JP2005117370A - Digital camera - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a digital camera capable of changing image quality while photographing a moving picture and managing a plurality of pieces of moving picture data with image quality different from one another as a file with continuity. <P>SOLUTION: This digital camera capable of photographing a moving picture comprises a size switching means for temporarily switching the size of a moving picture to be acquired to the size of normal image quality or to a high image quality size that is larger than the normal image quality size while photographing a moving picture, and a means for recording three pieces of moving picture data: moving picture data of a first normal image quality size, moving picture data of the high quality size and moving picture data of a second normal image quality size obtained by performing temporary switching with the size switching means and photographing, and recording those three moving picture files while associating one with another. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a digital camera capable of switching the size of a moving image to be shot.

  Conventionally, a video camera has been used for shooting a moving image, but a camera having a function of shooting a still image has become common. When a still image is taken with a video camera, the size of the still image is the same as the size of the moving image.

  In addition, the main purpose of digital cameras is to shoot still images, but more and more cameras can shoot moving images. In moving image recording in a digital camera, recording is performed with a smaller image size than that of a still image. For example, in the case of a 4 million (2272 × 1704) pixel class digital camera, the image size in the moving image recording mode is as small as about 320 × 240 pixels or 640 × 480 pixels with the current technology. This is because when a moving image is shot, the number of image frames per second is “30”, so if the image size increases, the processing speed of the CPU will not be in time, and the required capacity of the recording medium will increase. This is because it is impossible to shoot for a long time.

  In response to a request for taking a high-quality still image at a specific scene during moving image recording, there is the following proposal (Patent Document 1). That is, during the shooting of a moving image, a high-quality still image can be captured, and data files of the captured moving image and still image are recorded in association with each other. However, according to this, since switching from a moving image to a still image is performed, there is a problem in that moving image data becomes discontinuous at the time of switching and is interrupted there.

  Also, a digital camera having a function of switching only a designated portion to high-quality moving image recording during moving image recording has been proposed (Patent Document 2). According to this, since it is switched to high image quality only when necessary by an instruction during moving image shooting, the recording capacity can be reduced as compared with recording with high image quality from the beginning.

However, in this digital camera, pixels are read out from the CCD without being thinned out in the still image mode, and pixels are thinned out and read out in the moving image mode. And then come to shoot. Therefore, in that case, there is a problem of how to process and record or reproduce the image data obtained before and after switching.
JP2002-290908 JP 2000-333130 A

  An object of the present invention is to provide a digital camera capable of switching the image quality during shooting of a moving image and capable of managing a plurality of moving image data having different image quality as continuous files.

  Another problem is to provide a digital camera that allows a user to easily know the presence of high-quality moving image data and easily output a high-quality still image when reproducing moving image data. That is.

  The digital camera according to the present invention includes a size switching unit for temporarily switching a size of a moving image to be acquired to a normal image quality size or a high image quality size larger than the size during moving image shooting, and the size switching unit. The three pieces of moving image data of the first normal image quality size, the high image quality size movie data, and the second normal image quality size movie data obtained by temporarily switching and shooting with the Means for recording as a moving image file and recording the three moving image files in association with each other.

  Thereby, a plurality of moving image data having different image quality can be managed as a continuous file.

  In addition, for a plurality of videos shot by switching by the size switching means, a high-quality video is converted to a normal picture size, and a video shot at a normal picture size and a converted normal picture size video are Combining means for generating a combined moving image combined with a series, and recording the combined moving image as a single combined moving image file, and recording the combined moving image file and the captured high-quality size moving image in association with each other Recording means.

  In addition, a display control means for displaying when there is a composite video with a high-quality size video associated therewith, and a display control means for displaying that effect when a converted normal-quality size video is displayed. Display switching means for switching to and displaying a moving image of a high-quality size associated therewith.

  This facilitates management of a plurality of moving image data having different image quality, and allows the user to easily know the existence of high-quality moving image data when reproducing the moving image data.

  In addition, when a high-quality moving image is displayed, an image displayed at a specified time is extracted as a still image. At that time, the moving image having the high image quality size is displayed at a frame rate slower than that of the moving image having the normal image quality size. Thereby, it is possible to easily cut out and output a high-quality still image. The “slow frame rate” includes a state where the still image is displayed and stopped.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to switch the image quality during moving image shooting, and it is possible to manage a plurality of moving image data having different image quality as continuity files.

