KR20040001170A - Method of taking and storing a picture image on digital-camera-enabled phone - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A method for photographing and storing images in a camera phone is provided to select various images as background pictures, photograph the images, input a title and a date/time, and store the images. CONSTITUTION: If a camera is turned on, a background image is selected according to the request of a user(200,202). An object image currently captured through the camera is superimposed on the selected background image, and the object image is displayed on a display unit(204). The currently captured object image is photographed by the input of a shutter key(208,210). The selected background image and the superimposed object image are displayed as an still image on the display unit(212). A title is inputted in a title input space on the selected background image through an interface with the user(214-218). A date/time is inputted in a date/time input space on the selected background image through the interface with the user(220-228). The displayed entire image is generated as an synthesis image file by the input of a storing key, and the synthesis image file is stored in a memory(230,232).

Description

METHOD OF TAKING AND STORING A PICTURE IMAGE ON DIGITAL-CAMERA-ENABLED PHONE}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a mobile phone mounted with a camera, and more particularly, to a method for capturing and storing images in a mobile phone mounted with a camera.

Mobile phones are now becoming a necessity to enhance the convenience of users by providing various additional functions in addition to the original functions of providing simple telephone functions to users. In addition, a number of electronic devices that had to be separately equipped with a cell phone, such as a cell phone that provides radio listening and telephone functions, a radio cell phone that combines radio, and a cell phone and TV that provides TV viewing and telephone functions A mobile phone has been developed such as a phone, an Internet phone that provides the Internet and phone functions, a mobile phone that provides a camera and a phone function, and a camera phone that combines a camera, so that users can easily use other additional functions provided by the mobile phone. In addition, the company is striving to develop next-generation mobile phones that maximize mobile phone efficiency and maximize user convenience.

Among the mobile phones that are easy to carry and use, so-called 'camera phones', which are a combination of a camera and a mobile phone, take and store an object after shooting and playing it, using it as a wallpaper, or using an e-mail or It provides the function to send to another place by using the telephone number. However, in the conventional mobile phone combined with a camera and a mobile phone, when the image is taken and stored using the camera, the captured image is simply edited as it is to create and store an image file. Thus, the photographed image is simply a scanned or simply edited image file, for example to play it, use it as a wallpaper, or send it to another place by using an e-mail or a telephone number.

On the other hand, in recent years, more and more users want to use a certain meaning, for example, a congratulatory message in the photographed image, or express the photographed image in their own way. Therefore, in the composite mobile phone combined with a camera and a mobile phone, there is a need for a method of capturing and storing images in various formats according to user's various needs when taking and storing images using a camera.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a method for capturing and storing an image that satisfies various needs of a user in a method of capturing and storing an image using a camera in a mobile phone equipped with a camera.

Another object of the present invention is a method of capturing and storing an image that satisfies various needs of a user using a camera in a mobile phone equipped with a camera, selecting a variety of images as a background image and storing the image by inputting a title and date / time. To provide a way.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile phone equipped with a camera (aka "camera phone") according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a control flowchart for capturing and storing an image in a mobile phone equipped with a camera according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3 is an LCD screen for image capture and storage in a mobile phone equipped with a camera according to an embodiment of the present invention,

4 is an example of a whole image taken and stored in the camera-mounted mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In accordance with the above object, the present invention provides a method for capturing and storing an image in a mobile phone equipped with a camera, wherein the camera is turned on to select a wallpaper image according to a user's request; Superimposing a subject image currently captured by the camera on the display unit, displaying the subject image on the display unit, photographing a subject image currently captured based on a shutter key input, and superimposing the selected background image And displaying the captured subject image as a still image on the display unit, and generating a composite image file and storing the entire image displayed on the basis of a storage key input in a memory.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the same elements in the figures are represented by the same numerals wherever possible. In addition, detailed descriptions of well-known functions and configurations that may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present invention will be omitted.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile phone mounted with a camera (hereinafter referred to as a "camera phone") according to an embodiment of the present invention, which is disclosed in FIG. The camera phone of FIG. 1 includes a camera unit 2 for capturing an image of a subject largely, a mobile phone unit 4 for voice call or image transmission and reception, and a display device 8 for displaying images and characters. ) And an interface unit 6 for displaying images and characters on the display device 8 under the control of the cellular phone unit 4.

