JP2007110262A - Software for image appreciation and image storage device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a software for image appreciation which can easily classify and sort images picked up with a digital camera for photographing an image of a photographer when photographing an image of a subject and recording the images as photographer's information, and to provide an image appreciation apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: A computer program causes a computer to execute a step of displaying a first image obtained by picking up a subject on the basis of image storage data, in which the first image and correlated information about a second image of the image of the photographer of the first image, correlated to the first image are recorded; a step of reading the correlated information of the second image correlated to the displayed first image; and a step of displaying the second image on the basis of the correlated information of the second image. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to digital image viewing software and an image viewing apparatus.

  With a digital camera, the cost required for shooting may not increase so much even if a large number of images are shot, and a large number of images tend to be shot. In order to utilize and enjoy a large number of captured and stored images, it is important to organize and store the stored image data in an appropriate manner so that the image data of the desired image can be easily retrieved. is there.

  In order to organize and store image data, an attribute is assigned to each image. The attributes include, for example, shooting conditions including shooting date and time and exposure conditions. In the case of a digital camera equipped with a position detection device such as GPS, the shooting location can also be set as the attribute. In particular, the photographer information indicating the photographer of the image is an important attribute.

  In order to make good use of the photographer information, image viewing software or an image viewing apparatus corresponding to a recording method in a digital camera that records the photographer information together with the photographed image is important.

Patent Documents 1 and 2 are well known as digital cameras that automatically acquire photographer information when an image is captured by a digital camera.
In Patent Document 1, a fingerprint detection unit that reads a fingerprint of a finger pressing the shutter button is provided on a shutter button of a digital camera, and based on the read fingerprint, a photographed image is recorded in a corresponding image folder.
In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-171488, an iris pattern detection unit that reads an iris pattern of an eyeball looking into the viewfinder is provided in the viewfinder eyepiece of the digital camera, and a person looking into the viewfinder based on the read iris pattern, that is, Record the photographer's attribute information in the photographed image. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-23733 discloses an image viewing apparatus that identifies human faces in stored and recorded images and arranges and records them in different file holders for each photographed person. W2O05-031612 In addition, in Patent Document 4, the first camera is mounted on the first surface of the casing of the mobile phone with a digital camera, and the second surface on the back side of the first surface is also a second one. It is disclosed that a camera is mounted and selection means for selecting a camera to be photographed is provided. This allows you to take a picture of your face with the first camera while taking a mobile phone with a camera in your hand, or to take a picture of the scenery you are looking at with the second camera. Can do. Further, there is a disclosure that a combining unit that combines the images captured by the first camera and the second camera is also provided, and a combined photograph in which the two images are combined can be taken or combined after shooting. JP2004-147048

  In the case of the digital camera described in Patent Document 1 or Patent Document 2, a new function that does not contribute to image shooting, such as a fingerprint detection unit or an iris pattern detection unit, must be added to the digital camera. Contributes to up.

  Moreover, in the digital camera described in Patent Document 2, it is essential to look into the viewfinder from the eyepiece. However, in many cases, the photographed image confirmation when photographing an image with a digital camera is performed not with the viewfinder but with a liquid crystal monitor displaying the photographed image. In this case, the digital camera described in Patent Document 2 cannot acquire photographer information.

In the image appreciation device described in Patent Literature 4, images can be classified and arranged based on the person photographed in the image, but cannot be arranged and classified based on the photographer of the image.
An object of the present invention is to provide image viewing software and an image viewing apparatus that can easily classify and organize images captured by a digital camera that captures a photographer image and records it as photographer information when capturing a subject image. That is.

  The invention according to claim 1 is an image storage in which a first image obtained by photographing an object and information related to a second image that is an image of a photographer of the first image and is associated with the first image are recorded. Displaying the first image based on the data; reading the related information of the second image associated with the displayed first image; and the second based on the related information of the second image. A computer program that causes a computer to perform the step of displaying an image.

  The related information of the second image can be the second image itself or a reduced second image having a smaller image size created based on the second image. The computer program may further include a step of creating the reduced second image based on the second image.

  The computer program corresponds to a step of displaying a display indicating a storage location created for each photographer in advance, a step of selecting an arbitrary display from the display indicating the storage location displayed, and the selected display. It is preferable that the method further includes a step of storing the first image in a storage destination.

The photographer of the first image displayed by the displayed second image or reduced second image can be easily confirmed, and the first images can be easily classified and organized based on the photographer.
The image storage data also records a thumbnail image of the first image. In the step of displaying the first image, in the step of displaying a plurality of thumbnail images of the first image and displaying related information of the second image The related information of the second image associated with each of the thumbnail-displayed first images can be displayed, and the second image can be displayed by a face analysis unit that obtains a facial feature amount of the face image. And determining the display order of the thumbnail images of the first image for each facial feature amount based on the obtained facial feature amount.

Since the thumbnail images of the first image are collected for each photographer, it is easier to specify the storage location.
The invention according to claim 8 is based on image accumulation data in which a first image obtained by photographing a subject and a second image that is associated with the first image and is a photographer's image of the first image are recorded. Displaying the first image, reading related information of the second image associated with the displayed first image, and reading the second image based on the related information of the second image. A step of obtaining a facial feature amount of the person of the read second image by a face analysis unit, and referring to the face database based on the obtained facial feature amount, An image viewing and organizing computer program characterized by causing a step of obtaining attribute information of a person and a step of storing the first image in a storage location corresponding to the determined attribute information. When the first image is viewed, the first image is automatically organized for each photographer.

