JPH08304540A - Sensor for system for detecting image and distance - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To detect presence or absence of an object of detection within a prescribed distance by receiving a reflected light of a signal light from the object, by detecting an image of the object with a fixed-light component removed and by reading a signal- light component after a prescribed time from emission of the light. CONSTITUTION: When a light-emitting part LA is turned ON, switches SA1 and SA2 ON and SA3 and SA4 OFF, an electric charge corresponding to a fixed light plus a signal light is stored in a capacitance CA. When the light-emitting part LA is turned OFF and the switches SA1 to SA4 are operated reversely, then, a fixed-light component is subtracted from the stored charge of the capacitance CA and a signal-light component is left. This component is added up and stored repeatedly, switches SA3 and SA6 are turned ON at a prescribed period and the charge of the capacitance CA is transferred to a capacitance CI. A function as an image sensor is thereby executed. Subsequently, the switches SA1 and SA2 are turned ON only for a prescribed time after a certain time from emission of light and SA3 and SA4 are turned ON a sufficient time later. Presence or absence of an object within a prescribed distance can be determined on the basis of whether the electric charge is left or not in the capacitance CA at this time.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sensor for an image and distance detection system, and more particularly to an image sensor such as an automobile preventive safety device or an automatic driving device which can be used as a distance sensor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional image and distance detection system, for example, there is one shown in FIG. 12 ([[Toyota's highway automatic driving system] Akihide Tachibana, Keiji Aoki T
OYOTA TECHNICAL REVIEW, Vol.
43, No. 1, May 1993, pp. 20-25). The structure and operation are as follows. That is, an image sensor subsystem 13 including an image sensor 11 composed of a CCD camera and an image processing device 12 is provided for white line detection necessary for lane keeping and the like. Further, a distance sensor subsystem 16 including an optical radar 14 using a laser beam and a calculation device 15 for calculating the distance to the preceding vehicle is separately provided. The outputs of the image sensor subsystem 13 and the distance sensor subsystem 16 are input to the host microcomputer 17 and finally used for controlling the accelerator, steering, brake and the like. The internal configuration of the image sensor 11 is shown in FIG.
It is like (a). That is, a light receiving portion including a large number of photodiodes D1 is arranged in a one- or two-dimensional manner, and the respective outputs are input to the amplifier 20 via the vertical transfer CCD 18 and the horizontal transfer CCD 19, and the sensor output is obtained from the amplifier 20. It is designed to be used. A capacitance C is parasitic on the photodiode D1. As a result, the photocurrent generated by the input light during a certain frame is integrated by the capacitance C, and the charge is accumulated in the capacitance C. At the end of the frame, the charge accumulated in the electrostatic capacitance C is transferred to the vertical transfer CCD 18 by the frame shift operation. When the next frame starts, the integration of the photocurrent by the capacitance C starts again. In addition, CC for vertical transfer in the frame
The charges transferred to D18 are transferred horizontally for each clock C
It is transferred to the CD 19 and output. Therefore, the output of the image sensor 11 is such that the charge for each pixel is output for each clock, as shown in FIG. As described above, in the image sensor 11, the photocurrent is simultaneously integrated while the signals of the respective pixels are sequentially output, and the time is effectively used. As a result, a sufficiently large charge can be obtained by the integration operation even with weak light. That is, it can be said that the sensitivity of the image sensor 11 is high.

Next, the internal structure of the optical radar 14 is shown in FIG.
It is like (a). That is, it is composed of a light emitting means 21 such as an LED or a laser, and a light receiving portion 22 composed of a photodiode D2. The output current of the photodiode D2 is converted into a voltage by the load resistance R _L and output via the amplifier 23. Therefore, the output is continuous in time as shown in FIG. At this time, the distance is calculated by the arithmetic unit 15 using the time difference t ₀ from the light emission to the light reception.

As described above, the image sensor and the distance sensor are required for the preventive safety device and the automatic driving device of the vehicle, and these sensors are conventionally prepared separately.
However, the image sensor and the optical radar, which is a distance sensor, are common in that they have a photodiode. If the image sensor can be used to measure the distance in the same manner as the optical radar, the number of system components can be reduced, and the cost and size can be reduced. However, the output of the conventional optical radar needs to be continuous in time, while the output of the image sensor is discrete in time, and it is difficult to use the image sensor as it is as a conventional optical radar.

