JP2007134925A - Image recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To appropriately associate generated image data with information related to date and time, which is recorded thereafter. <P>SOLUTION: There are provided a recording means 60 for recording the image data and the generation date and time information of the image data; information input means 40, 20, 60 for entering information related to date and time for holding; a management data generation means 21b for generating management data for indicating the relation between the image data and the information related to the date and time, based on the generation date and time information; and a management data update means for updating the management data following correction, when information related to the date and time held by the information input means is corrected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus for recording image data.

In recent years, portable information terminals equipped with PIM (Personal Information Manager) software for managing personal information such as a schedule, an address book, and a memo pad have been commercialized. And the technique which incorporates the function of such a portable information terminal in an electronic camera is proposed. For example, an electronic camera that can organize image data by associating schedule information with captured image data has been proposed (Patent Document 1).
JP 2003-244506 A

  In the above-described conventional technique, the date and time of the captured image are associated with the date and time of the set schedule information. However, the schedule often does not execute as set. In such a case, there is a problem that an image unrelated to the contents of the schedule information is associated.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image recording apparatus capable of recording the generated image data and information related to the date and time in association with each other.

In order to solve the above problems, the image recording apparatus of the present invention provides:
Recording means for recording image data and generation date and time information of the image data;
Information input means for inputting and holding information related to the date and time;
Management data generating means for generating management data indicating an association between the image data and information related to the date and time based on the generation date and time information;
Management information updating means for updating the management data in accordance with the correction when the information related to the date and time held by the information input means is corrected.

  According to the present invention, the generated image data and information related to the date and time can be appropriately associated and recorded.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an image recording system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, an image recording system 1 includes an electronic camera 2, a USB cable 3 connected to a connection terminal 2a of the electronic camera 2, and a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as PC) connected to the electronic camera 2 via the USB cable 3. 4). The PC 4 is connected to an access point 5 installed indoors via a LAN cable 8. And it is connected to the Internet network 6 via the access point 5, and can access each server (for example, server 7 in the figure) on the Internet. The image recording system 1 can transfer image data recorded on the electronic camera 2 to the PC 4 via the USB cable 3, and can transfer image data recorded on the PC 4 to the electronic camera 2. .

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the electronic camera 2. In FIG. 2, the electronic camera 2 includes an imaging unit 10 that captures an image to generate image data, an image processing unit 20 that performs predetermined processing on the image data, and an image playback that reproduces the image data and displays an image. A USB interface 40 that is connected to the USB cable 3 via the connection unit 2 and the connection terminal 2a and converts the format of the image data into a format that allows communication with the PC 4, a shutter button 50a for shooting, and a mode switching mode It includes an operation unit 50 on which operation buttons such as a switching button 50b, an editing button 50c for editing, and a display switching button 50d for display switching are arranged, and a hard disk 60 that records image data.

  In the present embodiment, the electronic camera 2 shoots a subject to generate image data, captures the generated image data on the hard disk 60, and an image recorded on the hard disk 60 by the image playback unit 30. A reproduction mode for reproducing data and editing the reproduced image data, a transfer mode for transferring image data recorded on the hard disk 60 to the PC 4, and a management data display for displaying schedule data and news data Four operation modes of the mode are configured to be switchable.

  The imaging unit 10 includes a CCD imaging device 11, an analog signal processing unit 12, an A / D converter 13, and a timing generator 14. The CCD image sensor 11 includes a plurality of light receiving pixels arranged in a matrix, a light receiving unit (not shown) that accumulates charges generated by photoelectric conversion in each light receiving pixel, and charges that are accumulated in each light receiving pixel of the light receiving unit. A transfer unit (not shown) for transferring the light and an output unit (not shown) for converting the electric charge transferred by the transfer unit into an electrical signal and outputting the electric signal, according to the subject image formed on the light receiving unit Output the image signal.

  The analog signal processing unit 12 performs analog signal processing such as correlated double sampling processing (CDS) and automatic gain control processing (AGC) on the image signal output from the CCD imaging device 11, and repeats the signal level and the reset level. After extracting only the signal level from the image signal, a predetermined gain is given. The A / D converter 13 digitizes the image signal output from the analog signal processing unit 12 in units of one pixel in synchronization with the output timing of the image signal from the CCD image pickup device 11 to generate image data. The timing generator 14 controls the charge transfer timing and the image signal output timing in the CCD image sensor 11, and also synchronizes with the output timing of the image signal from the CCD image sensor 11, and the analog signal processing unit 12 and the A / The operation timing of the D converter 13 is controlled. The digital signal processing unit 20 includes a system LSI 21 having a digital signal processing unit 21a, a management data generation unit 21b, and a controller 21c, a ROM 22, and a RAM 23.

