JP2006174010A - Imaging apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To recognize the number of times of photographing each object. <P>SOLUTION: An IC tag reader 123 reads a object ID recorded in an IC tag 2 from radio signals received by an IC tag sensor 121 and outputs it to a CPU 100 in response to the fact that the CPU 100 detects S2ON signals. The number of times of reading the object ID is stored in a RAM 104 corresponding to the object ID as the number of times of photographing the object. That is, every time of reading the same object ID, the number of times of photographing corresponding to the object ID is increased and stored. On a monitor 30, the number of times of photographing corresponding to each object ID may be displayed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus, and more particularly to an imaging apparatus that stores the number of times a subject has been shot.

  The following Patent Documents 1 and 2 are examples of techniques for tracking a subject. According to Patent Document 1, a monitoring target that satisfies a predetermined monitoring target condition is identified from among the persons entering the ticket gate by using an identification unit provided at the ticket gate of the station, and within the identified monitoring target person's home. Is tracked by the tracking means, the danger of the monitoring subject is detected from the tracking information, and an alarm signal is output by the alarm means.

The imaging / monitoring means of Patent Document 2 includes means for receiving an identification signal for transmitting from the mobile body side that there is a moving body to be imaged / monitored, and determines the transmission direction when the identification signal is recognized. Then, imaging / monitoring is performed while tracking the object to be imaged / monitored, and the output signal of the imaging / monitoring means is recorded.
JP 2003-224844 A JP 2003-317169 A

  By the way, when shooting attendees at various events such as athletic meet and excursions, as a result of taking pictures by judging whether the number of shots of a particular attendee was high or low with the sense of a photographer, a photograph of a certain attendee The event may end with little or no, and may be unsatisfactory for attendees who want a photo. In this regard, the techniques of Patent Documents 1 and 2 simply track the subject, and cannot grasp whether the number of times of shooting a certain subject is large or small. The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object thereof is to make it possible to grasp the number of times each subject has been shot.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an imaging apparatus according to the present invention includes an imaging unit that images a subject, a wireless reception unit that receives a radio signal from a wireless transmitter attached to the subject, and imaging of the subject by the imaging unit. Accordingly, a reading unit that reads the identification information of the subject recorded in advance on the wireless transmitter from the wireless signal received from the wireless transmitter, and a storage unit that stores the number of times of reading the identification information of the subject as the number of times the subject is photographed. Is provided.

  In this imaging apparatus, since the number of times each subject is photographed is stored, the photographer can grasp how many times each subject has been photographed, and can surely photograph the desired subject the desired number of times. The wireless transmitter is, for example, an IC tag.

  The imaging apparatus may further include a communication unit that transmits and receives the number of times the subject has been shot, and the storage unit may store the number of times the subject has been shot.

  In this way, the imaging frequency of the subject can be shared between the imaging devices.

  You may display the frequency | count of imaging | photography of a to-be-photographed object on various display means, such as LCD. In this way, the photographer can easily grasp the number of times the subject has been photographed.

  The imaging apparatus may further include a setting unit that sets a target number of times of shooting corresponding to the subject, and may display the remaining number of times of shooting up to the target number of times of shooting according to the number of times of shooting of the subject.

  By doing so, the photographer can grasp how many images should be taken up to a preset target number of times.

  An imaging unit that images a subject, a wireless reception unit that receives a wireless signal from a wireless transmitter attached to the subject, and a wireless signal that is received from the wireless transmitter according to the imaging of the subject by the imaging unit. A reading unit that reads pre-recorded subject identification information, a storage unit that stores the number of times the subject identification information is read as the number of times the subject has been shot, and a transmission unit that transmits the subject image captured by the imaging unit. A print system including an imaging device and a printer connected to the transmission unit and printing an image transmitted from the transmission unit may be constructed.