The camera unit 2 may be implemented based on a digital still video camera, and specific configurations and operations according to embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

The image of the subject is applied to the charge coupled device (CCD) 12 through the lens unit 10. The lens unit 12 may include a zoom lens, a focus lens, and an iris, which are typically provided in a digital still video camera, and include a camera phone according to an embodiment of the present invention. The lens unit 12 is simply implemented to allow the user to carry the camera phone more easily. That is, the mechanism and circuit configuration of the zoom lens, the zoom lens driver for driving the zoom lens, the aperture driver for driving the aperture, and the like are deleted, and the aperture is fixed in a state with a constant aperture opening and closing due to the removal of the aperture driver. Is implemented. Therefore, the lens unit 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention is simplified to a focus lens and an aperture. However, if necessary, the lens unit 10 may be implemented by including all or selectively the zoom lens, the focus lens, the iris, and the driving unit as in the conventional lens unit included in the digital still video camera.

The CCD 12 converts and outputs the optical signal of the subject passing through the lens unit 10 into an electrical signal (imaging image signal), and the CDS / AGC (Correlated Double Sampling / Auto Gain Control) 14 outputs the captured image signal. Correlation double sampling and gain adjustment. The correlated double sampling operation in the CDS eliminates noise of the captured image signal generated by the CCD 12. The CCD 12 and the CDS / AGC 14 may also be implemented as a conventional complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) chip. In the CDS / AGC 14, the correlated double sampled and gain adjusted signal is applied to an analog to digital converter (ADC) 16. The ADC 16 converts the captured image signal of one field adjusted by the CDS / AGC 14 into a digital signal and outputs the digital signal to the DSP (Digital Signal Processor) 18. The DSP 18 processes digitally-converted photographic image signals of NTSC (National Television System Committee) or PAL (Phase Alternation by Line) image signals (Y, C). Display unit for sending the image signals Y and C to the Joint Picture Expert Group (JPEG) compression unit 20 under control or for displaying on a color graphic LCD (hereinafter abbreviated as "color LCD") 48 screen Send to (8). In the image signals Y and C, Y means a luminance signal and C means a color signal.

The DSP 24 stores the image signals Y and C in the first memory 22 through the JPEG compression unit 20 or sends them to the display device 8 as follows. When the camera is turned on and the user presses the shutter key of the camera phone, the subject (still image) at that time is photographed. At this time, the captured image signals Y and C output from the DSP 18 are stored in the first memory 22 via the JEPG compression unit 20. On the other hand, when the camera is turned on and the shutter key is not applied, the image signals Y and C output from the DSP 18 are temporarily stored in the third memory 26 through the camera controller 24 and then the camera controller. 24, the DSP 18, the selector 44, and the LCD driver 46 of the display device 8 are displayed on the color LCD 48 via the path. The user may check a subject coming into the camera lens through the color LCD 48.

The JPEG compression unit 20 converts the captured image signals Y and C provided by the DSP 18 into the JPEG format as the user presses the shutter key while the camera is turned on under the control of the camera controller 24. It is compressed at a ratio and stored in the first memory 22. The compressed image stored in the first memory 22 is decompressed and provided to the DSP 18 under the control of the camera controller 24. The JPEG compression unit 20 compresses, for example, a VGA (Video Graphics Array) signal having a size of about 640x480 to a size of about 1/8 in order to reduce the size of an image. An image of 640x480 size is about 300KB (Kilo Byte). When the image is compressed to 1/8 in the JPEG compression unit 20, the size is about 40KB. The first memory 22 is implemented as a flash memory as a memory for storing the compressed image output from the JPEG compression unit 20. The first memory 22 adjusts the amount of the captured image according to the memory capacity, and is preferably implemented so that dozens (eg, about 50) of captured images can be stored.

The camera control unit 24 is implemented as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and performs the overall operation of the camera unit (2). In addition, when a signal corresponding to various keys input from the key input unit 34 of the mobile phone unit 4 under the control of the mobile phone control unit 32 included in the mobile phone unit 4 is transmitted under the control of the mobile phone control unit 32. It performs various operations accordingly. The second memory 26 connected to the camera controller 24 is a memory for storing programs for performing various operations of the camera controller 24 and is typically implemented as a static random access memory (SRAM). The third memory 28 connected to the camera controller 24 is a buffer for temporarily storing the image coming through the camera lens, and is typically implemented as a dynamic random access memory (DRAM).

Next, the configuration and operation of the mobile phone unit 4 in the camera phone configuration of Figure 1 will be described. The mobile phone control unit 32 controls various operations related to the mobile phone unit 4 and detects a key input of the user to operate the mobile phone unit 4 or the camera unit 2 or to display an image desired by the user. Operation control for storing the data in the fourth memory 36, and controlling the OSD 40 of the interface unit 6 so that a desired character or background screen is displayed on the color LCD 48 of the display device 8. To control.

