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Abstract

A photosensitive imaging device including a planar array of photodiodes arranged in lines and cross points and corresponding output circuitry generates a multichannel output signal simultaneously from a sub-array of photodiodes. Clock circuitry gates output signals from the photodiodes. The clock circuitry includes a first set of gate circuitry corresponding to the lines of the array and a second set of gate circuitry corresponding to the cross points of the array. Activation of a number of the first gates and a number of the second gates feeds output signals from a contiguous area sub-array of the photodiodes. Separate connector wires from each photodiode transmits the output signals to a set of rail wires constructed on layered substrates. The rail wires are constructed so that the multichannel output signals from alternating groups of photodiodes are fed to separate sides of the array for processing. The array is further divided into segments. Each segment has its own gate circuits for the lines of the segments, and all segments have common gate circuits for the columns of the array. An output signal is generated simultaneously from at least one sub-array in each segment, thereby increasing the signal output rate by a factor of the number of segments.

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