  The digital signal processing unit 21a performs digital signal processing such as white balance processing and gamma correction processing on the image data output from the A / D converter 13, and also performs data compression processing such as image size change. Also, the digital signal processing unit 21a changes the instructed editing content to the image data when the user operates the editing button 50c disposed on the operation unit 50 to instruct editing of the image data. Accordingly, data editing processing such as trimming processing, luminance change processing, and contrast change processing is performed.

The management data generation unit 21b performs processing for generating or updating an image management database, a schedule database, and a news database, which will be described later.
These databases are generated by the management data generation unit 21b and then recorded in a predetermined storage area of the hard disk 60 of the electronic camera 2 independently of the image data.

  When the power switch of the electronic camera 2 is turned on, the controller 21c reads out and executes the control program recorded in the ROM 22, activates the electronic camera 2, and operates the entire electronic camera 2 according to the control program. Control. Further, the controller 21c has a built-in timer function, and is held while the current date is updated. When recording image data of a photographed photograph or editing image data, date and time data at that time can be recorded together with the image data. Further, the controller 21 c reads management data from the hard disk 60 when the operation mode of the electronic camera 2 is switched to the transfer mode and the electronic camera 2 is connected to the PC 4, and via the USB interface 40 and the USB cable 3. , Function to transfer to PC4.

The RAM 23 temporarily stores the image data output from the photographing unit 10 and functions as a buffer memory for various image processing and image compression / decompression processing.
As shown in FIG. 2, the image reproduction unit 30 includes a display monitor 31 constituted by, for example, a liquid crystal display panel and a monitor controller 32 that drives the display monitor 31 based on the image data. The image reproduction unit 30 displays a display content of the display monitor 31 by a display switching button 50d, a normal display for displaying an image corresponding to the image data selected by the user from the image data recorded on the hard disk 60, and It is configured to be able to switch between thumbnail display in which a plurality of images are displayed side by side with reduced image size and management data display in which schedule data and news data are displayed.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the PC 4. 3, the PC 4 includes a computer main body 70, a display unit 77 having a display monitor such as a liquid crystal display panel, and an input unit 78 such as a keyboard and a mouse.

  The computer main body 70 includes a CPU 71 that controls the overall operation of the PC 4 in accordance with the control program, a ROM 72 that stores the control program, a RAM 73 that temporarily stores image data, and program files and data files for image data and application programs. Is connected to the USB cable 3 via the connection terminal 4a, and converts the image data format into a format that allows communication with the electronic camera 2, a display unit 77, and an input unit. 78 and an input / output interface 76 for connecting the CPU 71. Further, a LAN interface 79 connected to the LAN cable 8 via the connection terminal 4b is provided. The other end of the LAN cable 8 is connected to the access point 5 and connected to the Internet line network 6 at the other end. The PC 4 is installed with an application program for editing image data and generating / updating a database.

  A database (an image management database, a schedule database, and a news database, which will be described later) is generated by the PC 4 after an application program is executed, and then recorded in a predetermined storage area of the hard disk 74 independently of the image data.

  Hereinafter, the operation in the PC 4 will be described. The schedule management program of the application program installed in advance is activated on the PC 4. Then, schedule data is input. The input schedule data is stored in the hard disk 74.

  Further, the PC 4 downloads the news data of the day from the server 7 connected to the Internet network 6. Various kinds of news are uploaded to the server 7, and the client PC 4 downloads the news that the user likes among them, or the news in a field set in advance by the user. Can do. The downloaded news data is stored in the hard disk 74 in the PC 4.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the format and contents of a schedule database that is created and stored on the hard disk 74, and FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the format and contents of a news database that is created and saved on the hard disk 74. In the example shown in FIG. 4A, schedules with three identification numbers S01, S02, and S03 are set, and for each schedule, the date, the start time, the end time, the location, and the scheduled content are called. Item data is set. There is a related image item, which will be described later. In the news database shown in FIG. 5A, data of items such as date, time, title, and content is set for news having an identification number of N01. The item “related image” will be described later.

  The schedule database and news database created in this way can be transferred to the electronic camera by connecting the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2 via the USB cable 3. In the electronic camera 2 of FIG. 2, the contents of the schedule database and news database transferred from the PC 4 through the USB interface 40 are confirmed by the management data generation unit 21b and stored in the hard disk 60. In this case, if the schedule database and the news database are already stored in the hard disk 60, the contents are compared with the contents of the newly transferred database, and after updating or adding data, Save to the hard disk 60. In this way, the schedule database and news database created by the PC 4 can be stored in the electronic camera 2 as well.

