JP2001075000A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera capable of instructing a user what point in a screen range-finding is to be performed to, realizing display for multi AF, made easy-to-use considering speediness and operability and hardly having a shutter time lag. SOLUTION: In the camera capable of performing the range-finding to plural points in the screen, any of plural range-finding points is selected by a line-of- sight detection part 29. And, a point within the screen of a finder corresponding to the range-finding point selected by the detection part 29 is judged by a CPU 10. The range-finding point judged by the CPU 10 is displayed within the screen of the finder by the combination of plural lines by a finer optical system 28.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of a camera equipped with a multi-AF capable of measuring a plurality of points in a shooting screen.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A camera for measuring a distance at a specific point on a screen is provided with a display section called a target mark which can be viewed in an optical path in a viewfinder. With this target mark, if the photographer puts the subject at that point before the photographing and releases it, it is possible to focus on the main subject with the correct focus.

[0003] However, such an apparatus which can measure distance only at a specific point has a problem that a composition is restricted and that framing cannot be devoted to photographing. Furthermore, depending on the user, there are many cases in which the user takes only out-of-focus photos without knowing this ingenuity.

Accordingly, a multi-AF camera capable of measuring the distance between a plurality of points in a shooting screen and allowing the user to concentrate on framing by measuring the distance between a plurality of points on the screen has come to market. Was. However, as the number of distance measurement points increases, the display method may become more complicated, and the target mark tends to be simplified from the viewpoint of eliminating inconvenience.

However, on the other hand, the complaint that it is difficult to determine which of the above-mentioned plurality of points is in focus has increased.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, for example, there is a technique described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-286253. The display is colored, which is very troublesome. In particular, in the case of a portrait or the like, the top of the face is painted out and the essential face or the like becomes invisible.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and allows a user to easily instruct which point on a screen to measure a distance, to enable multi-AF display, and to provide high-speed operation. An object of the present invention is to provide a camera which is easy to use and has a small shutter time lag in consideration of operability.

[0008]

That is, according to the present invention, in a camera capable of measuring a plurality of points on a screen, selecting means for selecting any one of the plurality of distance measuring points,
Judgment means for judging a point in the finder screen corresponding to the distance measurement point selected by the selection means, and display means for displaying the point judged by the judgment means in the finder screen in combination with a plurality of straight lines. And characterized in that:

Further, the present invention further comprises a judging means for judging the position of the main subject in the finder screen, and a display means for displaying the main subject position in the finder screen according to the judgment result of the judging means. In the camera provided, the display means displays a pattern indicating the main subject position outside a region near the main subject position, and does not display the pattern in a region near the main subject position. It is characterized by.

In the camera according to the present invention, in a camera capable of measuring a plurality of points on the screen, any one of the plurality of distance measuring points is selected by the selection means. Then, the point in the finder screen corresponding to the distance measuring point selected by the selecting means is determined by the determining means. The points determined by the determination means are displayed on the finder screen by a combination of a plurality of straight lines by the display means.

In the camera according to the present invention, the position of the main subject in the finder screen is determined by the determination means, and the main subject position is displayed in the finder screen by the display means in accordance with the determination result of the determination means. Is displayed. Then, the display means displays a pattern indicating the main subject position outside the area near the main subject position, and prevents display in the area near the main subject position.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1A and 1B show a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A is a block diagram showing the internal structure of a camera, and FIG. 1B is an external perspective view of the camera.

Referring to FIG. 1A, a CPU 10 is an arithmetic control means comprising a one-chip microcomputer for performing camera sequence control and various calculations. The CPU 10 includes an image detecting unit 11 and a correlation calculating unit 12 inside.
And a display control unit 13.

A switch group 14 composed of a release switch and the like is connected to the CPU 10 and the distance measuring unit 1 is connected to the CPU 10.
5 and a photometric unit (not shown) are connected.

The distance measuring section 15 includes a driver 16 for driving the light projecting section 17, a light projecting section 17 for projecting distance measuring light to an object (not shown), and a light receiving lens for guiding reflected light from the object. 18a and 18b, sensor arrays 19a and 19b for forming an image of the reflected light, and an A / D for A / D converting signal outputs of the sensor arrays 19a and 19b.
And a converter 20.

