JP2004072246A - Photographing system and digital camera - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a digital camera capable of simply setting a photographing condition in matching with a photographing place when the digital camera for mobile use is fixed to the photographing place and performs photographing. <P>SOLUTION: When the digital camera 1 is loaded to a camera support apparatus 20, a photographing condition designated by ID information of the camera support apparatus 20 is automatically selected from a condition table 11a of the digital camera 1. The digital camera 1 performs photographing at a place where the camera support apparatus 20 is installed under the selected photographing condition. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a photographing system using a portable digital camera and a digital camera used therefor.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, a digital camera using a CCD element or the like has been reduced in size and weight, and a user can take a picture with a digital camera in various places. The digital camera can set shooting conditions according to the shooting environment, and the user can set shooting conditions such as shutter speed, zoom magnification, sensitivity, and number of pixels according to the shooting environment. . In this way, high-quality images can be acquired by setting the shooting conditions optimal for the shooting environment.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, the digital camera is also used as a surveillance camera or a fixed point camera for photographing a landscape to be transmitted on the Internet or performing astronomical observation. If the above-described portable digital camera can also be used as a surveillance camera or the like, there is no need to prepare two digital cameras for the portable digital camera and the surveillance camera, which is convenient. Even when a portable digital camera is also used as a surveillance camera, it is necessary to set the shooting conditions according to the installation location in order to obtain high-quality images when used as a surveillance camera. There is.
[0004]
However, when it is used as a surveillance camera after being used as a portable digital camera, it has to be changed from the photographing condition when carrying it to the photographing condition when monitoring camera, and there is a problem that the setting work of the photographing condition is troublesome. . In other words, when shooting with a fixed shooting location, the shooting conditions are fixed to some extent, but when using as a surveillance camera after changing the shooting conditions when carrying and using, the same shooting each time There is a problem that it is necessary to return to the condition, and the usability when combined use is poor.
[0005]
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a digital camera that can easily set shooting conditions when a portable digital camera is fixed and photographed at a certain place.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The photographing system of the present invention is a photographing system in which a portable digital camera is attached to a camera holding device installed at a predetermined place, and the camera holding device is used for photographing at the place where the camera is installed. ID information for specifying shooting conditions, a condition table in which the digital camera stores the ID information and the shooting conditions in association with each other, and the ID of the camera holding apparatus when attached to the camera holding apparatus It is characterized by comprising detection means for detecting information and imaging condition selection means for selecting the imaging condition corresponding to the ID information detected by the detection means from the condition table. Is.
[0007]
The digital camera of the present invention is a digital camera that can be carried and can be attached to a camera holding device that is installed in a predetermined place and has ID information that specifies shooting conditions when shooting at the place. A condition table storing the ID information and the photographing condition in association with each other, a detection unit for detecting the ID information from the camera holding device, and the detection unit that detects the ID information from the condition table. The image forming apparatus includes a photographing condition selecting unit that selects the photographing condition corresponding to the ID information, and a control unit that controls to perform photographing using the selected photographing condition.
[0008]
Here, the “shooting conditions” include not only shooting conditions but also processing conditions for images acquired by shooting, and include range information to be trimmed from the shot images. Also good.
[0009]
The “camera holding device” may have unique ID information, or can change ID information by providing ID setting means for setting one ID information from a plurality of ID information. It may be.
[0010]
In addition, the “digital camera” creates a condition table using transmission / reception means for transmitting a photographed image to a storage medium to an external device and receiving the photographing condition transmitted from the external device by the transmission / reception means, and the received photographing condition. It may be provided with a table creation means. At this time, the control means of the digital camera may control the image captured while being mounted on the camera holding device to be transmitted from the transmission / reception means for wirelessly transmitting / receiving data to the external device. .
[0011]
Furthermore, the “digital camera” enables shooting under freely set shooting conditions when detached from the camera holding device, and uses the shooting conditions selected by the shooting condition selection means when attached to the camera holding device. Needless to say, those having control means for controlling to perform photographing are included.
[0012]
【The invention's effect】
According to the photographing system and the digital camera of the present invention, ID information of the camera holding device is detected when the digital camera is mounted on the camera holding device, and the photographing condition selection means detects the ID information detected from the condition table. By selecting the shooting conditions corresponding to, it is not necessary for the user to set the shooting conditions again when shooting with a portable digital camera fixed to the camera holding device, and it is possible to handle various shooting conditions settings. Can do.
[0013]
In addition, by providing ID setting means for setting one ID information among a plurality of ID information in the camera holding device, for example, the shooting place is the same as in the day and night, and the shooting conditions are different. However, if the user changes the ID setting means, the shooting conditions can be changed easily, so that the shooting conditions can be set more efficiently.
