Electronic imaging camera utilizing EPROM memory

Claim 1

An electronic still image camera comprising: an image sensing array having a predetermined number of discrete image sensing elements each of which is responsive to incident illumination from a subject to provide an analog information signal corresponding to the intensity of the illumination incident thereto; an analog-to-digital converter for converting the analog electronic information signals received from said image sensing array to digital electronic information signals such that a separate and distinct digital electronic information signal comprising a plurality of binary bits corresponds to the intensity of illumination incident to each of said image sensing elements; a buffer memory for temporarily storing the digital electronic information signals received from said analog-to-digital converter; an electronically programmable read only memory (EPROM) module comprising a plurality of discrete EPROM semiconductor circuits arranged so that each of said discrete EPROM semiconductor circuits may be individually addressed and controlled to receive select binary bits of the digital electronic information signals; and means for addressing and controlling selected groups of said discrete EPROM semiconductor circuits in an ordered sequence so that the digital electronic information signals which define each still image are stored, respectively, in selected ones of said groups, said means operating to address and control each one of said discrete EPROM semiconductor circuits in said selected group to simultaneously store a different plurality of the binary bits of the digital electronic information signal.