GB2281808A

GB2281808A - Recording method for a still video apparatus

Info

Publication number: GB2281808A
Application number: GB9422649A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Yoshiaki Sato; Yoshio Wakui; Kimiaki Ogawa
Original assignee: Asahi Kogaku Kogyo Co Ltd
Current assignee: Pentax Corp
Priority date: 1990-11-14
Filing date: 1991-11-14
Publication date: 1995-03-15
Anticipated expiration: 2011-11-14
Also published as: GB2281805A; GB2281806A; GB2281803B; GB2281807A; GB2281806B; GB2281807B; GB9422649D0; GB9422645D0; GB9422647D0; GB9422644D0; GB2281803A; GB2281804A; GB9422648D0; GB2281805B; GB2281808B; GB9422646D0; GB2281804B

Description

2281808 RECORDING METHOD FOR A STILL VIDEO APPARATUS The present invention

relates to an apparatus for recording and reproducing a still image, a still video camera for example, and more precisely, it relates to a recording method for a still video apparatus (still image recording and play-back apparatus) in which sound signals can be recorded and reproduced.

In a still video apparatus, a unit of one or two recording tracks out of a plurality of recording tracks provided on a magnetic disc form one field picture plane or one frame picture plane In a still video apparatus in which sound signals can be recorded, a sound lasting from 5 to 20 seconds can be recorded on one track Since one turn of the magnetic disc corresponds to one field of the image signal (about 1/60 second in the case of an NTSC system), upon recording, sound signals to be recorded within a predetermined time are first stored in a memory means, and then, the time base of the stored sound signals is compressed so that they may be read and recorded on the magnetic disc Accordingly, the known still video apparatus is usually provided with an image release switch Kr 2 which is actuated to record a picture, a sound collecting switch which is actuated to store a sound in the memory means, and a sound release switch which is actuated to record the stored sound onto the magnetic disc.

In a recent still video apparatus, a recording system has been adopted whereby, in recording, image signals may be associated with sound signals, which system will be referred to hereinafter as an AV (Audio-Visual) mode In this AV mode type of recording system, for example, the tracks of the magnetic disc for the image signals and the sound signals are preset so that when the image signals or the sound signals are recorded, data signals including the associated sound signals or image signals and discrimination marks which differentiate -J the presence of the associated image signals or sound signals are recorded on the respective tracks Upon reproducing the sound and image signals, the discrimination marks are reproduced to carry out the necessary operations in accordance with the reproduced discrimination marks The data signals are subject to DPSK modulation and overlapped on the image signals so as to be recorded together.

In a known first recording method in the AV mode, first the storage of the sound signals in the memory means commences, and when the image release switch is actuated during the storage of the sound signals, the image signals I r 3 - are recorded When the storage of the sound signals is complete, the stored sound signals are recorded.

In a known second recording method in the AV mode, when the image release switch is actuated, the image signals are first recorded Then, storage of the sound signals automatically begins When the storage of the sound signals is complete, the stored sound signals are automatically recorded.

However, in the first recording method, since the image signals are recorded during the storage of the sound signals, sounds produced when the diaphragm or shutter is driven upon operation of the image release switch may be recorded as noise, or the sound signals can deteriorate because of a fluctuation of the sound signal level due to a voltage drop caused by the commencement of the magnetic disc rotation or the emission of strobe light.

In the second recording method, since the sound signals are automatically recorded after the image signals are recorded, undesirable sound may be recorded, or conversely, desirable sounds may not be recorded.

Furthermore, in both the first and second recording methods, since the sound signals are recorded to be associated with the recorded image signals in the AV mode, in order to stop the recording of the sound signals after the completion of the recording of the image signals, it is necessary to actuate a mode selection switch to switch to the AV mode To this end, to continuously record the image signals without temporarily recording the sound signals in the AV mode, the mode selection switch must be inconveniently actuated.

In addition to the foregoing, in the known recording methods mentioned above, later recording in which sound is recorded after the picture is recorded in the AV mode cannot be effected without changing the mode Accordingly, it is necessary to record only the image signals in the normal mode, and then record the sound signals on the tracks for the associated image signals This is troublesome.

An object of the present invention is to provide a recording method which can eliminate the above mentioned drawbacks of the prior art f 9 D AYWA

According to one aspect of the present invention/4 a recording method for an electronic still video apparatus having a recording means for recording signals on a recording medium and having an audio visual record mode for recording image signals at image data locations of the recording medium and for recording sound signals at sound data locations of the recording medium, said image signals and sound signals being recorded to be associated with one another, the method comprising the steps of: - (a) receiving sound signals for a predetermined time when a sound receipt operation is effected; t- ' (b) receiving image signals and recording the received image signals as an associated image signal at an image data location on the recording medium when an image release operation is effected after completion of the sound receipt operation; and (c) after completion of the image release operation, recording said received sound signals as an associated sound signal at a sound data location on the recording medium to be associated with the image data location of step (b).

Preferably, if the image release operation is effected in the AV record mode during the receipt of the sound signals, the receipt of the sound signals is stopped and the image signals picked-up by the image release operation are recorded.

Preferably, the sound signals received up until the image release operation are then 6 - recorded on the recording medium.

Advantageously, if the image release operation is effected without receiving the sound signals, the image signals are recorded and the mode is transferred to the sound receipt waiting (standby) mode in which the control waits for the sound release in the AV record mode Advantageously, if the sound release operation is effected while in the waiting mode, the received sound signals are recorded on the area of the recording medium corresponding to the area in which the image signals are recorded.

Preferably, if the image release operation is effected while in the waiting mode without effecting the sound release operation, the sound signals are not recorded on the area corresponding to the image signals recorded immediately before the transfer to the waiting mode In this case, the image signals can be recorded on the adjacent area, so that the mode is transferred to the waiting mode.