[0005]

As described above, in the conventional image and distance detection system, since the functions of the image sensor and the optical radar cannot be realized by the same sensor, it is necessary to provide each sensor individually. , As a result 2
There is a problem that one light receiving section and an optical system such as two lens systems for introducing light to these light receiving sections have to be provided, resulting in a large device and high cost. There is also a problem that it is difficult to accurately match the relative positions of the two optical systems.

The present invention has been made by paying attention to such a conventional problem, and it is possible to obtain information on an image and a distance with the same sensor, and to detect an image and a distance with high accuracy in a small size, low cost. An object is to provide a sensor for a system.

[0007]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 1 is characterized in that incident light including, in each pixel, stationary light and signal light in which light emitted from a light-emitting portion is reflected by a detected object. An image sensor function unit that detects an image of the detected object by a light receiving unit that receives the light and a unit that removes the ambient light component, and a predetermined time from a light emission time from the light emitting unit that is configured by the components of the image sensor function unit. The gist of the present invention is to include a distance sensor function unit that detects the presence or absence of the detected object at a predetermined distance by reading the signal light component at a time offset.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image and distance detection system sensor according to the first aspect, the image signal output of the image sensor functional unit and the presence or absence of the detected object of the distance sensor functional unit are related. The gist is that the detection signal output is configured to be output via the same path.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image and distance detection system sensor according to the first aspect, the time at which the signal light component is read by the distance sensor function unit is common to all the pixels and is variable. The gist is that it is configured as.

The invention according to claim 4 is the same as claims 1 and 2 above.
Alternatively, in the image and distance detection system sensor according to the third aspect, the configuration is such that the signal light component in the distance sensor function unit is configured to be added and integrated a plurality of times.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image and distance detection system sensor according to the fourth aspect, the number of times of addition of the signal light component is the time from the emission time to the time when the signal light component is read. The point is that the shorter the number, the smaller the number.

The invention according to claim 6 is the above-mentioned claim 1,
In the image and distance detection system sensor according to 2, 3, 4 or 5, the image sensor functional unit includes a light receiving unit that photoelectrically converts the incident light into a photocurrent in each of the pixels.
An accumulation capacitance for temporarily accumulating charges corresponding to the photocurrent, and a signal photoelectric charge component obtained by subtracting a stationary photocharge component corresponding to the stationary light from the charges accumulated in the accumulation capacitance. A holding capacitance for additional storage and a transfer means for subtracting the stationary photocharge component from the charge stored in the storage capacitance and transferring the signal photocharge component to the holding capacitance. The main point is to be equipped.

The invention according to claim 7 is the above-mentioned claim 1,
In the image and distance detection system sensor according to 2, 3, 4 or 5, the image sensor functional unit includes a light receiving unit that photoelectrically converts the incident light into a photocurrent in each of the pixels.
A stationary photocurrent storage unit that stores a stationary photocurrent component corresponding to the stationary light; a stationary photocurrent component reproduced from the stationary photocurrent storage unit is subtracted from the photocurrent to extract a signal photocurrent component, and the signal The gist of the present invention is to provide a holding electrostatic capacity for additionally accumulating signal light charge components corresponding to photocurrent components.

[0014]

According to the first aspect of the invention, the image information from which the stationary light component is removed by the image sensor function section can be obtained. By removing the stationary light component and processing only the signal light component, it is possible to downsize the signal charge storage capacitance and the like. In addition, the distance sensor function unit can obtain detection information about the presence or absence of a detected object at a predetermined distance. In this way, it is possible to obtain information about the image and the distance with the same sensor.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the image signal output and the detection signal output regarding the presence / absence of the object to be detected are configured to be output via the same path, so that it is necessary to separately provide the components and wiring. It is possible to reduce the size.

According to the third aspect of the invention, by making the time of reading the signal light component in the distance sensor function unit common to all the pixels, it becomes possible to improve the control sensitivity as well as the detection sensitivity. Further, by making the reading time variable, not only the presence or absence of the detected object but also the distance to the detected object can be detected.

In the invention of claim 4, the detection sensitivity and the S / N ratio can be improved by adding and integrating the signal light components in the distance sensor function section a plurality of times.