  The schedule data and news data in the database as described above can be viewed on the PC 4 by starting the schedule management software. In addition, the electronic camera 2 also has schedule management software built in, so that schedule data and news data sent from the PC 4 can be viewed on the display monitor 31. This is performed by switching to the management data display mode with the mode switching button 50b.

  When a photograph is taken with the electronic camera 2, the image data of the photograph is stored in the hard disk 60 in the electronic camera 2. When shooting, a lot of image data is created. Therefore, a database for managing these image data is created.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the format and contents of a management database (hereinafter referred to as an image management database) of image data of photographic images taken by the electronic camera 2. As shown in FIG. 6, data of items of shooting date and shooting time are recorded for each image data (image 01 to image 08). The items of update date and update time will be described later.

Hereinafter, an image data storing operation and an image management database updating operation in the electronic camera 2 when a photograph is taken with the electronic camera 2 will be described.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an image data storing operation in the system LSI 21 of the electronic camera 2. In the electronic camera 2, when the shutter button 50 a for taking a photograph is pressed, the imaging unit 10 performs an imaging process, and image data is output from the A / D converter 13. The image data is input from the A / D converter 13 to the system LSI 21 (step S701 in FIG. 7), and the digital signal processing unit 21a processes the image data (step S702 in FIG. 7). When saving the image data, the system LSI 21 obtains the date and time information from the built-in timer of the controller 21c (step S703 in FIG. 7). Then, the acquired date / time information is added to the processed image data as shooting date / time and shooting time data, and the image data is stored in the hard disk 60 (step S704 in FIG. 7). At this time, the file name is assigned to the image data, but the file name of the image data is assigned sequentially as 01, 02,.

  Next, FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an image management database update process in the system LSI 21 performed after image data is stored as shown in FIG. The date and time information acquired in step S703 in FIG. 7 (that is, the shooting date and time data) and the file name assigned to the image data in step S704 are after the image data saving process in FIG. Are also temporarily stored in the RAM 23. Then, the management data generation unit 21b reads the file name, shooting date, and shooting time data of the generated image data stored in the RAM 23 (step S801 in FIG. 8). Next, the file name, shooting date, and shooting time data (contents read from the RAM 23) of the newly generated image data are additionally written in the image management database file stored in the hard disk 60 (FIG. 8). Step S802). In this way, each time a photograph is taken, the file name of the generated image data, the photographing date, and the photographing time are written into the image management database.

  Next, the schedule data including the shooting date and shooting time of the newly generated image data is searched from the schedule database file shown in FIG. 4A (step S803 in FIG. 8). As a result of the search, the file name of the image data corresponding to the shooting date and shooting time is written in the “related image” section of the extracted schedule data (step S804 in FIG. 8). That is, when the image data is taken between the start time and end time of certain schedule data, the file name of the image data is written in the “related image” section of the schedule data.

  For example, consider the case where the above-described processing of FIG. 8 is performed after image data as shown in the image management database of FIG. 6 is generated in a state where the schedule data shown in FIG. As can be seen from FIGS. 4 and 6, the image 01 and the image 02 are images taken within the time of the “project meeting” of the schedule data. Accordingly, the file names of image 01 and image 02 are written in the “related image” section of the schedule data of “project meeting”. Since the image 04, the image 05, and the image 06 are images taken within the time of the “professional baseball game”, the file names of the image 04, the image 05, and the image 06 are “ It is written in the “Related Image” section. Furthermore, since the image 08 is an image taken within the time “S child” of the schedule data, the file name of the image 08 is written in the “related image” section of the schedule data of “S child”. Since the image 03 and the image 07 do not belong to the time of any schedule data, they are not written in the “related image” section of any schedule data. As a result of the above processing, the schedule database is updated as shown in FIG.

  Next, news data on the same day as the shooting date of the newly generated image data is searched from the news database file shown in FIG. 5A (step S805 in FIG. 8). As a result of the search, the file name of the corresponding image data is written in the “related image” section of the extracted news data (step S806 in FIG. 8). That is, when the image data is taken on the date of occurrence of certain news data, the file name of the image data is written in the “related image” section of the news data.

