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:
Feb. 13, 2007
Filed:
May. 03, 2001
Sukeyuki Shinotsuka, Sayama, JP;
Nobuhiro Fueki, Sayama, JP;
Jiro Kurita, Sayama, JP;
Katsuhiko Takebe, Sayama, JP;
Sukeyuki Shinotsuka, Sayama, JP;
Nobuhiro Fueki, Sayama, JP;
Jiro Kurita, Sayama, JP;
Katsuhiko Takebe, Sayama, JP;
Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha, Tokyo, JP;
Abstract
Disclosed is an image sensor consisting of light sensor circuits arranged to form an array of pixels, each of which produces in a photoelectric converting element a sensor current proportional to the quantity of light falling thereon and converts the sensor current into a voltage signal by a MOS type transistor with a logarithmic output characteristic in a weak inverse state, wherein a means for changing over a drain voltage of the transistor for each light sensor circuit to a value lower than a normal value for a specified time to remove a charge accumulated in a parasitic capacity of the photoelectric converting element to initialize the circuit before detecting a light signal. The image sensor can obtain a voltage signal corresponding to the quantity of incident light even if the sensor current was rapidly changed, thereby eliminating the possibility of occurrence of afterglow of each pixel even at a small quantity of incident light.