Preferably, if an operation other than the sound release operation or the image release operation is effected while in the waiting mode, the sound signals are not recorded on the area corresponding to the recorded image signals and the waiting mode is released.

With the present invention, since the sound signals received before the image release operation are recorded to correspond to the image signals, the sound signals are free from adverse influence caused upon image releasing.

Furthermore, since the mode is automatically transferred to the sound receipt waiting mode when the image release operation is effected before the sound signals are received, an operator can record the necessary sound signals any time after the image signals are recorded without modifying the mode (so- called "after recording").

On the other hand, if the image release operation is effected while in the sound receipt waiting mode, the image signals are recorded on the next image recording area, and thereafter, the mode is again returned to the waiting mode If another operation is effected, the waiting mode is automatically released Accordingly, a mode change operation is not necessary.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided in a still picture recorded playback equipment by which image signals obtained by photographic shooting and sound signals collected can be respectively recorded in recording media, a recording method for a still picture record playback equipment which can record image signals shot by an image release and sound signals collected up to that time in recording media, respectively, when the image release is made in sound collection worked in advance under the state of a mode of recording the image signals and the sound signals in matching thereof.

According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided in a still picture record playback equipment by which image signals obtained by photographic shooting and sound signals collected can be respectively recorded in recording media, a recording method for a still picture record playback equipment which can record image signals shot be an image release in the state of a mode of recording the image signals and sound signals in matching thereof when the image release is made under the state of no sound collection, can shift the mode to a standby mode and can record the sound signals collected in the standby mode in an area on the recording media corresponding to the said image signals.

Preferably, when image release is made again with no sound collection made under the state of standby mode, no sounds are recorded in the area corresponding to the recorded image signals, the image signals are recorded in the next area and the standby status is made to occur again.

Preferably, when a switch other than the sound correction switch or the image release switch is operated no recording of sounds is made in the area corresponding to the image signals but the standby mode is cancelled.

Below, a detailed explanation will be made of the present invention based on embodiments shown in the attached drawings, in which:

9- ( 11 Figure 1 is a block diagram of an internal circuit of a still video camera to which the present invention is applied, by way of example; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the still video - camera shown in Fig 1 as viewed from behind; Figures 3 A and 3 B are front elevational views of display surfaces of LCD panels provided in the camera body and the sound adaptor, respectively of the camera shown in Fig 2; Figures 4 A, 4 B and 4 C are flow charts of a main operation of the camera body of the present invention; Figures 5 A and 5 B are flow charts of a main operation of the sound adaptor of the present invention; Figure 6 shows time charts of main operations of the camera body and the sound adaptor; Figure 7 is a diagram showing positional relationships of tracks of a magnetic disc and a magnetic head in various operations in an AV mode; and, Figures 8 A and 8 B are front elevational views of display surfaces of LCD panels provided in the camera body and the sound adaptor, wherein sound storage waiting modes are indicated, respectively.

Examples of the invention will be discussed below with reference to Figure 1 which shows a block diagram of an internal circuit of a still video camera of the present invention The still video camera has a camera body 100 and a sound adaptor 200 which is detachably attached to the 11 camera body 100 The camera body 100 and the sound adaptor are electrically connected to each other by connectors 1 and 2.

The camera body 100 has a zoom lens 3 driven by a zoom drive circuit 4 An image of an object to be taken is formed on an image sensor 5 by the zoom lens 3 and is converted to electrical signals to be output as image pickup signals from an image pickup circuit 6 The image pickup signals are subject to the necessary treatments, such as the addition of synchronous signals by an image signal processing circuit 7 to obtain image signals (video signals) The video signals are input into monitor terminal 8 and an FM modulation circuit 19 through an image/sound selection switch 9 provided on the camera body The camera body 100 includes a strobe light emission unit 10 which emits an auxiliary light upon taking a picture and a strobe light control circuit 11 which controls the emission of the strobe light.

A magnetic disc 12 is used as a recording medium and is loaded in the camera body 100 to record the image signals and the sound signals The magnetic disc 12 is rotated at a constant speed (e g, 3600 rpm) by a spindle motor 14 controlled by a spindle motor driving circuit 13.

A magnetic head 15 opposed to the magnetic disc 12 is moved in the radial direction by an actuator (not shown) The 12 - magnetic head 15 is moved in the radial direction until it reaches a predetermined track, one of a plurality of concentric tracks (e g, 50 tracks) formed (formatted) on the magnetic disc 12 in accordance with the control of a head driving circuit 16 A PG coil 17 is provided to generate pulses to detect a fluctuation in the revolutions per second of the magnetic disc 12, thereby keeping the speed constant The output of the PG coil 17 is fed back to the spindle motor driving circuit 13 so that the latter detects a phase difference between the PG pulses generated by the PG coil 17 and a reference pulse, thereby controlling the rotational speed of the magnetic disc 12.

The magnetic head 15 is connected to either a modulation side including the FM modulation circuit 19 and an amplifier circuit 20, or a demodulation side including an -FM demodulation circuit 21 and an amplifier circuit 22 depending on the position of a record/play-back selection switch 18 a On the modulation side, either the image signals or the sound signals are input through the image/sound selection switch 9, depending on the position of the switch, from either the image signal processing circuit 7 or the sound adaptor 200, respectively The signals input through the selection switch 9 are then FM-modulated and amplified to be fed to the magnetic head The magnetic head 15 records the FM-modulated image 13 - signals or sound signals on the magnetic disc 12.

Conversely, on the demodulation side, the FM-modulated image signals and sound signals recorded on the magnetic disc 12 and read by the magnetic head 15 are amplified and demodulated to be sent to the image signal processing circuit 7 and the sound adaptor 200, respectively.

