JPH02211780A - Video telephone system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily execute the remote control of a video camera with high accuracy by supplying a state data read from a storage means to a control means with a data sent through a digital line and controlling the state of the video camera remotely. CONSTITUTION:One of plural state data stored in a storage means (RAM) 24 is read with a data sent through the digital line. The state data is fed to a system control section 1 to control the state of the video camera 2 such as zoom position, tilt position and panning position remotely. Thus, the remote control of the video camera 12 is easily attained with high accuracy.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a video telephone device used by being connected to a digital line having a plurality of information channels and a control signal channel. [Prior Art] When moving a video camera in the left-right direction (bunning), it is known to remotely control the video camera using a configuration as shown in FIG. In the figure, 51 is an AC motor for panning arranged on a rotating base (not shown), and 52 and 53 are limit switches arranged at the limit positions of clockwise rotation and counterclockwise rotation, respectively, and each is normally in an on state. The video camera is placed in the OFF state only when the video camera reaches its limit positions for clockwise and counterclockwise rotation. Further, 54 is a changeover switch for changing the rotation direction, and when the limit switches 52 and 53 are turned off, they fail to be switched to the b side and the a side, respectively. Furthermore, 56 is a plug led out via the power line 55. In this case, when power is input from the plug 56 with the changeover switch 54 switched to the a side, power is supplied to the AC motor 51 via the limit switch 52 and the motor rotates clockwise, so that the video camera Rotate right. When this video camera reaches the limit position for clockwise rotation, the limit switch 52 is turned off and at the same time the selector switch 54 is switched to the b side, and the limit switch 52 is turned off.
Power is supplied to the AC motor 51 through the AC motor 3, causing the motor to rotate to the left, and thus the video camera to rotate to the left. When this video camera reaches the limit position of left rotation, the limit switch 53 is turned off and at the same time the changeover switch 54 is turned off.
The same operations as those described above are repeated, and remote control is performed to move the video camera in the left and right directions. In addition, in FIG. 7, 57 is a capacitor for starting. Furthermore, even when moving (tilting) the video camera in the vertical direction, remote control is performed using a similar configuration.

[Invention tries to solve! ! a] According to the configuration shown in Fig. 7 for remotely controlling the vanning, etc., in order to stop the rotation of the video camera midway, it is necessary to place a limit switch at that position, and it is necessary to place a limit switch at that position. It could not be easily set up in a remote location. It is also conceivable to remotely control the zoom of a video camera in a similar manner, but this has not been possible in the past due to problems with accuracy. Therefore, in this invention, the zoom position, the vanning position,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a video telephone device that allows remote control of the status of a video camera, such as the tilt position, with high accuracy. [! Means for Solving Problem J] The present invention relates to a video telephone device used by being connected to a digital line having a plurality of information channels and a control signal channel, the video telephone device having a control means for controlling the state of a video camera. and storage means for storing a plurality of state data of the video camera, and the state data read from the storage means by data transmitted via a digital line is supplied to the control means to remotely control the state of the video camera. It is something that [Function] In the above configuration, one of the plurality of status data stored in the storage means 24 is read out by data transmitted through a digital line, and this status data is supplied to the control means to control the video camera 12. The status (for example, zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position) is remotely controlled, and the video camera 12 can be remotely controlled accurately and easily. Further, the data transmitted over the digital line may be a simple signal specifying one of the plurality of status data stored in the storage means 24, and the status of the video camera can be changed with a simple operation. [Embodiment] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. In the figure, l is a system control section, and this system control section 1 is connected to a digital line via a line interface circuit 2. This line interface circuit 2 has two information channels B1. B2 and one control signal channel D are demultiplexed. In other words,
When going from the digital line to the system control unit 1, separation is performed, while when going from the system control unit 1 to the digital line, multiplexing is performed. Further, 3 is an audio processing unit to which a receiver and a transmitter are connected, and this audio processing unit 3 is connected to the system control unit I. During a call, the system control unit 1 supplies digital audio information signals from the other party via an information channel to the audio processing unit 3, which processes them through D/A conversion and other processing to form analog audio signals. , this audio signal is supplied to the handset. Also, during this call, an analog audio signal is supplied from the telephone transmitter to the audio processing unit 3.
