JP2001111988A - Camera controller, camera, camera control method and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera photographing device capable of easily matching the direction of a camera and an interested object. SOLUTION: Concerning the camera controller for controlling a camera 101 from a distant place, this device is provided with a storage 106 for storing the photographing history of the camera 101 in the past, learning part 107 for learning the interest of a user from the photographing history in the past, retrieving part 109 for retrieving the photographing object matching the interest of the user on the basis of the learnt result of the learning part, and control part 111 for controlling the camera so as to photograph the object matching the interest of the user retrieved by the retrieving part.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera control device, a camera, a camera control method and a recording medium capable of remotely controlling a camera in accordance with a control command from a computer, or a camera control capable of acquiring parameter information relating to photographing. The present invention relates to an apparatus, a camera, a camera control method, and a recording medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A camera photographing apparatus has been developed in which a camera and a computer are connected by a network or a serial cable or the like, and a photographing direction is controlled by panning and tilting the camera in accordance with a control command from a computer terminal.

[0003] By using such a device, it is possible to photograph a variety of photographing objects in remote places.

[0004]

However, in this apparatus, since the state of a remote place is viewed while operating the camera, it is not always easy for the user to orient the camera to the object to be photographed. Absent. In order to solve this problem, the camera orientation is registered for some shooting targets in advance, and there is a case where there is a mechanism to turn the camera in that direction if you select the shooting target, Such a method is not effective when an imaging target that matches the user's interest is not registered.

[0005] In some cases, a mechanism is provided to record the number of accesses of the user and point the camera at the object to be photographed with a large number of accesses, but the photographing object selected in this way matches the interest of the user. Not necessarily. Furthermore, since a newly added camera does not have user access in the initial state, such a method itself cannot be taken.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and has as its object to provide a camera control device, a camera, a camera control method, and a camera control method that can easily adjust the direction of a camera to an object of interest. It is to provide a recording medium.

[0007]

Means for Solving the Problems To solve the above-mentioned problems,
In order to achieve the object, a camera control device according to the present invention is a camera control device for controlling a camera from a remote place, wherein a storage means for storing a past shooting history of the camera; Learning means for learning the interest of the user, searching means for searching for a photographing object matching the interest of the user based on the learning result by the learning means, and matching the interest of the user searched by the searching means Control means for controlling the camera so that the object to be photographed is photographed by the camera.

Further, in the camera control device according to the present invention, the control means sets an imaging target which matches the user's interest to another camera based on a result learned from a shooting history of one camera. It is also characterized in that it is controlled so as to take a picture.

Further, in the camera control device according to the present invention, the storage means stores information on a past number of times of photographing corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined photographing objects.

Further, in the camera control device according to the present invention, the search means is configured to search for a shooting target having the largest number of past shootings.

Further, in the camera control device according to the present invention, the control means controls the camera by outputting a command for photographing the photographed object searched for by the search means to the connected camera side. And

Further, a camera according to the present invention is a camera having at least a function capable of specifying its own position, a learning means for learning the user's interest from the past photographing history of the camera, and a learning means by the learning means. Searching means for searching for a shooting target that matches the interest of the user based on the result, and display means for displaying information on the shooting target that matches the interest of the user searched by the searching means It is characterized by.

In the camera according to the present invention,
The display means displays information on a shooting target that matches the user's interest in shooting at a second location based on a result learned from a shooting history of a camera at a first location. I have.

Further, a camera control method according to the present invention comprises:
A camera control method for controlling a camera from a remote location,
A storage step of storing a past shooting history of the camera; a learning step of learning a user's interest from the past shooting history; and a shooting target matching the user's interest based on a learning result in the learning step. And a control step of controlling the camera so that a camera shoots an object to be photographed that matches the user's interest searched for in the search step.

Further, in the camera control method according to the present invention, based on the result of learning from the photographing history of one camera, an object to be photographed that matches the user's interest is photographed by another camera. It is characterized in that

Further, in the camera control method according to the present invention, the storage step is characterized in that information on the number of times of past shooting corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined shooting targets is stored.