  According to the third and fourth aspects of the present invention, the user can easily know the existence of high-quality moving image data when reproducing moving image data.

  According to the inventions of claims 5 to 7, it is possible to easily cut out and output a high-quality still image.

  FIG. 1 is a front view of a digital camera 1 showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a rear view of the digital camera 1.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the digital camera 1 has a lens 11, a release button 13, a finder 16, a display unit 17, an inside or a surface of a camera body 10 made of a material such as metal or synthetic resin. A mode dial 19, a cross key 21, a setting button 22, a moving image switching button 23, a flash 24, a communication connector 25, and the like are provided. Although not shown in these drawings, a microphone 14 and a speaker 18 are also provided (see FIG. 3), and a power switch is also provided. The cross key 21 includes an up / down button 21a, a left / right button 21b, and a center button 21c.

  The lens 11 constitutes a photographic optical system SK (see FIG. 3) together with the lens barrel. The lens 11 is composed of a plurality of lenses and has a zoom function.

  The release button 13 is a two-stage push-in switch that is provided in front of the upper surface of the camera body 10 and can detect a half-pressed state and a fully-pressed state by the user.

  The viewfinder 16 is for the user to check the shooting target and shooting area by eye contact. In this embodiment, an electronic viewfinder (EVF) is used, but an optical viewfinder may be used. The display unit 17 displays a live image of the subject captured by the lens 11 before shooting, an after-view image, an image in the playback mode, a menu, a mode, various setting conditions, and the like in color. When switching to high-image-size shooting, which is a feature of this embodiment, the display form is changed so that the state can be understood. When using the finder 16 instead of the display unit 17, the display on the display unit 17 is turned off by the switching button. As the display unit 17, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) 113 having about 320 × 240 pixels is used.

  The mode dial 19 is used to select and set a camera mode, a moving image shooting mode, a playback mode, a voice recording mode (voice recording mode), a setting mode, a communication mode, and the like by rotating the mode dial 19. . The camera mode is a mode in which a subject is photographed to acquire still image data. The moving image shooting mode is a mode for acquiring moving image data by shooting a subject. In the moving image shooting mode, for example, a VGA standard image is acquired at a frame rate of 30 frames / second and recorded in a file format such as the MPEG standard. The playback mode is a mode for playing back image data and audio data recorded on the memory card 115. It is also possible to display an image by external input. The voice recording mode is a mode for recording voice. The setting mode is a mode for setting various parameters at the time of shooting or shooting. The communication mode is a mode for transferring data to an external device such as a personal computer. The mode dial 19 may also serve as a power switch.

  Note that image data obtained in the camera mode may be referred to as still image data, and image data obtained in the moving image shooting mode may be referred to as moving image data. Also, image data may be referred to as an image file, and audio data may be referred to as an audio file. Similarly, still image data and moving image data may be referred to as a still image file or a moving image file.

  The cross key 21 is used by the user to select or set various functions by combining the up / down button 21a and the left / right button 21b. For example, zooming can be performed with the up / down buttons 21a in the camera mode and the moving image shooting mode. In the playback mode, it is possible to switch images by operating the left and right buttons 21b. Further, in the setting mode, the function displayed on the display surface of the display unit 17, the set value, and the like can be changed. The center button 21c has a function as a determination button for confirming the content selected or set by the up / down button 21a and the left / right button 21b or for starting the operation. The center button 21c can also function as a button for executing switching from a normal image size moving image to a high image quality moving image and as a still image recording button during reproduction.

  The setting button 22 is a button group including four buttons for performing various settings. For example, any of the setting buttons 22 can function as a menu selection button, an image file playback button, an audio file playback button, or the like. For example, a menu is displayed on the display unit 17 by pressing a menu selection button, and various shooting parameters can be set by operating the cross key 21 in this state.

  The moving image switching button 23 is a button for temporarily switching from the normal image quality size to the high image quality size during shooting in the moving image shooting mode. Details will be described later.

  The flash 24 is for illuminating the subject and is set in a pop-up manner. The communication connector 25 is an interface connector for connecting to an external device such as a personal computer.

