JP2006108982A - Image pickup device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To install illumination for making an object bright without making a main body large in an image pickup device having a key operation part arranged in the main body provided with an image pickup element. <P>SOLUTION: The image pickup device 1 is provided with: a main body part 2 having an image pickup means 14, an operation means 90 and an illumination means 96 illuminating the operation means on a flat face; a lid part 3; and a coupling part 4 coupling the main body part and the lid part so that they can freely turn by almost 360°. The device is also provided with: detection means 41a and 42a detecting that the lid part is turned to a position close to the other flat face of the main body part by the coupling part; and a luminescence control means 25 causing the illuminating means to strongly emit light when the detection means detects that the lid part is turned to the position close to the other flat face of the main body part. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus.

  As a conventional imaging device, for example, there is one disclosed in Patent Document 1. In this imaging apparatus, a lid body is joined to an end portion of a camera body by a hinge portion. The camera body is provided with an image sensor for a finder adjacent to the lens.

  The lid covers the front surface on which the lens of the camera body is provided during non-photographing, and is disposed at the rear of the camera body during photographing. The lid is provided with a finder on the surface of the camera body that covers the lens. This finder is arranged facing the back of the camera body at the time of shooting, and displays the subject image acquired on the image sensor (see Patent Document 1).

  By the way, in recent years, an imaging device is connected to a so-called foldable mobile phone in which a lid provided with a display unit and a main body provided with a key operation unit are connected so as to be folded and overlapped by a hinge unit. Mobile phones with cameras that are provided and use the display unit as a viewfinder are widespread.

  For example, a camera is rotatably incorporated in a hinge part that joins the main body and the lid so that the image sensor can be directed in the same direction as or in the opposite direction to the display part. Some have made it possible to photograph (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

  In the camera-equipped mobile phone described in Patent Document 2, it is necessary to incorporate the imaging device so that the imaging device can be turned in either the front or back direction, or to incorporate the imaging device on both the front and back surfaces of the lid, etc. Complicated and increased the number of parts.

It is also conceivable that the structure of the camera body and lid body of Patent Document 1 is applied to a folding camera-equipped mobile phone, thereby simplifying the structure and reducing the number of parts. In that case, at the time of shooting, when the surface of the lid provided with the display unit is directed to the user side, the surface of the main body provided with the key operation unit faces the subject side. An element is provided.
JP-A-8-331424 JP 2002-295445 A

  When the imaging device is provided on the surface of the main body on which the key operation unit is provided, the illumination device for brightening the subject is also provided on the surface of the main body on which the key operation unit is provided. However, if such a lighting device is separately provided on the surface provided with the key operation unit, there is a problem that the size of the mobile phone increases.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an illumination mechanism for brightening a subject without enlarging the main body in an image pickup apparatus such as a camera-equipped mobile phone that includes a key operation unit in the main body provided with an image pickup device.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the invention described in claim 1 includes, for example, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, an imaging unit (imaging lens 14), an operating unit (key operation unit 90), and this A main body portion (main body 2) including an illuminating means (first key illumination portion 96) for illuminating the operation means, a lid portion (lid body 3), and the main body portion and the lid portion can be rotated by approximately 360 °. In the imaging device (mobile phone 1) having a connecting portion (hinge portion 4) connected to the cover, the connecting portion detects that the lid portion has been rotated to a position close to the other plane of the main body portion. When the detection means (first angle detection unit 41a, second angle detection unit 42a) and the detection means detect that the lid has been rotated to a position close to the other plane of the main body, the illumination Light emission control means (current adjusting unit 25) Characterized in that it comprises and.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the lid is rotated to a position close to the other plane of the main body, so that the illumination means is made to emit strong light to brighten the subject when operated as an imaging device. be able to.

  Invention of Claim 2 is an imaging device of Claim 1, Comprising: If it detects that the said cover part was rotated to the position close | similar to the other plane of this main-body part by the said detection means, It further comprises cancellation means (gate unit 26) for canceling an input signal from the operation means.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the canceling unit cancels the input signal from the operation unit during imaging by the imaging unit, and malfunction can be prevented.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the electronic device according to the second aspect, wherein the operation means includes a numeric keypad for inputting numerical values (numeric keypad 102) and a key portion for performing other selection operations (various menus). Keys 92 to 95, 97 to 101), and the canceling means cancels an input signal from the numeric keypad portion.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the canceling unit cancels the input signal from the numeric keypad, so that the malfunction is prevented and the key part for performing the selection operation is pressed to activate the camera mode, for example. A selection operation can be performed.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the imaging apparatus according to the third aspect, wherein the illumination unit illuminates a key portion for performing the other selection operation (first key illumination). Part 96) and second illumination means (second key illumination part 103) for illuminating the numeric keypad portion, and the light emission control means makes the first illumination means emit strong light. And

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to suppress power consumption by causing only the first illumination unit to emit light strongly without causing the second illumination unit that illuminates the numeric keypad to emit strong light.