Further, in the camera control method according to the present invention, the search step is characterized by searching for an object to be photographed with the largest number of past photographings.

Further, in the camera control method according to the present invention, in the control step, the camera is controlled by outputting a command for photographing the photographed object searched for in the search step to the connected camera side. And

Further, the camera control method according to the present invention is characterized in that the camera control method further comprises a table relating to the object to be photographed and a photographing direction in which the photographing object can be photographed.

Further, a camera control method according to the present invention comprises:
A control method for a camera having at least a function of specifying its own position, comprising: a learning step of learning a user's interest from a past shooting history of the camera; and a user based on a learning result in the learning step. And a display step of displaying information relating to the photographing object that matches the user's interest retrieved in the retrieval step.

Further, in the camera control method according to the present invention, in the displaying step, the user's interest in photographing at the second point is determined based on a result learned from the photographing history of the camera at the first point. Is characterized in that information about the imaging target that matches the condition is displayed.

Further, a storage medium according to the present invention is a storage medium storing a control program for controlling a camera control device for controlling a camera from a remote place, wherein the control program stores a past image of the camera. Based on the code of the storage process for storing the history, the code of the learning process for learning the user's interest from the past shooting history, and the learning result in the learning process, search for a shooting target that matches the interest of the user. And a control step code for controlling the camera so that the camera captures an object to be photographed that matches the user's interest searched for in the search step.

Also, in the storage medium according to the present invention, the control program is configured to, based on a result of learning from a photographing history of one camera, acquire an object to be photographed that matches the user's interest to another camera. Is characterized by further having a code of a step of controlling to capture an image.

Further, in the storage medium according to the present invention, the storage step is characterized in that information on the number of times of past shooting corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined shooting targets is stored.

Further, in the storage medium according to the present invention, the search step is characterized in that an object to be photographed having the largest number of past photographings is searched for.

Further, in the storage medium according to the present invention, in the control step, the camera is controlled by outputting a command for photographing the photographed object searched for in the search step to the connected camera side. I have.

The storage medium according to the present invention is a storage medium storing a control program for controlling at least a camera having a function capable of specifying its own position,
A search step of searching for a shooting target matching the user's interest based on a learning process code for learning a user's interest from a past shooting history of the camera and a learning result in the learning process. And a code of a display step of displaying information on an imaging target that matches the user's interest searched in the search step.

Further, in the storage medium according to the present invention, the code of the display step may be such that the code of the user at the second point is photographed at the second point based on the result learned from the photographing history of the camera at the first point. It is characterized by having a code of a step of displaying information on a photographing object that matches an interest.

[0029]

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention.
It is a block diagram showing the basic composition of the system concerning an embodiment. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, it is assumed that a plurality of clients, a plurality of cameras, and a camera server are connected to a network.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 101 denotes a camera which can be controlled from a remote place through a network; 102, a shooting parameter holding unit for holding shooting parameters such as a camera direction and a subject distance; and 103, a position for holding a camera position. A storage unit 104 is a shooting target database that stores coordinates and categories of shootable targets, and 105 is a shooting unit that determines a shooting target based on a position where a camera is installed and shooting parameters stored in the shooting parameter storage unit 102. An object determination unit, 106 is a shooting history holding unit that holds a past shooting history, 107 is an interest learning unit that learns the user's interest from the shooting history stored in the shooting history holding unit 106, and 108 is an interest learning unit 107. An interest holding unit 109 for holding the learned interest for each user;
Recommended object search unit that searches the imaging object database 104 for an imaging object that matches the user's interest held in
Reference numeral 10 denotes a recommended target holding unit that holds the shooting target searched by the recommended target search unit 109, and 111 denotes a recommended target holding unit 110.
Is a camera control unit that generates a command for panning or tilting so that the shooting target held in the camera is captured by the camera.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a specific configuration of the camera photographing apparatus of the present embodiment. In the figure, 201 is a CP
U, which operates according to a program that implements a procedure described below. Reference numeral 202 denotes a memory, which includes a shooting parameter holding unit 102, a position holding unit 103, a shooting history holding unit 106,
The interest storage unit 108 and the recommendation target storage unit 110 are configured, and a storage area necessary for the operation of the program is provided. Reference numeral 203 denotes a ROM, which stores a program that implements a procedure described below. 204 is a disk device,
The photographing target database 104 is realized. Reference numeral 205 denotes an image input interface for receiving an image from a camera. Reference numeral 206 denotes a command interface for exchanging commands with the camera. 207 is a bus. 2
A video output interface 08 outputs a video from the camera. Reference numeral 209 denotes a command interface for exchanging commands with the client side. 210 is a camera. 211 is a serial cable or a network cable.