  Next, the internal configuration of the digital camera 1 will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing functions of the digital camera 1.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the digital camera 1 includes a control unit 101, an image signal processing unit 102, a timing control circuit 103, an image sensor 104, a lens driving unit 106, a flash circuit 107, an audio signal processing unit 109, and an operation unit 110. , An audio output unit 111, an LCD 113, a card IF 114, a memory card 115, a communication IF 116, a microphone 14, a speaker 18, and the like.

  The control unit 101 is configured by a microcomputer (CPU 1) that includes a ROM and a RAM as a buffer memory. When the microcomputer executes a predetermined program, various functions described below are realized.

  The image signal processing unit 102 amplifies the image signal output from the image sensor 104, performs DA conversion, and then performs processing for white balance and compression processing.

  The timing control circuit 103 is also called a timing generator (TG), and generates various timing pulses for controlling the operation of the image sensor 104.

  The imaging element 104 is a photoelectric conversion element for imaging a subject and converting it into an image signal. In the present embodiment, a CCD is used. For example, a pixel having 2 million pixels, 5 million pixels, or more is used, and an image signal of R (red), G (green), and B (blue) color components is output for each pixel. There are three modes for driving the image sensor 104, that is, the reading mode, a draft mode, an automatic focusing mode, and a main photographing mode. For details, JP-A-2000-152072 can be referred to. In addition to the CCD, a C-MOS or other element may be used. An imaging unit SB is configured by the imaging element 104 and the imaging optical system SK.

  The lens driving unit 106 includes a motor and its driver, and drives a zoom lens, a focus lens, a shutter, and the like that constitute the lens 11.

  The flash circuit 107 is a control circuit for controlling the flash 24 so as to emit light when the luminance is low. The audio signal processing unit 109 amplifies the audio signal output from the microphone 14 and performs AD conversion. As a result, sound for recording at the time of shooting a moving image, voice memo, and voice recorder is acquired as sound data.

  The operation unit 110 inputs signals from various members such as the mode dial 19, the cross key 21, the setting button 22, and the moving image switching button 23, and operation members such as switches, dials, and keys.

  The audio output unit 111 AD-converts and amplifies the audio data output from the control unit 101 to drive the speaker 18. The speaker 18 is used for reproduction output of sound recorded in a moving image or voice memo, output of warning sound, output of count sound of a self-timer, output of operation sound, and the like. The LCD 113 displays image data output from the control unit 101. A driver for this is also included. In addition to the LCD 113, an organic EL device or other display device may be used as the display unit 17.

  The card IF 114 is an interface for writing to or reading from the memory card 115. The memory card 115 is a recording medium that records image data, audio data, and the like, such as an SD memory card, CF memory card, multimedia card, memory stick, MMC, and microdisk. In the memory card 115, moving image data and still image data are recorded separately. The moving image data and the still image data may be separately recorded on the two memory cards 115.

  The communication IF 116 is an interface for transferring data to / from a personal computer or a cradle together with the communication connector 25 described above. For example, a communication interface compliant with the USB standard is used. The control program recorded on the memory card 115 or an external recording medium can be taken into the RAM or ROM of the control unit 101 via the communication IF 116 and the card IF 114.

  In addition to the functions described above, for example, γ correction, color correction, resolution conversion, area cutout processing, evaluation value calculation processing for automatic exposure (AE) or automatic focusing (AF) control, temporary image data Storage, compression processing, decompression processing, other data processing or signal processing functions are provided as required. These functions can be realized by the control unit 101, the image signal processing unit 102, and other hardware circuits or software processes described above.

  Next, basic operations of the digital camera 1 will be described.

  One of various modes is selected by the mode dial 19. In the camera mode, when the release button 13 is pressed halfway, the shooting preparation operation is performed as described above, and shooting is performed when the release button 13 is fully pressed. In the moving image shooting mode, shooting starts when the release button 13 is fully pressed, and shooting ends when the release button 13 is pressed again. Further, when a certain time has elapsed from the start of shooting, shooting is automatically ended. Normally, in the moving image shooting mode, a moving image having a normal image quality size is shot. During the shooting, when the moving image switching button 23 is pressed, a moving image having a larger image quality than that is shot. When the moving image switching button 23 is pressed again, the normal image size moving image shooting is resumed.