The CPU 10 also includes an exposure control unit 2.
3, a focusing unit 24, a zoom detecting unit 26 for detecting the position of the zoom lens 25, and a finder optical system 28.
A display liquid crystal (LCD) 27 inserted in the camera and a line-of-sight detection unit 29 that detects the line of sight of the photographer are connected.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the camera body 30 is provided with a photographic lens 31 on the front surface thereof, and a distance measuring window 32, a finder 33, a strobe 34, and the like. I have.

As described above, the CPU 10 controls the photometry unit and the distance measurement unit 15 (not shown), and controls the exposure control unit 23 and the focusing unit 24 according to the outputs thereof.
Take photos with the correct exposure and correct exposure. When the zoom lens 25 is used as the photographing lens 31 of the camera, the angle of view can be changed. Therefore, the zoom information is input to the CPU 10 by the zoom detection unit 26 that detects the zoom position. In addition, the finder 33 is zoomed.
Images are also mechanically linked.

In order to display the various information thus obtained on the LCD 27 provided between the finder optical systems, the CPU 10 has a display control section 13 for controlling the turning on and off of these segments. I have.

The distance measuring section 15 includes a pair of light receiving lenses 18.
a, 18b and a pair of sensor arrays 19a, 19b. A / D converter 20 converts an image signal of a subject (not shown) into an analog signal, and outputs the converted signal to CPU 10.

Since the light receiving lenses 18a and 18b are arranged apart from each other by a distance B corresponding to the base line length serving as parallax, two sensor arrays are used based on the relationship between the focal length f of the light receiving lenses 18a and 18b and the subject distance L. On 19a and 19b,
The same image is formed at a position shifted by the relative position x. From the principle of the triangulation, it can be understood that the object distance L can be calculated by obtaining the image shift amount x.

In order to measure a wide range of the screen,
For example, when measuring the distance from the optical axis by θ,
As shown by a broken line in the figure, the relative displacement may be detected with reference to the sensor at a = ftan θ (1).

With a camera having such a configuration, FIG.
The camera can focus on a scene in which the main subject 37 does not exist at the center of the finder screen 36 as shown in FIG.

FIG. 2 (b) shows an image signal obtained in such a scene. A characteristic image signal change is observed at a person whose main subject is a background from a wall or the like. . Therefore, if this change is detected in the flow chart as shown in FIG. 4 and the change is detected on the right side of the screen, if the right LCD segment 39 of the LCD segments 38 in the finder screen is turned on, the change shown in FIG. So that
A distance measurement point is displayed on the screen, and a subject to be photographed correctly is measured. The photographer can recognize that the subject is in focus, and can enjoy photographing with ease.

That is, in the flowchart of FIG. 4, when an image signal of a subject is input in step S1, the left and right edges are determined in subsequent steps S2 and S3. Next, in step S4, the above step S2
Then, the coordinates of the central portion of the left and right edges determined in S3 are determined. Then, the LCD segment of the coordinates determined here is selected and turned on, for example, as shown in FIG.

Also, since the distance measuring points are represented by cross-shaped segments and the central portion thereof is made visible, the expression of the subject can be easily checked, and a clear screen can be obtained. .

In a scene as shown in FIG. 3,
There are cases where the camera accidentally focuses on the tree in front. In this case, the photographer may switch to the next distance measuring point candidate by pressing an operation button (not shown).

For example, since 80% or more of a photograph has a main subject at the center of the screen, in this embodiment, the distance measurement point is moved to the center of the screen by a change operation to correctly focus on the castle of the subject. Was made possible. Also,
In a scene where the main subject cannot be determined, the display may be reset at the center of the screen.

In this operation, since it is difficult to change using a finger, it is possible to construct and use a finder optical system based on line-of-sight detection as shown in FIG.

That is, in the finder optical system 40, the image of the subject incident through the objective lens 41 is used together with the prism 42 and the infrared light emitting diode (IRED) 43 through the eyepiece 46 to the eyes of the photographer. Irradiated with infrared light. Then, the reflected light is received by the photodiode 44 via the mask LCD 45.

The above-mentioned mask LCD 45 is provided in the optical path as shown in FIG.
As shown in (c), the openings 50 are arranged to be switched. By switching the openings of the mask LCD 45, it is possible to determine which opening is the most reflected light incident and to determine the direction of the line of sight. It is possible to switch the ranging point by using.

For example, an eye 4 as shown in FIG.
In the arrangement of No. 9, since there is a white part in the openings of S1 and S3, when the openings of S1 and S3 are opened, the amount of reflected signal light by the IRED incident on the photodiode increases.