The procedure of processing in the camera photographing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described below. In the present embodiment, the position (installation location) of the camera is fixed, and the shooting direction can be changed by panning and tilting according to a control command from a remote client (computer terminal). Information about the position (installation location) of the camera is held in the position holding unit 103 in advance.

The processing of the present embodiment is divided into a learning processing at the time of photographing and a photographing object recommendation processing at the time of newly photographing. Note that shooting in the present embodiment refers to remotely operating a camera to save a desired image as a still image.

First, the procedure of the learning process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

In step S301, an object to be imaged currently being projected by the camera is photographed (the image is stored as a still image).

In step S302, information on the camera direction (pan and tilt angles) and the subject distance is obtained from the camera, and stored in the shooting parameter storage unit 102.

In step S303, an object to be photographed is identified. The position holding unit 1 in the photographing target database 104
From the viewpoint of the camera held at 03, an object located in the direction and distance held in the shooting parameter holding unit 102 may be selected. When the subject distance is infinite, the closest target in the corresponding direction is selected.

The photographing object database 104 is, for example, as shown in FIG.
0, a name, a pan / tilt range, the center coordinates of the range, information on a subject distance, and a category are described. Only objects that can be photographed by this camera are included. A set of categories is determined in advance, and the category to which each imaging target belongs is described.

For example, when the contents of the photographing object database 104 are as shown in FIG. 10, it is assumed that A, B, C and D are located as shown in FIG. Assuming that the camera position is indicated by ★, the shooting direction is the direction of the arrow, and the length of the arrow is the subject distance, the shooting target in this case is C.

In step S304, step S303
The photographing target identified in step 1 is recorded in the photographing history holding unit 106. The shooting history holding unit 106 records the shooting date and time, the name of the shooting target, and its category, for example, in a format as shown in FIG.

In step S305, interest learning section 107
The learning data is updated in the
To save. The learning here is for learning which category the user is interested in. In brief, the number of times of shooting for each category can be used as an interest score. In this case, the interest holding unit 108 is described by a combination of a category and a shooting frequency, as shown in FIG. 12, for example.

Thus, the processing is completed. Step S3
In 03, if the imaging target could not be identified, the subsequent processing is not performed.

Next, referring to the flowchart of FIG.
7 shows a processing procedure of a shooting target recommendation process in the recommendation target search unit 109. The shooting target recommendation process is performed at the time of initialization for determining the direction of the camera when the user accesses the camera.

Here, in general, the network shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of cameras are connected, and the camera (camera A) in the processing of FIG. 4 is different from the camera A (camera B) in the processing of FIG. In this case, for example, the client X in FIG.
If the camera A accesses the camera server A (camera A), each time the camera A shoots each of the shooting targets illustrated in FIG. 10, the shooting history of the shooting target is stored in the shooting history holding unit 106. Then, the number of times of shooting of each shooting target is counted as a score in a format as shown in FIG. 12 and stored in the interest holding unit 108. That is, when the client X ends the control of the camera server A, the interest holding unit 108 of the client X stores the camera A
The data in the format of FIG. 12 indicating which shooting target has been shot and how many times have been held.

In the present embodiment, the photographing object recommendation process is as follows.
When the client X changes the control target from the camera server A to, for example, the camera server B (camera B), based on the control history data of the camera A already stored in the client X (data in the format of FIG. 12). And camera B
Is a process of determining which shooting target the camera B is directed to. Then, in the present embodiment, basically, the control is performed so that the camera B is first directed to the direction of the object to be photographed most in the control of the camera A.