  Furthermore, the invention according to claim 9 is an image in which a first image obtained by photographing a subject and information related to a second image that is an image of a photographer of the first image associated with the first image are recorded. An image storage apparatus having a storage database unit, a display unit, and a control unit that executes a computer program according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, from an external device, a first image obtained by photographing a subject, and related information of a second image that is associated with the first image and is a photographer of the first image, In a computer program to be read by an image storage apparatus having a face database in which face feature values and face person attribute information of the feature values are recorded in association with each other and a face analysis unit for obtaining the face feature values of the face image, According to the step of reading the first image and the second image, the step of causing the face analysis unit to determine the facial feature amount of the second image, and the facial feature amount prepared in advance A computer program that causes a computer to perform the step of storing the first image in a different storage location for each feature amount.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image storage apparatus in which the program of the tenth aspect is installed and the first image and the second image read by the program are recorded.

  When the captured image is read from the digital camera into the image storage device, the first image is automatically classified and arranged.

  A first embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a view showing the appearance of a digital camera 100 embodying the present invention. 1A is a view of the digital camera 100 as viewed from the front, and FIG. 1B is a view as viewed from the back. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the digital camera 100. A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the same reference numerals are assigned to corresponding components.

  The digital camera 100 includes a first imaging unit 10, a second imaging unit 20, a liquid crystal display unit 31, a recording unit 32, a control unit 33, and operation units such as various operation buttons and operation switches for operating the digital camera 100. Have The control unit 33 controls the entire electrical and electronic operations and various processes of the digital camera 100. The digital camera 100 has various functions normally provided by a commercially available digital camera. The digital camera 100 operates an operation unit corresponding to a desired function, or a desired function from various functions displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 31. By selecting, a desired function can be executed.

  In the operation unit, for example, the power switch of the digital camera 100 or the operation mode of the digital camera 100 is set as a shooting mode for shooting an image or a playback mode for playing back a captured and recorded image and displaying it on the liquid crystal display unit 31. An operation mode selection switch, a zoom operation switch for changing the focal length of the photographing lens, an area selection switch for selecting an area targeted for auto focus (AF) and automatic exposure control (AE), and the like are included. Furthermore, it is possible to select a selected continuous shooting mode or a moving image shooting mode from a menu displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 31.

  The recording unit 32 includes a removable storage medium, such as a Compact Flash (registered trademark) card memory (CF memory) or SD card memory, and a read / write device that reads / writes data from / to each of the recording media.

  The first photographing unit 10 includes a photographing lens 11, an image sensor 12, an A / D conversion unit 13, and an image processing unit 14. The number of pixels of the image sensor 12 is often about 2 million to several million pixels, but is not limited to this. The second photographing unit 20 includes a photographing lens 21, an image sensor 22, an A / D conversion unit 23, and an image processing unit 24. The number of pixels of the image sensor 22 is often about several hundred thousand to one million pixels, but is not limited thereto. Usually, the number of pixels of the image sensor 22 of the second imaging unit 20 is smaller than that of the image sensor 12 of the first imaging unit 10.

  The first photographing unit 10 converts an image of the subject 200 generated on the image sensor 12 by the photographing lens 11 into a digital signal by the A / D conversion unit 13 in the photographing mode for photographing an image of the subject. 14 to image. The imaged image of the first photographing unit 10 is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 31. A photographing lens 11 of the first photographing unit 10 is provided on one surface of the casing of the digital camera 100 with its optical axis direction substantially perpendicular to the surface. A liquid crystal display unit 31 is provided on the surface of the housing opposite to the surface on which the photographic lens 12 is provided.

  In the photographing mode, the liquid crystal display unit 31 displays an image formed on the image sensor 12 in real time. Therefore, the photographer observes the image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 31 of the digital camera 100 with the photographing lens 11 facing the subject 200 and being separated from his / her body by several tens of centimeters, thereby taking a state of the photographed image. Can be confirmed. That is, the liquid crystal display unit 31 is used as a viewfinder of the digital camera 100.

  When the shutter button 15 as one of the operation units is pressed, a shutter signal is transmitted from the shutter switch 41 to the control unit 33, and the control unit 33 records an image by the first imaging unit 10 when the shutter signal is input. Record in part 32.

  The imaging lens 21 of the second imaging unit 20 is provided on the surface of the digital camera 100 where the liquid crystal display unit 31 is provided. The optical axis direction of the photographing lens 21 is substantially opposite to the optical axis direction of the photographing lens 11. Therefore, when the digital camera 100 is held as described above in order to photograph a subject, an image of the photographer 300 is formed on the image sensor 22 by the photographing lens 21 of the second photographing unit 20 and digitally captured by the A / D conversion unit 23. The signal is converted into an image by the image processing unit 24. The optical axis direction and the field of view of the photographing lens 21 are set so that the photographer's face is photographed when the digital camera 100 is held for photographing by the first photographing unit 10.

  Since the image captured by the second imaging unit 20 is not for viewing and it is sufficient that the person in the image can be identified, the resolution and optical performance of the second imaging unit 20 are the same as those of the first imaging unit 10. Not as good as resolution or optical performance. The image size may be small. The person may be identified by visual observation or automatically using face recognition software, but the minimum necessary resolution differs in each case.