The zoom drive circuit 4, the image pickup circuit 6, the image signal processing circuit 7, the strobe light control circuit 11, the spindle motor driving circuit 13 and the head driving circuit 16 are controlled by a system controller 23 To the system controller 23 are connected a monitor detector 24 which detects whether a monitor (not shown) is connected to the monitor terminal 8, an adaptor detector 25 which detects whether the sound adaptor 200 is mounted to the camera body 100, and a notch detector 26 which detects the presence of a write-prevent notch which is used for preventing the recorded data of the magnetic disc 12 from being erased by mistake The outputs of these detectors 24, 25 and 26 are input to the system controller 23.

Furthermore, various switches 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36 a and 36 b are connected to the system controller 23, so that when these switches are turned ON or OFF, the necessary operations are carried out A battery switch 27 is turned ON and OFF to supply the system 14 controller with power and stop the power supply, respectively (a battery which is used to power the system controller is not shown) A mode switch 28 selects either an image pickup mode or a recording mode and then a selection switch 29 selects a sub-mode of the selected image pickup mode or recording mode An up switch 30 and a down switch 31 are actuated to increase or decrease the indicated value, for example, the track number when the magnetic head 15 is moved A telephoto switch 32 and a wide angle switch 33 actuate the zoom drive circuit 4 to perform the power zooming in the direction of the telephoto direction or the wide angle direction, respectively A strobe switch 34 sets a light emission mode in which strobe light is emitted, and an EF switch 35 selects an exposure correction mode in which the exposure correction value is set.

A photometer switch 36 a and an image release switch 36 b are actuated in association with an image release button 36 provided on the upper surface of the camera body 100, so that when the image release button 36 is depressed by a half step or full step, either the photometer switch 36 a or the image release switch 36 b are turned ON, respectively.

The system controller 23 controls an LCD panel 37 provided on the surface of the camera body 100.

- In the sound adaptor 200, the sound received and converted to electrical signals by a microphone 40 is amplified by an amplifier circuit 41 and is subject to the necessary treatments including restriction of the bandwidth and the removal of noise etc, to form the sound signals by a sound signal processing circuit 42 The sound signals are input to a sound signal storing portion 43 through a record/play-back selection switch 18 b which is controlled by a system controller 51 The record/play-back selection switch 18 a of the camera body 100 is controlled by the system controller 23.

The sound signal storing portion 43 includes an A/D converter circuit 44 which converts the input sound signal to digital signals, a RAM 45 which successively memorizes the digital signals, a D/A converter circuit 46 which successively reads the digital signals memorized in the RAM and converts them to analogue signals, and a digital signal processing circuit (CPU) 47 which controls the operations of the devices or circuits mentioned above The A/D converter circuit 44 samples and performs the quantization of the analogue sound signals input thereto and converts them to digital signals.

The D/A converter circuit 46 successively converts the digital sound signals read from the RAM 45 into analogue sound signals The digital signal processing circuit 47 successively stores the digital sound signals 16 - converted by the sound signal storing portion 43 in the RAM upon receiving the sound, and successively reads the digital sound signals stored in the sound signal storing portion 43 in a predetermined compressed (contracted) time (e.g, about 1/60 second), so that the digital sound signals are converted to analogue sound signals by the D/A converter circuit 46, upon recording, respectively Thus, the time base of the sound signals of, for example, 5, 10 or 20 seconds is compressed to about 1/60 second.

Either the sound signals received by the microphone or the FM modulation signals input to the camera body and modulated by sound signal compressing and reproducing circuit 48 are input to the sound signal storing portion 43 depending on the position of the record/play-back selection switch 18 b The output of the sound signal storing portion 43 is sent to a compressed sound recording and processing circuit 49 and a sound signal processing circuit 50 The sound signals output from the compressed sound recording and processing circuit 49 are input to the camera body 100 and the modulation side (FM modulation circuit 19) through the image/sound selection switch 9 The sound signals output from the sound signal processing circuit 50 are input to the camera body 100 to be output from the monitor terminal 8 The sound signal compressing and reproducing circuit 48 17 - performs the necessary operations, such as deemphasizing of the sound signals with the compressed time base read from the magnetic disc 12, and the compressed sound recording and processing circuit 49 performs the necessary operations, such as preemphasizing of the sound signals with the compressed time base read from the RAM 45.

The digital signal processing circuit 47 of the sound signal storing portion 43 is controlled by the system controller 51 Various switches 52, 53, 54 and 55 are connected to the system controller 51, so that the latter can perform the necessary operations when these switches are turned ON and OFF When a sound receipt starting switch 52 is actuated, sound is received by the microphone and provisionally stored in the RAM 45 A sound release switch 53 is actuated to read the sound signals stored in the RAM 45 and record the same on the magnetic disc 12 of the camera body 100 A sound receipt cancelling switch 54 erases the sound signals stored in the RAM 45 A recording time changing switch 55 switches the sound compressing mode to change the recording time and can selectively set a 10 second mode or a 20 second mode as in the illustrated embodiment.

The system controller 51 controls the indication of an LCD panel 56 provided on the surface of the sound adaptor 200.

18 - Figure 2 shows the camera body 100 and the sound adaptor 200 as constructed above The camera body 100 has a protective cover 60, which protects the magnetic disc.

The magnetic disc 12 can be loaded and unloaded with the protective cover 60 in place Numerals 61 and 62 designate an ejection button which opens the protective cover 60 to load and unload the magnetic disc and a finder (eyepiece side of finder), respectively.

Figure 3 A shows the indication of the LCD panel 37 provided on the camera body 100, by way of example.