  In the reproduction mode, the image file and the audio file recorded on the memory card 115 are read, and the date information of the recording is read based on the headers thereof. Whether the file is new or old is determined based on the date information. If the latest file is an image file, the thumbnail image is displayed on the display unit 17. The thumbnail image is displayed on the entire display surface of the display unit 17 or on a divided area. When the left and right buttons 21b of the cross key 21 are operated while these various thumbnail images are being displayed, the operation proceeds to the next file, and thumbnail images corresponding to the respective file types are displayed.

  In addition, when a moving image recorded with a high image quality size is reproduced, a display is made so that the user can recognize that the moving image has a high image quality size. At that time, the display is switched from the moving image of the normal image quality size to the moving image of the high image quality size by a user operation or automatically. By operating the center button 21c while displaying a high-quality size moving image, the displayed high-quality size image can be extracted as a still image. The extracted still image can be recorded as a still image on the memory card 115 or output to the outside from the communication connector 25.

  The digital camera 1 can perform various operations other than the operations described above. Hereinafter, the characteristic functions of the digital camera 1 will be described in more detail.

  As described above, the digital camera 1 can temporarily switch the size of a moving image to be acquired to a normal image quality size or a high image quality size larger than that during shooting of a moving image. By temporarily switching and shooting, for example, three types of moving image data, that is, moving image data of the first normal image quality size, moving image data of the intermediate higher image quality size, and moving image data of the second half normal image size are obtained. These three moving image data are recorded on the memory card 115 as individual moving image files. At the same time, these three moving image files are recorded in the memory card 115 in association with each other. In the playback mode, the three moving image files described above are sequentially played back in time series based on their association.

  Also, for the three video data shot, the high-quality video is reduced and converted to the normal image size, and the video shot at the normal image size and the converted normal image size video are connected in time series. A synthesized composite video is generated. The generated synthesized movie is recorded on the memory card 115 as one synthesized movie file. At the same time, the synthesized moving image file and the captured high-quality moving image are associated with each other and recorded on the memory card 115.

  The synthesized moving image is displayed as a moving image on the display surface of the display unit 17. At that time, when a synthesized moving image in which a moving image of a high-quality size associated therewith is displayed, a display to that effect is displayed. A high-quality video is displayed at a slower frame rate than a normal-quality video. For example, it is displayed as slow playback. When the center button 21c is operated while a high-quality moving image is displayed, the image displayed at the time designated by the operation is extracted as a still image.

  Next, such a function will be described with reference to the drawings showing specific examples.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the outline of the operation of the digital camera 1.

  In FIG. 4, when shooting is started in the moving image shooting mode, shooting is performed at the normal image quality size. The moving image switching button 23 is operated in the middle to switch to shooting at a high image quality size, and then shooting is performed again after returning to the normal image quality size, and the shooting is finished after a while. As a result, three moving image files, “AAA-N1” in the first half normal image size, “AAA-H1” in the second high quality image file, and “AAA-N2” in the second half normal image size are created. Is done. Note that audio data is also attached to the moving image data.

  These moving image files use a common character “AAA” in the file name, and are associated with each other, thereby recognizing that they are a series of moving image files. In the file name, the letter “N” is used for the normal image quality size, and the letter “H” is used for the high image quality size, thereby identifying the type of image quality. The last number “1”, “2”,... Of the file name identifies the time-series order for each image quality. Thus, a plurality of moving image data having different image quality can be managed as a continuous series of files.

  In addition, although the first half and the latter half of the normal-quality movie files are recorded separately, they may be recorded together in the same movie file. In that case, information indicating the position of the boundary may be recorded in the header or the boundary portion. In this case, two files, one moving image file having a normal image quality size and a moving image file having a high image quality size, are associated with each other.

  The configuration of the file name is merely an example and is not limited to this. For example, a numerical number is used for a common part of the file name, and the number may be increased for each shooting. For example, “M001” and “M002” may be used. If the image data of the high-quality moving image file “AAA-H1” cannot be recorded as one file, these may be set as a plurality of files and associated with each other. An identifier indicating the file type is also added. The association may be performed by using not only the file name but also file header information.

