Event-Based Sensor Pixel Array With Open-Loop Event Arbitration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional event-based sensor systems utilize acknowledgement or handshake protocols to identify spatial coordinates of detected events, which introduce latency and hinder efficient event processing.
Innovation Solution
An array of sensor elements with column-specific and row-specific event trigger lines and detector circuits, utilizing time-to-digital converters (TDCs) or analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), enables an open loop arbitration scheme to identify event coordinates without handshake protocols, allowing for efficient event detection and processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If acknowledgement or handshake protocols are used to identify spatial coordinates of detected events, then event detection accuracy is maintained, but system latency increases and event processing efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the acknowledgement/handshake protocol from the event processing pipeline. By using dedicated column and row event trigger lines that operate independently, the system eliminates the need for pixels to wait for acknowledgment from central control, thereby removing the latency-inducing feedback loop while maintaining coordinate identification accuracy through the independent trigger line intersection method
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-establishing dedicated event trigger lines for each column and row before events occur. These trigger lines are ready to immediately carry event signals from any pixel without requiring real-time negotiation or acknowledgment protocols, thus preparing the communication path in advance to eliminate latency
2Measurement precision
If acknowledgement or handshake protocols are used to identify spatial coordinates of detected events, then event detection accuracy is maintained, but event processing efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the event processing function into independent column and row trigger line systems. Each column and row has its own dedicated trigger line that can operate autonomously, allowing multiple events to be processed simultaneously without centralized coordination overhead. This segmentation enables parallel processing of events across different spatial locations, dramatically improving throughput while maintaining accurate coordinate identification through the intersection of triggered column and row lines
Solution Approach 2:
The dedicated column and row event trigger lines serve as intermediaries that carry event information from pixels to readout circuits without requiring active acknowledgment protocols. These intermediary lines passively transmit event signals, allowing the system to identify event coordinates through the pattern of triggered lines rather than through time-consuming handshake sequences, thus improving processing efficiency
3Reliability
If conventional DVS circuits are used, then basic event detection capability is provided, but event processing speed and system responsiveness are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent adds a spatial dimension to event signal transmission by implementing dedicated trigger lines for each column and row. Instead of using a single shared communication channel or sequential addressing, events are transmitted along specific spatial paths (column lines and row lines) that intersect at the event location. This dimensional approach allows simultaneous processing of multiple events across the sensor array, dramatically increasing event processing speed while maintaining detection reliability
Data Source
AI summary
Event-based sensor systems and method for operating event-based sensor systems are disclosed. A sensor system includes an array of sensor elements arranged in columns and rows, wherein each sensor element in the array of sensor elements includes, a detector circuit, an active pixel sensor (APS) circuit, and a dynamic vision sensor (DVS) circuit, the DVS circuit including an event trigger switch configured to control application of a signal on an event trigger line in response to a pixel-specific event trigger signal.