  In this imaging apparatus, since the number of times each subject is photographed is stored, the photographer can grasp how many times each subject has been photographed, and can surely photograph the desired subject the desired number of times.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[Schematic configuration]
FIG. 1 shows a use state of a camera 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The camera 10 can grasp which subject was photographed and how many times it was photographed at a predetermined place (athletic, excursion, theater, play, entrance, graduation, wedding, amusement park, etc.). Like that.

  The cameras 10a, b, c,... Having the same configuration (collectively represented by the camera 10) are provided with a communication interface for short-range wireless (for example, a wireless transmission method using a 2.4 GHz band) and are close to each other. Communication is possible within the wireless range.

  For the subject to be photographed by the camera 10, IC tags 2a, b, c,... (Collectively IC tag 2) in which the identification information specific to the subject (hereinafter referred to as subject ID) is stored before the photographing is started at a predetermined place. The IC tag 2 is attached to each subject.

  The camera 10 has an antenna 130 that communicates with the IC tag 2 attached to each subject, reads the subject ID recorded in advance on the IC tag 2 when the subject is photographed, and reads each subject ID. The number of times is stored as the number of times of shooting of the subject identified by the subject ID. The number of shooting times of the subject stored in each camera 10 is transmitted / received by performing short-range wireless communication with each other, and is shared in real time. The number of shootings may be transmitted not only to the cameras 10 but also to various network devices such as a personal computer and a printer that are wired or wirelessly connected to the cameras 10 and shared by the various network devices.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration inside the camera 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, a CPU 100 is a control unit that performs overall control of each circuit of the camera system, and includes storage means such as a ROM 102 and a RAM 104. The ROM 102 stores programs processed by the CPU 100 and various data necessary for control, and the RAM 104 is used as a work area when the CPU 100 performs various arithmetic processes. The ROM 102 is composed of a flash ROM capable of erasing / writing data.

  The CPU 100 outputs an operation signal output from the operation unit 106 including a release button, a power button, a strobe button, a macro button, a zoom lever, a display button, a BACK button, a mark button, a menu / OK button, a cross button, a mode switch, and the like. Based on this, the operation of the corresponding circuit is controlled, and lens drive control, shooting operation control, image processing control, image data recording / reproduction control, display control of the monitor 30, etc., automatic exposure (AE) calculation, automatic focus adjustment are performed. Various calculation processes such as (AF) calculation and white balance (WB) adjustment calculation are executed.

  The light that has passed through the lens 14 enters a CCD image sensor (CCD) 108. Photosensors are arranged in a plane on the light receiving surface of the CCD 108, and an optical image of a subject formed on the light receiving surface of the CCD 108 via the lens 14 is a signal corresponding to the amount of incident light by each photosensor. Converted to electric charge. The signal charge accumulated in each photosensor is sequentially read out as a voltage signal (image signal) corresponding to the signal charge based on a driving pulse given from a timing generator (not shown) and sent to the analog signal processing unit 110.

  The analog signal processing unit 110 includes a signal processing circuit such as a sampling hold circuit, a color separation circuit, a gain adjustment circuit, an A / D converter, and the image signal input by the analog signal processing unit 110 is correlated double sampling. Processing and color separation processing are performed on each of the R, G, and B color signals, and signal level adjustment (pre-white balance processing) of each color signal is performed. Then, it is converted into a digital image signal and stored in the RAM 104.

  The image signal stored in the RAM 104 is sent to the image signal processing unit 112. The image signal processing unit 112 includes a digital signal processor (DSP) including a luminance / color difference signal generation circuit, a gamma correction circuit, a sharpness correction circuit, a contrast correction circuit, a white balance correction circuit, and the like, and is input according to a command from the CPU 100. The processed image signal is processed. The image signal input to the image signal processing unit 112 is converted into a luminance signal (Y signal) and a color difference signal (Cr, Cb signal) and subjected to predetermined processing such as gamma correction and then stored in the RAM 104. Stored. The image data stored in the RAM 104 is input to the display unit 114. The display unit 114 converts the input image data into a predetermined signal for display (for example, an NTSC color composite video signal) and outputs the signal to the monitor 30.

