Did You Know...
...that the Eveready Battery began as an invention called the "electric flowerpot," which was a tube with a battery and light bulb inside? The idea was to fasten this gizmo to the side of a flowerpot so it would illuminate the flowers from the bottom. The idea died on the vine and the businessman who licensed the flower pot, Conrad Huber, was left with a pile of useless tubes -- until he found a way to market them as batteries to light the world!
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 8139129 | High sensitivity color filter array A color filter array (CFA) and image processing system wherein a color filter overlaying an image sensor has a luminance element (i.e. green filter in RGB space, or yellow in CMY space) that is made larger than the other two chrominance elements (i.e. red, blue or c... | 03/20/2012 |
| 8023017 | Pattern of color filter array The present invention relates to a pattern of a color filter array. The pattern includes a plurality of pixel arrays, which has four color filters arranged in an array. The color of the neighboring color filters is distinct to each other. Moreover, the pattern of th... | 09/20/2011 |
| 8023018 | Drive method for solid-state imaging device, solid-state imaging device, and imaging apparatus A solid-state imaging device having: (a) a pixel array with an oblique pixel pattern in which pixels are obliquely disposed, an odd-numbered row vertical signal line in an odd-numbered row vertical signal line group being connected to each column of odd-numbered row... | 09/20/2011 |
| 7932943 | Solid state imaging device In a solid-state imaging device, a primary-color Bayer color filter is provided on an imaging pixel area defined by pixels having different structures. Color-component filters for the same color in the color filter are disposed correspondingly to pixels having the s... | 04/26/2011 |
| 7825970 | CMOS image sensor and image sensing method using the same Example embodiments may provide a CMOS image sensor. The CMOS image sensor may include a plurality of unit blocks each including two unit pixels. Each unit block may include two photodiodes having a hexagonal shape, a floating diffusion shared by the two unit pixels... | 11/02/2010 |
| 7710477 | CMOS image sensors having pixel arrays with uniform light sensitivity Solid state CMOS active pixel sensor devices having unit pixels that are structured to provide improved uniformity of pixel-to-pixel sensitivity across a pixel array without the need for an additional light shielding layer. For example, unit pixels with symmetrical ... | 05/04/2010 |
| 7697045 | Method and apparatus to extend the effective dynamic range of an image sensing device An image sensor generates an image signal with a differential response to image light. The image sensor has an array of photosites divided into standard photosites and non-standard photosites. A limiter provides the standard photosites with a predetermined standard ... | 04/13/2010 |
| 7683951 | Solid-state imaging apparatus and digital camera for white balance correction A solid-state imaging apparatus comprises: a solid-state imaging device having pixels that image light originating from a subject, by dividing the light into color signals; and a signal processor that subjects photographed image data output from the device to white ... | 03/23/2010 |
| 7659929 | Solid-state image sensor and method of manufacturing thereof A solid-state image sensor having unit pixel cells arranged in a matrix form, each unit pixel cell having a photoelectric conversion element formed on a semiconductor substrate, a color filter formed on the photoelectric conversion element and a micro-lens formed on... | 02/09/2010 |
| 7656446 | CCD color solid-state image pickup device A CCD color solid-state image pickup device has a plurality of light-receiving sections arranged in an array on the surface of a semiconductor substrate, and a vertical transfer path by way of which signal electric charges stored in electric charge storage sections ... | 02/02/2010 |
| 7652701 | Solid-state honeycomb type image pickup apparatus using a complementary color filter and signal processing method therefor A solid-state image pickup apparatus includes a color filter including complementary color filter segments. When a shutter release bottom is pressed to its half-stroke or full-stroke position, light incident via the filter is picked up in a movie/photometry or a sti... | 01/26/2010 |
| 7623168 | Method and apparatus to extend the effective dynamic range of an image sensing device An image sensor generates an image signal with a differential response to image light. The image sensor has an array of photosites divided into standard photosites and non-standard photosites. A limiter provides the standard photosites with a predetermined standard ... | 11/24/2009 |
| 7612812 | Solid state imaging device with increased vertical resolution in interlace scanning method A solid state imaging device comprises a semiconductor substrate defining a two-dimensional surface, a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements disposed in a light receiving area of said semiconductor substrate in a plurality of rows and columns, an electric c... | 11/03/2009 |