  According to the present invention, since the illumination unit that illuminates the operation unit emits strong light during imaging, the subject can be brightened without enlarging the main body, and the imaging apparatus can be downsized.

  Hereinafter, a mobile phone with a camera will be described in detail as a first embodiment of the present invention. The cellular phone 1 is generally configured by a main body 2, a lid body 3, and a hinge portion 4. The main body 2 and the lid body 3 are connected so as to be folded and overlapped by a hinge portion 4 at an end portion. Here, FIGS. 1 and 4 (a) are folded and closed (first folded state), FIGS. 2 and 4 (b) are opened, and FIGS. 3 and 4 (c) are described later. It is a figure which shows the mobile telephone 1 of the 2 folding state.

  The main body 2 is provided with an imaging lens 14, a key operation unit 90, and a call microphone 15 on one surface. The imaging lens 14 constitutes an imaging device together with an imaging device 141 and a DSP 142 described later.

  The key operation unit 90 includes various menu keys (camera key 92, address book key 93, mail key 94, network connection key 95), cursor key 97, enter key 98, on-hook key 99, clear key 100, An off-hook key 101 and a numeric keypad 102 are provided.

  Various menu keys are arranged in the vicinity of the imaging lens 14. Various menu keys activate various menu modes when operated by the user. The camera key 92 activates a camera mode described later. The address book key 93 activates the address book mode. The mail key 94 activates the mail mode. The net connection key 95 activates the net connection mode.

  The cursor key 97 is arranged at the center of various menu keys. The cursor key 97 is used to move the cursor up / down / left / right in various menu modes. The enter key 98 is arranged at the center of the cursor key 97. The enter key 98 is used to determine an option at a position where the cursor is located in various modes.

  An on-hook key 99 and an off-hook key 101 are used for an on-hook operation and an off-hook operation, respectively. The numeric keypad 102 is used for inputting characters and numbers. The clear key 100 is used for clearing the input from the numeric keypad 102, clearing various menu modes using various menu keys, and canceling an option at a position where the cursor is located in various modes.

An annular first key illumination unit 96 is provided on the outer periphery of the cursor key 97. The first key illumination unit 96 illuminates various menu keys and the cursor key 97, and also functions as flash illumination in a camera mode described later.
The second key illumination unit 103 is provided on the on-hook key 99, the clear key 100, the off-hook key 101, and the numeric keypad 102. The second key illumination unit 103 illuminates these keys.

  On the surface opposite to the surface on which the key operation unit 90 is provided, a battery cover 10 for storing a battery for driving the mobile phone 1 is provided.

The left side surface of the main body 2 is provided with an earphone microphone connector 8 and side key portions (seesaw switch 911 and push switch 912). The earphone microphone connector 8 inputs and outputs audio output when an earphone microphone is connected.
An IR communication unit 7 is provided on the lower surface of the main body for transmitting and receiving data with other mobile phones and the like by infrared communication.

  A voice call speaker 11, a main display unit 12, and a stereo speaker 13 are provided on a surface of the lid 3 that faces the same direction as the key operation unit 90 in the opened state, and a sub-surface is provided on the opposite side. A display unit 6 is provided. The main display unit 12 displays the current time, various modes, and the like during standby, and displays information about the sender and sender when receiving a call or receiving a mail. The sub display unit 6 displays the current time and the like during standby, and displays information about the sender and sender when receiving a call or receiving a mail.

  The hinge portion 4 includes a lid shaft 41 that rotatably connects the lid 3 to one end, and a body shaft 42 that rotatably connects the main body 2 to the other end. The lid body shaft 41 and the body shaft 42 rotate the lid body 3 or the body 2 from 0 to 180 ° with respect to the hinge portion 4. The lid body shaft 41 is provided with a first angle detector 41 a that detects an angle of the lid 3 with respect to the hinge portion 4, and the body shaft 42 is provided with a second angle detector 42 a that detects an angle of the body 2 with respect to the hinge portion 4. It has been. As will be described later, the function of the mobile phone 1 is switched by detection signals output from the first angle detection unit 41a and the second angle detection unit 42a.