However, when the line of sight is shifted as shown in FIG. 6B, the signal light of S3 decreases and the reflected light when the opening of S2 is opened increases. After the photographer presses the release button halfway and displays the first candidate, if the CPU of the camera controls the IRED and the mask in a flowchart as shown in FIG. When the photographer wants to switch the ranging point, the user simply moves his or her eyes, and the ranging point is switched, so that a manual operation is not required.

Referring to the flowchart of FIG. 7, first, in step S11, an image is detected and a first candidate is displayed. Next, in step S12, if the second release switch is turned on, the process proceeds to step S13, where a normal photographing sequence is executed.

On the other hand, if the second release switch has not been turned on, the process proceeds to step S14, where the infrared light emitting diode 43 is irradiated. Then, step S15
In steps S16 and S16, two blocks S ₀₁ and S ₀₂ having large reflected signal light are sequentially stored by changing the aperture.

Next, in step S17, the two blocks S ₀₁ and S ₀₂ are compared. As a result, if there is a change, the flow shifts to step S18 assuming that the line of sight has changed, and the distance measuring point is changed.

That is, two blocks with a large amount of reflected signal light are selected while sequentially opening all the openings two times, and it is determined whether or not the line of sight has moved based on whether or not the interval changes. If there is a movement of the line of sight, the photographer determines that he or she likes the distance measurement point, switches the display to the next highest priority point, measures the distance, and focuses on that point. Make adjustments.

Thus, the photographer is freed from troublesome manual operation and can concentrate on the release operation, and can select a distance measuring point only by eye movement.

It is also possible to determine the point that the photographer has seen and focus on that point.
It turns out that, despite the complexity and cost of the technology, photographers do not always see what they want to photograph.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the camera automatically determines in advance the priority order among the distance measurement points in the screen,
In addition to this, the movement or operation such as the movement of the eyes of the photographer is added in the form of addition or assistance, so that extremely simple and highly accurate focusing can be achieved.

If the finder and the AF light receiving lens are separate optical systems, errors tend to occur between the distance measurement point and the display point due to parallax (parallax).

Here, with reference to FIG. 8, a description will be given of an in-screen display control method in consideration of the parallax described above.

[0044] by the main subject position detection by image signals previously discussed, it is determined that there are the main subject in the direction of the theta ₁ in FIG. 8, besides the distance of the object is being detected in the manner described above, this When L is set, the subject is seen at the position of SL-tan θ ₁ (2) on the right side with respect to the optical axis in the viewfinder. Here, S is the parallax of the two optical systems.

The reference position in the finder is set at the end of the screen (FIG. 8).
In this case, the distance from this reference position to the finder optical axis is L ₁ tan φ ₁ (3) (where φ ₁ is the angle of view of the finder from the optical axis). ), And the distance from the reference position to the ranging point is L ₁ tan φ ₁ + S−L ₁ tan θ ₁ (4).

Here, it is assumed that the display LCD is of a dot matrix type, and the entire screen is shown in FIG.
It is assumed that an LCD that can be filled with H segments is contained in the viewfinder as shown in FIG. Since the H number corresponds to twice the L ₁ tan θ ₁ , the segment corresponding to the distance measuring point is H × (tan φ ₁ + S / L-tam θ ₁ ) / (2・ Tan φ ₁ ) th = x _1st (5) Note that H was removed from the above equation (5) (tan φ
₁ + S / L-tam θ ₁ ) / (2 · tan φ ₁ )
It is referred to as a frame ratio.

Therefore, if this segment is turned off and the upper, lower, left and right segments are turned on two by two,
The display of the segment as shown in FIG.

Further, the light-off control makes it easier to see the state of the subject. If the distance measurement points can be extended in the vertical direction of the screen, it is necessary to control the display in the viewfinder in consideration of not only the horizontal frame ratio (frame ratio 1) but also the vertical frame ratio (frame ratio 2). is there.

As shown in FIG. 10, assuming that the vertical angle of view is φ ₂ and the distance measuring point is θ ₂ , the ratio of the distance measuring point position to the angle of view based on the upper end of the screen frame (frame ratio 2) Is (tan φ ₂ −tan θ ₂ ) / 2tan φ ₂ (6) Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9A, assuming an LCD in which T segments are arranged vertically in the screen. ,
From the top, it is considered that the subject exists at the segment of T (tan φ ₂ −tan θ ₂ ) / (2 · tan φ ₂ ) = y ₁ ... (7).