In the fifth aspect of the invention, the light intensity is generally inversely proportional to the square of the distance. Therefore, when determining the presence or absence of a detected object at a short distance, by reducing the number of additions of the signal light components, it is possible to shorten the overall processing time while maintaining the detection sensitivity at a constant level.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, in the image sensor function section, the incident light is converted into a photocurrent by the light receiving section, and the charge corresponding to the photocurrent is temporarily stored in the storage capacitance. Of the charges accumulated in the storage capacitance, the stationary photocharge component is reduced corresponding to the stationary light, and only the signal light charge component is transferred to and held in the holding capacitance.
The addition and accumulation of the signal light charge component to the holding capacitance is performed in one frame, and the reading is performed once in one frame. The charge accumulation time to the storage capacitance can be set independently from the timing of pixel readout, that is, the charge readout from the retention capacitance, so that the accumulated charge is saturated without ultra-high-speed switching. Can be suppressed. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the storage capacitance. Further, since only the signal charge component is added and accumulated in one frame in the holding capacitance, the saturation can be suppressed and the size can be reduced in the same manner as described above, and a large signal output can be obtained. .

In the seventh aspect of the invention, in the image sensor function section, only the stationary photocurrent component corresponding to the stationary light is stored in advance in the stationary photocurrent storage means. Then, the stationary photocurrent component reproduced from the stationary photocurrent storage means is subtracted from the photoelectric current photoelectrically converted in the light receiving portion to be a signal photocurrent component, and only the signal photocharge component corresponding to the signal photocurrent component is obtained. It is added and accumulated in the holding capacitance. Similarly to the above, since only the signal light charge components are added and accumulated in one frame in the holding capacitance, the size can be reduced and a large signal output can be obtained.

[0021]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 and 2 are views showing a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a sensor configuration, FIG. 2A is an operation of an image sensor function unit accompanied by a stationary light removing action, and FIG.
Indicates the operation of the distance sensor function unit for detecting the presence or absence of a detected object (hereinafter, also simply referred to as an object) at a predetermined distance. First, the sensor configuration will be described with reference to FIG. Each pixel is provided with a PIN photodiode PDA as a light receiving portion for photoelectrically converting incident light including ambient light (external light such as sunlight) and signal light in which light emitted from the light emitting portion LA is reflected by an object into photoelectric current. The output side thereof is connected to the positive electrode and the negative electrode of the storage capacitance CA for temporarily storing charges via the switches SA1 and SA3, respectively. The positive electrode of the storage capacitance CA is a switch S
It is grounded via A4 and the negative electrode is grounded via a switch SA2. Further, the positive electrode of the storage capacitance CA is connected to the positive electrode of the holding capacitance CI for additionally storing the signal light charge components via the switch SA5.
The negative electrode of the holding capacitance CI is grounded. Reference numeral TA denotes a source follower type MOS transistor serving as an output unit, a positive electrode of the holding capacitance CI is connected to its gate, and a negative electrode of the storage capacitance CA is a switch SA6.
Connected to its source via. The relatively large gate capacitance of the MOS transistor TA holds the holding capacitance C.
It can be used as I. R is load resistance, SR
1 is a switch for resetting the holding capacitance CI,
It is used to set the gate voltage of the MOS transistor TA to the initial value Vb. Vd is a power supply. MO
Source potential (= output potential) Vou of the S transistor TA
t is the potential Vc-TA at the positive electrode of the holding capacitance CI.
Threshold voltage Vt of the MOS transistor T
A acts as a unity gain buffer. The sensor of this embodiment is configured as described above, and has the switches SA1 and S.
It operates as an image sensor function unit or a distance sensor function unit depending on the control method of A2, SA3, and SA4. That is,
The image sensor function unit and the distance sensor function unit are integrally configured by common components. Next, the operation as the image sensor function unit or the distance sensor function unit,
This will be described with reference to (a) and (b) of FIG.

Operation as an image sensor function unit accompanied by stationary light removal. As shown in FIG. 2A, the period (1)
At, the light emitting unit LA is turned on, and the switches SA1 and SA
And 2 are conducted, and switches SA3 and SA4 are cut off. As a result, photoelectric charges corresponding to the sum of both the stationary light and the signal light are stored in the storage capacitance CA. Next, in the period (2), the light emitting unit LA is turned off, the switches SA1 and SA2 are cut off, and the switches SA3 and SA4 are turned on. Then, the stationary photocharge component corresponding to the stationary light is subtracted from the photocharge stored in the storage capacitance CA. Therefore, at the end of the period (2), only the signal light charge component remains in the storage capacitance CA. By repeating this, only the signal light charge component is added and stored in the storage capacitance CA and amplified until it becomes a sufficient size. In order to read a signal, the switches SA5 and SA6 are turned on at a constant cycle, and the signal photoelectric charge component from the storage capacitance CA is transferred to the holding capacitance CI. That is, the switches SA5 and SA6
Constitutes a transfer means for transferring the signal light charge components accumulated in the storage capacitance CA to the holding capacitance CI.