  The first folded state shown in FIG. 1 is a position where the rotation angle of the main body 2 and the lid 3 on the main body shaft 42 and the lid shaft 41 is 0 °. 2 shows a case where the lid 3 is rotated by 160 ° with the lid shaft 41 from the state of FIG. In a state in which the lid 3 is rotated by 160 ° about the lid axis 41, the voice call speaker 11 is disposed at a position suitable for a call with respect to the user's mouth, and the call microphone 15 is located with respect to the user's ear. And placed in a position suitable for calls.

  Note that when the user himself / herself is photographed by the imaging device, the lid 3 can be rotated 180 ° with the lid shaft 41 and the main display unit 12 can be photographed while observing the photographed image. Further, in the state where the lid 3 is rotated 180 ° by the lid shaft 41, the mobile phone 1 can be used as a videophone.

  Further, the second folded state shown in FIG. 3 is a state in which the lid 3 is rotated 180 ° by the lid shaft 41 and the main body 2 is rotated 180 ° by the body shaft 42. In the second folded state, the key operation unit 90 and the main display unit 12 face in opposite directions. For this reason, the image which an imaging device image | photographs can be displayed on the main display part 12, and it can use as a camera which image | photographs subjects other than a user. In addition, the voice call speaker 11 and the stereo speaker 13 can be used as a stereo speaker, a TV image can be displayed on the main display unit 12, and the mobile phone 1 can be used as a TV.

  In addition, a notification LED is provided in the hinge portion 4. The notification LED lights and blinks when a call is received or when a mail is received to notify the user of the incoming or mail reception.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing communication / image / control processing of the cellular phone 1. The wireless processing unit 17 demodulates, shapes and digitally processes the 800 MHz to 2.4 GHz PSK signal received from the built-in antenna 16 built in the main body 2 and outputs the digital waveform signal to the control unit 18 at the subsequent stage. To do. Further, a signal output from the built-in antenna 16 is generated based on the digital waveform signal input from the control unit 18.

  The control unit 18 includes a signal processing unit 181, a system ROM 182, and an audio interface 183, and controls the entire mobile phone 1 including imaging control in the camera mode.

  The signal processing unit 181 converts the digital waveform signal input from the wireless processing unit 17 into a signal conforming to the corresponding communication method (CDMA method), and outputs the signal to the audio interface 183 at the subsequent stage if it is an audio signal. If it is a signal, it is output to bus B. In addition, when a digital audio signal that has been subjected to compression processing is input from the audio interface 183, the digital audio signal is converted into a digital signal in accordance with the communication method and output to the wireless processing unit 17.

  The system ROM 182 stores a basic system program of the mobile phone including user subscriber information and terminal identification information.

  The audio interface 183 compresses audio input via the call microphone 15 or the earphone microphone into a digital audio signal conforming to the QCELP system, and outputs the digital audio signal to the signal processing unit 181. On the other hand, the compressed digital audio signal output from the signal processing unit 181 is demodulated and output to the speaker switching unit 22.

  In the above communication method, when video data and audio data are multiplexed and wirelessly communicated, a videophone function is realized according to this (videophone mode). That is, while performing the voice call process, the video data received at the same time is output to the main display unit 12 and the video data captured through the imaging lens 14 is transmitted.

  The sound source IC 19 reads an audio signal (melody information) input from the bus B and outputs musical sound information data to be output to the D / A / AMP 20. The speaker driver 21 gives priority to the output from the D / A / AMP 20 until it detects off-hook (detects the operation of the off-hook key 101) after detecting the incoming call, and after the off-hook detection, the output from the audio interface 183. The switching control is performed so as to give priority to.

The speaker switching unit 22 sends the audio signal output from the audio interface 183 or the speaker driver 21 to either the earphone microphone connector 8, the voice call speaker 11, or both the voice call speaker 11 and the stereo speaker 13. Switch output.
The IR communication unit 7 transmits and receives data signals to and from other mobile phones 1 and the like by infrared communication.

  The first angle detection unit 41a detects whether or not the lid 3 has rotated 180 ° with respect to the hinge unit 4. If the lid 3 has rotated 180 °, the first angle detection unit 41a outputs a detection signal to the bus B. The second angle detection unit 41 detects whether the main body 2 has rotated 180 ° with respect to the hinge unit 4, and outputs a detection signal to the bus B if it has rotated 180 °.