Hereinafter, description will be made with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

In step S401, initialization is performed.
That is, the score S is initialized to 0, and the recommended object search unit 109
Make the recommended candidate list in the empty list.

In step S402, it is checked whether or not an unprocessed photographing object remains in the photographing object database 104. If it remains, the process proceeds to step S403; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S409.

In step S403, an unprocessed shooting target R is extracted from the shooting target database 104.

In step S404, it is checked whether or not the score S0 of the category to which R belongs is equal to S. If they are equal, the process proceeds to step S408; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S405. The score S0 here is the number of times of photographing counted from the photographing history of the camera A, and is stored in the interest holding unit 108.

In step S405, it is checked whether S0 is larger than S. If it is larger, the process proceeds to step S406, and if not, the process returns to step S402.

In step S406, S0 is set as a new value of S.

In step S407, the recommended candidate list is initialized to an empty list.

In step S408, R is added to the recommended candidate list. Then, the process returns to step S402.

Steps S402 to S402
By repeating step 408, the recommended candidate list is sequentially updated to the shooting target having the highest number of times of shooting, and finally,
In the control of the camera A, the imaging target with the largest number of imagings remains in the recommended candidate list.

In step S409, a recommendation target is selected from the recommendation candidate list. If there is only one element in the recommendation candidate list, it is set as the recommendation target. If there is more than one, select them according to some criteria. You can choose randomly,
The distance from the camera position may be the shortest. The selected recommended object is held in the recommended object holding unit 110.

In step S410, the camera control unit 11
In step 1, control is performed so that the camera faces the shooting target held in the recommended target holding unit 110. For example, if the photographing target database 104 has the contents shown in FIG.
When 08 has the content shown in FIG. 12, the category "station" of B has the highest score, so the camera is turned to B.

In step S410, when there is no recommendation target and the recommendation target holding unit 110 is empty, the camera is turned in a preset direction.

Thus, the process is completed.

Since the interest learned by another camera A can be applied to the camera B by the above processing, even when the camera is accessed for the first time, the camera can be pointed in an appropriate direction.

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a basic configuration of an apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, reference numeral 501 denotes a camera capable of acquiring photographing parameters such as direction and subject distance; 502, a photographing parameter holding unit for holding photographing parameters such as camera direction and subject distance; and 503, a camera position. 504 is a photographing object database that stores coordinates and categories of photographable objects, and 505 is a photographing object based on the camera position determined by the position determining unit 512 and the photographing parameters stored in the photographing parameter storing unit 502. A photographing target determining unit 506 for determining a target, a photographing history holding unit 506 for storing a past photographing history, an interest learning unit 507 for learning a user's interest from the photographing history stored in the photographing history holding unit 506, and a reference numeral 508. An interest holding unit that holds the interest learned by the interest learning unit 507 for each user, and 509 is an interest holding unit 508 A recommended target search unit for searching the captured target database 504 for a captured target that matches the interests of the held user, 510 is a recommended target holding unit that stores the captured target searched by the recommended target search unit 509, and 511 is a recommended target A display unit 512 that displays information about the imaging target held in the holding unit 510 is a position determination unit that determines the current position of the camera.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a specific configuration of the camera photographing apparatus of the present embodiment.

In the figure, reference numeral 601 denotes a CPU, which operates according to a program for realizing a procedure described later. 6
Reference numeral 02 denotes a memory, which includes a shooting parameter storage unit 502, a position storage unit 503, a shooting history storage unit 506, and an interest storage unit 5.
08, configuring the recommended object holding unit 510 and providing a storage area necessary for the operation of the program. 60
Reference numeral 3 denotes a ROM, which stores a program for implementing a procedure described later. Reference numeral 604 denotes a disk device, which implements the imaging target database 504. A GPS 605 determines the camera position. A display device 606 displays information. 607 is a bus. 608 is a camera.
Reference numeral 609 denotes an azimuth sensor for detecting the shooting direction of the camera.