Therefore, when moving the display as shown in FIG. 9B up and down,
On the basis of this relationship, lighting / light-out control is performed.

That is, when expressed in the xy coordinate format, the point of (x ₁ , y ₁ ) = (H × frame ratio 1, T × frame ratio 2) (8) is turned off, and the upper and lower two segments are turned on. By doing so, the display as shown in FIG. 9B can be moved up, down, left and right, and the distance measuring light can be easily transmitted to the photographer.

Referring to the flow chart of FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, the operation of turning on the display in the finder (inside F) will be described.

In step S21, the angles of view φ ₁ and φ ₂ are detected, and in step S22, the angles θ ₁ and θ ₂ are detected.
Is detected. Next, distance measurement is performed on the distance L to the subject in step S23.

Next, in step S24, for example, coordinates (x _F , y _F ) shown in FIG. 12 are calculated based on the above equation (8). Then, steps S25 and S26
At, LCD lines of line and y _F of x _F is illuminated. Further, in step S27, the coordinates (x _F , y
The LCD in part _F ) is turned off (light-off point).

As a result, as shown in FIG. 9B, a distance measuring point having a cross-shaped central portion opened is displayed.

Furthermore, the above-mentioned light-off point is not limited to one point, and in order to make the expression of the subject in the distance measuring point better visible, the light-off point is switched and controlled by a distance, an angle of view, or the like. Is effective.

That is, the width of the human face is K (about 20 cm).
Then, as shown in FIG. 13A, the screen width 2L in the x direction obtained by the distance L and the angle φ ₁ representing the angle of view is obtained.
-Since the ratio of K to the tan φ ₁ is occupied in the screen, there are H dot-matrix LCDs in the horizontal direction.
Then, if the extinguishing control for H × K / 2L · tan φ ₁ is performed, as shown in FIGS. 13B and 13C, the extinguishing area is controlled by the size of the face occupying the screen. Can make people's facial expressions better visible.

The operation of turning on the display in the finder in such a case will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, in step S31, φ ₁ and φ ₂ are obtained by determining the zoom state of the camera, and then in step S32, the distance measuring directions θ ₁ and θ are detected by the distance measuring sensor.
₂ is required. From these, in step S33, the coordinates (x ₁ , y ₁ ) of the main subject in the screen are calculated by the CPU of the camera according to the above formula.

Then, distance measurement is performed in step S34. When the result is L, at step S35, from the previous relation, occupied by vertically and horizontally on the face width of the (x _1, y ₁₎ H
× halves segment of K / 2L · tan φ ₁ is turned off. Further, by turning on the upper, lower, left and right segments in step S36, a clear display can be achieved as shown in FIG.

As described above, by devising the switching of the light-off section, the photographer can know where on the screen the subject is in focus, and after confirming the expression of the subject sufficiently, the photographer can feel safe. It is possible to provide a camera that allows users to enjoy shooting.

Although FIG. 13 shows an example in which the number of subjects is one, the number of subjects may be detected from image information or the like, and the above-described light-off control may be performed accordingly. In this case, the camera can be used to clearly understand the expressions of the people standing side by side.

As described above, the method of detecting the point of the main subject on the screen and specifying the location while giving a certain degree of visibility to that portion is not limited to the cross-shaped ranging point. 15 (a), (b),
As shown in (c), application of an oblique cross, a round shape, a square shape, or the like in the finder is also possible. These distance measuring points can be changed in size according to the size of the face.

Further, in the case of a dot matrix type LCD, dots can be switched and displayed in a finder visual field like a grid, so that such an application can be dealt with only by modifying the software of the CPU.

Of course, the display method may be switched according to the user's preference, or may be switched for each sales channel in consideration of regional characteristics.

Further, by utilizing the advantages of the dot matrix, a configuration may be adopted in which a character display is output in the viewfinder as shown in FIG. Such a configuration is useful for commercialization that is easy for the user to understand.

Naturally, it is troublesome if this character display is applied to the main subject. Therefore, the part where this character display is output is also used for the part which is not the main subject by utilizing the main subject detection technology which is a feature of the present invention. Select and display a bright space. Alternatively, the size of the display may be switched according to the clear space.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart for explaining the display operation in the finder when the size of the character display can be changed.

First, when a main subject is detected in step S41, an empty space other than the main subject is detected in the finder in the following step S42. Then, in step S43, the size of the character to be displayed is determined. Next, at step S44, the above-mentioned step S44 is placed on the empty space detected at step S42.
The character of the size determined in 43 is displayed.