  The display driver 23 is a circuit unit that generates a drive signal for driving the liquid crystal display devices of the sub display unit 6 and the main display unit 16. The LED control system driver 24 controls the main display unit 5, the first key illumination unit 96, and the second key illumination unit 103.

  The current adjustment unit 25 adjusts the amount of current flowing through the first key illumination unit 96 according to the detection signals of the first angle detection unit 41a and the second angle detection unit 42a and the operation of the side key unit to be described later. The key illumination unit 96 emits strong light.

  When neither the first angle detection unit 41a nor the second angle detection unit 42a outputs a detection signal, that is, in the first folded state, the current adjustment unit 25 does not pass a current through the first key illumination unit 96, and the first The 1-key illumination unit 96 is not allowed to emit light.

  When only one of the first angle detection unit 41a and the second angle detection unit 42a outputs a detection signal, that is, when the main body 2 and the lid 3 are opened by 180 °, the current adjustment unit 25 performs the first key illumination. A small amount of current (first current value) is passed through the unit 96 to cause the first key illumination unit 96 to emit light weakly and illuminate the cursor key 97 and surrounding keys.

  When both the first angle detection unit 41a and the second angle detection unit 42a output detection signals, that is, when the subject is photographed in the second folded state, the current adjustment unit 25 uses a larger current (second Current value) is passed through the first key illumination unit 96 to cause the first key illumination unit 96 to emit light strongly.

  The gate unit 26 controls whether the input signal from the numeric keypad 102 of the key operation unit 90 is output to the bus B as it is. When both the first angle detection unit 41a and the second angle detection unit 42a output detection signals, only the input signal from the numeric keypad 102 is converted into a NOP signal, and the operation of the numeric keypad 102 is invalidated. In other cases, an input signal from the key operation unit 90 including the numeric keypad 102 is output to the bus B. For this reason, malfunction due to an input signal from the numeric keypad 102 can be prevented.

  The reason why only the input signal from the numeric keypad 102 is canceled and the input signals from other keys are not canceled is because an instruction to shift to the camera mode by the camera key 92 becomes impossible.

  The side key portion includes a seesaw switch 911 and a push switch 912. The seesaw switch 911 functions as a zoom key for changing the camera magnification in the camera mode. The push switch 912 is normally depressed to place the cellular phone 1 in the manner mode, but acts as a shutter button in the camera mode.

  Further, in the camera mode, when the user performs a predetermined operation of the zoom key and the shutter button in the camera mode, the side key unit issues a light instruction to the current adjustment unit 25 and causes the first key illumination unit 96 to emit light strongly and function as a flash.

  The RAM 27 stores and manages various software including address book data, mail data, image files, and image processing application programs. The image processing unit 28 processes an image using an image processing application program or the like.

  The imaging device 141 sequentially converts the light intensity acquired via the imaging lens 14 into RGB current values in units of frames and outputs the current values to the DSP 142. The DSP 142 converts RGB current values input from the imaging device 142 into luminance color difference signal data, and further performs signal compression such as JPEG or MPEG and outputs the result to the bus B.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the mobile phone 1. First, it is determined whether or not a detection signal is output from the first angle detection unit 41a in the first folded state (step S1). If the detection signal is not output, the process returns to the top of the flowchart to maintain the standby state.

  When the detection signal is output, the display on the sub display unit 6 is turned upside down, the main display unit 12 is turned on, and the first key illumination unit 96 and the second key illumination unit 103 emit light weakly (step). S2). Then, it waits in a standby state (step S3).

  Next, it is determined whether or not a detection signal is output from the second angle detection unit 42a (step S4). When the detection signal is not output from the second angle detection unit 42a, it is determined whether or not the detection signal is output from the first angle detection unit 41a (step S16). If no detection signal is output from the first angle detection unit 41a, the process returns to the top of the flowchart to maintain the standby state. If a detection signal is output from the first angle detector 41a, the process returns to step S3 and waits in a standby state.

  When a detection signal is output from the second angle detection unit 42a, the mobile phone 1 is made usable as a television in the second folded state. That is, an input signal from the numeric keypad 102 is converted into a NOP signal for the gate unit 26, and the operation of the numeric keypad 102 is invalidated. In addition, preparation for driving the voice call speaker 11 and the stereo speaker 13 is performed, and the vertical and horizontal directions of the display on the main display unit 12 are switched (step S5). Then, it waits in a standby state (step S6).