The procedure of processing in the camera photographing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described below. In the present embodiment, a camera (for example, a digital camera) that the user holds by hand and shoots is used. Information on the direction of the camera and the subject distance is obtained from the camera. In addition, the photographing target database 5
In 04, it is assumed that shooting targets are stored separately for each area.

The processing according to the present embodiment is divided into a learning processing at the time of photographing and a photographing object recommendation processing at the time of newly photographing.

First, the procedure of the learning process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

In step S701, an object to be photographed is photographed by the camera.

In step S 702, position determination unit 512
In, the position of the camera, that is, the position of the place where the image was taken, is determined and recorded in the position holding unit 503. In this process, for example, the position may be obtained using generally available GPS.

In step S 703, information on the direction of the camera and the subject distance is obtained from the camera, and information on the shooting direction of the camera is obtained from the direction sensor 609, and stored in the shooting parameter storage unit 502.

In step S704, an object to be photographed is identified. From the photographing target database 504, only a target that can be photographed by this camera is selected, and further, an object that exists in the direction and distance held in the photographing parameter holding unit 502 as viewed from the camera position may be selected. . When the subject distance is infinite, the closest target in the corresponding direction is selected.

The photographing object database 504 is, for example, as shown in FIG.
Instead of the pan / tilt range of 0 and the coordinates of the center thereof, the shooting direction and the position of the camera are described. A set of categories is determined in advance, and the category to which each imaging target belongs is described.

The contents of the photographing object database 504 are as shown in FIG.
In the case of 0, it is assumed that A, B, C, and D are located as shown in FIG. Assuming that the camera position is indicated by ★, the shooting direction is the direction of the arrow, and the length of the arrow is the subject distance, the shooting is D in this case.

In step S705, step S704
The photographing target identified in step 1 is recorded in the photographing history holding unit 506. The photographing history holding unit 506 records the photographing date and time, the name of the photographing target, and its category, for example, in a format as shown in FIG.

In step S706, interest learning section 507
And updates the learning data in the interest holding unit 508.
To save. The learning here is for learning which category the user is interested in. In brief, the number of times of shooting for each category can be used as a measure of interest. The interest holding unit 508 in this case is described by a combination of a category and a shooting frequency as shown in FIG. 12, for example.

Thus, the processing is completed. Step S7
If the photographing target cannot be identified in 04, the subsequent processing is not performed.

Next, referring to the flowchart of FIG.
5 shows a processing procedure of a shooting target recommendation process in a recommendation target search unit 509.

Here, for example, if the photographer is taking a picture at a certain first point, every time the camera takes a picture of each subject shown in FIG. It is stored in the holding unit 506. Then, the number of times of shooting of each shooting target is counted as a score in a format as shown in FIG. 12 and stored in the interest holding unit 508. That is, at the point in time when the photographer has finished shooting at the first point, the interest holding unit 508 holds data in the format of FIG. 12 indicating which shooting target the camera has shot and how many times.

In the present embodiment, the photographing object recommendation processing is as follows.
When the photographer changes the photographing point, the photographing history data (data in the format of FIG. 12) already stored in the camera.
Based on the above, at the beginning of shooting at another second point, it is a process of displaying on the display unit which shooting target the camera is recommended to aim at. Then, in the present embodiment, basically, the object to be photographed most frequently photographed at the first point is displayed on the display unit.

In step S 801, the position determination unit 512
In, the position of the camera is determined and recorded in the position holding unit 503. In this process, for example, a generally available GP
The position may be obtained using S.

In step S802, initialization is performed.
That is, the score S is initialized to 0, and the recommendation target search unit 509 is set.
Make the recommended candidate list in the empty list. In addition, only the imaging target near the current camera position is selected from the imaging target database 504. An imaging target in an area including the current camera position may be selected, or an imaging target in an area adjacent to the current area may be selected.

In step S 803, it is checked whether an unprocessed photographing object remains in the photographing object database 504. If it remains, the process proceeds to step S804; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S810.

In step S804, an unprocessed shooting target R is extracted from the shooting target database 504.