  For example, consider the case where the above-described processing of FIG. 8 is performed after image data as shown in the image management database of FIG. 6 is generated in a state where the news data shown in FIG. 5A is set. As can be seen from FIGS. 5 and 6, the news (identification number N01) of “J-Pop last week's CD sales ranking” is the news on the same day as the shooting date of images 01 to 07. Accordingly, the image file names of the images 01 to 07 are written in the “related image” section of the news data with the identification number N01. Since there is no news data on the same date as the shooting date of image 08, the file name of image 08 is not written in the “related image” section of the news data in FIG. As a result of the above processing, the news database is updated as shown in FIG.

As described above, the image data is associated with the schedule data and news data based on the shooting date and time of the image data and the date and time of the schedule data and news data.
The timing of writing the related image in the schedule database and the news database may be performed immediately after saving the image data after taking a picture. However, a plurality of pieces of image data may be processed and written together when the power is turned off (manual off, auto power off), when the power is turned on, or when no operation is performed. In this case, the date and time information of the previous writing process is recorded on the hard disk 60, and in the next process, the information is read and then the image management database file is opened, and only images generated after the previous process are displayed. The file name, the shooting date, and the time information are read out, and based on these information, the file name corresponding to the “related image” section of the schedule database file and news database file is written.

  As described above, when a photograph is taken, the image data is stored in the electronic camera 2 and an image management database is created. Information related to image data (related images) is stored in the schedule database and news database. ) Is written. Then, the owner of the electronic camera 2 performs a process of transferring data in the electronic camera 2 to the PC 4 after returning home. This transfer process is performed by connecting the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2 via the USB cable 3. When the electronic camera 2 is connected to the PC 4 via the USB cable 3, the PC 4 recognizes that the electronic camera 2 is connected and establishes the connection. Then, the PC 4 performs processing for transferring the photographed photographic image data, the image management database, the schedule database, and the news database stored in the hard disk 60 of the electronic camera 2 to the PC 4 side via the USB cable 3. Then, the PC 4 stores the transferred image data and each database file in the hard disk 74.

  In addition, the owner of the electronic camera 2 returns to his home and activates a schedule management program on the PC 4 to confirm the schedule. Even if you set a schedule, it's often not possible to do so. In general, it may not make much sense to rewrite the schedule of the date and time that has passed, but in this embodiment, in order to associate the photo image with the schedule, the past schedule is rewritten and the association is performed. It is meaningful to reconfirm.

  FIG. 9A is a modification of the schedule data of FIG. The project meeting in S01 was scheduled to end at 15:00 (Fig. 4 (b)), but it was actually ended at 15:30, so it was re-entered (Fig. 9 (a)). . S02's professional baseball game was supposed to end at 21:30, but in fact, the game progressed quickly and ended at 21:00. Therefore, the end time is input again (FIG. 9A). Since the game ended early, I went to an izakaya, which was not initially planned. Therefore, what I did at the izakaya was entered as schedule data. This is the schedule data of S04 in FIG.

  FIG. 10A shows a new news data added to the news database of FIG. As a result of accessing the next day after downloading news N01, two news items N02 and N03 were downloaded, and two news data items were added as shown in FIG.

  The operation when such schedule data and news data are corrected and added will be described below. When the user performs an operation of changing, adding, or deleting schedule data with the input unit 78 while the schedule management program is operating, the CPU 71 performs the following processing based on these operations. When the schedule data is changed, added, or deleted, the schedule database file in the hard disk 74 is updated. At the same time, information on the update location of the schedule database file is stored in the RAM 73. As described above, when the schedule database shown in FIG. 4B is updated as shown in FIG. 9A, it is sufficient to store information indicating that the schedule data S01, S02, and S04 are updated in the RAM 73. . Further, when the news database of FIG. 5B is updated as shown in FIG. 10A, it is sufficient to store information indicating that the news data N02 and N03 are updated in the RAM 73.

  Thereafter, the CPU 71 performs a resetting process for associating the image data with the schedule data and the news data. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the operation in the CPU 71 of the PC 4 when the schedule data and news data are changed as described above. In FIG. 11, first, the information stored in the RAM 73 is read as described above, and the update location is confirmed (step S1101). In this case, since both the schedule data and the news data are updated, it is necessary to perform processing on both database files. First, consider a case where processing is performed on the schedule data S01 in FIG. . It should be understood from the information in the RAM 73 that the schedule data S01 has been updated. Therefore, target schedule data (here, S01) is read from the schedule database file (step S1102). Next, the shooting date and shooting time of each image data in the image management database file (FIG. 6) are checked, and the date and shooting date of the schedule data S01 coincide with each other, and the start time and end time. The image data whose shooting time is the shooting time is searched and extracted (step S1103). In this case, image 01, image 02, and image 03 are extracted. Then, the item “related image” in the schedule data S01 of the schedule database file is rewritten, and the image file names “image 01, image 02, image 03” are written (step S1104).