  Further, based on the obtained three files or three moving image data, they can be combined into one combined moving image file. In that case, moving image data of high image quality size is reduced to the same size as the normal image quality size. Also, when high-quality video data is shot at a frame rate that is lower than the normal image size, for example, the same image is used to match the display time so that the frame rate is the same as the normal image size. Arrange to repeat, complement the frame (image). The generated composite video file “AAA-F1” is associated with the high-quality video file “AAA-H1”, and the part corresponding to the video file “AAA-H1” can be recognized. To be recorded. As a result, the moving image can be managed as one file, and the high-quality moving image file “AAA-H1” is correctly associated.

  In the playback mode, when the synthesized moving image is not generated, the three moving image files are played back in the same order as the shooting order. In this case, the normal video playback is performed on the screens HG1 and HG3 that play the normal-quality video, but the screen HG2 that plays the high-quality video according to the frame rate of the obtained video data. In some cases, playback may be like frame-by-frame playback. Further, the resolution of the image is matched with the resolution of the display device. When the resolution of the display device is larger, the image is displayed with the resolution of the moving image data. As described above, since the resolution in the case of reproduction depends on the number of pixels of the display device or the like, a high-quality moving image does not always display a high-quality image. In addition, when a synthetic moving image is generated, the synthetic moving image is reproduced.

  During the reproduction, a display CM to that effect is performed on the screen HG2 corresponding to the high-quality moving image. As an example of the display CM, characters, sentences or marks such as “High”, “High image quality”, and “High image quality can be extracted” are displayed in the corner of the screen HG2. Thus, the user can easily know the existence of high-quality moving image data during reproduction. While the screen HG2 is being displayed, it is possible to perform frame advance and slow playback of an image by a user operation.

  Further, by operating the center button 21c while the display CM is being performed, a high-quality image (still image) HF corresponding to the image displayed at that time is extracted. A plurality of images HF can be extracted by operating the center button 21c as many times as necessary.

  In this way, the user can easily cut out the desired high-quality still image HF from the moving image recorded inside the digital camera 1 with the same feeling as shooting even without a high level of shooting skill. Can be extracted.

  FIG. 5 is a timing chart for explaining the image quality switching operation in the moving image shooting mode.

  In FIG. 5, in the moving image shooting mode, shooting of the normal image quality size is started by fully pressing the release button 13 (S2 ON). When the moving image switching button 23 is pressed during the shooting, the shooting of the normal image quality size is temporarily ended, and the shooting of the high image quality size is started almost simultaneously. After that, when the moving image switching button 23 is pressed again, the shooting is switched to the normal image quality size. When the release button 13 is fully pressed again, one shooting is completed. Note that switching to high-quality size shooting can be performed a plurality of times during one shooting.

  Thus, every time the moving image switching button 23 is pressed, the high image quality size and the normal image quality size are switched, but only while the moving image switching button 23 is pressed, that is, only while the moving image switching button 23 is on. Alternatively, control may be performed so as to obtain a high image quality size.

  Note that, in the moving image shooting of the normal image quality size, as described above, the moving image has about 300,000 (640 × 480) pixels which is the VGA standard. In high-quality moving image shooting, a moving image having a larger image size (including continuous shooting of still images) is obtained. When the moving image is based on continuous shooting of still images, the size of the still images may be adjusted to the maximum size of the digital camera 1, that is, the number of pixels of the image sensor 104.

  Next, an example of the configuration and generation process of a moving image file will be described.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a moving image file when the image quality is switched, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an MPEG file.

  In FIG. 6, moving image files “M001-N1” and “M001-N2” of normal image quality are MPEG files composed of a sequence header, a plurality of GOP layers, and a sequence end. In the header, a file name and date information are recorded. As shown in FIG. 7, each GOP layer is composed of moving image data called I picture, P picture, and B picture. In the example shown in the figure, the number of frames in the GOP layer is “15”, which corresponds to 0.5 seconds in display time. In order to generate such a GOP layer, for example, when the image sensor 104 has 5 million pixels, a process of reducing the size by thinning out the pixels is performed.

  Returning to FIG. 6, at the time of switching from the normal image quality size to the high image quality size, the moving image file of the normal image quality size is once given a sequence end and recorded as one file.