The key input unit 34 includes numeric keys and function keys provided in a conventional mobile phone, and various keys necessary for capturing and storing images using a camera. The key data corresponding to a key pressed by a user is a mobile phone control unit 32. Is applied. Various keys according to an embodiment of the present invention for capturing and storing an image using a camera include a key related to capturing and storing an image using a camera, a mode key for selecting a camera environment, a shutter key for taking a picture, and a mode key. It includes an enter key for setting the selected camera environment, a switch for powering the camera on and off, and the like. In addition, some of the various keys provided in the mobile phone are used when the camera is on.

The fourth memory 36 is a memory unit including EEPROM (Electically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory), flash ROM (Random Access Memory), and RAM (Random Access Memory). Variables necessary for various program operations are stored in the fourth memory 36, and various data necessary for controlling a mobile phone are stored. In particular, in the fourth memory 36, the background screen images 304 used when capturing and storing images using a camera are stored in the fourth memory 36.

The audio unit 33 modulates an analog voice signal input through a microphone MIC into a radio signal under the control of the mobile phone control unit 32 and transmits the radio signal to the RF unit 30 and is received through the RF unit 30. Demodulates the radio signal and sends it to the speaker SP as a voice signal. The RF unit 30 under the control of the mobile phone control unit 32, down-converts and demodulates the RF signal received by the antenna, outputs the audio signal to the audio unit 33, and outputs a signal transmitted from the audio unit 32. Modulate and upconvert to RF signals and wirelessly transmit them through the antenna. The signal transmitted and received to the RF unit 30 includes not only a voice signal but also data such as an image and a text.

The RS232C interface unit 38 connected to the cellular phone control unit 32 is an interface for downloading still images from a personal computer (PC) or uploading still images to a PC.

In the configuration of FIG. 1, the configuration and operation of the interface unit 6 will be described. The interface unit 6 includes an OSD 40, an encoder 42, and a selector 44. The OSD (On Screen Display) 40 performs OSD control for displaying characters on a color LCD screen of the display device 8 or a background screen downloaded from a PC. The image signals R, G, and B output from the OSD 40 are, for example, 8-bit digital signals, which are converted into analog R, G, and B signals through an internal digital to analog converter (DAC) 41 to the encoder 42. Is approved. The encoder 42 converts the applied analog R, G, and B signals into Y, C signals suitable for NTSC or PAL, and outputs them to the selector 44. The selector 44 is implemented as an analog multiplexer and displays the external image signals Y and C output from the DSP 18 of the camera unit 2 and the OSD image signals Y and C output from the encoder 42. Output to device 8.

The display device 8 is composed of an LCD driver 46 and a color LCD 48, and displays characters and images in color on the color LCD 48.

In the camera phone constructed and operated as described above, image capture and storage using a camera according to an embodiment of the present invention are possible.

2 is a control flowchart for capturing and storing an image in a mobile phone equipped with a camera according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 3 is an LCD screen diagram for capturing and storing images in a mobile phone equipped with a camera according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a whole image taken and stored in a mobile phone equipped with a camera according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is an illustration.

1 to 4 will be described in detail the process of capturing and storing the image in the mobile phone mounted camera according to an embodiment of the present invention. In operation 200 of FIG. 2, the mobile phone controller 32 determines whether there is a camera operation on signal by the camera operation on key provided in the key input unit 34. When there is a camera operation on signal by the camera operation on key provided in the key input unit 34, the mobile phone control unit 32 applies a camera driving signal to the camera control unit 24 of the camera unit 2 and the camera control unit 24. Turns on the camera. After turning on the camera, the mobile phone controller 32 determines whether there is a background image selection from the user in step 202 of FIG. 2. If there is no background image selection in step 202 of FIG. 2, the mobile phone controller 32 proceeds to step 206 of FIG. 2 to perform a normal camera operation mode. Here, the general camera operation mode is a known general camera operation mode.

The mobile phone controller 32 proceeds to step 204 of FIG. 2 when the user selects a background screen image in step 202 of FIG. 2. In operation 204 of FIG. 2, the mobile phone controller 32 superimposes the background image selected by the user among the background images stored in the fourth memory 36 and the currently captured subject image on the color LCD 48. display simultaneously. Superimpose method is a method of simultaneously displaying different screens or letters on one screen. Specifically, referring to FIG. 3, in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the mobile phone controller 32 displays the selected wallpaper image 304 on the display unit 302 of the color LCD 48 and displays the selected wallpaper image ( A subject image currently captured is displayed in the region of the captured image 306 where the photo of 304 can be entered. That is, the area where the image 306 captured by the camera can be input is limited among the selected background image 304 area. Therefore, the display unit 302 on the color LCD 48 superimposes the selected background image 304 and the currently captured subject image. In this case, the user may move the camera phone to match the subject image currently captured in the selected background image 304 frame displayed on the color LCD 48 to be the desired image.

