Patents Examined by Mai Thi Ngoc Tran
  • Patent number: 11698296
    Abstract: A light sensor includes a semiconductor substrate supporting a number of pixels. Each pixel includes a photoconversion zone extending in the substrate between a front face and a back face of the substrate. An optical diffraction grating is arranged over the back face of the substrate at a position facing the photoconversion zone of the pixel. For at least two different pixels of the light sensor, the optical diffraction gratings have different pitches. Additionally, the optical grating of each pixel is surrounded by an opaque wall configured to absorb at operating wavelengths of the sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2023
    Assignees: STMicroelectronics (Crolles 2) SAS, STMicroelectronics SA
    Inventors: Stephane Monfray, Olivier Le Neel, Frederic Boeuf
  • Patent number: 11695030
    Abstract: A pixel-array substrate includes a semiconductor substrate, a buffer layer, and a metal annulus. The semiconductor substrate includes a first-photodiode region. A back surface of the semiconductor substrate forms a trench surrounding the first-photodiode region in a cross-sectional plane parallel to a first back-surface region of the back surface above the first-photodiode region. The buffer layer is on the back surface and has (i) a thin buffer-layer region located above the first-photodiode region and (ii) a thick buffer-layer region forming an annulus above the trench in a plane parallel to the cross-sectional plane. The metal annulus is on the buffer layer and covers the thick buffer-layer region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignee: OmniVision Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Seong Yeol Mun
  • Patent number: 11688755
    Abstract: A photoelectric conversion device includes a light receiving circuit configured to convert light into an electrical signal, a first hold circuit configured to hold a data signal which represents the electrical signal, a second hold circuit configured to hold a noise signal read out from the light receiving circuit in a reset state, a first resistive element to which a voltage corresponding to a difference between the data signal held by the first hold circuit and the noise signal held by the second hold circuit is applied, an A/D converter configured to convert an analog current flowing in the first resistive element into digital data, a second resistive element, and a temperature detection circuit configured to generate, based on a current flowing in the second resistive element, an analog output corresponding to an internal temperature of the photoelectric conversion device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2023
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hideo Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 11686669
    Abstract: The invention provides an optical measurement device for measuring light to be inspected. The optical measurement device comprises a light receiving module, a light splitting module, and a plurality of color filters. The light receiving module is used for converting the light to be inspected into a first parallel light. The light splitting module is used for splitting the first parallel light into a plurality of parallel lights to be inspected. Each color filter receives at least one of the plurality of parallel lights to be inspected. The plurality of parallel lights to be inspected filtered by the plurality of color filters are used to calculate tristimulus values in the CIE color space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2023
    Assignee: Chroma ATE Inc.
    Inventors: Tsung-Hsien Ou, Hsin-Yueh Sung, Shih-Min Hsu, Yu-Hsuan Lin
  • Patent number: 11668605
    Abstract: Provided is a system for detecting flame, which includes a light collecting module configured to collect light emitted from flame and sense location information and intensity information of the collected light, a memory configured to store a program for determining fire information on the basis of the sensed location information and intensity information of the light, and a processor configured to calculate intensity information and fluttering information of the flame from the intensity information of the light by executing the program stored in the memory, to calculate centroid spatial distribution information of the flame from the location information of the light, and to detect whether there is flame on the basis of at least one of the intensity information of the flame, the fluttering information of the flame, and the centroid spatial distribution information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2023
    Assignee: ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS RESEARCH INSTITUTE
    Inventors: Soo Cheol Kim, Hyun Seok Kim, So Yung Park, Hoe Sung Yang, Kang Bok Lee, Kwang Soo Cho, Kyu Won Han
  • Patent number: 11664394
    Abstract: An image sensor comprising: a plurality of photoelectric conversion portions that convert light incident on a first surface of a semiconductor substrate into charge; a plurality of circuit portions, controlled from a second surface that is an opposite surface of the first surface of the semiconductor substrate, for transferring the charge converted by the photoelectric conversion portions; and first separation portions that separate the photoelectric conversion portions and the circuit portions for transferring the charge converted by the photoelectric conversion portions. At least part of the first separation portions are formed such that the area of the first surface is larger than the area of the second surface of at least part of the respective photoelectric conversion portions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2023
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Hirokazu Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 11652176
    Abstract: An imaging device may include single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs). To improve the sensitivity and signal-to-noise ratio of the SPADs, light scattering structures may be formed in the semiconductor substrate to increase the path length of incident light through the semiconductor substrate. The light scattering structures may include a low-index material formed in trenches in the semiconductor substrate. One or more microlenses may focus light onto the semiconductor substrate. Areas of the semiconductor substrate that receive more light from the microlenses may have a higher density of light scattering structures to optimize light scattering while mitigating dark current.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: SEMICONDUCTOR COMPONENTS INDUSTRIES, LLC
    Inventors: Swarnal Borthakur, Marc Allen Sulfridge, Andrew Eugene Perkins
  • Patent number: 11646337
    Abstract: An image sensor with uniform, well-controlled air gaps is provided. A structure that is at least partially filled with organic material may be formed on the image sensor. A hybrid organic/inorganic film layer may be formed over the organic material. The image sensor may then be exposed to energy, which causes the organic material to sublimate through the hybrid film layer, which itself may become a gas permeable layer when exposed to energy. After sublimation, the regions where the organic material was previously filled become air gaps with a low index of refraction. Air gaps formed in this way can be configured over photodiodes as light guides or focusing structures, as concave/convex microlenses, in between photodiodes as isolation structures, in between color filter elements to reduce crosstalk, and/or over microlenses to enhancing focusing power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2023
    Assignee: SEMICONDUCTOR COMPONENTS INDUSTRIES, LLC
    Inventors: Nathan Wayne Chapman, Brian Anthony Vaartstra, Amanda Thuy Trang Vu
  • Patent number: 11640966
    Abstract: Disclosed are a photosensitive assembly, a method for manufacturing the same, and an electronic device. The photosensitive assembly includes a light-transmissive substrate, a light sensor, and a vibration member. The light sensor is disposed on a side of the light-transmissive substrate, and the vibration member is configured to drive the light-transmissive substrate to vibrate, such that a photosensitive area of the light-transmissive substrate is in an undulated shape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2023
    Assignee: BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Xiaotong Liu, Yuju Chen
  • Patent number: 11522003
    Abstract: A matrix-array detector and to a method for implementing the detector are provided. The detector includes an array of pixels that are sensitive to a physical effect and arranged in a matrix along rows and down columns, each pixel generating a signal according to the physical effect; row conductors, each allowing the pixels of one row to be driven; a first group of driver modules each delivering selection signals to one row conductor of a first group of row conductors; a second group of driver modules each delivering selection signals to one row conductor of a first group of row conductors; the first and second groups of row conductors being interlaced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2022
    Assignee: TRIXELL
    Inventors: Martin Siaud, Simon Marecaux, Chantal Hordequin