Self-scanned image sensors based on charge transfer by the bucket-brigade method

Solid-state image sensors which are internally scanned by charge transfer offer a potentially usefull alternative to sensors based on x-y addressing. The application of charge transfer to solid-state scanning introduces sensor design problems which are common to either the "bucket-brigade" or "charge-coupled" approach. Two-dimensional and single-line sensors employing bucket-brigade scanning have been built and evaluated. Problems discussed include transfer efficiency, video signal extraction, vertical scanning, and spurious effects. The use of the bucket-brigade shift register as a scan generator for x-y addressing is also described.