Method and apparatus for acquiring line signals

Abstract

When signal charges are read from light receiving pixels of each of CCD sensors, which are arrayed linearly such that end regions of CCD sensors adjacent to each other overlap with respect to a direction intersecting with the linear array direction of the CCD sensors, binning processing of the signal charges is performed, such that a position of one unit of light receiving pixels, which are to be subjected together to the binning processing, at the end region of one of the CCD sensors adjacent to each other and a position of one unit of light receiving pixels, which are to be subjected together to the binning processing, at the end region of the other CCD sensor coincide with each other with respect to the linear array direction of the CCD sensors.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] This invention relates to a method and apparatus for acquiring a line signal. This invention particularly relates to a method and apparatus for acquiring a line signal, wherein the line signal is acquired by use of a plurality of charge coupled device sensors, which are arrayed linearly. [0003] 2. Description of the Related Art [0004] There have heretofore been known image read-out apparatuses, wherein a line signal representing image information, which is carried along each line on an image storage sheet to be subjected to image readout, is acquired from the image storage sheet by use of a charge coupled device sensor (hereinbelow referred to as the CCD sensor), which comprises a plurality of light receiving pixels arrayed linearly. In the image read-out apparatuses for reading out the image information from the image storage sheet, it is necessary for the CCD sensor to have a length corresponding to a width of the...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

However, it is not always possible to make a long CCD sensor.

Therefore, there is the risk that, when the binning processing is performed on the signal charges having been transferred from the plurality of the light receiving pixels constituting the CCD sensors, the position of one unit of the light receiving pixels, from which one unit of the signal charges to be subjected together to the binning processing have been transferred, in one of the CCD sensors adjacent to each other and the position of one unit of the light receiving pixels, from which one unit of the signal charges to be subjected together to the binning processing have been transferred, in the other CCD sensor will shift from each other in the linear array direction of the CCD sensors.

If the position of the one unit of the light receiving pixels, which are to be subjected together to the binning processing, in one of the CCD sensors adjacent to each other and the position of the one unit of the light receiving pixels, which are to be subjected together to the binning processing, in the other CCD sensor shift from each other in the linear array direction of the CCD sensors, there will be the risk that the phase determined by the sampling period represented by the intervals of the respective units of the light receiving pixels, which are to be subjected together to the binning processing, the intervals being taken along the linear array direction of the CCD sensors, will vary for the CCD sensors adjacent to each other.

Also, in such cases, there will be the risk that, with respect to the end regions of the CCD sensors adjacent to each other, which end regions overlap one upon the other, the value (the signal component) obtained from the one unit of the signal charges, which have been obtained from the photoelectric conversion of the light received at a certain position with respect to the linear array direction of the CCD sensors, and the value (the signal component) obtained from the one unit of the signal charges, which have been obtained from the photoelectric conversion of the light received at a position different from the aforesaid certain position with respect to the linear array direction of the CCD sensors, will be subjected to the arithmetic mean calculation.

As a result, a signal component, which accurately represents one unit of the image information, cannot be acquired.

Accordingly, the problems occur in that a line signal carrying accurate position information cannot be acquired.

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