[0014]
In addition, a transmission / reception unit that transmits an image captured by the digital camera to an external device, receives a shooting condition transmitted from the external device, and a table creation unit that creates a condition table using the received shooting condition. Thus, it is possible to set shooting conditions while viewing an image shot by the external device, and to set the shooting conditions optimally at the place where the camera holding device is installed.
[0015]
Furthermore, it is possible to freely set shooting conditions when the camera is detached from the camera holding device, and when the camera is attached to the camera holding device, shooting is performed using the shooting conditions selected by the shooting condition selection means. Thus, it is possible to achieve both convenience when used in a fixed place and when shooting in a fixed place.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of the photographing system of the present invention. The photographing system 100 will be described with reference to FIG. The digital camera 1 of the photographing system 100 of FIG. 1 is a portable digital camera that can be carried and can be taken by a user to carry various places. When the digital camera 1 is attached to the camera holding device 20, the location of the surveillance camera or the fixed point camera is fixed and the image is taken. The digital camera 1 is in a state where data can be transmitted and received with the external device 30 such as a personal computer. For example, a captured image can be transmitted to the external device 30 and stored.
[0017]
The camera holding device 20 is installed in a predetermined place such as a place where an entrance of a room can be taken or a place where a building can be taken. In FIG. 1, for example, two camera holding devices 20 are prepared. If the digital camera 1 is attached to any one of the camera holding devices 20, shooting is performed from the position of the camera holding device 20. In the imaging system 100 of FIG. 1, the case where two camera holding devices 20 are installed is illustrated, but there may be one or more than two.
[0018]
As described above, when it is not necessary to acquire images at the same time and it is desired to shoot with the digital camera 1 fixed at a plurality of locations, it is not necessary to prepare the digital camera 1 for each location. Therefore, the user does not need to purchase a plurality of digital cameras 1 and can reduce the economic burden.
[0019]
That is, when it is desired to simultaneously photograph a plurality of places like a surveillance camera, a plurality of digital cameras are required. However, the user does not always need to photograph a plurality of places at the same time, but there may be a case where photographing can be performed by changing the photographing place on different days, for example. At this time, if the camera holding device 20 is installed at each shooting location as described above, the digital camera 1 is simply attached to the predetermined camera holding device 20, and shooting is performed when it is desired to take a shot at the desired shooting location. Will be able to.
[0020]
The camera holding device 20 has a camera holding means 21 and a power cable 22, and the camera holding means 21 has a hollow portion that accommodates the digital camera 1, for example. The power cable 22 is attached to the camera holding means 21, and the digital camera 1 is charged using the power cable 22.
[0021]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a preferred embodiment of the digital camera of the present invention. The digital camera 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The digital camera 1 includes, for example, an imaging unit 2 composed of a CCD element, an image processing unit 3 that processes captured images, a display unit 4 that displays images, a storage medium 5 that stores images, and data transmission and reception with an external device 30. The digital camera 1 to be performed has a power supply terminal 8 for charging the digital camera 1 by being electrically connected to the transmission / reception means 6 and the power supply terminal 25 on the camera holding device 20 side. Here, the transmission / reception means 6 includes a device that transmits and receives data wirelessly using a wireless LAN, and a device that transmits and receives data by wire by connecting a USB cable.
[0022]
The digital camera 1 also includes a detection unit 7, a control unit 10, a photographing condition selection unit 11, a condition table creation 12, and the like. The detection means 7 has a function of detecting that the digital camera 1 is attached to the camera holding device 20 and acquiring ID information attached to the camera holding device 20.
[0023]
Here, ID information is attached to each camera holding device 20, and ID information is output from the ID output terminal 24. Further, this ID information is set by an ID setting means 23 comprising, for example, a dial or a dip switch. Specifically, for example, the ID information includes ID numbers from “1” to “5”, and is set to a predetermined ID number by the user operating the ID setting means 23. Then, the detection means 7 receives ID information from the ID output terminal 24 and sends it to the photographing condition selection means 11. In addition, although the case where the ID setting means 23 is provided in the camera holding device 20 is illustrated, the camera holding device 20 may have only one unique ID information.
[0024]
The control means 10 controls the operations of the imaging unit 2, the image processing unit 3 and the like constituting the digital camera 1. The control unit 10 takes an image by the imaging unit 2 and acquires an image in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 10. It becomes. Here, the shooting condition SC used for shooting is the one sent from the shooting condition selection means 11.
[0025]
The imaging condition selection unit 11 is connected to a condition table 11a that stores ID information and the imaging condition SC in association with each other. The imaging condition selection unit 11 selects the imaging condition SC corresponding to the ID information sent from the detection unit 7 and controls the control unit 10. To output. That is, the ID information of the camera holding device 20 functions to specify the shooting condition SC when shooting at the place where the camera is installed.
