/Patent Tracker
SonyGranted patentCameras & imagingInterest 4/10

Sony patents camera sensor design for better low-light photos

Sony has been granted a patent for an imaging device that uses multiple comparison circuits to process light signals at different strengths. This setup allows the camera to capture a wide range of brightness in a single shot without adding extra noise to the image.

Why it mattersThis technology could help Sony make its cameras and sensors better at handling scenes with both very bright and very dark areas, like a sunset, without needing complex software fixes later.

In the filing’s own words

To implement a single-exposure HDR function with a simple circuit configuration without increasing noise. In one example, an imaging device includes a first comparison circuit that outputs a first signal according to a result of comparison between signal levels of a first input signal and a first reference signal corresponding to a first gain, a second comparison circuit that outputs a second signal according to a result of comparison between a second input signal and a second reference signal corresponding to a second gain having an amount of gain different from that of the first gain, and a third comparison circuit that outputs a third signal according to a result of comparison between signal levels of the first signal and the first input signal, and a fourth signal according to a result of comparison between the second signal and the second input signal, at timings different from each other.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. An imaging device comprising: a first comparison circuit that outputs a first signal according to a result of comparison between signal levels of a first input signal and a first reference signal corresponding to a first gain; a second comparison circuit that outputs a second signal according to a result of comparison between a second input signal and a second reference signal corresponding to a second gain having an amount of gain different from that of the first gain; and a third comparison circuit that outputs a third signal according to a result of comparison between signal levels of the first signal and the first input signal, and a fourth signal according to a result of comparison between the second signal and the second input signal, at timings different from each other.

Facts

Company
Sony (Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation)
Official title
Imaging device
Patent number
US12732720B2
Application number
18721376
Filed
Jan 31, 2023
Granted
Sep 8, 2026
Inventors
2
Claims
20

Classified under

H04N 25/78 Electricity & electronicsH04N 25/773 Electricity & electronicsH04N 25/7795 Electricity & electronics
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

More from Sony in Cameras & imaging

Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.