JP2003224761A - Imaging apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging apparatus capable of photographing an image in a state in which a face of a subject is surely directed in the desired direction. <P>SOLUTION: The imaging apparatus that photographs a subject image passed a photographic lens 1 by an imaging device 3 is provided with a means that detects the direction of the face of the subject and automatically perform a photographic operation when a fact that the face of the subject is directed toward the prescribed direction is detected. For the imaging apparatus, it is favorable that it has a self-photographic mode in which oneself is photographed as the subject. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image pickup apparatus for picking up an image of a subject that has passed through a taking lens with an image pickup device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When photographing a subject, if the subject is a child who is difficult to keep still, it is often impossible to predict the movement because the movement cannot be predicted. For example, even if you point the camera at a child, you can't stay still and look away at the moment you release the shutter. There are times when you move around and it does not fit within the shooting frame of the camera.

Further, for example, in the case of so-called self-portrait for photographing oneself, conventionally, a mirror adjusted so as to be within the photographing frame when oneself is photographed is provided on the front surface of the camera, or a liquid crystal monitor. By rotatably providing the camera, the camera is commercialized so that the through image can be confirmed by directing it toward itself and passing through the taking lens to reach the image sensor. However, in either case, a mechanism for adding a mirror or rotating the liquid crystal monitor is required, so design restrictions, enlargement of the camera size,
There is a problem of cost increase.

Further, when photographing a moving subject,
There is known a method called so-called panning in which an image of a background of a subject is shot to shoot the subject to make the movement of the subject more powerful. However, this follow-up shooting method requires high-level shooting technology, so it is difficult for an amateur who lacks shooting technology to shoot.

Furthermore, when the camera is tilted around the optical axis when the subject is photographed, the photographed image also becomes a tilted image, which causes a problem of poor appearance.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A first object of the present invention is to provide an image pickup apparatus capable of picking up an image in which the face of a subject is surely oriented in a desired direction.

A second object of the present invention is to provide an image pickup apparatus capable of taking a picture of a moving subject so that the subject is surely included in the photographing frame.

A third object of the present invention is to provide an image pickup apparatus capable of easily performing follow shots.

A fourth object of the present invention is to provide an image pickup apparatus capable of taking an image without worrying about the inclination of the image pickup apparatus around the optical axis.

[0010]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, which solves the first problem, an image pickup device for picking up an image of a subject that has passed through a photographing lens is detected by an image pickup device. An image pickup apparatus comprising a means, and automatically performing a photographing operation when the means detects that the face of a subject faces a predetermined direction. Less than,
This is called the first invention.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided the image pickup apparatus according to the first aspect, which has a self-portrait mode for photographing oneself as a subject.

According to a third aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned second problem, in an image pickup apparatus for picking up an image of a subject that has passed through a photographing lens with an image pickup device, a means for detecting the movement of the subject is provided, and the means is used to detect the subject. The image pickup apparatus is characterized in that it automatically performs a shooting operation when it is detected that is within the shooting frame. Hereinafter, this is referred to as a second invention.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided an image pickup apparatus according to the third aspect, which has a self-portrait mode for photographing oneself as a subject.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned third problem, when a subject is photographed, a follow-up photographing means for flowing the background of the subject in a direction opposite to the movement of the subject is provided. The image pickup device according to claim 3 or 4.

The invention according to claim 6 is characterized in that the follow shot means flows the background of the subject by performing image processing on the image signal obtained by the image pickup device. Is.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned fourth problem, in an image pickup apparatus for picking up an image of a subject that has passed through a photographing lens with an image pickup element, means for detecting a tilt angle of the image pickup apparatus about an optical axis is provided. An image pickup apparatus comprising: a unit that corrects a tilt of a captured image according to a tilt angle detected by the unit. Hereinafter, this is referred to as a third invention.

According to an eighth aspect of the invention for solving the above-mentioned third problem, in an image pickup apparatus for picking up an image of a subject which has passed through a photographing lens by an image pickup device, a means for detecting the movement of the subject and the movement by the means. An image pickup apparatus comprising: a panning unit that causes a background of the detected subject to flow in a direction opposite to the movement of the subject when the detected subject is photographed. Hereinafter, this is referred to as a fourth invention.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, the follow-up photographing means causes the background of the subject to flow by subjecting the image signal obtained by the image sensor to image processing. Is.