[0026]
Specifically, the shooting conditions SC include image processing conditions such as the number of pixels, zoom magnification, sensitivity setting, exposure conditions, and exposure conditions, as well as image processing conditions such as resolution and range information to be trimmed, etc. Have Specifically, it is assumed that the camera holding device 20 is installed in a place where an image as shown in FIG. 3A is acquired, and the ID information of the camera holding device 20 is “1”. In this case, the trimming range is set and the number of pixels of the acquired image is set to 1600 × 1200. In addition, the shooting scene mode is set to “near view”, and the zoom magnification, sensitivity, exposure conditions, and the like corresponding to the shooting scene mode are set.
[0027]
On the other hand, it is assumed that the camera holding device 20 is installed at a place where an image is acquired as shown in FIG. 3A and the ID information of the camera holding device 20 is “2”. In this case, the optical system is at the wide end, the range information to be trimmed is not set, and the number of pixels of the entire image to be acquired is set to 640 × 480. In addition, the shooting scene mode is set to “landscape”, and the zoom magnification, sensitivity, exposure conditions, and the like corresponding thereto are set.
[0028]
In this way, the shooting condition SC is set only by mounting the digital camera 1 on the camera holding device 20, and the convenience for the user can be improved. That is, when shooting with the digital camera 1 fixed, the shooting conditions SC need not be changed frequently because the shooting conditions are determined to some extent, unlike the digital camera 1 that is carried and used. Using this property, the shooting conditions SC are set for each camera holding device 20 using ID information. Then, when shooting is performed at a fixed place after the digital camera 1 is carried and used, the shooting conditions SC suitable for the shooting location can be immediately set.
[0029]
Note that the control means 10 performs control so that a free shooting condition SC can be set when the digital camera 1 is detached from the camera holding device 20. On the other hand, when the digital camera 1 is mounted on the camera holding device 20, control is performed so that shooting is performed using the shooting condition SC selected by the shooting condition selection unit 11. Thereby, it is possible to perform photographing under the optimum photographing condition SC even when carrying and using the camera, and when selecting a fixed photographing, the optimum photographing condition SC is automatically selected and the user's photographing condition is selected. Setting work can be omitted.
[0030]
As shown below, the condition table creation means 12 has a function tail that receives the imaging conditions SC set in the external device 30 from the transmission / reception means 6 and creates the condition table 11a. Specifically, FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of storing the condition table 11a in the digital camera 1. Creation of the condition table 11a (initial setting of the shooting condition SC) will be described with reference to FIG.
[0031]
First, the user attaches the digital camera 1 to the camera holding device 20 installed at a place where the user wants to take a picture (step ST1). Then, the ID information of the camera holding device 20 is detected by the detection means 7 and sent to the condition table creation means 12 (step ST2).
[0032]
In this state, the digital camera 1 performs photographing, and the photographed image is sent to the external device 30 via the transmission / reception means 6. Then, an image is displayed on the display unit of the external device 30, and the user sets the shooting condition SC while viewing the displayed image (step ST3). Thereafter, the set photographing condition SC is sent from the external device 30 to the condition table creation means 12 via the transmission / reception means 6. The condition table creation means 12 creates a condition table 11a that stores the shooting conditions SC associated with the ID information (step ST4).
[0033]
In this way, by setting the shooting condition SC by the external device 30, it is possible to set the optimal shooting condition SC for shooting from the place where the camera holding device 20 is installed. That is, the digital camera 1 is miniaturized so that it can be carried, and the display unit 4 of the digital camera 1 is also reduced accordingly. Therefore, it is more optimal to set the shooting condition SC while viewing the image on the display unit 4 of the external device 30 such as a personal computer than to set the shooting condition SC while viewing the display unit 4 of the digital camera 1. The condition SC can be set.
[0034]
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the digital camera 1. The operation example of the digital camera 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. First, the user attaches the digital camera 1 to the camera holding device 20 (step ST10). Then, the ID information is detected by the detecting means 7, and the photographing condition SC corresponding to the ID information is set by the photographing condition selecting means 11 (step ST11). Thereafter, photographing is performed under the set photographing condition SC (step ST12), and the image P is transmitted from the transmission / reception means 6 to the external device 30 and stored.
[0035]
Thereafter, until the photographing trigger signal STr is received from the external device 30, the digital camera 1 enters a standby mode and is charged (steps ST13 and ST14). On the other hand, when the shooting trigger signal STr is transmitted from the external device 30, shooting is performed and an image is transmitted to the external device 30 (step ST12 to step ST14).