Thereafter, the mobile phone controller 32 determines whether there is a shutter key input from the user through the key input unit 34 in step 208 of FIG. 2. If there is a shutter key input from the user, the mobile phone controller 32 captures a subject image currently captured in step 210 of FIG. 2. Thereafter, the mobile phone controller 32 proceeds to step 212 of FIG. 2. The mobile phone controller 32 superimposes the captured image 306 on the background image 304 selected by the user on the display unit 302 on the color LCD 48 in step 212 of FIG. Display. The mobile phone control unit 32 then proceeds to step 214 of FIG. 2 to place the cursor in the title input field 300 on the selected background image 305 being displayed on the display unit 302 on the color LCD 48. In this case, the user may input a title through the key input unit 34.

The mobile phone controller 32 determines whether there is a title input from the user in step 216 of FIG. 2. If the user does not input the title, for example, when the user presses the cancel key, the mobile phone controller 32 proceeds to step 218 of FIG. 2 and removes the title input field 300 of the selected background image 304. If the user inputs a title, the mobile phone controller 32 proceeds to step 220 of FIG. 2 and places the cursor in the date / time input box 308 on the selected background image 304 displayed on the color LCD 48. . In this case, the user may input a date / time through the key input unit 34. The mobile phone controller 32 determines whether there is a date / time input from the user in step 222 of FIG. 2. If there is a date / time input through the key input unit 34 from the user, the mobile phone controller 32 immediately proceeds to step 230 of FIG. 2. If there is no date / time input from the user, the mobile phone controller 32 proceeds to step 224 of FIG. 2 and automatically inputs the current date / time after a predetermined period of time (for example, 5 seconds). This automatic date / time entry has the advantage of omitting the user manually setting the date / time. Thereafter, the mobile phone controller 32 determines whether a request for removing the date / time input box 308 is received from the user in step 226 of FIG. 2. If there is a request to remove the date / time input field 308 from the user, the mobile phone controller 32 removes the date / time input field 308 of the background image 304 selected in step 228 of FIG. 2. If there is no request to remove the date / time input box 308 from the user, the mobile phone controller 32 proceeds to step 230 of FIG. 2.

The mobile phone controller 32 proceeds to step 232 of FIG. 2 when there is a storage key input from the user through the key input unit 34 in step 230 of FIG. 2. The mobile phone controller 32 generates and stores a background image 304 and a captured image 306 displayed on the display unit 302 of the color LCD 48 as one composite image in step 232 of FIG. 2. . In the example of FIG. 4, the composite image is shown. As shown in the drawing, a title of “young birthday chukka” is displayed in the title field 300, and “2002/05/01” is displayed in the date / time field 308. Date / time is input, and the background image 304 and the photographed image 306 selected by the user are generated as one composite image.

In the above description of the present invention, specific embodiments have been described, but various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be defined by the described embodiments, but should be determined by the equivalent of claims and claims.

As described above, when the user takes a picture using the camera phone, the user selects one of the various background images pre-stored in the camera phone to take an image and inputs a title and date / time in the background image. Can be stored. Therefore, the user can shoot a picture to be taken when taking a picture using a camera phone with a variety of pre-stored background image can satisfy the user's various needs for the captured image. In addition, by allowing the user to directly input the title and date / time to the background image, more efficient photo management.

Claims (3)

In the method of shooting and storing images in a mobile phone equipped with a camera, Selecting a wallpaper image according to a user's request by turning on the camera; Superimposing a subject image currently captured by a camera on the selected background image and displaying the same on a display unit; Photographing a subject image currently captured based on a shutter key input; Displaying the selected background image and the superimposed photographed subject image as a still image on a display unit; A method of capturing and storing images in a mobile phone equipped with a camera, comprising: generating a composite image file and storing the entire image displayed on the basis of a storage key input in a memory. The method of claim 1, further comprising: simultaneously displaying a photographed image on the selected wallpaper image and inputting a title into a title input box on the selected wallpaper image through an interface with a user. How to take and save images on a mobile phone equipped with a camera. The method of claim 2, further comprising: inputting a date / time through an interface with a user in a date / time input box on the selected background image after receiving a title in the title input box on the selected background image. How to shoot and save images on a mobile phone equipped with a camera.