The detection of the main subject and the detection of the empty space in the flowchart of FIG. 16 are performed by a method described later with reference to FIGS. 29 to 31. In this example, based on the distribution of light on the screen, the background night view portion is not considered to be the main subject, and the display may be displayed in this night view portion (see FIG. 17).

In the above embodiment, only an example in which a line sensor is used as a distance measuring sensor has been described.
It is also possible to apply to a higher-performance distance measuring device using an area sensor.

As shown in FIG. 18 (b), in the distance measurement by the general line sensor 63, only the distance measurement in a narrow range in the center portion of the camera screen 61 of the camera 60 could be performed.

On the other hand, since the area sensor 62 is a two-dimensional arrangement of line sensors, the distance measuring area can be extended to almost the same range as the camera screen 61.

Therefore, in the scene as shown in FIG. 18A, when it is desired to take a picture with the composition as indicated by 53, the distance measuring device of the line sensor first measures the distance at the center of the screen when measuring the distance. An operation such as half-pressing the release button is performed in a composition 55 in which the main subject 54 is put in the area 56. Then, after re-holding the camera to make the composition 53 you want to shoot,
A two-step operation (focus lock operation) of pressing the release button is required. However, in this operation, the preliminary operation before photographing is troublesome and lacks immediacy.

Therefore, if the range that can be measured is widened using an area sensor, it is possible to measure the distance of the main subject 54 located at the edge of the screen even in the scene shown in FIG. .

However, even with such a technique,
A technique for detecting where the main subject is located by the number of measurable points is important. When the number of points increases extremely, it takes time to sequentially examine each ranging point, and it takes longer time than the focus lock. This is the opposite effect, and the disadvantage is increased as much as the area sensor is more expensive than the line sensor.

Therefore, as a second embodiment, an example in which the main subject position is detected at higher speed will be described below with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG.

First, as shown in FIG. 19A, the camera emits light widely within the screen prior to distance measurement. At this time, the reflected signal light is incident on the area sensor according to the distance to the subject. FIG. 19B shows an equivalent distribution of the reflected light on the area sensor.

That is, since the distance is far from a complicated background, the reflected signal light hardly returns to the camera. However, a reflected signal light is returned from a person or a flower in the foreground because the distance is relatively short. Therefore, the pattern on the area sensor is extremely simplified as shown in FIG.

If the microcomputer in the camera calculates and controls the substantially binarized pattern signal in accordance with a predetermined pattern determination sequence, it is possible to determine at which position the subject exists. According to this position determination, if integral distance measurement is performed with a distance measurement point specified as shown in FIG. 19C, focusing is instantaneous wherever the main subject exists in the viewfinder. Can be provided.

As the distance measuring method at this time, switching is performed according to the situation at the time, whether the distance is measured by the so-called active method, in which the light for distance measurement is newly projected, or the passive distance measurement, in which the light for distance measurement is not projected. Just do it.

Next, a new type of autofocus technique called super combination AF will be described with reference to FIG.

The super combination AF is not a simple combination of the active method and the passive method in a hybrid manner, but performs detection of a main subject using two methods.

FIG. 20A shows a case where an object is set to the AF method of this method.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a camera measuring a distance, and showing a configuration of a main part.

In the figure, a CPU 65 is constituted by a microcomputer for controlling a camera, and has a pattern control section 66 therein. Further, the CPU 65
It is connected to the photometry section 67.

The photometric section 67 includes two light receiving lenses 69a and 69b for guiding light from the subject 68, and two area sensors 70a and 7 for receiving light from the subject 68.
0b, an A / D converter (ADC) 71, and a stationary light removal circuit 72.

Further, a light emitting section 73 for controlling light emission of the light source 74 and an audio signal generating section 75 are connected to the CPU 65.

In FIG. 20A, the light from the subject 68 incident from the two light receiving lenses 69a and 69b is
The light is incident on the two area sensors 70a and 70b. In these area sensors 70a and 70b, a subject image is received and photoelectrically converted. Then, the output is converted into a digital value of each pixel by an A / D converter 71,
65.

When the steady light removing circuit 72 connected to the area sensors 70a and 70b is controlled, a DC light signal constantly incident from the subject 68 is removed. Thereby, only the pulse light from the light source 74 can be obtained as an output signal.