Numeral 70 designates a strobe light emission mode indicating portion which indicates three modes of automatic emission From the left to right these modes are (AUTO), compulsory emission (ON), and no emission (OFF) A picture taking mode indicating portion 71 next to the strobe light emission mode indicating portion 70 indicates a single mode, a self-timer mode, a continuous 1-shot mode (one picture per second), a continuous 2-shot mode (two pictures per second), and a continuous 5-shot mode (five pictures per second), located in this order from left to right The line directly below the picture taking mode indicating portion 71 is an operation mode indicating portion 72 which indicates a record mode (REC), a play-back mode (PLAY) and an erasing mode (ERASE), located in this order from the left The line directly below the operation 19 - mode indicating portion 72 is a mode indicating portion 73 which indicates a normal mode (NORMAL) in which only the picture or only the sound is recorded, an AV mode (AV) in which both the picture and the sound are recorded, and a monitor mode (MONITOR) in which only the play-back is effected, located in this order from left to right.

The line directly below the mode indicating portion 73 is a WB mode indicating portion 74 which indicates a white balance mode (WB), an auto mode (AUTO), a cloud balance mode, a fine balance mode, a fluorescent lamp balance mode, and an incandescent lamp balance mode, located in this order from left to right.

Below the WB mode indicating portion 74 is provided a calendar indicating portion 75 which indicates year-month-day and hour-minute-second A symbol next to the calendar indicating portion 75 is a magnetic disc indicating portion 76 which indicates whether the magnetic disc is loaded The mathematical symbols and numerals below the light emission indicating portion 70 form a data indicating portion 78 which indicates the track number and exposure correction value etc A warning indicating portion 79 below the data indicating portion 78 indicates whether the exposure correction value is set and the battery power is sufficient.

Figure 3 B shows an indication of the LCD panel 56 - provided on the sound adaptor 200 by way of example The uppermost line is an operation mode indicating portion 80 which indicates a record mode (REC) and a play-back mode (PLAY) The line below the operation mode indicating portion 80 is a recording subject indicating portion 81 which indicates that the subject to be recorded is either sound (AUDIO) or image (VIDEO) A sound recording time indicating portion 82 located below the recording subject indicating portion 81 indicates the maximum recording time for which the sound can be recorded, i e, 10 second mode ( 10) or 20 second mode ( 20) The bar codes located below the sound recording time indicating portion 82 denote a recording state indicating portion 83 The individual bar codes are successively lit to indicate the time which has elapsed from the commencement of sound recording.

Figures 8 A and 8 B respectively show example indications of the LCD panels 37 and 56 in a waiting mode of the present invention In Figs 8 A and 8 B, the white portions denote no indication and the black portions denote the effective indications The letters surrounded by the black radial lines mean that the indication light is blinking.

For example, "REC" and "AV" in Fig 8 A, and "AUDIO" in Fig.

8 B are illustrated as a blinking light.

The following discussion will be addressed to the normal mode and the AV mode of the still video camera 21 - of the present invention.

Normal Mode:

In this mode, the sound signals and image signals are independently recorded and reproduced For instance, when the image release button 36 (switches 36 a and 36 b) is turned ON, the image signals are recorded on the magnetic disc 12 Control signals which are recorded simultaneously with the image signals indicate, upon play-back of the track, whether or not the image signal is recorded independently of the sound signal rather than for the AV mode where the control signals include data associating both image signals and the track numbers of the sound signals The control signals are subject to DPSK (Dual Phase Shift Keying) modulation and 4 re superimposed and recorded on the FM-modulated image signals The data of the control signals is controlled by the system controller 23 and is modulated and demodulated by circuits (not shown), and is decoded by the system controller 23.

When the sound receipt starting switch 52 is turned ON, the sound signals are stored in the RAM 45 Thereafter, when the sound release switch 53 is turned ON, the sound signals stored in the RAM 45 are recorded on the magnetic disc 12.

An information signal which is recorded simultaneously with the sound signals indicates whether or not the sound 22 - signals are separately recorded In the normal mode of the illustrated embodiment, the sound signals and the image signals can be recorded on optional tracks.

AV Mode:

The AV mode is a mode in which the sound signals and the image signals are recorded and reproduced in association with each other Namely, the sound signals and the image signals are recorded on adjacent tracks of the magnetic disc 12, respectively and reproduced with a certain associated relationship therebetween Upon recording, the data which represent the sound signals and the image signals are recorded in the respective data portions.

The main operation of the still video camera is as follows The main operation is controlled and carried out by the system controllers 23 and 51 Each of the system controllers 23 and 51 usually comprise a microcomputer and are operated in accordance with a program stored in an internal ROM of the microcomputer.

Recording and Play-Back in Normal Mode:

When the normal mode is selected, the following operation is effected and controlled by the system controllers 23 and 51.

23 - Ni: Recording of Image When the image release button 36 is depressed to turn the photometering switch 36 a ON, the metering of an object distance, the calculation of the exposure, and the automatic focus adjustment, etc are performed.

Furthermore, when the image release button 36 is fully depressed to turn the image release switch 36 b ON, the shutter is opened, so that an object image is formed on the image sensor 5 by the zoom lens 3 The image pickup signals converted to electrical signals by the image sensor are recorded on the magnetic disc 12 as FM modulation signals through the image pickup circuit 6, the image signal processing circuit 7, the FM modulation circuit 19, the amplifier circuit 20, the record/play-back selection switch 18 a, and the magnetic head 15.

On the other hand, when the photometer switch 36 a is turned ON,spindle motor 14 is driven by the spindle motor;driving circuit 13 to rotate the magnetic disc 12 at a constant speed When the magnetic head 15 is moved to a predetermined track through the head driving circuit 16, the image signals for one field are recorded on the associated track by the magnetic head 15 Upon recording the image signals, the DPSK-modulated information signals are superimposed and recorded on the FM-modulated image signals of the same track.

