US-20260129320-A1 - SOLID-STATE IMAGING DEVICE AND DRIVING METHOD THEREOF, AND ELECTRONIC APPARATUS

US20260129320A1US 20260129320 A1US20260129320 A1US 20260129320A1US-20260129320-A1

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a solid-state imaging device, a driving method thereof, and an electronic apparatus that enable a predetermined special pixel to be read multiple times during one sequence for reading a single screen. The solid-state imaging device includes a pixel array unit in which a plurality of pixels including normal pixels and special pixels are arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix; and a driving unit that controls reading of signals generated by the pixels. The driving unit performs control to read a predetermined special pixel multiple times during a single-screen readout period in which the normal pixels of the pixel array unit are read once. The present disclosure can be applied to, for example, a solid-state imaging device and the like.

Inventors

Kenzaburo SEKI

Assignees

Sony Group Corporation

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20231002
Priority Date: 20221017

Claims (20)

1 . A solid-state imaging device comprising: a pixel array unit in which a plurality of pixels including normal pixels and special pixels are arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix; and a driving unit that controls reading of signals generated by the pixels, wherein the driving unit performs control to read a predetermined special pixel out of the special pixels multiple times during a single-screen readout period in which the normal pixels of the pixel array unit are read once.
2 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the special pixels include a plurality of types of special pixels, and the driving unit performs control to read a predetermined type of the special pixels multiple times from among the plurality of types of special pixels of the pixel array unit.
3 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 2 , wherein when the number of types of the special pixels is N (N>0) and the number of types of read-target special pixels is M (M>0, N>M), the driving unit performs control to read the read-target special pixel N/M times.
4 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 2 , wherein the same type of the special pixels are arranged in a predetermined row of the pixel array unit, and different types of the special pixels are arranged in different rows.
5 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein when a readout row of the pixel array unit is a row including the special pixels, with regard to reading of the special pixels the driving unit sequentially selects rows including the read-target special pixels and reads signals of the read-target special pixels.
6 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein when the readout row of the pixel array unit is a row including the special pixels, the driving unit skips reading the special pixels other than the read-target special pixels.
7 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the driving unit controls an exposure time of the predetermined read-target special pixels independently of an exposure time of the normal pixels.
8 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein an exposure time for each instance of the predetermined special pixel that is read multiple times is the same.
9 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein an exposure time for each instance of the predetermined special pixel that is read multiple times differs.
10 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein when the readout row of the pixel array unit is a row including the special pixels, the driving unit reads the read-target special pixel and the normal pixel of the readout row in a same 1-row readout period.
11 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein when the readout row of the pixel array unit is a row including the special pixels, the driving unit reads the read-target special pixel and the normal pixel of the readout row in different 1-row readout periods.
12 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 11 , wherein the driving unit reads two rows of read-target special pixels in a 1-row readout period.
13 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 12 , wherein the driving unit reads two rows of read-target special pixels in a time-division manner.
14 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 12 , wherein the driving unit simultaneously reads two rows of read-target special pixels.
15 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , further comprising: a plurality of ADCs for one pixel row.
16 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the special pixel is a phase-difference pixel.
17 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the special pixels are each a detection pixel for recognition processing.
18 . The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the special pixels are ach a functional pixel having a specific function.
19 . A method for driving a solid-state imaging device including a pixel array unit in which a plurality of pixels including normal pixels and special pixels are arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix, and a driving unit that controls reading of signals generated by the pixels, the method comprising: causing the driving unit to perform control to read a predetermined special pixel out of the special pixels multiple times during a single-screen readout period in which the normal pixels of the pixel array unit are read once.
20 . An electronic apparatus comprising a solid-state imaging device including: a pixel array unit in which a plurality of pixels including normal pixels and special pixels are arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix; and a driving unit that controls reading of signals generated by the pixels, wherein the driving unit performs control to read a predetermined special pixel out of the special pixels multiple times during a single-screen readout period in which the normal pixels of the pixel array unit are read once.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a solid-state imaging device and a driving method thereof, and an electronic apparatus, and in particular, to a solid-state imaging device and a driving method thereof, and an electronic apparatus that enable a predetermined special pixel to be read multiple times during one sequence for reading a single screen. BACKGROUND ART There is known an imaging element in which normal pixels, which are pixels used for image output, and phase-difference pixels, which are used for focus detection, are arranged in a pixel array unit in which multiple pixels are arranged in a matrix. With regard to such an imaging element, there is an imaging element that shortens the time until the end of phase difference detection by separating driving into driving to be performed in a first period in which the signal of the normal pixel is read and into driving to be performed in a second period in which the signal of the phase-difference pixel is read, thereby shortening the time from the start of imaging to the completion of focusing, so as to improve the focusing response (see, for example, PTL 1). CITATION LIST Patent Literatures [PTL 1] JP 2013-223054A SUMMARY Technical Problem In a solid-state imaging device, a special pixel such as a phase-difference pixel arranged in a pixel array unit is generally read once during one sequence for reading a single screen, and multiple readings have not been considered. The present disclosure has been made in consideration of such a situation, and aims to enable a predetermined special pixel to be read multiple times during one sequence for reading a single screen. Solution to Problem A solid-state imaging device of a first aspect of the present disclosure includes a pixel array unit in which a plurality of pixels including normal pixels and special pixels are arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix; and a driving unit that controls reading of signals generated by the pixels, wherein the driving unit performs control to read a predetermined special pixel out of the special pixels multiple times during a single-screen readout period in which the normal pixels of the pixel array unit are read once. A method for driving a solid-state imaging device according to a second aspect of the present disclosure includes causing a driving unit of a solid-state imaging device including a pixel array unit in which a plurality of pixels including normal pixels and special pixels are arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix, and a driving unit that controls reading of signals generated by the pixels, to perform control to read a predetermined special pixel out of the special pixels multiple times during a single-screen readout period in which the normal pixels of the pixel array unit are read once. An electronic apparatus according to a third aspect of the present disclosure includes a solid-state imaging device including a pixel array unit in which a plurality of pixels including normal pixels and special pixels are arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix, and a driving unit that controls reading of signals generated by the pixels, the driving unit performing control to read a predetermined special pixel out of the special pixels multiple times during a single-screen readout period in which the normal pixels of the pixel array unit are read once. In the first to third aspects of the present disclosure, control is performed to read a predetermined special pixel multiple times during a single-screen readout period in which normal pixels of a pixel array unit in which a plurality of pixels, including normal pixels and special pixels, are arranged two-dimensionally in a matrix are read once. The solid-state imaging device and electronic apparatus may be independent devices or may be modules integrated into other devices. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a solid-state imaging device to which the technology of the present disclosure is applied. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an equivalent circuit of a pixel. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the arrangement of special pixels in a pixel array unit. FIG. 4 is a diagram explaining a first drive that can be performed by the solid-state imaging device of FIG. 1. FIG. 5 is a diagram explaining a second drive that can be performed by the solid-state imaging device of FIG. 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram explaining a third drive that can be performed by the solid-state imaging device of FIG. 1. FIG. 7 is a diagram further explaining the details of the third drive. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating another example of the arrangement of special pixels in the pixel array unit. FIG. 9 is a table explaining the readout pixels in the third drive in the arrangement example of FIG. 8. FIG. 10 is a diagram explaining the third drive in the arrangement example of FIG. 8. FIG. 11 is a diagram explaining the exposure time of a read-target special pixel. FIG. 12 is a timing ch