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:
Oct. 30, 2012
Filed:
Dec. 17, 2008
Junji Tokumoto, Osaka, JP;
Toshifumi Habara, Osaka, JP;
Takeshi Fujita, Kyoto, JP;
Kazuya Yonemoto, Osaka, JP;
Junji Tokumoto, Osaka, JP;
Toshifumi Habara, Osaka, JP;
Takeshi Fujita, Kyoto, JP;
Kazuya Yonemoto, Osaka, JP;
Panasonic Corporation, Osaka, JP;
Abstract
The present invention has an object of providing a method of driving a solid-state imaging device which can reduce reading voltage even when transfer electrodes adjacent to reading electrodes are smaller than the reading electrodes as a result of miniaturization of pixels. The solid-state imaging device includes photodiodes and vertical CCDs each including transfer electrodes. The method includes: reading signal charges from the photodiodes by setting the electric potential of a predetermined transfer electrode among the reading electrodes to the electric potential V; transferring the read signal charges in a column direction by applying driving pulses having electric potentials Vand Vto the transfer electrodes. Each of the reading electrodes has a larger area than the adjacent transfer electrodes. In reading the signal charges, while the electric potential Vis being applied, the electric potential of one of the transfer electrodes adjacent to the predetermined reading electrode is set to the electric potential V, and the electric potentials of the other one of the transfer electrodes adjacent to the predetermined reading electrode and a reading electrode other than the predetermined electrode are changed.