24 - N 2: Recording of Sound Signals in the Normal Mode When the sound receipt starting switch 52 of the sound adaptor 200 is actuated, the sound signals within a predetermined time ( 10 or 20 seconds in the illustrated embodiment) are recorded in the RAM 45 Namely, the sound signals received by the microphone 40 are converted to digital signals and stored in the RAM 45 through the amplifier 41, the sound signal processing circuit 42, the record/play-back selection switch 18 b, the A/D converter circuit 44 and the digital signal processing circuit 47.

When the sound release switch 53 is turned ON, the sound release switch actuating signals (signals for commencing the recording of the sound signals) are sent to the system controller 23 of the camera body 100 from the system controller 51, and the digital sound signals, which are stored in the RAM 45 with a compressed time base, are read; out The digital sound signals are then converted to analogue signals by the D/A converter circuit 46 and fed to the camera body 100 through the compressed sound signal recording and processing circuit 49 and the connectors 1 and 2.

In the camera body 100, the magnetic disc 12 is rotated at a constant speed by the system controller 23 which receives a start signal of the recording of the sound signals to move the magnetic head 15 to a predetermined - track Thereafter, the sound/image selection switch 9 is switched to the sound side and the record/play-back selection switch 18 a is switched to the record side The FM-modulation circuit 19 and the amplifier 20, etc, stand by to commence the operation The compressed sound signals input from the connector 1 are fed to the magnetic head 15 through the image/sound selection switch 9, the FM-modulation circuit 19, the amplifier 20, and the record/play-back selection switch 18 a, and recorded on a single track of the magnetic disc 12 as FM-modulation signals Note that the above-mentioned control signals are recorded superimposed on the sound signals.

26 - N 3: Reproduction of Image Signals in the Normal Mode When the monitor is connected to the monitor terminal 8, the connection is detected by the monitor detector 24.

In response to the detection signal, the system controller 23 enables an operator to select the play-back mode.

Consequently, when an operator actuates the mode switch 28, the play-back mode can be selected In the play-back mode, when the power switch 27 is turned ON, the magnetic disc 12 is rotated at a constant speed When the up-switch 30 and the down-switch 31 are turned ON, the magnetic head 15 is radially moved to increase or decrease the track number track by track Consequently, when the image release switch 36 b is turned ON, the signals recorded on that track are read by the magnetic head 15 The signals are then demodulated by the FM-demodulation circuit 21 through the amplifier 22 and output from the monitor terminal 8 through the image signal processing circuit 7.

The -still picture may be seen if a TV monitor is connected to the monitor terminal 8.

N 4: Reproduction of Sound Signals in the Normal Mode If the signals read from the magnetic disc 12 are sound signals, the sound signals are processed in the sound adaptor 200 When the play-back mode is selected, the play-back mode signals are sent to the system controller 51 27 - from the system controller 23 The system controller 51 which receives the play-back mode signals switches the record/play-back selection switch 18 b to the play-back side to start the play-back of the sound signals.

The sound signals demodulated by the FM-demodulation circuit 21 are input to the sound adaptor 200 through the connectors 1 and 2, and converted to digital sound signals by the A/D converter circuit 44 through the sound signal compressing and reproducing circuit 48 to be stored in the RAM 45 When the sound signals for a signal track are stored in the RAM 45, the digital sound signals with the initial time base are read from the RAM 45 Consequently, the digital sound signals are output from the monitor terminal 8 as analogue sound signals through the D/A converter circuit 46,,the sound signal processing circuit 50, and the connectors 2 and 1 Accordingly, if a speaker (not shown) is connected to the monitor terminal 8 through a monitor amplifier, the sound becomes audible.

AV: Record and Play-Back in the AV mode The operations in the AV mode will be described below with reference to the flow charts shown in Figs 4 and 5.

Figures 4 and 5 show the operations of the camera body 100 and the sound adaptor 200, respectively In the flow charts, the portions corresponding to the respective 28 - operations discussed below are identified by dotted lines and corresponding letters (e g, AV 1, AV 2, AV 3, etc) The sound receiving operation is effected in the sound adaptor 200, and the image pickup operation and the recording of the image and sound signals are carried out in the camera body 100.

The operations in the camera body 100 and the sound adaptor 200 are performed by the system controllers 23 and 51 in accordance with the programs stored in the internal RO Ms thereof.

The necessary data communication is carried out between the system controllers 23 and 51 For instance, when the image release switch 36 b is turned ON, an image release actuating signal is sent from the system controller 23 to the system controller 51 When the sound release switch 53 is turned ON, a sound release actuating signal is sent from the system controller 51 to the system controller 23.

In the AV mode, the image signals and the sound signals are recorded on adjacent tracks of the magnetic disc Note the single mode is a mode in which the image signals for one field are processed when the image release switch 36 b is switched from OFF to ON.

AVI: When Image Release Switch is turned ON after ft 1 29 - Sound is received by Microphone When the sound receipt starting switch 52 is turned ON, the sound signals are received for a predetermined:

period of time After the receipt of sound signals is complete, and when the image release switch 36 b is turned ON, image signals are recorded on a track for image signals Thereafter, the already received sound signals are recorded on a track for sound signals, adjacent to the track on which that image signal has been recorded.

The timing chart for the above-mentioned operations is shown at AVI in Fig 6 In Fig 6, "O O " represents the commencement and completion of the receipt of sound, "V enclosed in O I" indicates the recording operation of the image signals, "A enclosed in the El" indicates the recording operation of the received sound, and "I'D indicating no recording.

Furthermore, "V" represents operation of the release for the image signals (when the image release switch 36 b is turned ON), and "v" represents the operation of the release for the sound signals (when the sound release switch 53 is turned ON).

On the sound adaptor side, when the sound receipt starting switch 52 is turned ON, the RAM 45 stores sound signals for a predetermined period of time, similar to the operation in the normal mode (steps 5201 5205, 5239, 5241, 5243 5247, 5249 in Figs 5 A and 5 B) When sound signals for the predetermined period of time have been stored in the RAM 45, the control proceeds to ( - steps 5251 and 5253 If the switch 53 or 36 b is turned ON, the stored sound signals are output to the camera body 100 (step 5257).

