Abstract: A solid stage imaging device, in which photodiodes each capable of converting incident light into a electric charge and accumulating the electric charge are arranged regularly in a matrix, e.g. in horizontal and vertical directions, and electric charges of the photodiodes are sent to the outside by means of CCD's, includes a scanning circuit which scans switching MOS transistors for transferring the electric charges of the photodiodes to vertical CCD's, in a vertical direction so that switching MOS transistors in a row parallel to a horizontal direction can be driven independently of switching MOS transistors in another row. When the solid state imaging device is driven, an operation for transferring an electric charge in each vertical CCD and an operation for driving switching MOS transistors in the next row with the aid of the scanning circuit are alternately performed, to reduce the amount of smear and to increase the dynamic range of each vertical CCD, without increasing the number of CCD's used.

Abstract: Herein disclosed is a method of reducing the vertical smears which are generated in a solid state image sensor including a plurality of vertical signal lines for transferring signal charges in a vertical direction and at least one charge transfer device for transferring the signal charges in a horizontal direction.The smear charges stored in the vertical signal lines and the signal charges generated in a photoelectric conversion element in response to an incident ray are inputted separately of each other for a horizontal blanking period to the charge transfer device for the horizontal transfer. During a tracing period, a smear voltage and a signal voltage are outputted separately of each other from said charge transfer device. The smear voltage adjusted is subtracted from the signal voltage to eliminate the smear component which has been mixed into the signal voltage.

Abstract: A solid state imaging device is disclosed in which photodiodes are arranged regularly in horizontal and vertical directions and generate signal charges in response to incident light, the signal charge thus obtained and smear charges stored on vertical signal lines are alternately and separately transferred to an output end by a horizontal charge transfer device, each of the smear charges is converted at the output end into a first voltage, the resultant charge of a signal charge following the above smear charge and another kind of smear charge is converted at the output end into a second voltage, a reset operation for the smear charge and resultant charge held at the output end is performed at an interval twice as long as the repetition period of a transfer pulse applied to the horizontal charge transfer device, and at least one of the first and second voltages is attenuated or amplified so that a difference between the first and second voltages thus processed provides an image signal in which any smear compo