Therefore, the CPU 65 controls the light emitting section 73 while the steady light removing circuit 72 is operated, and
And the like, the reflected signal light returns from the subject 68, and is, for example, displayed on the area sensor 70a as shown in FIG.
An image as shown in FIG.

FIG. 20 (b) is a diagram showing a state where light is incident on a black portion. If the software for analyzing the pattern of the image on the area sensor is incorporated in the CPU 65 and it is determined that the image is a human figure,
This can be considered a main subject.

Therefore, distance measurement according to a flowchart as shown in FIG. 21 can be considered.

First, in step S51, the light source 74 is irradiated before the distance measurement, and only the pattern of the reflected signal light is extracted by the stationary light removing circuit 67 as shown in FIG. Next, in step S52, the pattern of the reflected signal light is determined.

Then, in step S53, whether or not this pattern is a main subject is determined based on the shape of the person and the like. Here, if the main subject is not detected, the process proceeds to step S54, where the active system or the passive system is selected in consideration of the luminance information and the like, and the central portion of the screen where the existence probability of the subject is high is emphasized. Is measured. Next, in step S55, a sound corresponding to the center distance measurement is generated by the sound signal generation unit 75.

On the other hand, if the main subject has been detected in step S53, the flow shifts to step S56 to determine whether the optical signal forming the pattern is weak or has sufficient contrast. You. That is, in step S56, the distance measurement method is a so-called active type in which signal light is projected from the camera side and distance measurement is performed using the reflected signal light, and a so-called passive type in which distance measurement is performed based on an image signal of a subject. A selection is made of which of the types to use.

That is, if it is determined that the reflected signal light is weak, it is determined that the passive AF is more suitable, and the flow shifts to step S57. Then, this step S57
The distance measurement is performed by the passive method in which the image signal of the main subject position already obtained is used with emphasis. Thereafter, in step S 58, a sound corresponding to the passive AF is generated by the sound signal generation unit 75.

On the other hand, if the contrast of the image signal is low in step S56, the flow shifts to step S59. Then, in steps S59 and S60, the light for distance measurement is irradiated again, and the active AF based on the reflected signal light is performed with emphasis on the previously obtained main subject position. Thereafter, in step S61, a sound corresponding to the active AF is generated by the sound signal generation unit 75.

If the CPU 65 selects and controls the output of the audio signal according to the distance measurement method or whether the main subject can be determined or not, it is easy for the user to understand, and there is a sense of security while appealing the features of this super combination AF. Distance measurement becomes possible.

Further, instead of simply switching the sound, as shown in FIG.
If a D driver is built in and the transmittance of the LCD in the finder can be switched according to the result of distance measurement, the camera can be made more user-friendly.

In FIG. 22 (a), the CPU 80 has a dot matrix compatible LCD driver 80a, A /
It has a D converter 80b, a port 80c, a memory 80d, and an associating unit 80e. Further, the CPU 80
, An LCD 81 compatible with a dot matrix inserted in the finder, a distance measuring unit 82, a focus lock switch 83, and an angle of view unit 84 are connected.

Then, for example, as shown in FIG. 22B, the LCD driver 80a determines a transmission portion in a form corresponding to the subject image as shown in FIG.
By controlling the common (COM) and segment (SEG) selection signals, it is possible to monitor the area in the viewfinder where the camera is trying to focus, as shown in FIG. Here, an example is shown in which the transmission area is determined according to the image, and the other areas are controlled to reduce the transmittance.

Further, as shown in FIG. 24, the distance measurement points may be displayed by cross-shaped cross portions. This can be achieved by making the LCD in the viewfinder non-transparent, with the axis representing the coordinates of the distance measurement point extending in the x and y directions.

The control operation of each segment at this time is as shown in the flowchart of FIG.

By confirming such a display with the viewfinder, the user can know whether or not the camera is operating smoothly.

If the camera makes an erroneous display, it is considered that the detection of the main subject is also erroneous. In such a case, the focus lock operation as shown in FIG. Thus, the distance measurement may be performed again. In this case, as shown in FIG. 22A, the user operates the focus lock switch 83 provided in the CPU 80.

In order to associate the distance measurement point with the viewfinder screen, the CPU 80 performs an association calculation based on the distance measurement signal and the angle of view of photographing or the like, and reflects the result in LCD display control. I do.

The present invention is also applicable to the following single-lens reflex camera. Since a single-lens reflex camera does not have a viewfinder and parallax for distance measurement, it is not necessary to consider the above-described cases shown in FIGS.

