Patent ID: 8736717
Filing Date: 2014-05-27
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. An image pickup apparatus comprising: pixels two-dimensionally arranged and each having a photoelectric conversion element; column amplifiers for respective columns of said pixels; A/D converters disposed on output sides of said column amplifiers and having a first operation mode in which said A/D converters operate with a first number of conversion bits and at a first conversion speed and a second operation mode in which said A/D converters operate with a second number of conversion bits less than the first number of conversion bits and at a second conversion speed faster than the first conversion speed; and an expansion processing unit configured to add together plural pieces of two-dimensionally arranged pixel data which are output from said A/D converters that operate in the second operation mode, to thereby expand a number of gradation bits of the pixel data from the second number of conversion bits.