  By the way, camera-equipped mobile phones are commercially available. The camera-equipped mobile phone incorporates a camera unit including a photographing lens, an image sensor, an A / D converter, and an image processor. Recently, the performance of the camera unit of a camera-equipped mobile phone has been improved, and many of them satisfy the resolution and optical performance required for the second photographing unit 20. Accordingly, a camera unit for a camera-equipped mobile phone may be used as the second photographing unit 20, and a self-portrait camera unit provided on the same surface as the main display device can be preferably used. Note that the image processing unit 24 of the second imaging unit 20 can also serve as the image processing unit 14 of the first imaging unit 10.

  The control unit 33 uses the first imaging unit 10 to generate image data (hereinafter referred to as second image data) of an image (hereinafter referred to as second image) by the second imaging unit 20 when the shutter signal is input. The image is recorded in the recording unit 32 in association with image data (hereinafter referred to as first image data) of an image (hereinafter referred to as first image). That is, when the shutter button 15 is pressed, an image of the subject as the first image and an image of the photographer's face as the second image are generated, and the image data is associated with each other and the recording unit 32. To be recorded. That is, the second image is associated as photographer information of the first image, and is recorded as information for confirming who the photographer is.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram conceptually showing the structure of an image data file in which images taken by the digital camera 100 are recorded. The image data file 300 includes an image data main body portion 320 and a header portion 310. In the header portion 310, for example, attribute information indicating the attribute of the image data of the image data main body portion 320 is recorded. The JPEG standard that defines the format of an image data file defines a number of items that are considered necessary as attribute information of image data. For example, the file name, shooting date / time, equipment used, exposure conditions, author, copyright holder, and the like. You can also include a thumbnail image of the image itself. In addition, a free-use area for recording items that are not specified is also specified. The file name, shooting date / time, equipment used, exposure conditions, and the like are automatically recorded by the digital camera 100 when shooting.

  A first method for associating the first image with the second image will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the recording unit 32 is provided with a first holder 410 for the first image and a second holder 420 for the second image. The first holder 410 stores the first image data file 411 generated when the subject is photographed, and the second holder 420 stores the image data file 421 of the second image. At this time, information indicating the image data file 421 of the second image corresponding to the first image in the header portion of the image data file 411 of the first image, for example, the file name of the second image data (“DSC 2001” in FIG. 4). Is recorded. The information indicating the image data file of the second image is photographer information of the first image. A new item “photographer image” is set in the free use area of the header portion and recorded here. A new item “photographer” is also set in the free use area. Note that the recording capacity may be saved by not recording attribute information other than the file name for the second image. In the first holder 410 and the second holder 420, a first image data file and a second image data file corresponding to the number of images photographed by the digital camera 100 are recorded.

  The flow of processing in the shooting mode of the control unit 33 of the digital camera 100 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of the process. The process of FIG. 10 is started when the digital camera 100 is set to the shooting mode.

In step S <b> 11, the first image is acquired from the first imaging unit 10 and displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 31.
In step S12, it is determined whether or not the shutter button 15 is pressed and a shutter signal is input from the shutter switch 41. Steps S11 and S12 are repeated until a shutter signal is input. If a shutter signal is input, the process proceeds to step S13.

In step S13, the first image when the shutter signal is input is temporarily stored.
In step 14, it is determined whether or not the continuous shooting mode is set for the digital camera 100. If the continuous shooting mode is set, the process proceeds to step S15. If not set, the process proceeds to step S16. The continuous shooting mode includes a moving image mode.

  In step 15, it is determined whether or not a signal for ending continuous shooting is input. If the signal is not input, the process proceeds to step S151 to acquire the first image, and the process returns to step S13. Steps S13 to S15 and Step S151 are repeated until a signal for ending continuous shooting is input. When the signal is input, the process proceeds to step S16. A signal for ending the continuous shooting is output from the shutter switch 41 when the pressing of the shutter button 15 is finished.

  In step S <b> 16, the second image is acquired from the second imaging unit 20. When acquiring the second image, if the brightness of the liquid crystal display unit 31 is increased, that is, the brightness is increased to illuminate the photographer's face, an appropriate image can be taken even in a dark environment. Further, it is preferable to change the display content to increase the transmittance of the backlight of the liquid crystal display and increase the illumination light, for example, no display of the entire white color, while the luminance is increased. Only the change of display contents may be used. After the acquisition of the second image is completed, the original display is restored. The amount of light incident on the second imaging unit 20 may be detected and illuminated only when the amount is less than or equal to a predetermined amount of light.

  In step S17, the file name of the second image is recorded in the header portion of the first image. In the case of continuous shooting, the file name of the second image acquired in step S16 is recorded on each of the images shot by continuous shooting.

In step S18, the first image is stored in the first holder 410, and the second image is stored in the second holder 410.
And it returns to step S11 again in preparation for the next imaging.

The process of FIG. 10 ends when the digital camera 100 is set to a mode other than the shooting mode.
In FIG. 10, the second image is acquired after the acquisition of the first image is completed. However, for example, the second image may be acquired in response to the shutter button 15 being half-pressed. When the image processing unit 14 of the first image capturing unit 10 also serves as the image processing unit 24 of the second image capturing unit 20, the image processing starts immediately after acquiring the second image, but the first image is acquired. Then, the image processing of the first image is prioritized and the image processing of the second image is interrupted.