  In a high-quality moving image, the number of pixels in one frame is several times to ten times or more that in the normal image quality size. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, a still image of one high-quality size (for example, 2560 × 1920 pixels) is captured in one GOP layer. That is, a still image of one image quality size that can be processed within 0.5 seconds is acquired by continuous shooting. In this way, still images are captured by the number of GOP layers. When switching to normal image size shooting or when shooting is stopped, a file name is assigned to a set of captured still images and recorded. As described above, the high-quality moving image file “M001-H1” shown in FIG. 6 includes a set of a plurality of high-resolution still images obtained by continuous shooting. When this is reproduced, it is displayed at a frame rate of 2 frames / second.

  When switching to normal image quality size shooting is performed again, the latter half of the shooting is performed, and a moving image file with a sequence header including a common part with the file name of the first half is created.

  If the normal image size movie is 320 × 240 pixels and the high image size movie is 640 × 480 pixels, the high image quality movie is executed in the MPEG format with the same number of frames as the normal image size. May be.

  Next, a synthetic moving image generation method will be described.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a method of generating a synthesized moving image from a moving image having a normal image quality size and a high image quality size.

  As shown in FIG. 8, a plurality of still images included in a high-quality video file “M001-H1” are converted into a normal image size, and the same image is repeatedly used to format a normal-quality video file A composite video file is generated according to the above.

  For example, as described above, it is assumed that the moving image file having the normal image quality size is MPEG and the number of frames in the GOP layer is “15”. After converting one still image of high image quality taken every 0.5 seconds to obtain a reduced image, 15 duplicate images are generated from the reduced image and assigned to one GOP layer. All high-quality still images are converted in the same way and pasted in time-series into the MPEG file for composite video. The moving image data of the normal image quality size is also pasted into the MPEG file for the combined moving image according to the time series. The synthesized moving image file “M001-F1” generated in this way and the moving image file “M001-H1” of high image quality are recorded in association with each other.

  When the synthesized moving image file “M001-F1” is reproduced, 15 identical frames are displayed in the high-quality size area, and a frame-like image that does not move for 0.5 seconds is displayed.

  The moving image file and the combined moving image file are not limited to MPEG, and files of various other formats such as motion JPEG can be used. Even with other moving image files, it is possible to create a normal image size moving image from still image data continuously shot at a high image quality size, complement it, and save it as one moving image file. If the processing capacity of the control unit 101 or the like is sufficient, a high-quality video with no missing frames can be obtained by shooting the same number of high-quality still images as the number of frames in the video file format. It is possible.

  Next, operations or processing contents of the digital camera 1 will be described with reference to flowcharts.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the overall operation of the digital camera 1.

  In FIG. 9, when the power is turned on (Yes in # 1), the mode selected by the mode dial 19 is set (# 2). Depending on the respective modes such as the video shooting mode, voice recording mode (voice recording mode), playback mode, and setting mode, video shooting processing, voice recording processing, playback processing, and other processing are executed (# 3 to # 3). 9). When the power is turned off, the operation stops (Yes in # 10).

  10 and 11 are flowcharts showing an example of the moving image shooting process. This flowchart mainly shows processing in the case of switching to high-quality image shooting when shooting a moving image.

  In FIG. 10, first, the lens barrier is opened, and the lens moves to the wide end position (# 21). At this time, photographing preparation operations such as activation of a CCD and display of a live view are performed. Metering and AF are performed by half-pressing the release button 13 (S1) (# 23-25), and shooting at the normal image quality size is started by fully pressing the release button 13 (S2) (# 26, 27). The captured moving image of normal image quality size is recorded on the recording medium (# 28).

  Therefore, when the moving image switching button 23 is used to switch to shooting with a high image quality size (Yes in # 29), the shooting of the normal image quality size up to that point is stopped, and the recording of the moving image obtained so far is finished (# 34). ). At the same time, shooting of a high-quality video is started (# 35), and the shot high-quality video is temporarily written in the buffer memory (# 36). When the buffer memory becomes full (Yes in # 37), the high-quality image capturing is stopped and the normal image-quality image capturing is resumed (# 40, 41). If the release button 13 is fully pressed during high-image-size shooting (Yes in # 38), movie shooting ends at that point (# 42, 43). When the moving image switching button 23 is pressed (Yes in # 39), the high-quality image capturing is stopped and the normal image-quality image capturing is resumed.

