Color TV camera with plural solid state imaging devices mutually horizontally displaced and associated filters of vertically-oriented color stripes

Claim 2

A color television camera comprising: (a) an optical system for splitting an incident light ray from an object into N rays wherein N is a positive integer greater than 1, each of said N rays providing an identical image of said object or a mirror image thereof; (b) N solid-state imaging devices having identical pixel configurations respectively responsive to said N rays from said optical system, each of said imaging devices having pixels arranged in horizontal and vertical directions so that vertically-extending rows of pixels are formed, said rows being disposed at a predetermined horizontal pitch, said imaging devices being disposed such that each succeeding one of said imaging devices is progressively displaced by a distance of 1/N of said horizontal pitch in said horizontal direction relative to an incident identical or mirror image with respect to a preceding one of said imaging devices; (c) N color separation stripe filters each having an identical predetermined repetitive pattern of color stripes extending vertically or a pattern which is a mirror image of said repetitive pattern, said color stripes having a horizontal width substantially equal to said horizontal pitch, said N color separation stripe filters being respectively disposed in front of said N imaging devices so that said N rays are respectively subjected to filtration by said N color separation stripe filters before projecting into said N imaging devices; (d) pulse generating means for producing N pulse trains of N phases for respectively driving said N imaging devices so that output signals having a predetermined phase difference therebetween are derived from said N imaging devices; (e) N sampling circuits for sampling respectively said output signals from said N imaging devices such that each of said output signals from said N imaging devices is sampled at a predetermined interval so that information corresponding to each pixel of said imaging devices is derived, said N sampling circuits being arranged to be successively operated in a predetermined order; and (f) combining means responsive to output signals from said N sampling circuits for producing a single multil-color video signal.

Claim 3

A television camera as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said N color separation stripe filters comprises color stripes of red, green and blue.

Claim 4

A television camera as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said N color separation stripe filters comprises color stripes of yellow, green and cyan.

Claim 5

A television camera as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said N imaging devices comprises a charge-coupled device.

Claim 6

A television camera as claimed in claim 1, wherein said N sampling circuits are responsive to pulses from said pulse generating means.

Claim 7

A television camera as claimed in claim 1, wherein said combining means comprises an adder for adding said output signals from said N sampling circuits to each other.

Claim 8

A television camera as claimed in claim 1, wherein said positive integer N is two and there is a phase difference of 180 degrees between said pulse trains.

Claim 9

A television camera as claimed in claim 1, wherein said positive integer N is four and there is a phase difference of 90 degrees between said pulse trains.

Claim 10

A color television camera comprising: (a) an optical system for splitting an incident light ray from an object into N rays wherein N is a positive integer greater than 1, each of said N rays providing an identical image of said object or a mirror image thereof; (b) N solid-state imaging devices having identical pixel configurations respectively responsive to said N rays from said optical system, each of said imaging devices having pixels arranged in horizontal and vertical directions so that vertically-extending rows of pixels are formed, said rows being disposed at a predetermined horizontal pitch, said imaging devices being disposed such that each succeeding one of said imaging devices is progressively displaced by a distance of 1/N of said horizontal pitch in said horizontal direction relative to an incident identical or mirror image with respect to a preceding one of said imaging devices; (c) N color separation stripe filters each having an identical predetermined repetitive pattern of color stripes extending vertically or a pattern which is a mirror image of said repetitive pattern, said color stripes having a horizontal width substantially equal to said horizontal pitch, said N color separation stripe filters being respectively disposed in front of said N imaging devices so that said N rays are respectively subjected to filtration by said N color separation stripe filters before projecting into said N imaging devices; (d) pulse generating means for producing N pulse trains of N phases for respectively driving said N imaging devices so that output signals having a predetermined phase difference therebetween are derived from said N imaging devices; (e) N sampling circuits for sampling respectively said output signals from said N imaging devices such that each of said output signals from said N imaging devices is sampled at a predetermined interval so that information corresponding to each pixel of said imaging devices is derived, said N sampling circuits being arranged to be successively operated in a predetermined order; (f) N sets of sampling circuits responsive to output signals from said N sampling circuits, each set of the N sets of sampling circuits having three sampling circuits and being responsive to an output signal from one of said N sampling circuits so as to derive three different color output signals, said sampling circuits of the N sets of sampling circuits being arranged to be successively operated in a predetermined order; (g) 3N level adjusting circuits respectively responsive to 3N output signals from said N sets of sampling circuits for adjusting the level of output signals from said N sets of sampling circuits; and (h) combining means responsive to output signals from said 3N level adjusting circuits for producing a single multi-color video signal.

Claim 11

A color television camera comprising: (a) an optical system for splitting an incident light ray from an object into N rays wherein N is a positive integer greater than 1, each of said N rays providing an identical image of said object or a mirror image thereof; (b) N solid-state imaging devices having identical pixel configurations respectively responsive to said N rays from said optical system, each of said imaging devices having pixels arranged in horizontal and vertical directions so that vertically-extending rows of pixels are formed, said rows being disposed at a predetermined horizontal pitch, said imaging devices being disposed such that each succeeding one of said imaging devices is progressively displaced by a distance of 1/N of said horizontal pitch in said horizontal direction relative to an incident identical or mirror image with respect to a preceding one of said imaging devices; (c) N color separation stripe filters each having an identical predetermined repetitive pattern of color stripes extending vertically or a pattern which is a mirror image of said repetitive pattern, said color stripes having a horizontal width substantially equal to said horizontal pitch, said N color separation stripe filters being respectively disposed in front of said N imaging devices so that said N rays are respectively subjected to filtration by said N color separation stripe filters before projecting into said N imaging devices; (d) pulse generating means for producing N pulse trains of N phases for respectively driving said N imaging devices so that output signals having a predetermined phase difference therebetween are derived from said N imaging devices; (e) N sampling circuits for sampling respectively said output signals from said N imaging devices such that each of said output signals from said N imaging devices is sampled at a predetermined interval so that information corresponding to each pixel of said imaging devices is derived, said N sampling circuits being arranged to be successively operated in a predetermined order; (f) N sets of sampling circuits responsive to output signals from said N sampling circuits, each set of the N sets of sampling circuits having three sampling circuits and being responsive to an output signal from one of said N sampling circuits so as to derive three different color output signals, said sampling circuits of the N sets of sampling circuits being arranged to be successively operated in a predetermined order; (g) 3N level adjusting circuits respectively responsive to 3N output signals from said N sets of sampling circuits for adjusting the level of output signals from said N sets of sampling circuits; and (h) combining means responsive to output signals from said 3N level adjusting circuits for producing a single multi-color video signal.

Claim 12

A television camera as claimed in claim 9, wherein each of said N color separation stripe filters comprises color stripes of red, green and blue.

Claim 13

A television camera as claimed in claim 9, wherein each of said N imaging devices comprises a charge-coupled device.

Claim 14

A television camera as claimed in claim 9, wherein said N sampling circuits are responsive to pulses from said pulse generating means.

Claim 15

A television camera as claimed in claim 9, wherein said combining means comprises an adder for adding said output signals from said 3N level adjusting circuits to each other.

Claim 16

A television camera as claimed in claim 9, wherein said positive integer N is two and there is a phase difference of 180 degrees between said pulse trains.

Claim 17

A television camera as claimed in claim 9, wherein each of said level adjusting circuits comprises a variable gain amplifier.