the signals, and multiple planes corresponding the receive antennas; deriving a range matrix by performing a frequency transform on a portion of each row of the detection matrix; deriving a velocity matrix by performing a frequency transform on a portion of each column of the range matrix; deriving a direction-of-arrival matrix by performing a frequency transform on a portion of one or more layers of the velocity matrix; analyzing the direction-of-arrival matrix to determine a current peak width; and adjusting, based on the current peak width, phase shifts associated with one or more antennas.

Calibrating array antennas based on signal energy distribution as a function of angle

Various embodiments of the present technology may comprise methods and apparatus for successive intra block prediction. Methods and apparatus for successive intra block prediction may comprise a matching decoder to generate data that replicates the internal state and/or the decompressed data at the decoder. The apparatus may further comprise a prediction module that utilizes the replicated data to make predictions. The apparatus may then utilize the predicted data and the original, input source data to determine a difference value and encode the difference value.

Methods and apparatus for successive intra block prediction

A radar antenna calibration method includes: forming a detection matrix from signals detected by an arrangement of receive antennas in response to chirps transmitted by an arrangement of transmit antennas, the detection matrix having multiple rows corresponding to the chirps, multiple columns corresponding to a signal sample, and multiple planes corresponding the receive antennas; deriving a range matrix by performing a frequency transform on a portion of each row of the detection matrix; extracting a slice of the range matrix, with different rows of the slice being associated with different chirps and with different receive antennas; deriving a velocity matrix from the extracted slice by performing a frequency transform on a portion of each column of the extracted slice; analyzing the velocity matrix to determine a current peak width; and adjusting, based on the current peak width, phase shifts associated with one or more of the receive antennas.

Calibrating array antennas based on signal energy distribution as a function of velocity

An image sensor may include a non-rectilinear image pixel array, which may produce non-rectilinear image data. The image sensor may include a resampling circuit to convert the non-rectilinear image data into rectilinear image data that is optimized for displaying an image to a user. This image data may be corrected using defect correction circuitry, resilience filtering circuitry, and aberration correction circuitry in the image sensor, and demosaicking circuitry and color correction circuitry in an image signal processor that is coupled to the image sensor. Alternatively, the non-rectilinear image data may be sent to the image signal processor without converting it to rectilinear image data. For example, machine vision applications may use and interpret non-rectilinear image data directly. In these applications, the image sensor and image signal processor may include fewer components, as the resilience filtering circuit, resampling circuit, aberration correction circuit, demosaicking circuit, and color correction circuit may be unnecessary.

Image sensors with non-rectilinear image pixel arrays

Various embodiments of the present technology may comprise methods and apparatus for transform coefficient encoding and decoding. Methods and apparatus for transform coefficient encoding and decoding may comprise an entropy encoder configured to encode each transform coefficient as a symbol, wherein the symbol comprises a context, a magnitude, and a mantissa. The context may be one of four contexts and the symbol may be encoded using a subset of Huffman codes, wherein the subset is determined based on the context.

Methods and apparatus for transform coefficient encoding and decoding

Various embodiments of the present technology comprise a method and apparatus for high dynamic range imaging. According to various embodiments, the method and apparatus for high dynamic range imaging is configured to select the 'best' signal for each pixel location to construct an HDR output. In one embodiment, the 'best' signal is select among various pixel signals and the pixel signal selected as the 'best' signal is based on the value of the pixel signals and identification of non-saturated. If only one pixel value for a particular pixel location is non-saturated, then the &#x201c;best&#x201d; signal is the non-saturated signal. If more than one pixel value is non-saturated, then the &#x201c;best&#x201d; signal is the pixel signal with the greatest value. If two more pixel values are non-saturated and both have equally great values, then the &#x201c;best&#x201d; signal is the pixel signal with the shortest integration time.

Methods and apparatus for high dynamic range imaging

An imaging system may include an image sensor, a lens, and layers with reflective properties, such as an infrared cut-off filter, between the lens and the image sensor. The lens may focus light from an object in a scene onto the image sensor. Some of the light directed onto the image sensor may form a first image on the image sensor. Other portions of the light directed onto the image sensor may reflect off of the image sensor and back towards the layers with reflective properties. These layers may reflect the light back onto the image sensor, forming a second image that is shifted relative to the first image. Depth mapping circuitry may compare the first and second images to determine the distance between the imaging system and the object in the scene.

Imaging systems with depth detection

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.

Imaging systems with high dynamic range and phase detection pixels

An image sensor may include pixels having nested sub-pixels. A pixel with nested sub-pixels may include an inner sub-pixel that has either an elliptical or a rectangular light collecting area. The inner sub-pixel may be formed in a substrate and may be immediately surrounded by a sub-pixel group that includes one or more sub-pixels. The inner sub-pixel may have a light collecting area at a surface that is less sensitive than the light collecting area of the one or more outer sub-pixel groups. Microlenses may be formed over the nested sub-pixels, to direct light away from the inner sub-pixel group to the outer sub-pixel groups in nested sub-pixels. A color filter of a single color may be formed over the nested sub-pixels. Hybrid color filters having a single color filter region over the inner sub-pixel and a portion of the one or more outer sub-pixel groups may also be used.

High dynamic range pixel using light separation

An image sensor may include an array of imaging pixels and an array of color filter elements that covers the array of imaging pixels. The array of imaging pixels may include visible light pixels that are covered by visible light color filter elements and near-infrared light pixels that are covered by near-infrared light color filter elements. The imaging pixels may be arranged in a pattern having a repeating 2&#xd7;2 unit cell of pixel groups. Each pixel group may include a visible light pixel sub-group and a near-infrared light pixel sub-group. Signals from each pixel group may be processed to determine a representative value for each pixel group that includes both visible light and near-infrared light information.

Image sensor with near-infrared and visible light pixels

An image sensor may have an array of image pixels arranged in color filter unit cells that each have at least one red image pixel that generates red image signals, at least one blue image pixel that generate blue image signals, at least one clear image pixels that generate clear image signals, at least one infrared image pixel that generates infrared image signals, and optionally at least one green image pixel that generates green image signals. The image sensor may be coupled to processing circuitry that performs chroma demosaicking operations on the image signals. The processing circuitry may generate an infrared image using the infrared image signals and a luminance value using the clear, red, blue, and infrared image signals. The processing circuitry may perform point filter operations on the image signals based on the generated luminance value to produce corrected visible light image signals having improved image quality.

Imaging systems with visible light sensitive pixels and infrared light sensitive pixels

An image sensor may have an array of pixels that include nested sub-pixels that each have at least one respective photodiode. An inner sub-pixel of a pixel with nested sub-pixels may have a relatively lower effective light collecting area compared to an outer sub-pixel of the pixel within which the inner sub-pixel is nested. A pixel circuit for the nested sub-pixels may include an overflow capacitor and/or a coupled gate circuit used to route charges from the photodiode in the inner sub-pixel. The lower light collecting area of the photodiode in the inner sub-pixel, with optional flicker mitigation charge routing from the coupled gates structure, may reduce the size of the capacitors required to capture photodiode and photodiode overflow charge responses. Flicker mitigation charge routing using a coupled gates structure may allow an adjustable proportion of the overflow charge to be stored in one or more storage capacitors.

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Horjul, Slovenia

Marko Mlinar