FIG. 25 shows a third embodiment of the present invention and is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of a single-lens reflex camera.

In FIG. 25, a light beam from a subject that has passed through a photographic lens 91 in a camera body 90 is reflected or transmitted by a main mirror 92. The light beam reflected by the main mirror 92 is guided to a finder 95 via an LCD 93 and a pentaprism 94. The above LCD
Numeral 93 indicates a focused position in the shooting screen,
It can be confirmed from the finder 95. The display of the LCD 93 is controlled by a CPU described later.

On the other hand, the light beam transmitted through the main mirror 23 is transmitted to the sub mirror 9 provided behind the main mirror 92.
The light is reflected by 7 and guided to a focus detection unit 98 provided at the lower part of the camera body 90.

The focus detection section 98 detects a focus by a phase difference detection method, and includes a field mask (S mask) 99 for narrowing a light beam passing through the photographing lens 91, an infrared cut filter 100, and a light beam. A condenser lens (C lens) 101 for collecting, a total reflection mirror 102 for totally reflecting the light beam, and a pupil mask 103 for restricting the light beam
, The area sensor 105, and the light flux from the area sensor 10.
5 and a re-imaging lens (S lens) 104 for re-imaging the image on the lens 5.

Further, on the upper part of the camera body 90, there is provided a strobe device 107 which also functions as an auxiliary light at the time of focus detection.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the focus detecting section 98 and a diagram showing a control system thereof.

In the figure, an S lens 104 for passing a light beam from a subject is provided behind the pupil mask 103.

[0115] The CPU 108
5 and the strobe device 107, and also controls the operation of the LCD 93 as described above.

When the integration operation of the area sensor 105 is started, the strobe device 107 emits light as necessary, and
Sensor data at the time of light emission or non-light emission can be obtained. CP
In U108, sensor data is read from the area sensor 105, main subject sensor data is read, and main subject detection, focus detection calculation, and the like are performed.

FIG. 27 is an external view of a camera according to the third embodiment.

For example, in the scene shown in FIG. 28, since the screen is complicated, the camera may not be able to determine which is the main subject and may be lost.

Basically, as shown in FIG. 28 (a), if priority is given to the pattern of the shape of the person 111 in the center, focusing will be performed with a considerable probability. However, depending on the conditions, the bin 112 may be erroneously set as shown in FIG.
When the photographer focuses on
In some cases, it may be desired to focus on the surrounding person 113 as shown in FIG.

In this case, the CPU 108 determines the next focus candidate by operating the next candidate switch 109 provided on the camera body 90, and instructs the user by using the dot matrix LCD in the finder so that the user can recognize it. Many complaints will go away.

Further, if the present invention is applied to a single-lens reflex camera, it is possible to determine whether or not the subject is in focus through a photographing lens. Can be provided.

Although the main subject detection technique has been briefly described above, for example, in a scene where the background of the main subject is a night scene as shown in FIG. 29, the luminance can be obtained by simply monitoring the output of the area sensor. As shown in FIG. 30, the image of the important person cannot be detected.

However, even in a scene in which the main subject cannot be detected, auxiliary light such as a strobe light of a camera is emitted to monitor the distribution of reflected light (see FIG. 31).
By comparing with the luminance distribution without light emission shown in FIG. 30, the main subject can be detected. If priority is given to a portion changed by light emission and its shape, area, and the like are taken into consideration, more accurate main subject position detection can be performed.

According to the above embodiment of the present invention,
The following configuration can be obtained.

That is, (1) determining means for determining the position of the main subject in the finder screen, and display means for displaying the main subject position in the finder screen according to the determination result of the determining means. In the camera provided, the display means includes:
A camera, wherein a pattern indicating the main subject position is displayed outside a region near the main subject position, and display is not performed in a region near the main subject position.

(2) The camera according to (1), wherein the determining means detects a light distribution signal from a shooting scene and determines the position of the main subject based on the light distribution signal.

(3) The camera according to (2), wherein the judging means projects light toward a photographic scene and detects the light distribution signal from the reflected light.

(4) The camera according to (1), wherein the display means sets a high transmittance in an area near the main subject position and a low transmittance outside the vicinity area.