  In addition, after step S16, the in-focus state of the second image is checked, and if it is out of focus than the predetermined in-focus state, the first image is directly stored in the first holder and the process returns to step S11. May be added. When the state of the image to be shot is checked not by the liquid crystal display unit 31 but by an optical finder (not shown), the second image by the second shooting unit is completely out of focus and the second image is recorded. However, the second image is not associated with the first image or the second image is not recorded in the recording unit 32, so that the recording capacity of the recording unit 32 is saved.

  Image data of an image captured and recorded by the digital camera 100 is read into an image appreciation device for appreciation and image storage, and is recorded in a large-capacity recording unit such as a hard disk of the image appreciation device. Image reading software is used for reading the image data. As shown in FIG. 5, the recording unit 500 of the image viewing apparatus includes a first storage holder 510 and a second storage holder 520. The image data file of the first holder 410 in FIG. 4, that is, the image data file of the first image is stored in the first storage holder 510, and the image data file of the second holder 420, that is, the data file of the second image is stored in the second storage holder 520. To be recorded. Examples of the image appreciation device include a dedicated device and a personal computer (PC). In either case, a television may be used as a display unit for displaying an image. Image viewing software is installed in the image viewing device.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration of an image viewing screen by the software. There are an image display area 610 for displaying an appreciation image, an attribute display area 620 for displaying attribute information of the image being displayed in the image display area 610, and a processing instruction field 630. The software reads the first image data from the first storage holder 510 and displays the image in the image display area 610. Further, attribute information is read from the header portion of the first image data, and items other than the “photographer image” column are displayed in the attribute display area 620. Also, an image data file that matches the information read from the “photographer image” field—the image data file name of the second image corresponding to the first image as described above—is read from the second storage holder 520 and the image is read. Are displayed in a part of the photographer display area 621 of the attribute information column 620. Note that whether or not to display the second image in the photographer display area 621 can be selected by the viewing software.

  In the processing instruction column 630, in order to store the image data file in an organized state, a plurality of holder figures 640 indicating the recording destination holder of the image data file of the image being displayed, and image data of the image that does not need to be stored An erase button 650 for instructing to erase the file is displayed. The plurality of holder graphics 640 include holder graphics 641 and 642 named “photographer: Taro”, “photographer: Hanako”, and the like for organizing images for each photographer. In addition, for example, holder graphics 643, 644 and the like whose names are the names of events to be photographed and photographing locations are included. The first storage holder 510 in FIG. 5 has sub-storage holders corresponding to the holder figures 641, for example, the same names as the names of the holder figures, for example, the sub-storage holders 511 and 512 named “Taro” and “Hanako”. Is provided.

  When an arbitrary holder graphic, for example, “Hanako” 642 is selected by a method such as a mouse click in a state where the first image is displayed in the image display area 610, the sub-storage holder “Hanako” 512 in the first storage holder 510 is An image data file of the image being displayed is stored in the image display area 610. At the same time, the name “Hanako” of the sub storage holder that stores the image data file is recorded in the photographer column of the header portion of the stored image data file. Accordingly, even when the first image is stored in a disorderly manner, a search using the photographer name as a search keyword is possible. Note that the second image may be deleted from the second storage holder 520 when the name of the sub storage holder is recorded in the photographer field of the header portion. Recording capacity can be saved. Since the photographer name recorded in the photographer column of the header portion is displayed in the attribute display area 620 when viewing the image, there is no problem.

  When the delete button 650 is selected, the image data file of the currently displayed image is deleted from the first storage holder 510. At the same time, the second image data associated with the first image data file is also deleted from the second storage holder 520.

  The processing instruction field 630 includes a holder figure “new creation” 645. When the holder figure “create new” 645 is selected, the name of a new holder figure is input, and a holder figure with that name is newly added. At the same time, a sub storage holder with that name is newly provided in the first storage holder 510, and an image file of an image being displayed in the image display area 610 is stored in the sub storage holder. If there is no sub storage holder corresponding to the photographer, “Create New” 645 is selected.

  The image viewer appreciates the first image displayed in the image display area 610 and sees the second image displayed in the photographer display area 621 to confirm who the photographer of the first image is. Then, the holder figure with the corresponding name in the processing instruction column 630 is selected. For example, if the photographer is Hanako, the holder figure “Hanako” 642 is selected. As a result, the image data file of the image being displayed in the image display area 610 is stored in the corresponding sub accumulation holder “Hanako” 512. Thus, the images are organized into sub storage holders for each photographer.

  The flow of processing by the image viewing software will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the flow of the process. The process of FIG. 11 is started by starting image viewing software.

  In step S21, the names of all the sub storage holders provided in the first storage holder 510 are detected, and the holder graphic with the names is displayed in the operation instruction column 630. If there are a large number of sub-storage holders and they cannot be displayed in the operation instruction field 630, a holder figure “other” 646 for displaying a holder figure that is not displayed is displayed. indicate. The priority order is, for example, the order in which the number of selections is large or the order determined arbitrarily.

In step S22, the first image is read from the first storage holder and displayed in the image display area 610.
In step S23, the image data file name recorded in the “photographer image” column of the header portion of the image data file of the first image is read.

  In step S24, the second image is read from the second storage holder 520 and displayed in the photographer display area 621 based on the corresponding read image data file name. And it waits for selection operation to the holder figure displayed on the operation instruction column 630 or a button.