In step S805, it is checked whether or not the score S0 of the category to which R belongs is equal to S. If they are equal, the process proceeds to step S809. If they are not equal, the process proceeds to step S806. The score S0 here is the number of times of photographing counted from the photographing history at the first point, and is stored in the interest holding unit 508.

In step S806, it is checked whether S0 is larger than S. If it is larger, the process proceeds to step S807, and if not, the process returns to step S803.

In step S807, S0 is set as a new value of S.

In step S808, the recommended candidate list is initialized to an empty list.

In step S809, R is added to the recommended candidate list. Then, the process returns to step S803.

Steps S803 to S803
By repeating step 809, the recommended candidate list is sequentially updated to the shooting target having the highest number of shootings, and finally,
In the shooting at the first point, the shooting target with the highest number of shootings remains in the recommended candidate list.

In step S 810, the recommendation targets included in the recommended candidate list are retained in the recommendation target retaining unit 510.
Further, the contents are displayed on the display unit 511. in this case,
Only the name may be displayed, or the position may be indicated on a map. When the number of recommendation targets is large, all of them may be displayed or may be selected based on some criteria. The selection may be made at random or may be made at a short distance from the camera position.

For example, when the photographing object database 504 has the content as shown in FIG. 10 and the interest holding unit 508 has the content as shown in FIG. 12, the category “station” of B has the highest score, and therefore the display unit 511 Displays information on B. If there is no recommendation target and the recommendation target holding unit 510 is empty, a message to that effect is displayed.

The processing is completed as described above.

By the above-described processing, a photographing target that the user is likely to be interested in near the current location can be displayed on the display unit of the camera.

(Other Embodiments) (1) In the above embodiment, the recommendation of the photographing target is
Although the search is performed by searching for a target belonging to a category in which the user is interested, the search may be performed by presenting a target that is actually photographed by a user having a similar interest.

The learning process is performed in the same manner as in the above embodiment.
A photographing history holding unit is provided for each user so that the contents of the photographing history holding units of other users can be referenced in the photographing object recommendation process. A user having a similar distribution of photographed categories is regarded as a user having a similar interest. It is checked whether or not a user who is interested has photographed at the current camera position, and if photographed, the photographing target is set as a recommendation target.
When there are a plurality of objects, the objects photographed by more users are recommended. The recommended algorithm here is a method known as collaborative filtering (eg, Shardanan
d, Maes, Social Information Filterin: Algorithms for
Automating “Word of Mouth”, CHI 95 Conference Pro
ceedings, pp. 210-217, 1995).

In the case of the second embodiment, a means for connecting to a network is added to the configuration shown in FIG. 6, and a photographing history is obtained from another user's camera via the network. (2) In the above embodiment, the shooting target is identified using the shooting target database and the shooting parameter / camera position information. However, the user may directly input by voice or text. (3) In the above embodiment,. Although the photographing target is identified using the photographing target database and the photographing parameter / camera position information, the photographing target may be determined from the title given to the photograph by the user. (4) In the above embodiment, the learning of the category related to the interest is simply performed by the number of times of photographing. However, another learning method may be used. (5) In the above embodiment, the photographing direction is considered within the plane, but the same can be implemented by adding information on the height direction to the coordinates and thinking three-dimensionally. (6) The first embodiment selects a specific camera,
Although the object to be photographed by the camera is determined, the processing can be extended to a process of selecting one camera from a plurality of cameras on the network. In this case, the processing is performed using the photographing target database of a plurality of cameras, and a camera capable of photographing a photographing target having a high score is selected. (7) In the first embodiment, the case where the user saves an image is treated as “shooting”. However, the present invention is not limited to this.
A case in which the camera is pointed at a certain target for a predetermined time or more may be treated as “photographing”. Further, both of them may be referred to as “photographing”. (8) In the first embodiment described above, the camera is pointed at the recommended photographing target. However, the user may simply point the photographing target and point the camera to the user. (9) In the first embodiment, one photographing target is selected,
Although the camera is directed in that direction, a plurality of photographing targets may be ordered, and the camera may be directed in the direction of the next photographing target when the user designates “next photographing target”. (10) In the second embodiment, the target of the user's interest may be a place belonging to a certain category. For example, there is a case where the user is interested in taking a picture in an amusement park, or is interested in taking a picture in a botanical garden.