  Next, an operation for shifting from the second folded state to the camera mode will be described. First, in the standby state, the presence / absence of a camera mode activation instruction is determined (step S7). If the operation of other various mode keys (address book key 93, mail key 94, network connection key 95) is detected without detecting the operation of the camera key 92 by the user, other mode processing (address book mode, Mail mode, network connection mode) is performed (step S17).

  When the operation of the camera key 92 by the user is detected, the imaging device 141, the DSP 142, and the image processing unit 28 are activated (step S8). Next, the image acquired by the imaging device 141 via the imaging lens 14 is displayed on the main display unit 12 through monitor (step S9).

  Next, it is determined whether or not there is a write instruction (step S10). If a light instruction is detected, the current adjustment unit 25 causes the first key illumination unit 96 to pass a second current value to cause the first key illumination unit 96 to emit light strongly (step S11). Next, it is determined whether or not the shutter button (push switch 912) is operated (step S12). If no write instruction is detected, the process proceeds to step S12.

  If the operation of the shutter button is not detected, the process returns to step S9 and the monitor through display is continued. When the operation of the shutter button is detected, the light intensity acquired by the imaging device 141 is sequentially converted into RGB current values in units of frames, the RGB current values are converted into luminance color difference signal data by the DSP 142, and signal compression is performed. And output to the bus B (step S13).

  Thereafter, the process stands by in the monitor-through display state (step S14), and if the operation of the on-hook key 99 is not detected (step 15), the process returns to step S12. On the other hand, when the operation of the on-hook key 99 is detected, the camera mode is terminated and the process returns to step S6.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the first key illumination unit 96 functioning as a key illumination for illuminating the various menu keys and the cursor key 97 is a flash combined illumination unit that also serves as a flash illumination for illuminating the subject in the camera mode. Become. For this reason, it is not necessary to separately provide flash illumination means on the main body 2, and the mobile phone 1 can be miniaturized.

  In the above embodiment, a foldable mobile phone has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to a mobile phone, and for example, in an imaging device in which an imaging means such as a CCD camera is provided in a PDA or other electronic device. Can be used. Of course, other specific detailed structures can be changed as appropriate.

1 is a perspective view showing a foldable mobile phone in a closed state as an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the state which opened the mobile telephone of FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a camera mode of the mobile phone of FIG. 1, where (a) is a view seen from the key operation unit side, and (b) is a view seen from the main display unit side. (A) is a side view of FIG. 1, (b) is a side view of FIG. 2, (c) is a side view of FIG. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing communication / image / control processing of the mobile phone shown in FIGS. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the mobile phone shown in FIGS.

Explanation of symbols

1 Mobile phone (imaging device)
2 Body (Main body)
3 Lid (lid)
4 Hinge part (connection part)
12 Main display unit 14 Imaging lens (imaging means)
18 Control unit (light emission control means)
25 Current adjuster (light emission control means)
26 Gate part (cancellation means)
41 Lid shaft 41a First angle detector (detector)
42 Main body shaft 42a Second angle detector (detector)
90 Key operation section (operation means)
92 Camera key 93 Address book key 94 Mail key 95 Net connection key 96 1st key illumination part (illumination means, 1st illumination means)
97 Cursor key 98 Enter key 99 On-hook key 100 Clear key 101 Off-hook key 102 Numeric keypad 103 Second key illumination unit (second illumination means)
141 Imaging device (imaging means)
142 DSP

Claims (4)

An imaging unit, an operation unit, and a body unit including an illumination unit that illuminates the operation unit on one plane, a lid unit, and a coupling unit that couples the body unit and the lid unit so as to be rotatable about 360 °. In an imaging apparatus having
Detecting means for detecting that the lid is rotated to a position close to the other plane of the main body by the connecting portion;
An image pickup apparatus comprising: a light emission control unit that causes the illumination unit to emit a strong light when the detection unit detects that the lid is rotated to a position close to the other plane of the main body. .   And a canceling unit for canceling an input signal from the operation unit when the detection unit detects that the lid unit has been rotated to a position close to the other plane of the main body unit. Item 2. The imaging device according to Item 1. The operation means is composed of a numeric keypad for inputting numerical values and a key portion for performing other selection operations.
The imaging apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the cancel unit cancels an input signal from the numeric keypad. The illumination means includes a first illumination means for illuminating a key portion for performing the other selection operation, and a second illumination means for illuminating the numeric keypad portion,
The imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the light emission control unit causes the first illumination unit to emit strong light.

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