On the camera body side, when the image release switch 36 b is turned ON in this waiting state, the system controller 23 checks whether sound is currently being stored, or if not, whether the storage of the sound signals has been completed (steps 5101, 5103, 5119-5123 in Fig 4 A) If sound signals are currently being stored, receipt of the sound signals is stopped (i e, the image release signal is sent to the sound adaptor 200), and the control proceeds to step 5125 If a sound signal is neither currently being received nor stored in the RAM 45, control is directly returned to step 5101 If the sound signal is not being received and the storage thereof in the RAM 45 is completed, control proceeds to step 5125 (steps 5119- 5123) The check operation mentioned above will be hereinafter referred to as "sound receipt check operation " If storage of the sound signals has been completed, the image signals picked-up by the zoom lens 3 and the image sensor 5 are recorded on the image signal track of the magnetic disc 12 (step 5125) When recording is completed, the magnetic head 15 is moved to an adjacent sound signal track of the magnetic disc 12 (step 5127) Thereafter, the sound signals stored in the RAM 45 are output from the sound adaptor 200 to record the same on the sound signal 31 track of the magnetic disc 12 Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to an adjacent image signal track, and control is returned to step 5101 (steps 5127, 5129, 5131).

In the AV mode, upon recording the sound signals and the image signals, the association between the sound track number and the image signal track number are recorded in the respective code signals, as mentioned above.

AV 2: When Sound Release Switch is turned ON after Sound Signals are received When the sound release switch 53 is turned ON without turning the image release switch 36 b ON after the sound receipt is completed, the magnetic head 15 is moved to an adjacent sound signal track of the magnetic disc 12 to record the received sound signals on the sound signal track (see AV 2 in Fig 6).

This operation will be discussed below with reference to the flow chart shown in Figs 4 and 5.

The sound adaptor 200 outputs the sound signals to the camera body 100 when the sound release switch 53 is turned ON in a waiting period following the completion of the receipt of the sound signals (steps 52515257).

On the other hand, in the camera body 100, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the image signal track and 32 Do control does not proceed until the image release switch 36 b or the sound release switch 53 is turned ON (steps 5101, 5105) If the sound release switch 53 is turned ON in the waiting period, the sound receipt is checked (steps 5107-5111).

In this case, since a sound signal is not currently being received and since the storage of the sound signals has been completed, the magnetic head 15 is moved by one track to record the sound signals output from the sound adaptor 200 onto the sound signal track (steps Slo 1-5107, 5111-5115) Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved by one track and control is returned to step 5101 (steps 5117, 5101 51 OS).

As can be understood from the foregoing, when sound releasing is effected without effecting image releasing, after the sound signals have been received, the trackl corresponding to the image signals remain blank In other words, the magnetic head jumps the image signal track to record on the sound signal track, Accordingly, the image signals can be recorded later on the blank image signal track associated with the sound signal track.

AV 3: When Image Release Switch is turned ON during Receipt of Sound Signals When the image release switch 36 b is turned ON during the receipt of the sound signals, the sound receipt is stopped The image signals are then recorded on the image 33 - signal track and the received sound signals are recorded on the associated sound signal track (see AV 3 in Fig 6).

This operation will be explained below with reference to the flow charts shown in Figs 4 and 5 When the image release switch 36 b is turned ON during the receipt of the sound by the sound adaptor 200, the image release operation and the checking of the sound receipt are carried out (steps 5101 5103, 5119 5123) Here, since the sound is currently being received, the sound receipt stop signal is sent to the sound adaptor 200 so that the sound receipt is stopped (steps 5119 and 5121) The image signals that are picked up are then recorded on the image signal track (step 5125) Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the adjacent sound signal track to record the sound signals output from the sound adaptor 200 on the sound signal track (steps 5127 and 5129) The magnetic head 15 is then moved to the adjacent image signal track, and the control is returned to step 5101 (step 5131).

When the sound adaptor 200 receives the image release signal from the camera body 100 during the receipt of the sound signals, the sound receipt is stopped (steps 5245 and 5249) Thereafter, the sound signals received before the sound receipt is stopped are output to the camera body 100 and the control is then returned to step 5201 (steps 5251 and 5257) The output sound signals are recorded on the 34 - sound signal track at step 5129 mentioned above.

As can be seen from the above discussion, when the image release switch 36 b is turned ON during the receipt of the sound signals, the sound receipt is stopped, and accordingly, no noise will occur in the received sound signals due to the release for the image signals.

Furthermore, no voltage drop takes place, resulting in high quality sound signals.

AV 4: When Sound Release Switch is turned ON during Receipt of Sound Signals When the sound receipt commences without recording the image signals and if the sound release switch 53 is turned ON during the current receipt of the sound signals, the sound receipt is stopped and the sound signals received up until then are recorded on the adjacent sound signal track by the magnetic head after having jumped the preceding image signal track (see AV 4 in Fig 6) This operation will be discussed below.

When the sound receipt starting switch 52 in the sound adaptor 200 is turned ON, the receipt of sound signals commences (steps 5201 - 5205, 5239-5247) If the sound release switch 53 is turned ON during the receipt of sound, the sound receipt is stopped and the sound signals received are output to the camera body 100 (steps 5247, 5249- - 5257).

The magnetic head 15 is located above the image signal track of the magnetic disc and waits for the operation of the sound release switch 53 (steps 5101 S 105) When the sound release switch 53 is turned ON, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the associated adjacent sound signal track in accordance with the sound release signal from the sound adaptor 200 to record the sound signals output from the sound adaptor 200 onto the sound signal track (steps 5105, 5107, 5111 5115) Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the next image signal track and waits for the operation of the image release switch 36 b or the sound release switch 53 (steps 5117, 5101 5105).