  When the release button 13 is fully pressed for the second time (Yes in # 30), shooting of the normal image quality size is stopped (# 31), and the second half of the moving image data of the normal image quality size is recorded on the recording medium (# 32). . A high-quality moving image stored in the buffer memory is compressed, and associated information with a normal image size moving image file is added and recorded on a recording medium.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the moving image shooting process. This flowchart mainly shows processing in a case where a plurality of moving image data having different image quality are combined into one file. The processing of steps # 51 to 63 is the same as the processing of steps # 21 to 33 shown in FIG. Also, the flowchart of FIG. 11 is commonly used in the flowchart of FIG.

  In step # 64 of FIG. 12, the moving image data having the normal image quality size is generated from the moving image data having the high image quality size. The moving image data of the normal image quality size obtained by shooting and the generated moving image data are connected and integrated to generate and record one synthesized moving image file (# 65). At the same time, the high-quality moving image file and the synthesized moving image file are associated with each other.

  13 and 14 are flowcharts showing an example of the reproduction process. This flowchart mainly shows processing in the case of reproducing a moving image file recorded in accordance with the flowchart of FIG.

  In FIG. 13, files recorded on the recording medium are read, and their file names are displayed on the display surface of the display unit 17 (# 71). The user selects a file with the cross key 21 or the like (# 72). A thumbnail image of the selected file is displayed (# 73). At that time, if it is a moving image file, that effect is displayed.

  When the file is a moving image file (Yes in # 74), when the playback button is turned on (Yes in # 75), the reproduction of the moving image is started (# 76). A normal-quality-size video is played first, but when this is finished, if there is information that a high-quality-size video exists in the sequence header or sequence end (Yes in # 77), the high-quality size Are read and played (# 78). At this time, the image is displayed at the same frame rate as when shooting. That is, images are switched and displayed at a slow speed such as frame advance. When the moving image switching button 23 is pressed (Yes in # 79), a still image of a high quality size of the image displayed at that time is read (# 82), and the display is stopped in the display state at that time. A temporary stop state is entered (# 83).

  In this state, when the center button 21c, which is a still image recording button, is pressed (Yes in # 84), the image displayed at that time is recorded as a still image with a file name assigned (# 85). . Still images can also be output to the outside.

  During the pause, one frame can be advanced by operating the left and right buttons 21b of the cross key 21 (# 86, 87). When the play button is pressed again, it returns to slow playback of a high-quality video.

  The reproduction of the high-quality video is finished (# 80), and if the subsequent normal-quality video exists (Yes in # 81), the process returns to normal-quality video playback (# 76). Playback ends when there is no longer a normal image size video. Also, the playback is stopped when the playback button is turned on.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an example of reproduction processing. This flowchart mainly shows processing in the case of reproducing a composite moving image file recorded in accordance with the flowchart of FIG. The processing of Steps # 91 to 96 is the same as the processing of Steps # 71 to 76 shown in FIG. The flowchart of FIG. 14 is also used in common with the flowchart of FIG.

  In step # 97 of FIG. 15, when a region generated by converting a high-quality video during playback of a composite video (Yes in # 97), a mark indicating that is displayed or blinks ( # 98). If the moving image switching button 23 is pressed while the mark is being displayed or blinking (# 99), the process proceeds to step # 81 and the subsequent steps, and a moving image file of high image quality is read and displayed.

  When the playback of the high-quality video ends (Yes in # 100) and there is a subsequent normal-quality video (Yes in # 101), the playback returns to the normal-quality video playback (# 96). . Playback ends when there is no moving image data.

  According to the digital camera 1 of the above-described embodiment, high-quality moving image shooting can be performed with a feeling of continuous shooting in a series of moving image shooting, so that operability is good. Since the synthesized moving image file is generated so as to compensate for the missing portion of the moving image data shot at the high image quality size, normal continuous reproduction is possible during reproduction. During playback, it is possible to substantially perform slow playback or frame-by-frame playback in an area where high-quality moving image data exists, so that it is easy to select a still image. Therefore, a necessary still image can be easily taken out even if the user does not have a high level of shooting skill.