  In step S25, it is determined whether or not the selection to the operation instruction column 630 is the delete button 650, that is, whether or not it is an delete instruction. If it is not an erasure instruction, the process proceeds to step S26, and if it is an erasure instruction, the process proceeds to step S251.

  In step S <b> 26, it is determined whether or not the selection in the operation instruction field 630 is the holder figure “new creation” 645. If it is not “new creation” 645, the process proceeds to step S27, and if it is “new creation” 645, the process proceeds to step S261.

  In step S261, a holder name to be newly created is input, a sub storage holder of that name is generated in the first storage holder 510, and a holder figure with the name is displayed in the operation instruction column 630, and the process proceeds to step S27. move on.

  In step S27, the image data file of the image displayed in the image display area 610 is stored in the selected sub storage holder. If a new sub storage holder is generated in step S261, it is stored in the sub storage holder. Then, the process returns to step S22, and the process for the next first image is continued.

  When deletion is instructed in step S25, in step S251, the image data file of the first image displayed in the image display area 610 is deleted from the first storage holder and displayed in the photographer display area 621. The image data file of the second image is deleted from the second storage holder. Then, the process returns to step S22.

The process of FIG. 11 ends when the “END” button 660 displayed in the operation instruction field 630 is selected.
If the first image data file and the second image data file can be identified, they need not be recorded separately in separate holders. For example, a digital camera usually has a function of automatically assigning consecutive file numbers to image data files to be recorded. In view of this, the image data file may be recorded in the order of the first image and the second image for each shooting. The file number of the image data file of the first image is an odd number, and the file number of the corresponding image data file of the second image is an even number of the file number +1 of the image data file of the first image. The image viewing software can identify whether the image is the first image or the second image depending on whether the file number of the image data file is an odd number or an even number.

  The first image data file has a file name including a number starting with 1, and the second image data file has a file name including a number starting with 2, and corresponding image data of the first image and the second image. A method may be used in which the numbers following the first number included in each file name are the same. For example, the file name of the first image data file is “DSC1001”, “DSC1002”, the file name of the corresponding second image data file is “DSC2001”, “DSC2002”, etc. What is necessary is just to make it perform the said process by recognizing the image data file which contains the number of 1000s in a name as a 1st image.

  A second method for associating the first image with the second image will be described. The image processing unit 24 creates reduced second image data having the same image size as the thumbnail image based on the second image data, and the reduced second image data is provided in the header portion of the first image data file. Recorded in the "person image" field. Of course, if the recording capacity of the recording unit 32 is sufficient, the second image data may be recorded as it is in the “photographer image” column. In addition, it is not necessary to provide the 2nd holder in the recording part 32. FIG.

  A processing flow in the shooting mode of the control unit 33 of the digital camera 100 adopting the second method will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the flow of the process. Steps S16 and S16 in FIG. 12 are the same as those in FIG. 10 and thus will not be described. Only steps S171 and S181 different from those in FIG. 10 will be described.

  In step S171, the reduced image is created based on the second image acquired in step S16. The reduced image is recorded in the “photographer image” column of the header portion of the image data file of the first image.

  In step S181, the image data file of the first image in which the reduced second image is recorded in the header portion is recorded in the recording unit 32. And it returns to step S11 again in preparation for the next imaging.

  The image storage device reads the first image data file in which the reduced second image data is recorded in the header portion and records it in the large capacity recording portion. There is no need to provide the second storage holder in the large-capacity recording unit.

  The image viewing software reads the first image data and displays the image in the image display area 610. Further, the reduced second image data is read from the header portion of the first image data file, and the image is displayed in the photographer display area 621.

The processing instruction field 630 and the procedure for viewing and organizing images are almost the same as those in the first method.
The process flow of the image viewing software will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In the flowchart of FIG. 13, step S23 and step S24 of the flowchart of FIG. 11 are set as step S231, and step S521 is set as step S252. The other parts are the same, and only different parts will be described. Following step S22 in FIG. 11, the following processing is performed.

  In step S231, the reduced second image data is read from the header portion of the first image data file of the image displayed in the image display area 610, and the image is displayed in the photographer display area 621. And the process after step S25 of FIG. 11 is continued. At that time, in step S252, the image data file of the first image is deleted. The reduced second image data recorded in the header portion is also deleted.

  Next, a case where image data is read from the digital camera 100 to the image appreciation device by using image reading software having a function different from the above will be described. This image reading software includes a face recognition unit. The face recognition unit is a face database (face DB) in which information indicating facial feature quantities for identifying a person's face and attribute information of the person, such as a name, is recorded in association with each other (see FIG. 7). And a face analysis unit for obtaining a feature amount of a human face. The feature amount for identifying a human face includes, for example, the distance between both eyes, the relative position between both eyes and the nose, and the contour shape of the face. A technique for identifying a face by combining a plurality of them is known.

  The face recognition unit reads a face image, analyzes a person's face in the image to obtain a face feature amount, identifies the person by referring to the face DB based on the found feature amount, and the corresponding person Attribute information such as name is output.

  When reading the first image data file from the digital camera 100, the image reading software reads the image data of the second image associated with the first image into the face recognition unit.

  The image data of the second image is read from the second holder 420 when the first image and the second image are associated by the first method. However, when the first image data file and the second image data file are identified by the file number or the like, the file may be read from the first holder 410. If they are associated by the second method, they are read from the header portion of the image data file of the first image. In the latter case, the image data of the reduced second image is read.