[0036]
According to the above embodiment, when the portable digital camera 1 that is portable is used as a surveillance camera or the like, the optimal shooting condition SC is set if the digital camera 1 is attached to the camera holding device 20. However, it is not necessary to set the shooting conditions SC again, and the convenience when the digital camera 1 is used both for portable and fixed shooting can be improved.
[0037]
Further, when the camera holding device is provided with the ID setting means 23 for setting one ID information among a plurality of ID information, the shooting location SC is different, for example, at daytime and nighttime. Even so, if the ID setting means 23 is changed by the user, the shooting condition SC can be easily changed, so that the setting operation of the shooting condition SC can be performed more efficiently.
[0038]
Furthermore, by transmitting the image P photographed by the transmission / reception means 6 to the external device 30, receiving the photographing condition SC transmitted from the external device 30, and creating a condition table using the received photographing condition SC, Shooting conditions can be set while viewing images captured by the external device 30, and the shooting conditions SC at the place where the camera holding device 20 is installed can be set to an optimum setting.
[0039]
The embodiment of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, although the case where the transmission / reception means 6 is provided on the digital camera 1 side in the above embodiment is illustrated, the camera holding device 20 is a grade capable of transferring data with the external device 30, and the digital camera 1 is a camera. Data may be transmitted / received via the holding device 20.
[0040]
4 illustrates the case where the condition table 11a is stored on the digital camera 1 side, the condition table 11a may be stored on the external device 30 side. In this case, the detected ID information is transmitted from the digital camera 1 to the external device 30, and is transmitted from the external device 30 to the control unit 10 via the transmission / reception unit 6. Then, the shooting condition SC transmitted as the shooting condition SC at the time of shooting is used.
[0041]
Furthermore, although the ID information setting means 23 of FIG. 2 has illustrated the case where it consists of a dial etc., it may consist of the memory which memorize | stored ID information. In this case, the detection means reads the ID information stored in the memory. Further, the photographing condition SC itself is stored as ID information in this memory, and the photographing condition SC stored by the detecting means 7 may be read and photographing may be performed based on the photographing condition SC.
[0042]
In the above embodiment, the digital camera 1 that shoots a still image is illustrated, but the present invention can also be applied to a digital camera that shoots a moving image. In this case, even if the shooting trigger signal STr shown in FIG. 5 is not output, if the camera holding device 20 is attached, shooting is continued under predetermined shooting conditions SC.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a preferred embodiment of the photographing system of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a preferred embodiment of the digital camera of the present invention. FIG. 3 is set in the digital camera of FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an example of an image shot based on shooting conditions. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a method for initial setting of shooting conditions in the digital camera of FIG. 2. FIG. 5 shows an operation example of the digital camera of FIG. Flow chart [Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Digital camera 6 Transmission / reception means 7 Detection means 10 Control means 11 Imaging condition selection means 11a Condition table 12 Condition table creation means 20 Camera holding apparatus 30 External apparatus 100 Imaging system P Image SC Imaging conditions

Claims (7)

In a shooting system that takes a picture by attaching a portable digital camera to a camera holding device installed in a predetermined place,
The camera holding device includes ID information that specifies shooting conditions when shooting at a place where the camera is installed,
The digital camera is
A condition table storing the ID information and the shooting conditions in association with each other;
Detecting means for detecting the ID information of the camera holding device when attached to the camera holding device;
An imaging system comprising: an imaging condition selection unit that selects the imaging condition corresponding to the ID information detected by the detection unit from the condition table. The imaging system according to claim 1, wherein the camera holding device includes an ID setting unit that sets one ID information among a plurality of the ID information. The digital camera transmits a captured image to an external device, and transmits / receives means for receiving the shooting conditions transmitted from the external device, and a condition table for creating the condition table using the received shooting conditions The photographing system according to claim 1, wherein the photographing system is provided. The photographing system according to claim 1, wherein the photographing condition includes range information for trimming a photographed image. A digital camera that can be mounted on a camera holding device that is installed in a predetermined place and can be attached to a camera holding device having ID information that specifies shooting conditions when shooting at the place where the shooting is performed,
A condition table storing the ID information and the shooting conditions in association with each other;
Detecting means for detecting the ID information from the camera holding device;
An imaging condition selection means for selecting the imaging condition corresponding to the ID information detected by the detection means from the condition table;
A digital camera comprising: control means for controlling to perform photographing using the selected photographing condition. The control unit is configured to control an image captured while being mounted on the camera holding device to be transmitted from a transmission / reception unit that wirelessly transmits / receives data to an external device. 5. The digital camera according to 5. 7. The digital camera according to claim 5, wherein the control means enables photographing under freely set photographing conditions when the camera is detached from the camera holding device.

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