[0019]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the internal structure of the image pickup apparatus according to the present invention. Here, the case where the image pickup apparatus is a digital still camera is shown. 1 in the figure
Is an image pickup optical system, 2 is a shutter / iris, 3 is an image sensor, 4 is a CDS / AGC / AD unit, 5 is a timing generator, 6 is a signal processing circuit, 7 is SDRAM, 8 is a system control circuit, and 9 is a zoom / Each driver for driving focus / shutter / iris, 10 is a lens position sensor, 11 is a tilt sensor, 12 is an LCD (liquid crystal display) driver, 13 is an LCD monitor, 14
Is a CF card.

The image pickup optical system 1 includes an image pickup lens, a focus mechanism for driving the image pickup lens for focusing, and an aperture mechanism for adjusting the aperture. The image pickup optical system 1 takes in an optical image from a subject and takes an image through the shutter / iris 2. An image is formed on the image pickup surface of the element 3. The image sensor 3 is a CCD (Charge Coupled Devic).
This is a solid-state image sensor including e) and the like, and photoelectrically converts the formed optical image into signal charges according to the amount of light in pixel units.

The timing generator 5 generates various timing signals for driving the image pickup device 3, such as a read pulse, a vertical transfer pulse, a horizontal transfer pulse, and a shutter pulse. In the image pickup device 3, the signal charges obtained by photoelectric conversion for each pixel are read out to the vertical transfer unit by being given a read pulse from the timing generator 5, and further transferred to the horizontal transfer unit, and finally. It is output to the CDS / AGC / AD unit 4 as an electric signal.

In the CDS / AGC / AD unit 4, noise is reduced by performing CDS (correlated double sampling) processing on the electric signal output from the image pickup device 3, and by an AGC (automatic gain adjustment) circuit. The gain is adjusted, further converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter, and output to the signal processing circuit 6.

The signal processing circuit 6 performs predetermined brightness processing and color processing on the input digital signal to generate an image signal converted into a brightness signal (Y) and color difference signals (Cr, Cb), and the SDRAM 7 Once stored in.

Further, the signal processing circuit 6 extracts, for example, a high frequency component of a pixel signal for one screen from a digital signal by a high-pass filter, and performs arithmetic processing such as cumulative addition on the extracted high frequency component. An AF (autofocus) evaluation value corresponding to the amount of contour components on the high frequency side is calculated, and the focus driver 9 is driven via the system control circuit 8 based on the AF evaluation value to set the taking lens in the imaging optical system 1. Focusing is performed by controlling the drive in the optical axis direction.

The position of the photographing lens moved by this focusing is detected by the lens position sensor 10, and the position signal is output to the system control circuit 8.

The tilt sensor 11 detects the tilt angle around the optical axis of the camera. The detection signal of the tilt angle thus detected is output to the system control circuit 8. The tilt sensor 11 is used in the third aspect of the present invention as described later.

The subject image taken into the image pickup device 3 through the photographing optical system 1 passes through the CDS / AGC / AD unit 4 and the signal processing circuit 6 and is driven by the LCD driver 12 as a through image before photographing. It is displayed on the monitor 13.

On the other hand, the photographed image is recorded from the SDRAM 7 to the CF card 14 which is detachably attached to the apparatus main body.

Next, using the image pickup apparatus shown in FIG.
The features of each invention will be further described.

(First Invention) A first invention is provided with means for detecting the direction of the face of the subject, and when the means detects that the face of the subject is oriented in a predetermined direction, the image is automatically taken. Is to perform an action.

The orientation of the subject's face can be detected as follows. First, when AF processing is performed on the image signal output from the image sensor 3 in the signal processing circuit 6, the position of the photographing lens at that time is determined by the lens position sensor 1.
The position is detected by 0, and the system control circuit 8 calculates the distance to the subject and the image magnification based on the position information. This makes it possible to know the approximate size of the subject's face in the shooting frame of the camera, and thus the approximate size and interval of the two eyes on the face. On the other hand, in the signal processing circuit 6 (or dedicated RO
In M), the image recognition pattern of the second eye when the face of the person faces the predetermined direction is stored in advance. Then, based on the position of the photographing lens, the size and interval of the two eyes occupying the photographing frame are calculated as described above, and the image sensor 3
The image output from the image is compared and collated, and the arrangement angle and interval of the second eyes of the subject in the image are recognized by the signal processing circuit 6 from the image. This makes it possible to know that the face of the subject has faced a predetermined direction.

