A charge transfer device has a plurality of registers which run parallel to each other and across which electrical charges are transferred. For efficient charge transfer across the registers, the transfer elecrtrode of one register and the transfer electrode of an adjacent register are arrayed in contiguity to each other and driven by different driving pulses and a deeper potential is provided in the signal charge receiving side than in the signal charge forwarding side. The registers are arrayed parallel to a sensor row constituted by a linear array of different color sensors and each handle signal charges of the respective colors. In this manner, the outputs from the registers are in the form of the separate color signals to prevent color mixing.
An image sensing device having an array of photodetectors capable of generating electron/hole pairs from incident photons, with multiple charge coupled devices organized in a tandem well design that employs multiple storage wells per pixel. The wells use thresholds to control the overflow of charge from one well to the next and are arranged such that a first charge coupled device having a plurality of cells is operatively coupled to the photodetectors by first transfer means for placing charge accumulated within the photodetectors from generated electron/hole pairs within the first charge coupled device, and a second charge coupled device having a plurality of cells being operatively coupled to the first charge coupled device by second transfer means for removing charge exceeding a predetermined threshold within the first charge coupled device and placing charge exceeding the predetermined threshold within the second charge coupled device. Clocking means are provided for cycling charge through the cells of the charge coupled devices. Embodiments have output means for combining signals from first and second charge coupled devices, and generating either analog or digital outputs. These techniques can also be employed with an active pixel architecture.