  In the embodiment described above, the moving image data of the first half and the latter half of the normal image quality size corresponds to the moving image data of the first normal image quality size and the moving image data of the second normal image quality size in the present invention. The processing function of the moving image switching button 23 and the control unit 101 in response to the operation signal corresponds to the size switching means and the display switching means in the present invention. The processing functions of the memory card 115 and the control unit 101 that writes to the memory card 115 correspond to the means for recording in association with each other in the present invention. The processing function of the display unit 17 and the control unit 101 that displays a moving image on the display unit 17 corresponds to a reproducing unit in the present invention. The processing function of the control unit 101 for displaying the display CM in FIG. 4 corresponds to the display control means in the present invention. The processing function of the control unit 101 that extracts a still image having a high image quality size in accordance with the center button 21c and its operation signal corresponds to the extraction means in the present invention. Further, the processing in steps # 64 and # 65 in the flowchart and the processing function of the control unit 101 related thereto correspond to the combining means in the present invention.

  In the embodiment described above, three moving image files are recorded or combined in association with each other, but two or more moving image files may be recorded and combined in association with each other. Various buttons and switches other than those described above can be used as buttons for instructing the start or end of shooting, image quality switching, frame advance during display, and still image extraction. Various file formats, moving image frame rates, image sizes, and the like may be various other than those described above.

  In addition, the structure, configuration, shape, size, function, processing content, processing order, and the like of the digital camera 1 can be various other than those described above. For example, a telephone communication function may be added to the digital camera 1. Further, the function of the digital camera 1 described above may be added to the mobile phone. In addition, the present invention can be realized by adding the function of the digital camera 1 to various electronic devices or apparatuses.

  It can be used as a digital camera that can shoot high-quality moving images or a digital camera that can easily acquire high-quality sized still images.

It is a front view of a digital camera showing an embodiment of the present invention. It is a rear view of a digital camera. It is a block diagram which shows the function of a digital camera. It is a figure explaining the outline | summary of operation | movement of a digital camera. FIG. 6 is a timing diagram of an image quality switching operation in a moving image shooting mode. It is a figure which shows the example of a structure of the moving image file at the time of switching image quality. It is a figure which shows the example of a structure of an MPEG file. It is a figure explaining the method to produce | generate a synthetic moving image. It is a flowchart which shows the whole operation | movement of a digital camera. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a video recording process. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a video recording process. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a video recording process. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a reproduction | regeneration process. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a reproduction | regeneration process. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a reproduction | regeneration process.

Explanation of symbols

1 Digital Camera 17 Display Unit (Display Means)
23 Movie switching button (size switching means, display switching means)
101 control unit (size switching means, recording means, reproduction means, composition means, display control means, extraction means)
115 Memory card (recording means)

Claims (7)

A digital camera that can shoot movies,
A size switching means for temporarily switching the size of a video to be acquired to a normal image quality size or a larger image quality size during movie shooting;
Three moving image data of first normal image quality size moving image data, high image quality size moving image data, and second normal image quality size moving image data obtained by temporarily switching and photographing by the size switching means are obtained. Means for recording each as a separate video file and recording the three video files in association with each other;
A digital camera comprising: Replay means for sequentially replaying the three video files in time series based on their correspondence;
The digital camera according to claim 1. A digital camera that can shoot movies,
A size switching means for switching the size of the video to be acquired to a normal image quality size or a higher image quality size larger than that during video recording;
For a plurality of videos shot by switching by the size switching means, a high-quality video is converted to a normal image size, and a video shot at a normal image size and a converted normal image size video are time-sequentially. A compositing means for generating a composite video synthesized by connecting;
Recording means for recording the synthesized moving image as one synthesized moving image file and recording the synthesized moving image file and the captured high-quality size moving image in association with each other;
A digital camera comprising: Display means for displaying the synthesized moving image as a moving image;
A display control means for displaying when a composite video having a high-quality video associated therewith is displayed;
A display switching means for switching and displaying a converted high-quality video when the converted normal-quality video is displayed;
The digital camera according to claim 3. An extraction unit that extracts an image displayed at a specified time as a still image when a high-quality video is displayed;
The digital camera according to claim 2 or 4. Displaying the high-quality size video at a slower frame rate than the normal-quality size video.
The digital camera according to claim 5. A digital camera that can shoot movies,
Movie shooting means capable of shooting by switching the size of the movie from the normal image quality size to a larger image quality size,
A video playback means for playing back and displaying a high-quality video obtained by shooting or a reduced video,
Means for extracting, as a still image, an image displayed at the time designated by the input from the designation means when a high-quality video or a reduced video is displayed;
A digital camera characterized by comprising:

Images