Patents by Inventor Yutaka Inaoka

Yutaka Inaoka has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20230179880
    Abstract: To reduce power consumption in a solid-state image sensor that detects weak light. The solid-state image sensor includes a photodiode, a resistor, a measuring unit, and a control unit. The photodiode photoelectrically converts incident light and outputs a photocurrent. The resistor drops a potential of one end of the photodiode to a value lower than a power supply potential every time a photocurrent is output. The measuring unit measures illuminance of the incident light on the basis of a frequency of dropping of the potential of one end. The control unit controls the power supply potential to a lower value as the measured illuminance is higher.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 22, 2022
    Publication date: June 8, 2023
    Inventors: Yutaka Inaoka, Hongbo Zhu, Takafumi Takatsuka
  • Patent number: 11622086
    Abstract: To reduce power consumption in a solid-state image sensor that detects weak light. The solid-state image sensor includes a photodiode, a resistor, a measuring unit, and a control unit. The photodiode photoelectrically converts incident light and outputs a photocurrent. The resistor drops a potential of one end of the photodiode to a value lower than a power supply potential every time a photocurrent is output. The measuring unit measures illuminance of the incident light on the basis of a frequency of dropping of the potential of one end. The control unit controls the power supply potential to a lower value as the measured illuminance is higher.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Assignee: Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation
    Inventors: Yutaka Inaoka, Hongbo Zhu, Takafumi Takatsuka
  • Publication number: 20200382726
    Abstract: To reduce power consumption in a solid-state image sensor that detects weak light. The solid-state image sensor includes a photodiode, a resistor, a measuring unit, and a control unit. The photodiode photoelectrically converts incident light and outputs a photocurrent. The resistor drops a potential of one end of the photodiode to a value lower than a power supply potential every time a photocurrent is output. The measuring unit measures illuminance of the incident light on the basis of a frequency of dropping of the potential of one end. The control unit controls the power supply potential to a lower value as the measured illuminance is higher.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 4, 2018
    Publication date: December 3, 2020
    Inventors: Yutaka Inaoka, Hongbo Zhu, Takafumi Takatsuka