Processing such as A/D conversion is performed to form a digital audio information signal, and this audio information signal is supplied to a system control section 1, and from this system control section 1 is supplied to a line interface circuit 2 as an information channel signal. multiplexed and transmitted to the other party over a digital line. Further, 4 is an image processing section to which a display 6 and an internal video camera 6 are connected. This image processing section 4 is connected to a system control fjB1. During a call, the system control unit 1 supplies digital image information signals from the other party via an information channel to the image processing unit 4, and performs processing such as decoding to form an analog video signal.
This video signal is supplied to the display 5. Also, during this call, 20me processing I! An analog video signal is supplied from the internal video camera 6 to the B4, and subjected to processing such as high-efficiency encoding to form a digital image information signal.This image information signal is supplied to the system control unit 1ζ, which controls the system. The signal is supplied from the section 1 to the line interface circuit 2 as an information channel signal, multiplexed, and transmitted to the other party via a digital line. Note that 7 is a call control section, and this call control section 7 is connected to the system control section 1. This call control section 7 performs call origination and call reception processing for line connection using a control signal channel. Further, reference numeral 8 is an operation unit for manually inputting a dial number when making a call, and an operation signal from this operation unit 8 is sent to the system control unit 1 via an operation interface 9.
and processed. Further, 10 is a camera control section, and this camera control section 1
0 is connected to the system control unit 1. This camera control unit 10 is supplied with a camera control information signal transmitted from the system control unit 1 through an information channel.For example, as shown in FIG. An information signal is inserted and transmitted. In this camera control unit IO, control signals for controlling the zoom position, tilt position, and panning position are formed based on the camera control information signal, and these control signals are supplied to the servo amplifier 11. The servo amplifier 11 drives the external video camera 12 and its swivel base 13 to control the zoom position, tilt position, and panning position. Note that the video signal from the external video camera 12 is supplied to the image processing N34, where it is separated from the video signals from the internal video camera 6b) and others as necessary, and transmitted to the other party via a digital line as an image information signal. . FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a specific configuration of the camera control section 10. As shown in FIG. In the same figure, the camera control information signal from the system 1lFJII11 section is transmitted to the serial communication interface 21.
The stop position number is detected by being supplied to the CPU 22 via the stop position number. As shown in FIG. 4, the RAM 24 stores zoom positions, corresponding to the respective stop position numbers 1, 2, . . . 0.
Data on the number of pulses indicating the tilt position and panning position is stored in advance. As described above, when the CPU 22 detects the stop position number, the data of the number of pulses indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and panning position of the stop position number and the current stop position number are read out from the RAM 24 and subtracted. The absolute value data of the difference between the respective pulse numbers is sent from the CPU 22 to the zoom control circuit 31A, the tilt control circuit 31B,
The signal is supplied to the panning control circuit 31C. In the zoom control circuit 31A, the tilt control circuit 31B, and the panning control circuit 31C, the absolute value data of this difference is set in internal counters, and these counters are sequentially counted down by the clock. The zoom control circuit 31A, tilt control circuit 31B1, and panning control circuit 31C output visiting gate signals according to the absolute values of their respective pulse numbers, and the zoom pulse output circuit 32A and tilt pulse output circuit 32B1 output vanning pulses. It is supplied to circuit 32C. Further, 33 is an oscillation circuit for zooming, and from this oscillation circuit 33, an oscillation signal of, for example, IKHz is output, and this oscillation signal is divided into 172 by a frequency dividing circuit 34, and then sent to a reference pulse generation circuit for zooming. 35A, and the reference pulse created by this creation circuit 3δA is supplied to the zoom control circuit 3
1A as a clock. In addition, the frequency dividing circuit 34
The output signal is supplied to the zoom pulse output circuit 32A,
It is gated by a gate signal supplied from the zoom control circuit 31A, and this is supplied to the servo amplifier 11 as a zoom pulse. Further, 36 is an oscillation circuit for tilting and banning, and from this oscillation circuit 36, an oscillation frequency of, for example, 20 KHz is generated.
The fl signal is output. This oscillation signal is divided into 1/2 by the frequency dividing circuit 37 and then supplied to the speed switching circuit 38.