  The image data in the RAM 104 is periodically rewritten by the image signal output from the CCD 108, and the image signal generated from the image data is supplied to the monitor 30, so that the image input via the CCD 108 is real-time. It is displayed on the monitor 30. The photographer can confirm the shooting angle of view from the image (through image) displayed on the monitor 30.

  The display unit 114 includes an OSD signal generation circuit. The OSD signal generation circuit, according to a command from the CPU 100, includes characters such as a shutter speed, an aperture value, the number of shootable images, a shooting date / time, a warning message, an autofocus frame (AF), A signal for displaying symbol information is generated. A signal output from the OSD signal generation circuit is mixed with an image signal as necessary and supplied to the monitor 30. As a result, a combined image in which characters and the like are combined with the through image and the reproduced image is displayed.

  When the mode of the camera is set to the shooting mode with the mode switch, the camera 10 can perform shooting. When the release button is half-pressed in this state, an S1 ON signal is issued to the CPU 100. The CPU 100 detects this S1 ON signal and executes AE and AF operations. That is, the CPU 100 controls a lens driving unit (not shown) so that the subject is in focus, measures the brightness of the subject, and determines the aperture value and the shutter speed so as to achieve proper exposure.

  Thereafter, when the release button is fully pressed, an S2 ON signal is issued to the CPU 100, and the CPU 100 detects the S2 ON signal and executes a recording operation. In other words, an aperture drive unit (not shown) and the electronic shutter of the CCD 108 are controlled so that the aperture value and shutter speed determined when the release button is half-pressed, and the image is captured.

  In this way, in response to the full pressing operation of the release button, capturing of image data for recording is started, and an image signal for one frame output from the CCD 108 is captured into the RAM 104 via the analog signal processing unit 110. The image signal taken into the RAM 104 is subjected to predetermined signal processing by the image signal processing unit 112, stored again in the RAM 104, and sent to the image recording unit 116.

  The image recording unit 116 includes a compression / decompression processing circuit, and the compression / decompression processing circuit compresses image data input according to a command from the CPU 100 according to JPEG or another predetermined format. The compressed image data is recorded on the recording medium 120 via the media interface (media I / F) 118 as an image file in a predetermined format (for example, an image file in an Exif (Exchangeable Image File Format) format). The recording medium 120 is a removable medium removable from the camera body such as an xD picture card, smart media, compact flash, magnetic disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, memory stick, etc. It may be a recording medium (internal memory).

  When the playback mode is selected with the mode switch, the image recorded on the recording medium 120 can be played back. When the mode switch is set to the playback mode, the image data of the image file recorded last on the recording medium 120 is read. The read image data is output to the monitor 30 via the display unit 114 after being subjected to a required expansion process in the image recording unit 116. Thereby, browsing of the image recorded on the recording medium 120 becomes possible.

  The frame advance of the image is performed with the cross button. When the right key of the cross button is pressed, the next image file is read from the recording medium 120 and reproduced and displayed on the monitor 30. When the left key of the cross button is pressed, the previous image file is read from the recording medium 120 and reproduced and displayed on the monitor 30.

  The camera body of the camera 10 is provided with an IC tag sensor 121 including an antenna 130 having directivity in a range equivalent to the shooting range of the lens 14, and one or a plurality of subjects 3 a, b, c. The wireless signals transmitted from the IC tags 2 (three IC tags 2a to 2c as an example in FIG. 2) attached to the subject 3 are received and detected. An electromagnetic shield film or the like may be attached to the rear side of the lens 14 of the IC tag sensor 121 so that the IC tag sensor 121 does not receive a radio signal from the IC tag 2 behind the lens 14. The RSSI circuit 123 detects the intensity of the radio signal received by the IC tag sensor 121 and outputs it to the CPU 100.