The predetermined direction is a direction in which the two eyes of the subject's face can be recognized from the camera side, such as when the face of the subject faces the front (the direction of the camera) or diagonally sideways. To be For example, the fact that the face is facing the camera can be known by detecting that the two eyes of the subject's face are substantially horizontal or have a predetermined angle and are lined up at a specific interval. It can be known by detecting that the two eyes of the face of the subject are aligned substantially horizontally or at a specific interval with a predetermined angle.

Here, when it is detected that the subject's face is facing straight toward the camera, a person's face is previously stored in the signal processing circuit 6 (or in a dedicated ROM) as shown in FIG. The pattern when the two eyes e are aligned horizontally when facing the front is image-recognized and stored. And 2
The sizes and intervals of the two eyes e, e are calculated based on the position of the photographing lens as described above, and the images are compared and collated with the image output from the image sensor 3.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3A, the shooting frame f
When the face of the person p in the figure is facing sideways, it is detected that the person p faces the camera because the two eyes of the person p are different from the recognition pattern shown in FIG. However, as shown in FIG. 3 (B), when the person p faces the front, the two eyes of the person p almost match the recognition pattern shown in FIG. Can be detected.

In this manner, when the signal processing circuit 6 detects that the face of the subject is facing the camera, the signal processing circuit 6 outputs a signal to the system control circuit 8. Next, the system control circuit 8 receiving this signal output drives the shutter driver 9, and the image sensor 3
The image capturing operation for capturing and processing the image signal captured by is automatically performed.

As a result, since the photographing operation is automatically performed when the subject faces in a predetermined direction, a desired image can be surely photographed even when the movement of the subject cannot be predicted.

The signal processing circuit 6 stores the patterns shown in FIG. 2 in a plurality of patterns such as a state in which the pattern is directed straight forward, a state in which the pattern is oriented diagonally sideways, a state in which the face is inclined, and the like. It is possible to allow the user to arbitrarily select a desired pattern from these patterns at the time of shooting, and to automatically perform the shooting operation when the face of the subject matches any one of these multiple patterns. May be.

The recognition pattern is not limited to the arrangement pattern of the two eyes of the subject, and the face itself of the subject may be registered and stored in advance.

In the first aspect of the present invention, it is also preferable to have a self-portrait mode for photographing yourself as the subject.

In other words, when the photographer takes a self-portrait with the camera he holds in his hand, it is difficult to judge whether or not he is within the shooting frame. When it is detected that the subject has turned in a predetermined direction within the shooting frame, the shooting operation is automatically performed. Therefore, if this self-portrait mode is selected, self-portrait can be easily performed. .

In this case, an image of the face of oneself (face orientation, position, favorite facial expression, etc.) is stored in advance in the signal processing circuit 6 or the like, and is compared and collated with the image output from the image pickup device 3. Alternatively, the images may be automatically captured when the patterns of the both match.

(Second Invention) A second invention is provided with means for detecting the movement of the subject, and when the means detects that the subject is within the photographing frame, the photographing operation is automatically performed. Is.

As a means for detecting the motion of the subject, a motion vector detection circuit can be mentioned. This motion vector detection circuit is provided in the signal processing circuit 6 (not shown).

The motion vector detection circuit detects the amount of motion of the subject based on the image signal output from the image sensor 3 and detects the presence or absence of the motion. Specifically, comparing the two-frame image signal having a time difference between the one-frame image signal output from the image sensor 3 and the one-frame image signal output with a delay with respect to the image signal. Identifies a moving subject in the background with little movement. In this comparison, for example, a two-dimensional frequency is detected from the image signal and it is determined whether or not there is motion. The two-dimensional frequency may be detected in the entire screen or in divided blocks.

When the signal processing circuit 6 detects the relative movement of the subject with respect to the background within the photographing frame by the motion vector detection circuit, the system control circuit 8
Signal to. The timing of this signal output is output when the subject is detected within the shooting frame by specifying the subject with respect to the background.

The fact that this subject has entered the shooting frame means
For example, it may be that a preset default position such as a substantially central position in the shooting frame has been reached, or that the user can arbitrarily select and specify the position of the subject as the shooting timing in the shooting frame. The subject may have come to the specified position.

Next, the system control circuit 8 receiving the signal output from the signal processing circuit 6 similarly drives the shutter driver 9 to perform the photographing operation.