  Then, the face recognition unit obtains the attribute information of the person of the face of the second image, and the first image data file is stored in the sub accumulation holder corresponding to the output. The output of the face recognition unit is photographer information indicating the photographer of the first image. As a result, when the image data is read from the digital camera 100 to the image viewing device, the first image data file is automatically stored in a different sub accumulation holder for each photographer.

The processing flow of the image reading software will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
In step S141, the first image and the second image associated therewith are read from the digital camera 100.

In step S142, the read second image is input to the face recognition unit.
In step S143, the face recognition unit analyzes the facial feature amount of the second image and receives the attribute information of the person of the face of the second image, for example, the name output, which is obtained by referring to the face DB.

  In step S144, the received attribute information is recorded in the “photographer” column of the header portion of the image data file of the first image. This step is not indispensable, but it is convenient because a keyword search of image viewing software can be performed when viewing an image later.

  In step S145, it is determined whether or not the first storage holder of the image viewing apparatus has a sub storage holder corresponding to the attribute information. If there is a corresponding sub storage holder, the process proceeds to step S146, and if not, the process proceeds to step S1451.

In step S146, the image data file of the first image is stored in a sub storage holder corresponding to the attribute information in the first storage holder of the image viewing device.
In step S1451, a new sub storage holder is created and associated with the attribute information. Then, the process proceeds to step S146. In step S146, the image data file of the first image is stored in the newly created sub storage holder.

  In step S147, it is determined whether there is an unprocessed image in the DSC, that is, whether image data still remains. If it remains, the process returns to step S141 and the same processing is repeated for the remaining images. If not, the process ends.

  The face recognition unit is provided in the image viewing software, and when the image viewing software displays an image of the first image data file that is not organized for each photographer in the image display area 610, the face recognition unit performs a second operation. The image data is read to identify the person of the second image, and the first image data file is stored in the sub-storage holder for each photographer according to the identification result, and “photographer” of the header portion of the first image data file is stored. The photographer name can also be recorded in the "" column. As a result, by viewing the captured image, the first image data is automatically stored in a state in which the sub storage holder is divided for each photographer. The second image data may be deleted when the photographer name is recorded in the “photographer” column of the header portion of the first image data file.

  The processing by the image viewing software for the above is almost the same as the processing shown in FIG. 14, and the first image and the second image are read from the digital camera 100 in step S141 in FIG. The large-capacity storage unit.

  A second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a digital camera 100A according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is obtained by adding a face recognition unit 51 to the configuration of FIG. The face recognition unit 51 includes a face database (face DB) (see FIG. 7) 52 and a face analysis unit 53. The same components as those in FIG. In the face DB 52, information indicating the feature amount of a face for identifying a person's face and attribute information of the person, for example, a name are recorded in association with each other. The feature amount for identifying the face includes, for example, the distance between both eyes, the relative position between both eyes and the nose, and the contour shape of the face. A technique for identifying a face by combining a plurality of them is known.

  The face recognition unit 51 reads a real-time first image, detects a person's face included in the image, obtains a feature amount thereof, and refers to the face DB 52 to identify a person photographed in the first image The attribute information of the person who performs, for example, the name is output to the control unit 33. The attribute information is information indicating a person photographed in the first image. The control unit 33 superimposes the attribute information on the first image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 31 and records the first image at that time in the recording unit 32 in response to pressing of the shutter button 41 and the attribute information. Is recorded in the recording unit 32 in association with the first image. For example, the attribute information is recorded as attribute data of the first image in the header portion of the image data file of the first image. The attribute information is used as search information for detecting an image in which a desired person is photographed when viewing an image.

  Further, the face recognition unit 51 reads the second image taken at the time of taking the first image, identifies the person photographed in the second image with reference to the face DB 52, and obtains the attribute information of the corresponding person as the first image. And is recorded in the recording unit 32. For example, a holder for each predicted photographer is created in the recording unit 32 in advance, and the first image is recorded in a holder that matches the attribute information of the person in the second image obtained by the face recognition unit 51. Alternatively, the name of the person of the second image is recorded in the header portion of the image data of the first image.

  The face DB 52 is used as both a database for identifying a person photographed in the first image and a database for identifying a person photographed in the second image. The face DB 52 is provided with a photographer reference holder, and this holder is preferentially referred to for the second image. Since the number of photographers is often limited to some extent, this makes it possible to shorten the database reference time. When the corresponding data is not found in the photographer reference holder, the entire face DB unit 52 is referred to.

  If the recording format of the image data is JPEG, a dedicated item “photographer” is provided in the free use area defined in the JPEG standard, and is recorded there. You may record in the column of "author" of the item prescribed | regulated to a JPEG specification, and the "copyright holder".

  As a result, the image data file of the first image in which the attribute information of the photographed person is associated with the attribute information of the photographer is recorded in the recording unit 32. That is, the attribute information of the person photographed in the first image and the attribute information of the person photographed in the second image are associated with the first image. The former (attribute information of a person photographed in the first image) is subject information, and the latter (attribute information of a person photographed in the second image) is photographer information.

  The flow of processing in the shooting mode of the control unit 33 of the digital camera 100A will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The flow of the processing is obtained by changing the processing in steps S17 and S18 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 10 to the processing shown in FIG. Only the process shown in FIG. 15 different from the flowchart of FIG. 10 will be described.

  In step S171, the face recognition unit obtains the face feature amount of the second image and refers to the face DB to determine whether or not there is a face corresponding to the found feature amount in the face DB. If there is a corresponding face, the process proceeds to step S172, and if not, the process proceeds to step S1771.