As can be understood from the above discussion, when the sound release switch 53 is turned ON during the receipt of sound and before image signals are recorded, the sound receipt is stopped, and the magnetic head jumps the intended image signal track and is moved to the associated adjacent sound signal track to record the sound signals which were received before the sound release switch 53 was turned ON The image signals can then be recorded on the blank image signal track later.

AV 5: When Image Release Switch is turned ON before 36 - Receipt of Sound Signals When the image release switch 36 b is turned ON before the sound signals are received, the image signals are recorded on the intended image signal track of the magnetic disc 12 Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the adjacent sound signal track and the waiting mode is indicated in the LCD panel 37 (steps 5101, 5103, 5119, 5123, 5133 5137) Control then proceeds to steps 5139 5143 This will be referred to as the "sound receipt waiting mode".

The sound adaptor 200 receives the sound receipt waiting mode signal to indicate the sound receipt waiting mode in the LCD panel 51 and waits until the sound receipt starting switch 52 or the image release switch 36 b is turned ON, or the sound receipt waiting mode is released (steps 5203, 5207 5213).

In the sound receipt waiting mode or standby mode there are four main operations that can be carried out in accordance with operations effected by an operator These main operations will be described below (see AV 5-1 -AV 5-4 in Fig 6 and 5-1 5-4 in Fig 7) In Figure 7, " 1 S " designate the track number, "M " the position of the magnetic head 15, "V circled by O " the recording of the image signals, and "A circled by O " the recording of the sound signals, respectively In this embodiment, in the AV mode, the sound signals are recorded on tracks which are ik V, A 37 - adjacent to the image signal tracks in the inward radial direction, as shown in Fig 7.

AV 5-1: When Sound Receipt Starting Switch is turned ON and When Sound Release Switch is turned ON During or After Receipt of Sound During the receipt of the sound signals, sound receipt is stopped, and the sound signals received up until then are recorded on the sound signal track (sound signal recording track ( (Figure 7) which the magnetic head 15 is located in a standby position Similarly, if the receipt of the sound signals has been completed, the received sound signals are recorded on the sound signal track Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the adjacent image signal track (image signal recording track) M When the sound receipt commences after recording the image signals and if the sound release switch 53 is turned ON during the receipt of the sound signals, the sound receipt is stopped and the sound signals received up until then are recorded on the adjacent sound signal track by the magnetic head after having jumped from the preceding image signal track.

The above mentioned operation will be discussed below with reference to the flow charts shown in Figs 4 and 5.

Ich OW sC,# - 38 - The image signals are recorded on the image signal track D and the magnetic head 15 is moved to the sound signal track In the camera body 100, whether the sound release switch 53 is turned ON, etc, is repeatedly checked (steps 5139 5143) On the other hand, in the sound adaptor 200, when the sound receipt starting switch 52 is turned ON, the sound receipt is effected (steps 5209, 5217 5229).

In the above mentioned operations, when the sound release switch 53 is turned ON, the received sound signals are output to the camera body 100 from the sound adaptor If the sound signals are being received, the sound receipt is first stopped, and then the received sound signals are output to the camera body 100 On the other hand, when the sound release switch 53 is turned ON, the system controller 23 of the camera body 100 checks whether the sound signals are received (steps 5149 5153) If the sound signals are being received, the sound receipt is stopped Thereafter, the sound signals sent from the sound adaptor 200 are recorded on the sound signal track in the waiting position (step 5155) Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the adjacent image signal track) and control is returned to step 5101 after the sound receipt waiting mode is released (steps 5157 and 5159).

-39:

AV 5-2: When Sound Receipt Starting Switch is turned ON and When Image Release is effected' During or After Receipt of Sound Signals When the image release switch 36 b is turned ON during the receipt of the sound signals, it is assumed that new image signals are recorded After the sound receipt is stopped, the image signals are recorded on the waiting image signal track M adjacent to the sound signal track ( 2 and the received sound signals are recorded on the sound signal track adjacent to the image signal track (see AV 5-2 in Fig 6 and 5-2 in Fig 7) Consequently, as can be seen in 5-2 in Fig 7, since no signal is recorded on the sound signal track O corresponding to the image signal track O on which the image signals have been recorded, the sound signals can be later recorded on the blank sound signal track @ J The above mentioned operation will be described below in more detail with reference to the flow charts In the sound adaptor 200, the sound receipt commences upon operation of the sound receipt starting switch 52 and continues until the image release switch 36 b is turned ON (steps 5209, 5217-5229) When the image release switch 36 b is turned ON before the sound receipt is completed, the sound receipt is stopped and the sound signals received up until then are output to the camera - body 100, and then, control is returned to step 5201 (steps 5225, 5237) If the image release switch 36 b is not turned ON before the sound receipt is completed, the sound receipt is stopped and control waits for the operation of the release switch 36 b or 53 (steps 5227, 5229, 5231) If the image release switch 36 b is turned ON, the received sound signals are output to the camera body 100, and thereafter, control is returned to step 5201 (steps 5231 and 5237).

Concerning the camera body 100, when the image release switch 36 b is turned ON, the system controller 23 checks the sound receipt (steps 5139 and 5161 - 5165) If the sound signals are being received, the sound receipt is stopped Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the next image signal track to record the image signals thereon (steps 5167 and 5169) Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the sound signal track (sound signal recording track) @ to be associated with the image signal track @ to record thereon the sound signals sent from the sound adaptor 200 (steps 5171, 5173) After that, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the adjacent image signal track (image signal recording track) and the indication of the sound receipt waiting mode stops The control is then returned to step 5101 (steps 5175 and 5177).

J.

41 - AV 5-3: When Image Release Switch is turned ON Without making Sound Receipt Starting Switch ON In this state, the magnetic head 15 is initially located above the sound signal track ( in a waiting position In this position a sound signal is not recorded, but rather the magnetic head 15 is moved to the adjacent image signal track (M to record thereon new image signals.