An oscillation signal from 3 is supplied. The output signal for tilt from the speed switching circuit 38 is supplied to a tilt reference pulse generation circuit 35B, and the reference pulse generated by this generation circuit 35B is supplied as a clock to the tilt control circuit 31B. Further, the output signal for tilt from the speed switching circuit 38 is supplied to the tilt pulse output circuit 32B, gated by a gate signal supplied from the tilt control circuit 31B, and supplied to the servo amplifier 11 as a tilt pulse. In this case, so that the movement of the tilt position is slow at the beginning and end,
The output signal for tilt output from the speed switching circuit 3 is based on the absolute value data of the difference in the number of pulses indicating the tilt position, and the part corresponding to the beginning and end of the tilt pulse is the output signal of the oscillation circuit 33. , the other portions are switched to the output signal of the frequency dividing circuit 37. Further, the output signal for vanning from the speed switching circuit 38 is supplied to a vanning reference pulse generation circuit 35C, and the reference pulse generated by this generation circuit 35C is supplied as a clock to the vanning control circuit 31C. Further, the output signal for vanning from the speed switching circuit 38 is supplied to a vanning pulse output circuit 32C, gated by a gate signal supplied from a panning control circuit 31C, and supplied to the servo amplifier 11 as a vanning pulse. In this case, the output signal for vanning output from the speed switching circuit 38 is set based on the absolute value data of the difference in the number of pulses indicating the panning position so that the movement of the panning position is slow at the beginning and end. The portions corresponding to the beginning and end of the signal are switched to the output signal of the oscillation circuit 33, and the other portions are switched to the output signal of the frequency dividing circuit 37. Further, the CPU 22 supplies the rotational direction command circuit 39 with sign data of the difference in the number of pulses indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and panning position. The rotation direction command circuit 39 outputs a rotation direction command signal that instructs the rotation direction of each motor for moving the zoom position, tilt position, and panning position, and this rotation direction command signal is supplied to the servo amplifier 11. Ru. In addition, in FIG. 3, 23 is a program ROM of the CPU 22. In addition, even if the main power is turned off, the RAM2
This is a backup circuit to prevent the data of the number of pulses of 4 from disappearing. Further, 26 is an I10 boat control circuit that creates control signals for various I10 boats. Furthermore, 40 is a reset circuit that simultaneously resets the CPU 22 and the system control unit 1 when the power is turned on, for example, and FIG. 6 shows a portion of the servo amplifier 11 related to the zoom operation. In the figure, a zoom pulse supplied from a zoom pulse output circuit 32A of a camera control section 10 and a rotation direction command signal supplied from a rotation direction command circuit 39 are supplied to a digital control section 41. In this case, a deviation counter (
(not shown), and this deviation counter is counted up by the zoom pulse. The output signal of this deviation counter is converted into an analog signal by a D/A converter 42 and then supplied to an adder 43. Further, the zoom pulse is supplied to a frequency/voltage converter (F/V converter) 44 via the digital control section 41, and a signal having a magnitude corresponding to the frequency of the zoom pulse is output from the F/V converter 44. This output signal is supplied to the adder 43. The output signal of the adder 43 is then passed through the driver circuit 46 to the external video camera 12 (see FIG. 1).
The power is supplied to the zoom DC servo motor 12M, and the motor 12M is rotated. Also, this motor 12M
When the motor 12M rotates, the rotary encoder 12R, which is integrally attached to the rotating shaft of the motor 12M, outputs a pulse every certain rotation, and this pulse is controlled by the digital control R.
141, and the deviation counter is counted down by this pulse. The above operation is repeated, the zoom pulse is no longer supplied, and the count value of the deviation counter becomes zero, and the output signal of the adder 43 becomes zea, so the motor 12M
rotation is stopped. That is, the motor 12M is rotated by the number of zoom pulses at a speed corresponding to the frequency of the zoom pulses, and the zoom position is moved. Here, the rotation direction command signal is supplied to the D/A converter 42 and the F/V converter 44 via the digital control section 41, and the output signals of the D/A converter 42 and the F/V converter 44 are The polarity is changed according to the rotation direction command signal. As a result, the rotation direction of the motor 12M is changed, and the zoom direction is changed. Although the explanation is omitted, the portions of the servo amplifier 11 that are involved in tilting and panning operations are also configured as shown in FIG. It is rotated by the number of tilt pulses and panning pulses, respectively, at a speed corresponding to the frequency, and the tilt position and panning position are moved. In addition, in order to store the data of the number of pulses indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position in the RAM 24 (see N in FIG. 3) as described above, for example, the following procedure is performed. That is, as shown in FIG. 5, a registration key 8a is arranged at operation 1!8B in FIG.
