Photometry, E.g., Photographic Exposure Meter (go1j 11/04) Patents (Class 356/922)
  • Patent number: 8334495
    Abstract: A photometric device with a wide dynamic range. The photometric device includes a constant current generation circuit, a fixed clock signal generation circuit which generates a fixed clock signal having a fixed frequency, a photoelectric conversion element, a variable clock signal generation circuit, and a digital signal generation circuit. The fixed clock signal generation circuit generates a fixed clock signal that oscillates at a fixed frequency, from constant current. The variable clock signal generation circuit generates a variable clock signal that oscillates at a frequency proportional to the amount of photocurrent, from photocurrent generated in the photoelectric conversion element. The digital signal generation circuit sets a measurement period using the fixed clock signal, counts the number of pulses of the variable clock signal that oscillates for the measurement period, and outputs a digital signal including the count value as data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 18, 2012
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Jun Koyama, Seiko Amano