Operation as a distance sensor function unit. Figure 2
As shown in (b), a light pulse is emitted from the light emitting unit LA. When a light pulse hits an object, it is reflected back. As shown in the figure, when the time from light emission to light reception is t ₀ , the distance d to the object can be calculated as C · t _0/2 . C is a luminous flux. However, the sensor having the configuration shown in FIG.
Cannot measure ₀ . Therefore, after a lapse of a predetermined time t ₁ from the time of light emission, the switches SA1 and SA2 are turned on for a time Δt. In the figure, this is shown as a period (6).
When the period (6) does not include the reflected pulse, only the stationary light is stored in the storage capacitance CA. On the other hand, for example, when the reflected pulse is included in the period (7), both the stationary light and the reflected pulse are accumulated in the storage capacitance CA. After a further sufficient time has passed, at the end of the light projecting cycle and before the next light projecting (period (11) in the figure), this time the switches SA3, SA
Conduct 4 Then, only the amount of stationary light is subtracted from the charges accumulated in the storage capacitance CA. As a result, if there is a reflection pulse between time t ₁ and time t ₁ + Δt, charge remains in the storage capacitance CA, but if there is no reflection pulse, no charge remains in the storage capacitance CA. It becomes possible to determine the presence or absence of an object within the range which the distance C · t _1/2 by the presence or absence of a 495. In other words remain in storage capacitance CA charge to a distance _{C (t 1 + Δt) /} 2. At this time, the charge remaining in the storage capacitance CA is read out in the same manner as described in the operation of the image sensor function section.

Thus, in the embodiment, the following 3
Can do different kinds of actions. That is, regardless of the light emitting portion LA, the switches SA1 and SA2 are turned on and the switches SA3 and SA4 are turned off to operate as an image sensor similar to a conventional CCD camera. The operation as an image sensor and the operation as a distance sensor for determining the presence or absence of an object at a certain distance as shown in FIG. 2B. In this way, the image sensor and the distance sensor can be realized with the same sensor configuration, and the number of system components can be reduced.
As a result, the cost is reduced and the size can be easily reduced. Further, since there is no need for a double optical system, there is an advantage that the size can be further reduced and the cost can be reduced, and the optical axis alignment is not necessary, so that the accuracy is good and the cost can be reduced by the amount corresponding to the optical axis alignment.

Since the reflected light is generally very weak,
It is difficult to determine the presence / absence of a reflected pulse by only receiving light once. In that case, as shown in FIG. 2B, if the sampling is performed a plurality of times, the reflected pulse can be added and integrated into the storage capacitance CA, and it can be amplified to a sufficient size to make it easy to determine the presence or absence thereof. As a result, the sensitivity and the S / N ratio are improved. To calculate the distance to the object, not t
_It suffices to change the value of ₁ to determine the presence or absence of the reflected pulse, and memorize where it was. For example, as shown in FIG. 2B, the light projection period is divided into short periods, periods (5), (6),
By sampling in order of (7), ..., t ₀ can be found.

FIG. 3 shows a distance detection system for obtaining distance information to an object using the sensors 3 arranged in one or two dimensions. 4 is a control unit, 5 is the above (5),
A register for outputting sampling timing signals of (6), (7), ..., And 6 is a range image memory for storing the reflection pulse.

FIG. 4 shows an example in which the sensor 1 having the structure shown in FIG. 1 is two-dimensionally arranged. 2 is a pre-stage amplifier, C
S is an input parasitic capacitance of the wiring and the pre-stage amplifier 2. In this way, both the output of the image sensor (image sensor functional unit) and the output of the distance sensor (distance sensor functional unit) can be output via the same scanning switches S11 and S1, so separate scanning switches and wirings are prepared. The size of the sensor chip can be reduced. Since the distance sensors can be arranged two-dimensionally in this way, a two-dimensional distance image can be obtained without mechanically scanning the light emitting section LA. Further, in the case of two-dimensional arrangement, if the sampling control of each pixel is made common, the control can be simplified.

