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. 14, 2012
Filed:
Mar. 12, 2010
Nicolas Lebouleux, Voreppe, FR;
Thierry Ligozat, Grenoble, FR;
Nicolas Lebouleux, Voreppe, FR;
Thierry Ligozat, Grenoble, FR;
E2V Semiconductors, , FR;
Abstract
The invention relates to matrix-array image sensors with MOS-technology active pixels, comprising a matrix-array of pixels arranged in rows and columns. To read the signal from a pixel, the reset potential present on a column conductor is sampled in two capacitors. The first capacitor is linked to an input of a comparator; the other input receives, through the second capacitor, a linear voltage ramp varying in a first direction for a first duration, then a linear voltage ramp in the reverse direction; a digital value N of the time between the start of this second ramp and the switching over of the comparator is counted; the useful potential present on the column conductor and representing the lighting of the pixel is sampled again, but in the first capacitor only; two ramps identical to the preceding ones are applied to the second input, through the second capacitor; a digital value N' of the time between the start of the second reverse ramp and the switching over of the comparator is counted, the difference between the two counts N and N′ representing a measurement of the lighting of the pixel.