In step S172, the face recognition unit obtains the attribute information of the person of the face of the second image acquired in step S16. The method for obtaining the attribute information by the face recognition unit is as described above.
In step S173, the obtained attribute information is recorded in the “photographer” column of the header portion of the image data file of the first image. This step is not indispensable, but it is convenient because a keyword search of image viewing software can be performed when viewing an image later.

  In step S174, the image data file of the first image is stored in a sub-holder corresponding to the obtained attribute information among the sub-holders prepared for each photographer predicted in the first holder 410 in advance.

If step S173 is included in this process, step S174 may record the first image data file in the recording unit 32 without storing it in the sub-holder.
Then, the process returns to step S11 to prepare for the next shooting.

  In step S171, processing is performed when there is no face corresponding to the feature amount of the face of the second image in the face DB. In step S1711, attribute information of the person of the face of the second image, for example, a name is input.

  In step S1712, it is determined whether a valid input has been made in response to the attribute information input request. If it is entered blank, it is determined to be invalid. If the input is valid, the process proceeds to step S1713. If the input is invalid, the process proceeds to step S1714.

In step S1713, the face feature amount of the second image and the input attribute information are recorded in the face DB. Then, the process proceeds to step S173.
In step S1714, the second image is associated with the first image. The association method may be any of the methods already described. Then, the process proceeds to step S174. In this case, in step S174, the first image is stored in the sub storage holder “no attribute information”.

Thus, photographer attribute information is automatically recorded as photographer information in the image data file of each photographed first image. Further, the information is organized for each photographer and recorded in the recording unit 32.
In this manner, the first image associated with the photographer information is read together with the associated photographer information into an image viewing apparatus, for example, a personal computer (PC), and is recorded in the large capacity recording unit. Image appreciation software is installed in the image appreciation device, and the first image is displayed on the display unit by the software and used for viewing by the viewer.

The flow of processing performed by the image viewing software for viewing the first image will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. When the image viewing software is launched,
In step S161, the header portion of the image file of the first image to be viewed is read.

  In step S162, it is determined whether or not there is information in the “photographer” column included in the header section. If there is information, the process proceeds to step S163, and if not, the process proceeds to step S166. In the “photographer” column of the image data file of the first image photographed by the digital camera 100A, the photographer information is usually recorded by the face recognition unit 51.

  In step S163, it is determined whether or not the image data file corresponding to the information in the “photographer” column exists in the recording unit 32. If not, the process proceeds to step S164, and if there is, the process proceeds to step S21 in FIG. 11 to perform the process in FIG. However, it returns to FIG. 16 from step S27 or step S251, and progresses to step S166.

In step S164, the first image of the first storage holder 510 is displayed in the image display area 610.
In step S165, the attribute information of the photographer recorded in the photographer column of the header portion of the image file of the first image is displayed in the attribute information display area 620.

In step S166, input of an instruction to display the next first image is awaited. If there is an input, the process returns to step S161.
In step S162, processing is performed when there is no information in the “photographer” column. In step S167, it is determined whether there is information in the “photographer image” column of the header section. And when there is no information, it progresses to step S166. A step of causing the photographer information to be input by an appropriate method and recording the input information in the “photographer” column of the header portion may be added in between.

  If there is information in the “photographer image” column, the process proceeds to step S21 in FIG. 13 to perform the process in FIG. However, it returns to FIG. 16 from step S27 or step S252, and progresses to step S164.

  An example of the third embodiment will be described. In the example of the third embodiment, the face DB 52 is excluded from the configuration of the example of the second embodiment. The face recognizing unit 51 obtains facial feature amounts of the first image and the second image and records them in the header portion of each image data file. New items “Face Feature 1” and “Face Feature 2” are provided in the free use area defined by JPEG, the face feature of the first image is changed to “Face Feature 1”, and the second image Is recorded in “Face Feature 2”.

  Then, in the image viewing device, the face DB 52 is provided, and the image data reading software from the digital camera to the image viewing device image or the image viewing software for displaying the image data read by the image viewing device is displayed. Based on the facial feature amount of the second image, the face DB 52 is referred to, and attribute information such as the name of a person in the image is specified. The subsequent processing is the same as in the example of the second embodiment. Since it is not necessary to have the face DB 52 in the digital camera, the burden on the digital camera is small.

  Further, in the digital camera, the storage destination of the image data file of the first image can be divided for each feature amount recorded in “face feature amount 2”. Even without using image reading software or image viewing software having a face recognition function, images can be recorded in the image viewing apparatus in a state where the images are arranged for each photographer.

  An example of the fourth embodiment will be described. The example of the fourth embodiment is obtained by adding the functions of the example of the first embodiment or the example of the third embodiment to a camera-equipped mobile phone. FIG. 9 shows the appearance of a camera-equipped mobile phone according to the fourth embodiment. FIG. 9A shows a state in which the foldable camera-equipped mobile phone 90 is opened. FIG. 9B is a view of the camera-equipped mobile phone 90 in FIG. Reference numeral 91 denotes a first photographing unit. Only the photographic lens is visible. Reference numeral 92 denotes a liquid crystal display unit on which an image captured by the first photographing unit 91 is displayed. The liquid crystal display unit 92 is used as a finder at the time of photographing by the photographing unit 91 and for confirmation / appreciation of a photographed image. Reference numeral 93 denotes a second photographing unit. Only the photographic lens is visible. The liquid crystal display unit 92 and the photographing lens of the second photographing unit 93 are provided on the same surface of the housing of the camera-equipped mobile phone 90 in the same direction. The first photographing unit 91 is opposite to the direction of the photographing lens of the second photographing unit 93 on the back surface of the surface on which the liquid crystal display unit 92 and the photographing lens of the second photographing unit 93 are provided. It is provided for. Reference numeral 94 denotes an operation unit for using the camera-equipped mobile phone 90 as a mobile phone.