FIG. 5 shows the number of times of addition integration of signal light components (reflection pulses) when operating as a distance sensor. In general, the intensity of light decreases in inverse proportion to the 2 to 4th power of the distance, and the intensity decreases as the distance increases. Therefore, a small number of additions is required to determine the presence / absence of an object at a close place (for example, t ₁ in the figure), and the farther the distance is, the larger the number of additions must be performed to obtain a signal of the same level. If the number of additions is changed according to the distance being searched in this way, the overall processing time can be shortened while maintaining the sensitivity. In addition to this, a method of changing the power of the light projection pulse according to the distance can be considered, but generally the power of the light projection pulse cannot be easily controlled. On the other hand, the method of changing the number of additions has an advantage that the number of additions can be arbitrarily determined only by changing the processing procedure.

6 and 7 show a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 shows a configuration, and FIG. 7 shows an operation timing chart. First, the configuration is almost the same as that of the first embodiment (FIG. 1), but a switch SR2 for resetting the output potential of the photodiode PDA is provided. As described above, the capacitance C is generally parasitic on the photodiode. Therefore, the switches SA1, SA2, SA3, S
Photocurrent accumulates in the capacitance C even when all of A4 are in the cutoff state, and when any of the switches SA1, SA2 or SA3, SA4 becomes conductive, the charge accumulated in the capacitance C is stored in the storage capacitance CA. Moving. As a result, not only the reflected pulse during the sampling period as shown in FIG. 2B but also the reflected pulse outside the sampling period may be accumulated in the storage capacitance CA, which may prevent accurate distance detection. is there. On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
The above problem can be prevented by causing the reset switch SR2 to conduct immediately before any of SA1, SA2 or SA3, SA4 conducts to discard the charge accumulated in the capacitance C. Further, without actually providing the reset switch SR2, for example, the switches SA3 and SA2 or SA1 and SA4
The capacitance C can be reset by making either one of the groups conductive.

FIG. 8 shows another control method. Considering including reset, if the stationary light component is subtracted every sampling, the number of switching increases. In order to reduce the number of times of switching, in FIG.
Are conducted, sampling is performed, and then SA3 and SA4 are conducted once only to remove the stationary light component. As a result, the number of times of switching can be reduced and control can be simplified.

9 and 10 show a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 shows a configuration of an image sensor with a stationary light removing function, and FIG. 10 shows an operation timing chart. Here, the switch SX, the electrostatic capacitance CX, and the MOS transistor MX store the photocurrent corresponding to the stationary light, and MO
It is adapted to be reproduced by the S transistor MX. That is, the electrostatic capacitance CX constitutes the stationary photocurrent storage means. As a result, when the switch SA5 is turned on, only the signal photocurrent component excluding the stationary photocurrent component flows through the switch SA5 and is accumulated in the holding capacitance CI. Figure 10
As you can see from the operation timing chart of the switch S
A5 is conducted and sampling is performed. Also switch SX
Is stored in the capacitance CX to store the stationary photocharge component corresponding to the stationary light. The subtraction is continuously performed depending on how the current flows. Since the photocurrent generated by the photodiode PDA of FIG. 9 can flow through the MOS transistor MX in any case, the photodiode P
No electric charge is accumulated in the parasitic capacitance of DA. As a result, in the case of this embodiment, it is not necessary to reset before sampling, and the configuration and control can be simplified.

Up to this point, there has been described the pulse radar-like operation when operating as a distance sensor, that is, an embodiment in which a pulse having a constant width is projected at a constant cycle and a time until a reflected pulse is returned is found. The present invention can be applied to other types of radar. For example, JP-A-62-1
FIG. 11 shows an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a radar using a random pulse as disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 54189. FIG. 11 shows the operation timing when the M-sequence pulse is projected using the third embodiment (FIG. 9). When an M-series pulse as shown in the figure is projected, a reflected pulse delayed by a phase proportional to the distance to the object returns. Correlation can be obtained as the output of the sensor by using the switch SA5 and performing sampling in which the reflected pulse is delayed by a predetermined phase in the same pattern as the light projection. If the phase delay of the sampling pattern is scanned, the correlation becomes maximum when it coincides with the phase delay of the reflected pulse. Therefore, the distance to the object can be calculated by finding the place where the output is maximum.

[0033]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the invention, it is possible to obtain information about an image and a distance with the same sensor, and a single optical system such as a lens system is sufficient. Since it is not necessary to align the optical axes of the system, it is possible to achieve high precision with a small size and low cost.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is not necessary to separately provide the constituent elements, the wiring, etc.
Cost reduction can be achieved.

