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Sony patents image sensor that tags brightness changes with line data

Patent drawing
Patent drawing from the official filing.

Sony describes an image sensor that detects sudden changes in light brightness, known as events, rather than taking full pictures. It sends these event details along with extra information about the specific line of pixels where the change happened.

Why it mattersThis design could help cameras process only what changes in a scene, which may save power and speed up data handling in devices like robots or autonomous vehicles.

In the filing’s own words

The present disclosure relates to an image sensor, a data processing device, and an image sensor system capable of further improving versatility. An image sensor includes: an event detecting unit configured to detect an occurrence of an event that is a luminance change of light received by a photodiode; and a data transmitting unit configured to set event data representing details of the event as a part of payload data and transmit line information that is added to a line and relates to the event data in a frame structure in which the line information is stored in a beginning part of the payload data. In addition, a luminance detecting unit configured to detect luminance of light received by the photodiode and output a luminance signal representing a luminance value and an additional information generating unit configured to generate the line information added to a line as additional information that is additionally disposed in the event data on the basis of the event data are further included. The present technology, for example, can be applies to an event-based vision sensor (EVS).

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. (canceled)

Facts

Company
Sony (Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation)
Official title
IMAGE SENSOR, DATA PROCESSING DEVICE, AND IMAGE SENSOR SYSTEM
Publication number
US20260313242A1
Application number
19677485
Filed
May 14, 2026
Published
Oct 8, 2026
Inventors
1
Claims
21

Classified under

H04N 23/745 Electricity & electronicsH04N 25/47 Electricity & electronics
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

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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.