The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 20, 1999
Filed:
Jul. 25, 1997
James T Woolaway, II, Goleta, CA (US);
Raytheon Company, Lexington, MA (US);
Abstract
An IR focal plane array (IR-FPA) includes an IR radiation detector (11a) having a plurality of IR radiation responsive photodetectors (PDs) and a readout integrated circuit (11) that includes a plurality of unit cells arranged in an N.times.M matrix. Each unit cell has an input coupled to an output of one of the IR radiation responsive photodetectors. The IR-FPA further includes M column amplifiers, preferably CTIAs, individual ones of which have an input that is coupled through one of N switches (.phi.tr) to individual ones of the N unit cells. A charge integrating capacitance in each unit cell is formed by a charge well underlying one (.phi..sub.1) of a plurality of transfer gates coupled between individual ones of the N unit cells that are coupled to one of the M column amplifiers. The plurality of transfer gates are a multiphase CCD, preferably a four phase CCD, and are clocked at a rate that is a function of a rate of scene image motion relative to a radiation receiving surface (10a) of the IR-FPA for transferring photodetector-generated charge packets from one row to a next, adjacent row during an integration period. In a further embodiment the M columns are partitioned into j column groups, wherein all transfer gates within one of the j column groups are clocked at a rate that is a function of a rate of scene image motion relative to the column group.