| 7570290 | Drive method for solid-state imaging device, solid-state imaging device, and imaging apparatus A drive method for a solid-state imaging device having an oblique pixel pattern includes the steps of: adding, separately for an odd-numbered row and an even-numbered row, x pixels in the horizontal direction and y pixels in the vertical direction, the x pixels and ... | 08/04/2009 |
| 7440019 | Solid-state image pick-up device A plurality of low-sensitivity pixels 10 and a plurality of high-sensitivity pixels 20 are arranged like a tetragonal grid respectively, and are provided in positions shifted by ½ of an array pitch from each other in a row direction X and a column dir... | 10/21/2008 |
| 7428103 | Gapless microlens array and method of fabrication A microlens array with reduced or no empty space between individual microlenses and a method for forming the same. The microlens array is formed by patterning a first set of microlens precursors in a checkerboard pattern on a substrate. The first set of microlens pr... | 09/23/2008 |
| 7420607 | Solid-state imaging element and digital camera A solid-state imaging element contains a plurality of photoelectric converting regions, vertical transfer portions, a horizontal transfer portion, and an output portion. These photoelectric converting regions are arranged on a surface of a semiconductor substrate al... | 09/02/2008 |
| 7372488 | Solid-state image pickup apparatus with horizontal thinning and a signal reading method for the same In a solid-state image pickup apparatus, a solid-state image sensor includes a color filter having filter segments arranged in a pattern, photosensitive cells for photoelectrically transducing light transmitted through the filter segments to generate corresponding s... | 05/13/2008 |
| 7313272 | Image compression apparatus and image processing system Disclosed herein is an image compression apparatus including: a pre-processing means for effecting preprocessing to generate color imaging signals of locations spatially equivalent to the relative locations of pixels on a color filter from color imaging signals outp... | 12/25/2007 |
| 7312824 | Image-capturing apparatus, image processing apparatus and image recording apparatus There is described an image-capturing apparatus, which has plural kinds of image sensors, sensitivities of which are different relative to each other, for recording wide dynamic range image data, and an image processing apparatus for applying optimization processing... | 12/25/2007 |
| 7310142 | Fast time-correlated multi-element photon detector and method Photons emitted from a sample responsive to being excited by laser pulses are directed through a prism onto a photomultiplier tube having several spaced-apart anodes. The prism alters the path of each photon as a function of its wavelength so that the wavelength det... | 12/18/2007 |
| 7304673 | Image sensor array with substitutional circuit distribution An image sensor includes a plurality of photosensitive sites which convert incident light into a charge for forming a bounded array of active imaging pixels; one or more substitutional pixels sites arranged in predetermined locations and interspersed amongst the bou... | 12/04/2007 |
| 7292277 | Solid-state image pick-up device and digital still camera In a solid-state image pick-up device comprising photoelectric converting devices 3r, 3g and 3b formed at a predetermined array interval in row and column directions on a semiconductor substrate, vertical transfer paths 4... | 11/06/2007 |
| 7263215 | Circuit and method for correction of defect pixel A semiconductor integrated circuit includes a check unit which compares a value of a pixel of interest with values of neighboring pixels contained in an image signal supplied from an image sensor, and determines based on the comparison whether the pixel of interest ... | 08/28/2007 |
| 7256828 | Weighted gradient based and color corrected interpolation The apparatus and method invented are operating upon a digital image signal obtained from an image sensor. The sensor is covered with different colored filters and is only able to record the color transmitted through each specific filter into the photosite or pixel.... | 08/14/2007 |
| 7239352 | Method of reading out signals from higher and lower photosensitivity regions of a solid-state image pickup apparatus In a signal reading method for a solid-state image pickup apparatus, an estimated photometric value is calculated at the time of preliminary image pickup and compared with a threshold value set beforehand. If the estimated photometric value is smaller than the thres... | 07/03/2007 |
| 7236196 | Solid-state image pickup apparatus for reading out image signals with pixels reduced in a horizontal direction and a signal reading method for the same A solid-state image pickup apparatus includes a color filter having an R (red), G (green) and B (blue) vertical stripe pattern. During preliminary pickup, a signal feeding section feeds particular drive signals for reading signal charges out of only odd-numbered col... | 06/26/2007 |
