Functional Description VV6501
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3.1.9 Dark calibration
In order to produce a high quality output image from the VV6501, it is necessary to accurately
control the black level of the video signal. There are two main sources of error:
● Dark current
● Offsets in the output path.
The black level is corrected by using dark pixel rows to “learn” the offset so that it can then be
subtracted from the image data. Dark rows have the same exposure setting as the visible lines but
are shielded from incident light.
For 10-b data the ideal “black” code is set to be 64 (when viewing 8-b data the ‘black’ code should
be 16). The aim of the dark calibration algorithm is to “learn” the offset required such that “black”
image lines have code 64.
Figure 15: Overview of dark offset cancellation
Figure 16: Role of dark offset calibration
Dpix
Vpix
Column
ADC element
+ offset
Dpix
Vpix
10-b
Column
ADC element
+ offset
10-b
Normal pixel
Idark
Dark pixel
Ilight
+
Idark
Offset
cancellation
Learn offset
+ Idark
Digital Logic
Dark Line
typ. value = 400
Image Line
typ. value: 400 - 1360
Dark calibration
dark offset = 336
Dark Line
typ. value = 64
Image Line
typ. value: 64-1024
processed imageraw image