  The IC tag reader 123 reads the subject ID recorded in advance on the IC tag 2 from the wireless signal received by the IC tag sensor 121 and outputs it to the CPU 100 in response to the CPU 100 detecting the S2 ON signal. The number of times the subject ID has been read is stored in the RAM 104 in association with the subject ID as the number of times the subject has been shot. That is, every time the same subject ID is read, the number of times of photographing corresponding to the subject ID is incremented and stored.

  The distance measuring unit 124 is a means for measuring the distance to the focused subject. For example, an AF evaluation value (focus evaluation value) indicating the sharpness of the subject image based on a high frequency component in the signal output from the CCD 108. , And the distance from the lens position to the subject image when the focus position of the lens is set so that the focus evaluation value is maximized is calculated. Or, a triangulation sensor that detects the distance from the angle formed by the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit to the subject that emits light to the focused subject and reflects it back to the subject. Good. The CPU 100 recognizes the correspondence between the position of the subject and the information read from the IC tag 2 by comparing the distance to the subject 3 with the strength of the wireless communication intensity from the IC tag 2.

  The lens 14 and the antenna 130 have the same directivity, and the imaging range of the lens 14 and the radio signal reception range are set to be equal.

  FIG. 3 conceptually shows how the number of times the subject has been shot is stored in the RAM 104. In the RAM 104, each subject ID and the number of times of photographing are stored in association with each other. Furthermore, the target number of times of shooting for each subject arbitrarily set from the operation unit 106 may be stored in association with each subject ID. The target number of times of shooting may be set and stored uniformly regardless of the difference in subject ID.

  Then, in order to be able to confirm whether or not each subject has been shot the target number of times, the CPU 100 calculates the remaining number of times by subtracting the number of times of shooting from the target number of times of shooting, and displays the remaining number of times of shooting on the monitor 30. . At this time, the CPU 100 displays the number of remaining photographings of the subject at the display position of the subject 3 in accordance with the correspondence between the recognized position of the subject 3 and the information read from the IC tag. If the antenna 130 has directivity, the arrival direction of the communication radio wave from the IC tag 3 may be estimated, and the remaining number of times of photographing may be displayed at the estimated position of the subject according to the arrival direction.

  FIG. 4 shows a display example of the remaining number of times of photographing. As shown in this figure, the monitor 30 displays the remaining number of photographing times 4 corresponding to each subject 3. The remaining number of times of photographing is displayed in the vicinity of the display position of the subject 3 so that the photographer can grasp at a glance which number of subjects should be photographed to reach the target number of times of photographing. The monitor 30 may display the number of shootings corresponding to each subject ID alone or together with the remaining number of shootings. FIG. 5 shows a display example of the number of photographing times 5 corresponding to the subject 3.

  Referring to FIG. 2 again, each camera 10 has a communication interface 122 for short-range wireless (for example, a wireless transmission method using a 2.4 GHz band), and can communicate with each other if they are within the range of the short-range wireless. It is. A print system in which each camera 10 and the printer 20 are connected via the communication interface 122 of each camera 10 may be constructed. The number of times of photographing corresponding to the subject ID stored in the RAM 104 is wirelessly transmitted to the other camera 10 by the communication interface 122. When a certain camera 10 receives the number of times of photographing corresponding to the subject ID from another camera 10, the number of times of photographing corresponding to the subject ID is updated to the received number of times of photography and stored. For this reason, even if there are a plurality of cameras 10 that follow the subject 3 to which the IC tag 2 is attached, the number of times each camera 10 is photographed can be shared, and the total number of times each camera 10 has photographed can be grasped.

  Even if the camera 10 is a silver salt camera that does not include an image sensor such as the CCD 108, the wireless signal from the IC tag 2 can be used if it includes the CPU 100, the antenna 130, the IC tag sensor 121, the IC tag reader 113, the ROM 102, and the RAM 104. Can be stored and the number of times of photographing can be stored. If the display unit 114 and the monitor 30 are further provided, the number of shootings can be displayed. If the communication interface 122 is provided, the number of shootings can be transmitted / received to / from other cameras 10 and shared. If the operation unit 106 is provided, the target number of times of photographing can be set, and the remaining number of times of photographing can be displayed on the monitor 30.