Thereafter, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the adjacent sound signal track G to be associated with the image signal track ( and the mode remains the sound receipt waiting mode (see AV 5-3 in Fig 6 and 5-3 in Fig 7).

The detail of the above-mentioned operations will be discussed below with reference to the flow charts shown in Figs 4 and 5.

The sound adaptor 200 repeats the loop of operations of steps 5209 5213.

On the camera body side, when the image release switch 36 b is turned ON, the sound receipt is checked (steps 5139, 5161 5165) Here, since sound signals are neither being received nor have been completed, control proceeds via step 5165 to step 5179 Namely, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the next image signal track O to record thereon the image signals and is then moved to the associated sound signal track adjacent thereto Thereafter, control is returned to step 5139 and 42 - the mode remains the sound receipt waiting mode (steps 5139 5143).

As can be seen from the foregoing, when an image is picked up without recording sound, since no signal is recorded on the sound signal track associated with the image signal track on which image signals from the first pickup are recorded, the sound signals can be recorded later on the sound signal track Q Furthermore, image pickup can be continued without releasing the AV mode and without effecting the sound releasing.

AV 5-4: When Switch other than Sound Release Switch and Image Release Switch is actuated When a switch other than the release switches 53 and 36 b is turned ON, the magnetic head 15 is moved to the next track ( 9 and the sound receipt waiting mode is released (see AV 5-4 in Fig 6 and 5-4 in Fig 7) The operation in accordance with the operation of the associated switch is performed In the illustrated embodiment, when the up-switch 30 is turned ON, the magnetic head 15 is moved by one track, and the sound receipt waiting mode is released.

Thereafter, control is returned to step 5101 (steps 5143- 5147) Note that the sound receipt waiting mode is not always released by the operation of any switch other than the release switches 53 and 36 b For example, if the 43 - photometering switch 36 a which is actuated to take successive pictures in association with the image release switch 36 b being turned ON, the sound receipt waiting mode is not released.

On the sound adaptor side, when the sound receipt waiting mode of the camera body 100 is released, the indication of the sound receipt waiting mode is stopped and control is returned to step 5201 (steps 5213 and 5215).

In the sound receipt waiting mode mentioned above, "REC" and "AV", for example, in the LCD panel 37 of the camera body 100 blink, as shown in Fig 8 A, so that the operator is made aware of the sound receipt waiting mode.

Similarly, in the LCD panel 56 of the sound adaptor 200, "REC" and "VIDEO" are lightened and "AUDIO" blinks, as shown in Fig 8 B. As can be understood from the above discussion, with the present invention, the following operations which could not be effected in the prior art

AV mode can be effectively carried out.

( 1) The sound signals can be recorded at any time after the image signals are recorded, similar to a so-called "after-recording" process.

( 2) Even in the sound receipt waiting mode after the recording of the image signals, when the photometering switch 36 a is turned ON, new image signals and 44 - associated, sound signals can be recorded.

( 3) During or after the receipt of sound signals after the recording of the associated image signals, the sound signals can be, independently of the image signals, recorded to be associated with subsequent image signals to be recorded.

Although the above discussion has been directed to a recording apparatus having a single magnetic head, the present invention is not limited thereto and can be applied to a recording apparatus having two magnetic heads which can effect the tracking for the two adjacent tracks at one time In this alternative, in the AV mode, one of the magnetic heads is used for recording the image signals and the other magnetic head is used for recording the sound signals so that when the image release is effected after the sound signals are received, no movement of the magnetic heads is necessary Furthermore, it is possible to simultaneously record the image signals and the sound signals without moving the magnetic heads by providing FM modulation circuits 19 for driving the respective magnetic heads and amplifiers 20.

As can be understood from the foregoing, with the present invention, when the image release is effected during the receipt of sound in the AV mode, the receipt of sound is stopped, and the sound signals received immediately before the image release are recorded after the image signals picked up at the image release are recorded, and accordingly, the sound signals are not subject to noise or voltage drop which would be produced upon the image releasing.

Furthermore, if the image release is effected before the sound signals are received, the image signals are recorded, and the mode is switched to a sound receipt waiting mode in which the received sound signals are recorded on the track of the magnetic disc associated with the image signals when the sound receipt starting switch is turned ON Consequently, the necessary sound signals can be recorded any time after the image signals are recorded in the AV mode without modifying the mode.

Furthermore, if a switch other than the release switches is actuated in the sound receipt waiting mode, the operation of that switch has a priority In this state, if the sound receipt waiting mode is released, the next image signals or sound signals can be recorded without changing the mode.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1 A recording method for an electronic still video apparatus having a recording means for recording signals on a recording medium and having an audio visual record mode for recording image signals at image data locations of the recording medium and for recording sound signals at sound data locations of the recording medium, said image signals and sound signals being recorded to be associated with one another, the audio visual record mode having a sound receipt waiting mode in which said recording means is arranged to be located at a position for recording sound signals at a sound data location to be associated with the preceding image data location for recording an associated image signal, the method comprising the steps of:- (a) monitoring actuation of one or more operations of the apparatus other than receiving or recording sound signals or image signals; and (b) arranging the recording means to be located at a next data location of the recording medium in response to actuation of said one or more operations.

2 A method according to claim 1 wherein after step (b), said sound receipt waiting mode is released.

3 A method according to claim 1 or 2 wherein after step (b), said audio visual mode is released.

4 A method according to any preceding claim wherein the recording means comprises a magnetic disk and said method comprises recording image signals and sound signals on adjacent tracks in the audio visual mode.

A method according to any preceding claim wherein when the audio visual mode is initially selected, the recording means is normally located at a position for recording image signals at an image data location.

Il '