Thus, even when a moving subject is photographed, it is possible to easily photograph the subject so that it is surely contained within the photographing frame.

Further, since it is possible to automatically take a picture when the subject comes to a specific position within the picture frame, the taken image is then combined with a frame or character prepared in advance. It is also easy to do.

In the second aspect of the invention as well, it is preferable to have a self-portrait mode for photographing yourself as the subject. That is, since it is possible to automatically take a picture when it is detected that the self (subject) has come to a predetermined position within the shooting frame as described above, the self-portrait can be easily taken.

It is also preferable to provide a follow-up photographing means for flowing the background of the subject in the direction opposite to the movement of the subject when the subject is photographed.

As such follow-up photographing means, means for flowing the background of the subject by performing image processing on the image signal obtained by the image pickup device 3 is the opposite of the movement of the subject to the background of the subject. It is preferable in that the effect of flowing in the direction can be easily obtained. As the processing by the follow-up photographing means, specifically, in the signal processing circuit 6, after the subject and the background are distinguished from each other in the image output from the image pickup device 3 by the above-described motion vector detection circuit, it is equivalent to the background. Processing is performed so as to flow a predetermined number of pixel signals along the moving direction of the subject, that is, processing is performed so that the background flows in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the subject detected by the motion vector detection circuit.

As the processing for distributing the predetermined pixels, for example, in each pixel of the background, n pixels located in the opposite direction to the moving direction are averaged. Although the number of pixels n to be averaged is determined in advance, the user confirms the background flow condition by the image (preview image) displayed on the LCD monitor 13 before the actual recording, and the number of pixels n to be averaged is confirmed by the confirmation. May be appropriately adjusted, or the number of pixels n to be averaged may be automatically changed according to the speed and size of the subject.

The follow shot means is activated when the user selects the follow shot mode. in this case,
By selecting the shutter speed as high speed and shooting the subject, as shown in FIG. 4A, it is possible to shoot the moving subject s as clear as the background b. Then, as described above, the background b is distinguished from the subject s, and only pixel signals corresponding to the background b are processed so as to flow for a predetermined number of pixels along the moving direction of the subject s. At this time, the process of flowing the pixel corresponding to the subject s is not performed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4B, the subject s can be finished as if it were shot by panning. Therefore, it becomes possible to easily capture an image expressing a more powerful subject movement.

(Third Invention) A third invention is a means for detecting a tilt angle of an image pickup device around an optical axis, and a tilt of a photographed image is corrected according to the tilt angle detected by the means. And means for doing so.

The tilt sensor 11 shown in FIG. 1 is used as means for detecting the tilt angle of the image pickup device about the optical axis.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5 (A), since the camera is tilted around the optical axis, the subject s (two persons in this case) is tilted with respect to the photographing frame f and photographed. In such a case, the system control circuit 8 outputs to the signal processing circuit 6 a detection signal of the tilt angle around the optical axis of the camera detected by the tilt sensor 11 during shooting.

Further, the means for correcting the inclination of the photographed image is provided in the signal processing circuit 6 and, in accordance with the inclination angle detection signal output from the system control circuit 8,
The signal processing circuit 6 forms a trimming frame t in a shape tilted by an angle opposite to the tilt angle of the camera in the shooting frame f, and trims the image output from the image sensor 3 according to the trimming frame t. Then, the trimmed image is tilted again by the opposite angle to correct the tilt of the image photographed obliquely as shown in FIG.
An upright image is created as shown in FIG.

As a result, it becomes possible to easily perform photographing without having to worry about the inclination of the camera around the optical axis.

(Fourth Invention) A fourth invention is a means for detecting the movement of a subject, and the background of the subject is opposite to the movement of the subject when the subject whose motion is detected by the means is photographed. That is, it is provided with a panning means for flowing in the direction of.

As a means for detecting the movement of the subject, as described in the second invention, the signal processing circuit 6
It can be configured by providing a motion vector detection circuit therein. As a result, when the user presses a release switch (not shown) to shoot a moving subject, the signal processing circuit 6 detects the movement of the subject by the motion vector detection circuit and sets the subject in the background. Specify from.

As for the follow shot means, as described in the second invention, in the signal processing circuit 6,
After the subject and the background are distinguished from each other in the image output from the image pickup device 3 by the above-described motion vector detection circuit, it is preferable to subject the background of the subject by performing image processing on the image signal obtained by the image pickup device 3. It is possible to perform the flow processing, specifically, the processing of flowing the pixel signal corresponding to the background by a predetermined number of pixels along the moving direction of the subject.