[Processes performed by the digital camera]
Hereinafter, based on the flowchart of FIG. 6, a procedure for photographing the subject 3 using the camera 10 will be described.

  In S1, an IC storing the subject ID is attached to the subject 3 before the shooting. If the subject is a person, the IC tag 2 may be directly attached to clothes with a pin or the like. Alternatively, the IC tag 2 may be embedded in a name tag or emblem and attached to clothes. If the subject is another object, for example, an automobile that travels at high speed, the IC tag 2 may be attached to the subject 3 so as not to drop off by screwing or bonding.

  In S <b> 2, the target number of times of shooting corresponding to each subject ID is set from the operation unit 106. The target number of shots may be set and stored uniformly regardless of the difference in subject IDs. However, if you want to shoot a lot of specific subjects, conversely, if you want to reduce the number of shots of a specific subject, support each subject ID. It is more convenient to set the individual number of times of shooting.

  In S3, when an S2ON signal is issued to the CPU 100, the CPU 100 detects the S2ON signal and executes a recording operation. A service may be provided in which the recorded image is transmitted to the printer 20 connected via the communication interface 122 and the image is printed on the spot. On the other hand, when the CPU 100 detects the S2 ON signal, the CPU 100 communicates with the IC tag 2 to read the subject ID, and stores the number of times the subject ID is read in the RAM 104 as the number of times the subject 3 has been photographed.

  In S4, the number of times of photographing corresponding to each subject ID is displayed on the monitor 30. The monitor 30 may display the remaining number of times of photographing. When the remaining number of shootings is 0, instead of displaying the remaining number of shootings, a warning message indicating that the target number of shootings has been reached may be displayed, or a warning sound may be generated from a speaker (not shown).

  Each time the release button is fully pressed, steps S3 and S4 are repeated.

  As described above, the RAM 104 of the camera 10 stores the number of times each subject has been photographed, and the monitor 30 displays the number of times the subject has been photographed, so that the photographer can easily grasp which subject has been photographed and how many times. The desired subject can be reliably photographed the desired number of times.

The figure which showed the use condition of the camera which concerns on preferable embodiment of this invention 1 is a block diagram of a camera according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows notionally ID and the frequency | count of imaging | photography memorize | stored correspondingly Figure showing a display example of the number of remaining shots Figure showing a display example of the number of shots Flowchart for explaining subject photographing procedure using camera

Explanation of symbols

10: Camera, 121: IC tag sensor, 113: IC tag reader, 122: Communication interface, 123: RSSI circuit

Claims (6)

An imaging unit for imaging a subject;
A wireless receiver for receiving a wireless signal from a wireless transmitter attached to the subject;
A reading unit that reads identification information of a subject recorded in advance on the wireless transmitter from a wireless signal received from the wireless transmitter in response to imaging of the subject by the imaging unit;
A storage unit for storing the number of times the subject identification information has been read as the number of times the subject has been shot;
An imaging apparatus comprising: A communication unit that transmits and receives the number of times the subject has been shot;
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores the number of times the received subject has been shot.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit that displays the number of times the subject has been shot. A setting unit for setting a target number of times of shooting corresponding to the subject;
The imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the display unit displays a remaining number of times of shooting up to the target number of times of shooting according to the number of times of shooting of the subject.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the wireless transmitter is an IC tag. An imaging unit that images a subject, a wireless reception unit that receives a wireless signal from a wireless transmitter attached to the subject, and the wireless signal received from the wireless transmitter according to the imaging of the subject by the imaging unit A reading unit that reads the identification information of the subject recorded in advance on the wireless transmitter, a storage unit that stores the number of times the identification information of the subject is read as the number of times the subject has been shot, and an image of the subject captured by the imaging unit. An imaging device comprising a transmitting unit for transmitting;
A printer connected to the transmission unit and printing an image transmitted from the transmission unit;
A printing system comprising:

Images