(5) Detecting means for detecting a light distribution signal from a photographic scene, determining means for determining the position of a main subject in a finder screen based on the light distribution signal, and based on the determination result of the determining means Display means for displaying information at a position other than the main subject in the finder screen;
A camera comprising:

[0130]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Focusing can be performed instantly wherever the subject is located, and a clear multi-AF display is possible in the design. A camera which is easy and has a small shutter time lag can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention;
(A) is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of a camera,
(B) is an external perspective view of the camera.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of distance measurement in a scene where a main subject is not present at the center of a finder screen.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a case where a focus is incorrectly focused on a tree in front of the subject, instead of the main subject;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a display operation of a ranging point according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a finder optical system based on line-of-sight detection.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the mask LCD of FIG. 5 and the movement of the photographer's eyes.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a first release according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for describing an in-screen display control method in consideration of parallax.

FIG. 9 is a view for explaining an LCD in a finder serving as a distance measuring point.

FIG. 10 is a diagram for describing an in-screen display control method in consideration of parallax.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of turning on display in a viewfinder in consideration of parallax.

FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining an operation of turning on display in the viewfinder in consideration of parallax.

FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining distance measurement points when the width of a human face is considered.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of turning on the display in the viewfinder at the distance measurement point shown in FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 shows a display example in the viewfinder.
(A) is a diagram illustrating an example of a ranging point by a cross-hatched line, (b) is a diagram illustrating an example of a round ranging point,
(C) is a diagram showing an example of a square shaped ranging point,
(D) is a diagram showing an example of character display.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of display in the viewfinder when the size of character display can be changed.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example in which the background of a main subject is a night scene.

FIG. 18 is a diagram for explaining focus lock.

FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating an example in which a main subject position is detected at high speed as a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20A is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part of a camera according to the second embodiment, and FIG.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an image formed on an area sensor 70a of FIG.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart illustrating a distance measuring operation of the camera according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a diagram for explaining a structure of a CPU having a built-in matrix LCD driver so that the transmittance of an LCD in a finder can be switched according to a result of distance measurement.

FIG. 23 is a diagram showing a state in which the camera is monitoring an area in the viewfinder where the camera is to focus.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing an example in which distance measuring points are displayed by cross-shaped cross portions.

FIG. 25 shows a third embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a single-lens reflex camera.

26 is a perspective view of a focus detection unit 98 of FIG. 25 and a diagram showing a control system thereof.

FIG. 27 is an external view of a camera according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating focusing by a camera according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 29 is a diagram illustrating an example in which the background of a main subject is a night scene.

FIG. 30 is a diagram showing luminance according to the output of the area sensor in the scene of FIG. 29;

FIG. 31 is a diagram showing luminance in which auxiliary light such as a strobe light is emitted in the scene of FIG. 29 and the distribution of reflected light is monitored.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 CPU, 11 image detection unit, 12 correlation operation unit, 13 display control unit, 14 switch group, 15 distance measuring unit, 16 driver, 17 light emitting unit, 18a, 18b light receiving lens, 19a, 19b sensor array, 20A / D converter, 23 exposure control unit, 24 focusing unit, 25 zoom lens, 26 zoom detection unit, 27 liquid crystal (LCD), 28, 40 finder optical system, 29 line of sight detection unit, 30 camera body, 31 shooting lens, 32 measurement Long window, 33 finder, 34 strobe, 36 finder screen, 37 main subject, 38, 39 LCD segment, 41 objective lens, 42 prism, 43 infrared light emitting diode (IRED), 44 photodiode, 45 mask LCD, 46 eyepiece .

Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Takeshi Kaneda 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Olympus Optical Industrial Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 2H011 BA01 DA05 2H051 DA03 DA10 DA24 GA01 GA09 GA17 2H102 AA44 BB08 BB26 CA11

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A camera capable of measuring a plurality of points on a screen, a selection means for selecting any one of the plurality of distance measurement points, and a camera corresponding to the distance measurement point selected by the selection means. A camera comprising: a determination unit configured to determine a point in a finder screen; and a display unit configured to display the point determined by the determination unit on the finder screen in a combination of a plurality of straight lines. 2. The camera according to claim 1, wherein the display is not performed near the distance measuring point. 3. A camera comprising: determining means for determining a position of a main subject in a finder screen; and display means for displaying the main subject position in the finder screen in accordance with a result of the determination by the determining means. Wherein the display means displays a pattern indicating the main subject position outside a region near the main subject position, and does not perform display in a region near the main subject position. Camera. 4. The camera according to claim 3, wherein the display means switches the range of the vicinity area according to an angle of view of a photographic lens or a subject distance.