The video signal from 2 is supplied from the image processing section 4 to the display 5, and an image of the current stop position is displayed. Next, input one position number from 0 to 9 using the numeric keypad. After that, while looking at the image displayed on the display 5, use the tree and # keys to change the zoom position, use the 2 and 8 keys to change the tilt b111, and change the vanning position to 4.
Move it little by little using the and 6 keys. In this case, data on the number of pulses indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and banging position is adjusted, and gate signals corresponding to the adjustment are sent to the zoom pulse output circuit 3 from the zoom control circuit 31A, tilt control circuit 31B, and panning control circuit 31C, respectively.
2A, a tilt pulse output circuit 32B, and a panning pulse output circuit 32C, and code data corresponding to the adjustment is also supplied to a rotation direction command circuit 39 to move the zoom position, tilt position, and panning position. Next, when the registration key 8a is pressed, the pulse number data indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position adjusted as described above is stored in the address of the selected stop position number in the RAM 24. This completes the setting of one stop position, and this will be done for all the stop positions. Note that instead of using the keys manually, the joystick may be used instead. Alternatively, the registration code may be sent as the camera control information signal in FIG. 2, and data on the number of pulses indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position may be stored in the RAM 24 from the other party using a digital line. Good, in this case external video camera 1
An image information signal based on the video signal from 2 is transmitted to the other party via a digital line, and the other party makes settings while observing the resulting image. As described above, according to this example, the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position of the external video camera 12 are stored in advance in the RAM 24 by transmitting the camera 1liilJ&)It [report signal through the information channel of the digital line. The external video camera 12 can be remotely controlled precisely and easily. In addition, data on the number of pulses indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position is stored in advance at addresses corresponding to each stop position number η in the RAM 24, and the camera control information signal transmitted through the information channel of the digital line is stopped. A signal indicating a position number is sufficient, and the stop position can be easily moved by simply pressing the numeric keypad. In addition, since the data of the number of pulses indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position stored in the RAM 24 can be checked while checking the image by the video signal from the external video camera 12, it is possible to easily change the setting of the stop position. can be done. Furthermore, since the data of the number of pulses indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position stored in the RAM 24 can be changed from the other party via a digital line, maintenance is greatly improved. In the above-mentioned embodiment, the data stored in the RAM 24 is pulse number data indicating the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position, but data in other formats different from the pulse number data may also be stored. In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the zoom position, tilt position, and vanning position are controlled as the camera states, but other states may also be remotely controlled in the same way. be able to. Further, in the above embodiment, the camera control information signal is transmitted through the information channel of the digital line, but it may be transmitted through a control signal channel. [Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, the state data read out from the storage means is supplied to the control means using data transmitted over a digital line, and the state of the video camera is remotely controlled. Therefore, remote control of the video camera can be performed accurately and easily. In addition, the data transmitted over the digital line can be a simple signal that specifies one of multiple status data stored in the storage means, and the status of the video camera can be changed by simply pressing a numeric keypad. can be done.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing camera control information signals, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the specific configuration of the camera control section, and FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the storage state of the RAM. The figure shown,
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the operation keys of the video telephone device, FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a specific configuration of a servo amplifier, and FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of a conventional example. 1 double 2 meeting 3 ・ 4 pot 5 Φ 6 pot 9 building 10 ・ 1shi 12 ・ 13 ・ System 11i 111 section ・ Line interface circuit ・ Audio processing section ・ Image processing section ・ Display unit ・ Internal video camera ・ Call side m・Operation door ・Operation interface ・Camera control section Servo amplifier ・External video camera ・Swivel base 31A 31 B 1 31 C1 32A Φ ・ 32 B 1 5A 1 35 B 1 35 C1 41 ・ No. CPU ・ RAM ・ Zoom Control circuit tilt control circuit, pan control circuit, zoom pulse output circuit, tilt pulse output circuit, pan pulse output circuit, zoom reference pulse creation circuit, tilt reference pulse creation circuit, pan reference pulse creation circuit, digital control circuit, D/A converter/F/V converter/driver circuit

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In a videophone device used connected to a digital line having a plurality of information channels and a control signal channel, a control means for controlling the state of a video camera and a plurality of state data of the video camera are stored. a storage means for controlling the video camera, and the state data read from the storage means according to the data transmitted through the digital line is supplied to the control means to remotely control the state of the video camera. Telephone device.