This follow shot means is activated when the user selects the follow shot mode. in this case,
By selecting the shutter speed as high speed and shooting the subject, as shown in FIG. 4A, it is possible to shoot the moving subject s as clear as the background b. Then, as described above, the background b is distinguished from the subject s, and only pixel signals corresponding to the background b are processed so as to flow for a predetermined number of pixels along the moving direction of the subject s. At this time, the process of flowing the pixel corresponding to the subject s is not performed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4B, the subject s can be finished as if it were shot by panning. Therefore, even if the actual movement of the subject is small, it is possible to easily shoot an image expressing the movement of the subject with great force.

[0065]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an image pickup apparatus capable of picking up an image in which the face of a subject is surely oriented in a desired direction.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the above effects, the self-portrait can be taken automatically when the self turns in a predetermined direction within the shooting frame, so that the self-portrait can be easily taken.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an image pickup apparatus capable of taking a picture of a moving subject so that the subject is surely included in the photographing frame.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, in addition to the above effects, since the user can automatically take a picture when he / she comes to a predetermined position within the photographing frame, the self-portrait can be easily taken.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an image pickup apparatus capable of easily taking an image representing a more powerful movement of a subject and easily performing a follow shot. .

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to easily obtain the effect of flowing the background of the subject in the direction opposite to the movement of the subject.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an image pickup apparatus capable of taking an image without worrying about the inclination of the image pickup apparatus around the optical axis.

According to the invention described in claim 8, even if the actual movement of the subject is small, an image expressing the movement of the subject can be easily photographed with a great force, and the panning can be easily performed. It is possible to provide an imaging device that can do this.

According to the ninth aspect of the invention, it is possible to easily obtain the effect of flowing the background of the subject in the direction opposite to the movement of the subject.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of an image pickup apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a recognition pattern of human eyes.

FIG. 3A is a diagram illustrating a state in which a person faces sideways;
FIG. 6B is a diagram illustrating a state in which a person faces the front.

FIG. 4A is a diagram showing a state in which a moving subject and a background are photographed, and FIG. 4B is a diagram showing an image in which the background is subjected to flow processing.

5A is a diagram showing a state in which a subject is photographed while being tilted around the optical axis of the image pickup device, and FIG. 5B is a diagram showing an image which is upright after trimming processing.

[Explanation of symbols]

1: Shooting optical system 2: Shutter / iris 3: Image sensor 4: CDS / AGC / AD section 5: Timing generator 6: Signal processing circuit 7: SDRAM 8: System control circuit 9: Zoom / Focus / Shutter / Iris driver 10: Lens position sensor 11: Tilt sensor 12: LCD driver 13: LCD monitor 14: CF card

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. An image pickup apparatus for picking up an image of a subject that has passed through a photographing lens with an image pickup device, comprising means for detecting the orientation of the face of the subject, and detecting that the face of the subject is oriented in a predetermined direction by the means. An image pickup apparatus, which automatically performs a shooting operation when the user performs. 2. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a self-portrait mode for photographing oneself as a subject. 3. An image pickup apparatus for picking up an image of a subject that has passed through a photographing lens with an image pickup device, comprising means for detecting the movement of the subject, and when the means detects that the subject has entered the shooting frame, it is automatically operated. An imaging device characterized by performing a photographing operation. 4. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a self-portrait mode for photographing oneself as a subject. 5. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising: a follow-up photographing unit that causes a background of the subject to flow in a direction opposite to a movement of the subject when the subject is photographed. 6. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the follow shot means flows the background of the subject by performing image processing on the image signal obtained by the image pickup device. 7. An image pickup device for picking up an image of a subject that has passed through a taking lens with an image pickup device, and means for detecting a tilt angle of an optical axis of the image pickup device, and shooting according to the tilt angle detected by the means. And a means for correcting the inclination of the captured image. 8. An image pickup device for picking up an image of a subject that has passed through a photographing lens with an image pickup device, means for detecting movement of the subject, and a background of the subject when the subject whose movement has been detected is photographed. An image pickup apparatus, comprising: a follow-up photographing means for flowing the image in a direction opposite to the movement of the subject. 9. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the follow shot means flows the background of the subject by performing image processing on the image signal obtained by the image pickup device.