  Now, any of the functions of the example of the first embodiment or the example of the third embodiment can be realized by partially changing software for controlling the photographing function of the camera-equipped mobile phone. When the function of the example of the second embodiment is added, the change of the software includes addition of a face recognition unit. Furthermore, the addition of the face DB 52 may be included.

The figure which shows the external appearance of the digital camera which implemented this invention. The block diagram which shows schematic structure of the digital camera of FIG. The figure which shows schematic structure of an image data file. The figure which shows the holder structure of a recording part. The figure which shows the holder structure of the mass storage part of an image appreciation apparatus. The figure which shows the structure of the display screen of an image appreciation apparatus. The figure which shows the structure of a face database. The block diagram which shows another schematic structure of the digital camera of FIG. The figure which shows the external appearance of the mobile phone with a camera which implemented this invention. The flowchart which shows the flow of a process in the digital camera of FIG. The flowchart which shows the flow of a process in the image appreciation apparatus for appreciating the image by the digital camera of FIG. The flowchart which changed a part of flow of the process of FIG. 12 is a flowchart in which a part of the processing flow of FIG. 11 is changed. The flowchart which shows the flow of a process by image reading software. The flowchart which shows the flow of a process in the digital camera of FIG. The flowchart which shows the flow of a process in the image appreciation apparatus for appreciating the image image | photographed with the digital camera of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

100, 100A ...... Digital camera 10, 91 ......... First imaging unit 15 .................. Shutter button 20, 93 ......... Second imaging unit 31, 92 ......... …… Liquid crystal display part 32 …………………… Recording part 51 …………………… Face recognition part 52 …………………… Face database part 90 …………………… Camera Mobile phone 410 ............... First holder 420 ............... Second holder 500 ... ……………… Large-capacity recording unit 510 ………………… First storage holder 511 512 ......... Sub-storage holder 520 ............... Second storage holder 600 ... ……………… Image display section screen 610 ………………… Image display area 620 ……………… ... Attribute information display area 621 ................ Photographer image display area 630 ................. Operation instruction field 6 0 ..................... holder figure 650 ..................... erase button 660 ..................... end button

Claims (11)

Based on image accumulation data in which a first image obtained by photographing a subject and information related to a second image that is an image of the photographer of the first image and associated with the first image are recorded.
Displaying the first image;
Reading related information of the second image associated with the displayed first image;
Displaying the second image based on the related information of the second image;
A computer program that is executed by a computer. The computer program according to claim 1,
The related information of the second image is the second image itself. The computer program according to claim 1,
The computer program characterized in that the related information of the second image is a reduced second image having a smaller image size created based on the second image. The computer program according to claim 3,
The computer program further comprising the step of creating the reduced second image based on the second image. In the computer program according to claim 1 to claim 4,
Displaying a display indicating a storage location created for each photographer in advance;
Selecting an arbitrary display from the display indicating the storage location displayed;
And storing the first image in a storage location corresponding to the selected display. The computer program according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The image storage data also records a thumbnail image of the first image,
In the step of displaying the first image, a plurality of thumbnail images of the first image are displayed,
In the step of displaying the related information of the second image, the related information of the second image associated with each first image displayed as a thumbnail is displayed. The computer program according to claim 6,
Obtaining a facial feature quantity of the second image by a face analysis unit for obtaining a facial feature quantity of the facial image;
A computer program further comprising: changing a display order of the thumbnail images of the first image for each of the facial feature amounts based on the obtained facial feature amount. Based on image accumulation data that records a first image obtained by photographing a subject and a second image that is associated with the first image and is a photographer's image of the first image,
Displaying the first image;
Reading related information of the second image associated with the displayed first image;
Reading the second image based on the related information of the second image;
Obtaining a facial feature quantity of the person of the read second image by a face analysis unit;
Referring to the face database based on the obtained facial feature quantity, and obtaining attribute information of the person of the face with the relevant feature quantity;
A computer program for causing a computer to store the first image in a storage destination corresponding to the obtained attribute information. An image storage database unit that records a first image obtained by photographing a subject and related information of a second image that is an image of a photographer of the first image associated with the first image;
A display unit;
An image storage apparatus comprising: a control unit that executes the computer program according to claim 1. The first feature image of the subject and the related information of the second image, which is the image of the photographer of the first image, associated with the first image are obtained from the external device from the feature amount of the face and the feature amount thereof. In a computer program to be read by an image storage device having a face database that is recorded in association with attribute information of a face person and a face analysis unit that calculates a facial feature amount of a face image,
Reading the first image and the second image;
Causing the face analysis unit to determine a facial feature amount of the second image;
A computer program for causing a computer to perform the step of storing the first image in a different storage location for each feature amount prepared in advance according to the calculated facial feature amount. 11. An image storage device, wherein the program according to claim 10 is installed and the first image and the second image read by the program are recorded.