US 12,244,951 B2
Imaging device and imaging method
Shin Kitano, Kanagawa (JP)
Assigned to SONY SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS CORPORATION, Kanagawa (JP)
Appl. No. 18/003,358
Filed by SONY SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS CORPORATION, Kanagawa (JP)
PCT Filed Jun. 22, 2021, PCT No. PCT/JP2021/023684
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Dec. 27, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2022/004502, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 6, 2022.
Claims priority of application No. 2020-114996 (JP), filed on Jul. 2, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0247323 A1, Aug. 3, 2023
Int. Cl. H04N 25/76 (2023.01); H04N 25/534 (2023.01); H04N 25/768 (2023.01); H04N 25/773 (2023.01)
CPC H04N 25/768 (2023.01) [H04N 25/534 (2023.01); H04N 25/773 (2023.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An imaging device comprising:
a plurality of pixels each having a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements that is configured to photoelectrically convert incident light to generate an electric signal;
a detecting section configured to output a detection signal in a case where an absolute value of a change amount of the electric signal in a pixel of the plurality of pixels exceeds a predetermined threshold;
a signal processing section configured to perform predetermined signal processing on a basis of the detection signal output from the detecting section;
an AZ output section configured to output an auto-zero signal to initialize the detecting section;
a time code generator configured to output a time code changing at a predetermined cycle;
a first holding circuit configured to hold the time code output from the time code generator when the auto-zero signal is output;
a second holding circuit configured to hold the time code output from the time code generator when the detection signal is output; and
a transfer section configured to transfer the time code held in the first holding circuit and the time code held in the second holding circuit to the signal processing section in association with each other.