In this case, instead of learning by judging the object to be photographed, learning is performed on the place where the image was photographed. Information (name, coordinate range, category) of such a place is stored in the imaging target database 504. In the learning process, in the photographing target identification processing in step S704, the position of the photographed object, not the photographing target, is checked by using the photographing target database 504 to identify the location, and the processing is performed using this. Also,
In the photographing object recommendation process, the process is also performed for the place. (11) In the above-described second embodiment, when the photographing target is recommended, it is displayed on the display unit. However, the present invention is not limited to this. (12) In the second embodiment, the GPS is used for the position determination. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and PHS position information or other position determination means may be used. (13) In the second embodiment, the GPS is used to determine the position. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the user may directly input coordinates. (14) In the second embodiment, the GPS is used to determine the position. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a user may input a place name and convert the place name to coordinates internally. (15) In the first embodiment, the means for holding the position of the camera is provided. However, if the coordinates of each photographing object in the photographing object database have polar coordinates with the camera position (fixed) as the origin, the photographing object can be identified only by the camera direction and the object distance. In such a configuration, the position holding unit 103 may not be provided. (16) In the above embodiment, the case where each unit is configured on the same computer has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. Each unit may be configured by being divided into computers and processing devices distributed on a network.

For example, in the second embodiment, the camera 50
1, shooting parameter storage unit 502, recommended target storage unit 51
0, the display unit 511, and the position determination unit 512 may constitute a single device, and perform processing while communicating with other units via a network. (17) In the above embodiment, the program is stored in the ROM
Has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and may be realized using an arbitrary storage medium.
Further, it may be realized by a circuit that performs the same operation.

The present invention may be applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices or may be applied to a device composed of one device. A recording medium storing software program codes for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or an apparatus, and a computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus executes the program code stored in the recording medium. Needless to say, this can also be achieved by executing the reading.

In this case, the program code itself read from the recording medium implements the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the recording medium on which the program code is recorded constitutes the present invention.

Examples of a recording medium for supplying the program code include a floppy disk, hard disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM,
A CD-R, DVD-ROM, DVD-RAM, magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card, MM, or the like can be used.

The functions of the above-described embodiments are implemented when the computer executes the readout program codes, and the OS or the like running on the computer is actually executed based on the instructions of the program codes. It goes without saying that a part or all of the above-described processing is performed, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

Further, after the program code read from the recording medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, based on the instruction of the program code, It goes without saying that the CPU provided in the function expansion board or the function expansion unit performs a part or all of the actual processing, and the processing realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments.

[0105]

As described above, according to the present invention,
The effect is obtained that the direction of the camera can be easily adjusted to the photographing target of interest.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a basic configuration of a first embodiment of a camera photographing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a specific configuration of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of a learning process according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of a shooting target recommendation process according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a basic configuration of the first embodiment of the camera photographing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a specific configuration of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of a learning process according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of a photographing target recommendation process according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining identification of an imaging target according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a description example of a shooting target database according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a description example of a shooting history holding unit according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a description example of an interest holding unit in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a connection state between a network, a camera, and a client.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 101 camera 102 shooting parameter holding unit 103 position holding unit 104 shooting target database 105 shooting target determination unit 106 shooting history holding unit 107 interest learning unit 108 interest holding unit 109 recommended target search unit 110 recommended target holding unit 111 camera control unit

Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Shiro Ito 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Yuji Ikeda 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. F term (reference) 5B047 AA30 BB06 BC14 BC21 BC23 CA11 CB18 5C054 CF05 CF06 CG01 CG05 EA03 HA00

Claims (22)