According to the third aspect of the invention, the controllability and the sensitivity can be increased to more accurately determine the presence or absence of the detected object, and not only the presence or absence of the detected object can be determined. The distance to the detected object can also be detected.

According to the invention described in claim 4, the detection sensitivity and the S / N ratio can be improved.

According to the invention described in claim 5, it is possible to shorten the entire processing time while maintaining the detection sensitivity at a constant level.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the charge accumulation time in the storage capacitance can be set independently of the timing of pixel readout, that is, the charge readout from the storage capacitance. Further, it is possible to suppress saturation of the accumulated charges without performing ultra-high speed switching, and it is possible to reduce the storage capacitance. Further, since only the signal light charge components are added and accumulated in the holding capacitance in one frame, saturation can be suppressed and the size can be reduced similarly to the above, and a large signal output can be obtained. it can.

According to the invention described in claim 7, in addition to the simplification of the configuration and controllability, only the signal light charge component is added and accumulated in one frame in the holding capacitance, as described above. The size can be reduced and a large signal output can be obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram showing a first embodiment of a sensor for an image and distance detection system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining operations of the image sensor and the distance sensor of the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a distance detection system using the sensor of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing an example in which the sensors of the first embodiment are two-dimensionally arranged to form a sensor for an image and distance detection system.

5 is a diagram for explaining the number of times of addition integration of signal light components when the sensor of FIG. 4 is operated as a distance sensor.

FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the distance sensor of the second embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining another operation of the distance sensor of the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the third embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a timing chart when a random pulse is applied to the third embodiment to operate as a distance sensor.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a conventional image and distance detection system.

13 is a diagram showing an internal configuration and the like of the image sensor in FIG.

14 is a diagram showing an internal configuration and the like of the optical radar shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Sensor for image and distance detection system CA Capacitance for storage CI Capacitance for holding CX Capacitance to be a steady photocurrent storage unit LA Light emitting unit PDA Photodiode to be light receiving unit SA5, SA6 Switch to be transfer unit TA Source follower type MOS transistor

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A light receiving unit for receiving incident light containing stationary light and signal light in which light emitted from the light emitting unit is reflected by the detected object, and means for removing the stationary light component in each pixel of the detected object. An image sensor functional unit for detecting an image and a component of the image sensor functional unit, and the signal light component at a time deviated by a predetermined time from a light emission time from the light emitting unit are read to detect the object at a predetermined distance. An image and a sensor for a distance detection system, comprising: a distance sensor function unit that detects the presence or absence of a detection object. 2. The image signal output of the image sensor function unit and the detection signal output of the distance sensor function unit regarding the presence or absence of the detected object are configured to be output via the same path. The sensor for an image and distance detection system according to claim 1. 3. The image and distance detection system according to claim 1, wherein a time at which the signal light component is read by the distance sensor function unit is common to all the pixels and is variable. Sensor. 4. The sensor for an image and distance detection system according to claim 1, wherein the signal light component in the distance sensor function section is configured to be added and integrated a plurality of times. 5. The number of additions of the signal light component is configured such that the shorter the time from the light emission time to the time of reading the signal light component, the smaller the number of additions. Sensors for image and distance detection systems. 6. The image sensor function section includes, in each of the pixels, a light receiving section that photoelectrically converts the incident light into a photocurrent, and a storage capacitance that temporarily stores charges corresponding to the photocurrent. , A holding capacitance for additionally storing a signal photocharge component obtained by subtracting a steady photocharge component corresponding to the steady light from a charge accumulated in the storage capacitance, and a storage capacitance stored in the storage capacitance. 2. A transfer means for subtracting the stationary photocharge component from the electric charge and transferring the signal photocharge component to the holding electrostatic capacitance.
The image sensor according to 2, 3, 4 or 5 and a sensor for a distance detection system. 7. The image sensor function unit includes, in each of the pixels, a light receiving unit that photoelectrically converts the incident light into a photocurrent, and a stationary photocurrent storage unit that stores a stationary photocurrent component corresponding to the stationary light. A holding capacitance for subtracting a steady-state photocurrent component reproduced from the steady-state photocurrent storage means from the photocurrent to extract a signal photocurrent component, and additionally storing a signal photocharge component corresponding to the signal photocurrent component. The image and distance detection system sensor according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5, characterized by comprising: