JP2006174253A - Imaging apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging apparatus capable of easily recognizing blurring of a photographed image or camera shake without any particular operation. <P>SOLUTION: When a shutter button of an operating key 50 is depressed, an image generated from an object image is temporarily stored on an SDRAM 30 as digital data. If an MPU 28 determines the image as a camera shake image or blurring image, it is notified to a user by display or voice output, a sharp portion of the image is detected and displayed on a TFT 40 while being displayed to select whether or not the image is to be recorded on a memory card 34. In accordance with selection of the user, the MPU 28 records the image stored on the SDRAM 30 on the memory card 34 or discards that image. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus that captures an image using an imaging element such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device).

When the camera's autofocus is falsely focused, or when the movement of the shooting subject is faster than the shutter speed, “blur” or “blur” occurs in the shot image. The digital camera has a great advantage that the captured image can be confirmed immediately, but the TFT (Thin Film Transistor) liquid crystal display mounted on the digital camera has a low resolution, so that the blurred or blurred image is generated. Confirmation is difficult. For this reason, it is common to be disappointed to notice blur or blur after displaying an image on a personal computer or the like after shooting.
On the other hand, there is a digital camera that enlarges and displays the focus position as described in Patent Document 1, and a printer that notifies a user of a failed image before printing as described in Patent Document 2.
JP-A-11-196301 JP 2002-187329 A

However, as with the digital camera that enlarges and displays the focus position described above, it is very complicated to enlarge and confirm the image every time it is taken. In addition, the printer that notifies the user of the failed image before printing sets the recording medium on which the captured image is recorded in the printer and selects the failed image before printing. The failed image remains on the recording medium until printing, which is inconvenient when the capacity of the recording medium is small.
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an imaging apparatus that can easily recognize blurring or blurring of a captured image without any special operation.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and the invention according to claim 1 is an image pickup apparatus that displays on a display means an image taken by an image pickup device that photoelectrically converts optical imaging. Temporary storage means for temporarily storing captured images, blur / blur detection means for detecting blur or blur of an image stored in the temporary storage means, and the temporary storage means by the blur / blur detection means When no blur or blur of the stored image is detected, the entire image is displayed on the display unit. On the other hand, when a blur or blur of the image is detected, the image is displayed on the display unit. And a control means for enlarging and displaying a partial area of the image pickup apparatus.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the imaging apparatus according to the first aspect, information notified to the user when the blur / blurring of the image stored in the temporary storage unit is detected by the blur / blur detection unit. Notification means, and when the blur / blur detection means does not detect blur or blur of the image stored in the temporary storage means, the control means displays the image in a predetermined folder on the recording medium. On the other hand, when blurring or blurring of the image is detected, the image is recorded in a folder different from the folder on the recording medium or discarded according to a user operation.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the imaging apparatus according to the second aspect, the blur / blur detection unit further includes a sharp part detection unit that detects a sharp part in the captured image. When a blur or blur of an image is detected, a partial area of the image displayed on the display unit in an enlarged manner is a region including a part detected by the sharp portion detection unit.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the imaging apparatus according to the third aspect, the sharp part detecting means detects the sharpest part in the photographed image.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the imaging apparatus according to the third aspect, the sharp part detecting means extracts a plurality of sharp parts from the photographed image, and the extracted plurality of parts. The method is characterized in that a part closest to the center of the image is detected.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an imaging apparatus that captures an image with an imaging element that photoelectrically converts optical imaging, a recording medium that records the captured image, and a blur or an image recorded on the recording medium. Blur / blur detection means for detecting blur, information notification means for notifying a user when blur / blur of an image recorded on the recording medium is detected by the blur / blur detection means, and recording on the recording medium Sequentially read out the images, and if the blur / blur is detected by the blur / blur detection means, move the image to a preset folder or a folder specified by the user or delete the image And a control means for notifying the user that the blurring or blurring of the image has been detected by the information notification means. That.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the imaging apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, the information notification unit is a display device or an audio output device.

According to the present invention, it is possible to save the capacity of a recording medium by detecting blurring or blurring of an image at the time of shooting and selecting whether to record on a recording medium such as a memory card. In addition, since blurring or blurring of an image is detected at the time of shooting, re-shooting is possible on the spot, and shooting of an important scene does not fail.
In addition, by automatically detecting and enlarging and displaying a portion of a photographed image where blur or blur is likely to be detected, the user can easily check blur or blur.
In addition, it is easy to check the captured image later by detecting blur or blur of the image at the time of shooting, and saving the image where blur or blur is detected and the image not detected in different folders on the recording medium. It becomes.
Further, it is possible to save time and effort for the user to check by extracting blurs or blurs at once after shooting for a plurality of shot images.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, taking a digital camera 10 as an imaging device as an example. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a digital camera 10 according to this embodiment. The CCD 16 outputs an electrical signal according to the subject image formed through the lens 12 of the digital camera 10, and an image obtained by converting and correcting the electrical signal is converted into digital data as SDRAM (Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory). 30 and is recorded in the memory card 34 by the user's selection.

The lens 12 forms an object on the CCD 16. A focus adjustment motor and a zoom motor provided on the lens are driven by a motor driver 14 to perform focus adjustment and magnification adjustment.
An optical image of a subject formed on the CCD 16 by the lens 12 is photoelectrically converted into an image signal by the CCD 16, and an analog electric signal including a signal sequence of pixel signals received by each pixel of the CCD 16 is output.

  The AFE 18 includes a TG (timing generator) 20, an AGC (auto gain control) 22, and an ADC (analog / digital converter) 24. The TG 20 generates and supplies a timing signal for controlling the CCD 16. The AGC 22 adjusts the sensitivity of each color of R (red), G (green), and B (blue) input from the CCD 16. The ADC 24 converts R, G, and B color components of each pixel signal input from the AGC 22 into a digital signal and outputs the digital signal to the bus line 52.

An SIO / PIO (serial input / output / parallel input / output) 26 transmits a control signal to the motor driver 14 and the AFE 18 in accordance with an instruction from an MPU (microprocessor unit) 28.
The MPU 28 has a ROM (Read Only Memory) for storing a control program and constant data, controls each part according to this control program, and signals output from the key interface 48 to the bus line 52 by operation of the operation keys 50. Is detected and the operation of each part is controlled. The MPU 28 also controls the motor driver 14 and the AFE 18 via the SIO / PIO 26 to perform autofocus control and automatic exposure control. The autofocus control performs focus control by transmitting a signal for driving the focus adjustment motor of the lens 12 to the motor driver 14. The automatic exposure control is performed by adjusting the lens aperture of the lens 12 and the shutter speed of the CCD 16, that is, the charge accumulation time, by controlling the motor driver 14 and the TG 20. Further, the MPU 28 temporarily stores the image output from the ADC 24 to the bus line 52 in the SDRAM 30 and performs white balance adjustment. In the white balance adjustment, the color deviation of the image due to the difference in the light source is corrected, and the level conversion of each color component of R, G, B of the image output from the ADC 24 is performed so that the white subject is reproduced white.
The SDRAM 30 temporarily stores an image obtained by imaging and stores data in the processing of the MPU 30.

  The image processing 36 performs interpolation, tone correction, edge enhancement, etc. on the image stored in the SDRAM 30. As a result, a displayable image is obtained. Interpolation creates a new pixel between pixels or thins out pixels. As a result, it is possible to output with an image size larger than the image size obtained from the actual number of pixels of the CCD 16. The tone correction leaves the gradation of the shadow portion that can be generated due to backlight and over-order light that tends to be crushed in black, and obtains an image closer to the impression seen by the human eye. In edge enhancement, an appropriate filter is applied to the original image to sharpen the image. Finally, YC signal processing is performed, and the processed image is stored in the SDRAM 30. This YC signal processing generates a luminance signal Y and chroma signals Cr and Cb.

A JPEG (joint photographic expert group) processing unit 42 compresses an image obtained by imaging.
The card interface 32 writes data to or reads data from the memory card 34.
The video interface 38 controls the TFT 40. The TFT 40 is a liquid crystal display on which an image obtained by imaging and various information are displayed.
The operation key 50 includes a shutter button and other keys used for operations. When the operation key is operated by the user, a corresponding signal is output from the key interface 48 to the bus line 52.
The speaker 46 is controlled by the audio interface 44 and notifies the user of information by outputting sound.

Next, the operation of the above-described digital camera 10 will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the digital camera 10.
When the user presses the shutter button of the operation keys 50 of the digital camera 10, an image is taken (step S1). That is, as described above, the MPU 28 performs autofocus control and autoexposure control, and stores Raw data, which is image data output from the ADC 24 to the bus line 52 and has not been processed, in the SDRAM 30 (step S2). White balance adjustment and development processing (step S3) are performed and stored in the SDRAM 30 (step S4).

Next, blur / blur detection is performed (step S5). Here, the operation of blur / blur detection will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of blur / blur detection. First, the luminance signal Y (Y image) among the images stored in the SDRAM 30 is subjected to a Laplacian filter, which is an HPF (high pass filter) (step S21). The Laplacian filter is a digital filter used for edge detection of an image. This process is performed for each pixel by obtaining a value from the value of that pixel and its neighboring pixels. FIG. 4 shows the coefficients used when obtaining values for each pixel. This is because if the value of a pixel with coordinates (i, j) is expressed as f (i, j), for the pixel with coordinates (i, j), the value of the pixel is multiplied by 4 and the coordinates are (i −1, j−1), (i−1, j + 1), (i + 1, j−1), and (i + 1, j + 1) pixel values are multiplied by (−1), and these values are added to obtain a value. Represents a request for. That is,
f (i, j) × 4 + f (i−1, j−1) × (−1) + f (i−1, j + 1) × (−1) + f (i + 1, j−1) × (−1) + f ( i + 1, j + 1) × (−1)
Find the value of. Note that there are no 3 × 3 adjacent pixels for the coordinates of the edge of the screen, but in such a case, for example, a non-existing portion of the 3 × 3 adjacent pixels is an average value of the existing pixels. Perform the above calculation after filling.

  The values calculated for all the pixels as described above are divided into 8 × 8 pixel minute blocks as shown in FIG. 5, and the processing from step S24 to step S29 is performed for each block. Steps S24 to S26 count the number of blocks in which the image is sharp, and steps S27 to S29 determine the position of the block in which the image is sharp, that is, detect a sharp portion in the image. is there. In these steps, an 8 × 8 pixel micro block to be evaluated is specified (step S23), and all blocks are sequentially processed.

  First, in step S24, the maximum value and the minimum value in the 8 × 8 pixel are specified, and the difference between the maximum value and the minimum value is calculated. It can be said that the larger the difference is, the firmer the edge is and the sharper the image is. This calculation result is used to determine a blurred / blurred image. In step S25, it is determined whether the value calculated in step S24 is greater than or equal to a predetermined value. If the determination is “YES”, the flow proceeds to step S 26, and 1 is added to the counter. On the other hand, if the determination result is “NO”, the process proceeds to Step S27.

  In step S27, an average of absolute values of 8 × 8 pixels is calculated. Next, in step S28, it is determined whether the value calculated in step S27 is greater than or equal to a predetermined value. If the determination result is “YES”, the process proceeds to step S 29, and the coordinates and the average value calculated in step S 27 are set and stored in the SDRAM 30. Here, for example, the coordinates of one of the four pixels in the center of 8 × 8 pixels, for example, the upper left pixel are used as the coordinates. On the other hand, if the determination result of step S28 is “NO”, the process proceeds to step S30.

In step S30, it is determined whether the 8 × 8 pixel block evaluated in steps S24 to S29 is the final block. If there is a block that has not been evaluated yet, the determination result is “NO”, and the process returns to step S23. On the other hand, if all blocks have been evaluated, if the determination result is “YES”, the flow proceeds to step S31.
In step S31, it is determined whether the counter value is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value. If the determination result is “YES”, the process proceeds to step S33 to determine that the image is blurred / blurred. The MPU 28 performs a display for notifying the TFT 40 that blur or blur has been detected via the video interface 38. This notification may be performed by the MPU 28 outputting a warning sound indicating that blur or blur has been detected from the speaker 46 via the audio interface 44. On the other hand, if the determination result in step S31 is “NO”, the process proceeds to step S32 to determine that the image is not a blurred / blurred image.

Returning to FIG. 2, if the result of the blur / blur detection in step S5 described above is determined to be a blur / blur image, the determination result in step S6 is “YES”, and the flow proceeds to step S9. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S5 that the image is not blurred / blurred, the determination result in step S6 is “NO”, and the flow proceeds to step S7.
In step S7, the MPU 28 displays the entire image stored in the SDRAM 30 on the TFT 40 through the video interface 38. In step S8, the MPU 28 displays the image stored in the SDRAM 30 through the card interface 32. And finish the process.

In step S29 of blur / blur detection described with reference to FIG. 3, the coordinates and average value are stored in the SDRAM 30 as a set. In step S9 of FIG. 2, the coordinate having the maximum average value is selected. The block including these coordinates is the sharpest part in the image.
The coordinates selected here may be selected from the set of coordinates and average values stored in the SDRAM 30 and closest to the coordinates of the center of the image. A block including the coordinates is a portion closest to the center of the image among a plurality of sharp portions extracted in the image.
Next, the surrounding area including the selected coordinates is enlarged and displayed on the TFT 40 (step S10). For example, when the number of pixels of the image stored in the SDRAM 30 is 1280 × 960 pixels, an area of 320 × 240 pixels having the selected coordinates as the center coordinates is displayed on the entire TFT 40 by performing interpolation or the like. To do.

Next, the MPU 28 displays to select whether or not to record the image displayed on the TFT 40 on the memory card 34. If the user selects to record, the determination result in step S11 is “YES”, and step S8. , The image stored in the SDRAM 30 is recorded on the memory card 34, and the process is terminated. Here, when recording an image on the memory card 34, a folder for recording an image determined to be a blurred or blurred image is provided in order to distinguish it from an image that has not been determined to be a blurred or blurred image in step S6. May be recorded.
On the other hand, if the user selects not to record, the determination result is “NO”, the process proceeds to step S12, the image stored in the SDRAM 30 is discarded, and the process ends.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. For example, each time an image is shot, an image is recorded on the memory card 34 without performing blur / blur detection, and then all the images recorded on the memory card 34 are collectively detected for blur / blur. . FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the collective blur / blurred image detection.
When the user performs an operation to instruct batch detection of blurred / blurred images with the operation key 50, the MPU 28 detects this operation, acquires card information of the memory card 34, and how many images are recorded on the memory card 34. It is detected whether it has been performed (step S41). If an image is recorded, the determination result in step S42 is “YES”, and the process proceeds to step S43. If no image is recorded, the determination result in step S42 is “NO”, and the process ends.

  Next, in step S43, one image is read from the memory card 34. The blur / blur detection described in FIG. 3 is performed on this image (step S44). If it is determined in step S44 that the image is blurred / blurred, the determination result in step S45 is “YES”, and the flow proceeds to step S46. On the other hand, if it is determined that the image is not blurred / blurred, the determination result is “NO”, and the flow proceeds to step S47.

In step S46, the blur / blurred image is moved or erased, and the user is notified that the blur or blur of the image has been detected. Here, whether the image is to be moved or deleted may be set in advance by the user. In step S46, the TFT 40 is displayed so as to specify whether the image is to be moved or deleted, and the user's specification is followed. May be. Further, the destination of movement of the image may be preset by the user, or displayed on the TFT 40 so as to designate the destination in step S46, and moved to the folder designated by the user with the operation key 50. May be. As a result, images determined to be blurred / blurred images can be collectively moved to a specific folder, saving the user from having to check.
Further, as notification that the blur or blur of the image has been detected, the MPU 28 may display that the blur or blur has been detected on the TFT 40 via the video interface 38, or the MPU 28 via the audio interface 44. A warning sound indicating that blur or blur has been detected may be output from the speaker 46.

  Next, in step S47, it is determined whether there is a next image on the memory card that is subject to blur / blur detection. If there is an image for which blur / blur detection is not performed, the determination result of step S47 is “YES”, and the process returns to step S43. On the other hand, if blur / blur detection is performed for all images on the memory card 34, the determination result is “NO”, and the process ends.

  The present invention is used for a digital camera, a cellular phone equipped with a CCD camera, and other devices equipped with an imaging device.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a digital camera 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the digital camera 10 in the first embodiment. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation of blur / blur detection of the digital camera 10. It is a figure which shows the coefficient of the high pass filter used for a blur and blur detection. It is a figure which shows the micro block which is a unit which evaluates in blurring / blurring detection. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the digital camera 10 in 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Digital camera 12 ... Lens 14 ... Motor driver 16 ... CCD
18 ... AFE
20 ... TG
22 ... AGC
24 ... ADC
26 ... SIO / PIO
28 ... MPU
30 ... SDRAM
32 ... Card interface 34 ... Memory card 36 ... Image processing 38 ... Video interface 40 ... TFT
42 ... JPEG processing unit 44 ... Audio interface 46 ... Speaker 48 ... Key interface 50 ... Operation keys 52 ... Bus line

Claims (7)

In an imaging apparatus that displays an image captured by an imaging element that photoelectrically converts optical imaging on a display means,
Temporary storage means for temporarily storing the captured image;
Blur / blur detection means for detecting blur or blur of the image stored in the temporary storage means;
When blur or blur of the image stored in the temporary storage unit is not detected by the blur / blur detection unit, the entire image is displayed on the display unit, while the blur or blur of the image is detected. And a control means for enlarging and displaying a partial area of the image on the display means. Further comprising information notifying means for notifying the user when the blur or blur of the image stored in the temporary storage means is detected by the blur / blur detection means,
The control means includes
When the blur / blurring of the image stored in the temporary storage unit is not detected by the blur / blur detection unit, the image is recorded in a predetermined folder on a recording medium, while the blur or blur of the image is recorded. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, wherein if detected, the image is recorded in a folder different from the folder on the recording medium or discarded in accordance with a user operation. The blur / blur detection means further comprises a sharp part detection means for detecting a sharp part in the photographed image,
When the blur or blur of the image is detected, a partial area of the image that is enlarged and displayed on the display unit is a region including a part detected by the sharp part detection unit. The imaging device according to claim 2.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the sharp part detecting unit detects a sharpest part in the photographed image.   The sharp portion detection means extracts a plurality of sharp portions in the photographed image, and detects a portion closest to the center of the image among the plurality of extracted portions. Item 4. The imaging device according to Item 3. In an imaging device that captures an image with an image sensor that photoelectrically converts optical imaging,
A recording medium for recording the captured image;
Blur / blur detection means for detecting blur or blur of an image recorded on the recording medium;
Information notification means for notifying a user when blur or blur of an image recorded on the recording medium is detected by the blur / blur detection means;
Whether to sequentially read the images recorded on the recording medium and move the image to a preset folder or a folder designated by the user when the blur / blur detection unit detects blur or blur of the image Or a control unit that deletes the image and notifies the user that the blur or blur of the image has been detected by the information notification unit;
An imaging apparatus comprising: The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the information notification unit is a display device or an audio output device.

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