[Claims] 1. A camera control device for controlling a camera from a remote place, a storage unit for storing a past shooting history of the camera, a learning unit for learning a user's interest from the past shooting history, and the learning. Searching means for searching for a shooting target matching the user's interest based on the learning result by the means; and a camera for shooting the shooting target matching the user's interest searched by the searching means. Control means for controlling the camera. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls, based on a result learned from a photographing history of one camera, to photograph an image capturing target that matches the user's interest with another camera. The camera control device according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The camera control device according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit stores information on the number of times of past shooting corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined shooting targets. 4. The camera control device according to claim 3, wherein the search unit searches for a shooting target having the largest number of past shootings. 5. The camera according to claim 4, wherein the control unit controls the camera by outputting a command for photographing the photographing target searched for by the search unit to a connected camera side. Control device. 6. A camera having at least a function of specifying its own position, comprising: learning means for learning a user's interest from a past photographing history of the camera; and a user based on a learning result by the learning means. A camera comprising: a search unit that searches for a shooting target that matches an interest of the user; and a display unit that displays information about a shooting target that matches the interest of the user searched by the search unit. 7. The display means displays information on a shooting target that matches the user's interest in shooting at a second location based on a result learned from a shooting history of a camera at a first location. 7. The method according to claim 6, wherein
The camera according to. 8. A camera control method for controlling a camera from a remote location, comprising: a storage step of storing a past shooting history of the camera; and a learning step of learning a user's interest from the past shooting history. A search step of searching for a shooting target that matches the interest of the user based on the learning result in the learning step; and a camera shooting the shooting target that matches the interest of the user searched in the search step. And a control step of controlling the camera. 9. A control method according to claim 1, wherein an image capturing target that matches the user's interest is captured by another camera based on a result learned from a capturing history of one camera. Item 9. The camera control method according to item 8. 10. The camera control method according to claim 8, wherein, in the storing step, information on a past number of times of shooting corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined shooting targets is stored. 11. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the search step searches for a shooting target having the largest number of past shootings.
0. The camera control method according to item 0. 12. The camera according to claim 11, wherein in the control step, the camera is controlled by outputting a command for photographing the photographing target searched for in the search step to a connected camera side. Control method. 13. The camera control method according to claim 8, further comprising a table relating to the photographing target and a photographing direction in which the photographing target can be photographed. 14. A method for controlling a camera having at least a function of specifying its own position, comprising: a learning step of learning a user's interest from a past shooting history of the camera; and a learning result in the learning step. A search step of searching for an imaging target that matches the interest of the user based on the search step; and a display step of displaying information about the imaging target that matches the interest of the user searched in the search step. Camera control method. 15. In the display step, information on a shooting target that matches the user's interest in shooting at a second location is displayed based on a result learned from a shooting history of a camera at a first location. 15. The camera control method according to claim 14, wherein: 16. A storage medium storing a control program for controlling a camera control device for controlling a camera from a remote place, wherein the control program stores: a code of a storage step of storing a past shooting history of the camera. A code of a learning step of learning a user's interest from the past shooting history; a code of a search step of searching for a shooting target matching the user's interest based on a learning result in the learning step; And a code for a control step of controlling the camera so that the image of the object that matches the user's interest retrieved in the retrieval step is photographed by the camera. 17. A step of controlling the control program so that an imaging target that matches the user's interest is captured by another camera based on a result learned from a photography history of one camera. 17. The storage medium according to claim 16, further comprising: 18. The storage medium according to claim 16, wherein, in the storing step, information on a past number of times of shooting corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined shooting targets is stored. 19. The method according to claim 1, wherein in the searching step, an imaging target having the largest number of previous imagings is searched.
9. The storage medium according to 8. 20. The storage device according to claim 19, wherein in the control step, a camera is controlled by outputting a command for photographing a photographing target searched for in the search step to a connected camera side. Medium. 21. A storage medium storing a control program for controlling at least a camera having a function capable of specifying its own position, wherein the control program is configured to determine a user's interest from a past shooting history of the camera. A code for a learning step to learn, a code for a search step for searching for an imaging target that matches the interest of the user based on the learning result in the learning step, And a code for a display step of displaying information on an object to be photographed. 22. The code of the display step includes information relating to a photographing target that matches the user's interest in photographing at a second point based on a result learned from a photographing history of the camera at the first point. 22. The storage medium according to claim 21, further comprising a code of a step of displaying