| 7227573 | Apparatus and method for improved-resolution digital zoom in an electronic imaging device An electronic imaging device produces higher quality digitally zoomed images than can be obtained by simple cropping and resealing. An array of imaging sensors that places more resolution near the center of the image than at the edges combined with geometrical disto... | 06/05/2007 |
| 7218348 | Solid-state electronic imaging device and method of controlling opertion thereof An object is to prevent a false signal from being generated. In a CCD comprising a lot of photodiodes, vertical transfer paths, and a horizontal transfer path, signal charges respectively representing R, G and B color components are mixed in the horizontal transfer ... | 05/15/2007 |
| 7215368 | Photoelectric conversion device with photoelectric conversion units stacked in a depth direction and corresponding read transistor structure In a photoelectric conversion device having a plurality of pixel circuits, a read transistor, a main electrode of which is connected to a charge accumulation node of a photoelectric conversion unit in each pixel circuit is operated in a pentode region, so as to read... | 05/08/2007 |
| 7202900 | Method of producing frame pair signals from an image sensor and method for displaying same A method is disclosed for producing progressive scan signals representative of an image of a scene, including the following steps: providing an image sensor onto which the image is projected, the image sensor having a diagonal pixel pattern; producing frame pairs as... | 04/10/2007 |
| 7202896 | Solid state image pickup device having spectral device A spectral device is disposed above a semiconductor substrate formed with a number of photoelectric conversion elements. The spectral device has a plurality of spectral regions each corresponding to a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements, each of the spect... | 04/10/2007 |
| 7190403 | Solid-state image pickup apparatus having a broad photometric range and a photometric method for the same A solid-state image pickup apparatus includes a timing signal generator for generating timing signals. Particular gates formed in each of photosensitive cells arranged in an image pickup section are driven independently or simultaneously in response to the timing si... | 03/13/2007 |
| 7176968 | Camera system and display device The invention relates to a camera system and to a display device for displaying images recorded by the camera system. The camera system comprises a camera (1) provided with an optics system (2) and a photosensitive image surface (3) disposed nea... | 02/13/2007 |
| 7173658 | Arranging a plurality of imaging pixels in an imaging acquisition apparatus An image acquisition apparatus has an imaging optical system. An imaging section has a plurality of imaging pixels arranged at non-uniform intervals within an imaging surface. The imaging section picks up an object image imaged by the imaging optical system, and con... | 02/06/2007 |
| 7173741 | System and method for handling bad pixels in image sensors A method and apparatus for handling bad pixels in an image sensor array includes processing data values associated with the pixels of the image sensor. Processing the data values is performed by at least a first pass process and a subsequent pass process. In the fir... | 02/06/2007 |
| 7154549 | Solid state image sensor having a single-layered electrode structure Provided is a CCD image sensor wherein driving power and power consumption are reduced without increasing unusable regions. Photodiodes are arranged in a honeycomb form. Each vertical charge-transfer channel is made in such a manner that invasion portions, which inv... | 12/26/2006 |
| 7154546 | Pixel optimization for color A macro pixel is provided. The macro pixel includes at least two color pixel elements. Each color pixel element includes a photoreceptor that in response to receiving light, generates an output signal that is indicative of the quantity of light photons of a color ar... | 12/26/2006 |
| 7154545 | Image scanner photosensor assembly with improved spectral accuracy and increased bit-depth Photosensor assemblies have, for each color, multiple line-arrays of photosensors. For each color, the spectral bandwidth received by each line-array is different. The additional spectral bandwidths are used to improve the spectral measurement accuracy, and to incre... | 12/26/2006 |
| 7148925 | Solid-state honeycomb type image pickup apparatus using a complementary color filter and signal processing method therefor A solid-state image pickup apparatus includes a color filter including complementary color filter segments. When a shutter release bottom is pressed to its half-stroke or full-stroke position, light incident via the filter is picked up in a movie/photometry or a sti... | 12/12/2006 |