  If there is other updated schedule data, the process returns to step S1102, and the same processing is repeated for the schedule data (step S1105). In this case, since it is found from the information in the RAM 73 that S02 and S04 have been updated in addition to the schedule data S01, the processes in steps S1102 to S1104 are also performed on the schedule data S02 and S04. As a result, the image file name “image 04, image 05” is written in the “related image” section of the schedule data S02, and the image “image 06” is stored in the “related image” section of the schedule data S04. The file name is written. In this way, when all the updated schedule data is processed, the process ends.

  The process of the flowchart of FIG. 11 does not necessarily have to be performed after the schedule database or news database is changed or added. Since this is a process for resetting the association between the photographed photo image and the schedule data, the date and time of the schedule data that was changed or added, or the date and time of the news data was changed or added. If the operation is ahead of the point in time when the operation is performed, the photographic image to be associated has not yet been generated, and therefore the processing of FIG. 11 is not necessary. The process of FIG. 11 is performed only when the date / time and start time of the schedule data that has been changed or added, or the date / time of the news data is before (in the past) the time when the change / add operation was performed. Just do it. Such a determination may be made after step S1102 of FIG. 11 to determine whether or not to perform subsequent processing.

  FIG. 9B shows the schedule database updated as a result of the association resetting process as described above. As compared with FIG. 4B, it can be seen that the information of the related image is changed as a result of the change or addition of the schedule data.

  When the process of resetting the association with the schedule database is completed, the process of resetting the association with the news database is performed. In this case, since it is found from the information in the RAM 73 that the news data N02 and N03 have been updated, the processing of the flowchart of FIG. 11 may be performed on these news data. It is confirmed from the information in the RAM 73 that the news data N01 and N02 have been updated (step S1101), and the processing after step S1102 is performed in the same manner as in the case of the schedule data described above. In the processing of step S1103, the shooting date of each image data is checked, and image data in which the shooting date of the news data matches the shooting date is searched and extracted. That is, the shooting time is not considered as in the case of schedule data. As can be seen from FIG. 6, the image files in which the date of news data N02 coincides with the shooting date are image 01, image 02, image 03, image 04, image 05, image 06, and image 07. An image file in which the date of the data N03 matches the shooting date is an image 08. As a result, the image file name “image 01, image 02, image 03, image 04, image 05, image 06, image 07” is written in the “related image” section of the news data N02. The image file name “image 08” is written in the “related image” section. FIG. 10B shows the news database updated as a result of the association resetting process as described above.

  The schedule database shown in FIG. 9B and the news database shown in FIG. 10B updated as described above are transferred to the electronic camera 2 and connected to the electronic camera 2 when connected to the electronic camera with the USB cable next time. Also stored in the hard disk 60 of the camera 2.

  As described above, image data, schedule data, and news data are associated with each other. Image browsing using the association information will be described. Browsing of images can be performed on the display monitor 31 of the electronic camera 2 or the display unit 77 of the PC 4 as follows.

  FIG. 12 is a monthly schedule display screen displayed on the display monitor 31 or the display unit 77. “N”, “S”, and “I” are displayed on July 20th and 21st. These indicate that there is news data, schedule data, and image data (photographs) for that day.

  Clicking (or touching) the “20” portion of the July 20th portion will display the daily schedule display screen shown in FIG. In the screen of FIG. 13, schedule data for the day is displayed. When the “image” portion on the right of each schedule is clicked, images associated with the schedule are displayed as thumbnails. This process searches and reads the corresponding schedule data from the schedule database file of FIG. 9B, reads all the image file names of related images of the schedule data, and reads and displays the image data of those image file names. It is realized by doing. Then, an image to be viewed can be selected from the displayed images, and the image can be displayed in a large size. In the “news” part, headlines of each news are displayed. Clicking on this headline will display the content of the news. This processing is realized by searching corresponding news data from the news database file of FIG. 10B, and reading and displaying the “content” section of the news data.

Next, another process when schedule data is added to the schedule database will be described.
FIG. 14A shows a state in which schedule data is added by the PC 4 to the schedule database of FIG. 9B. Schedule data S05 and S06 are added. Along with the addition of such schedule data, processing for updating the image management database is performed. After the update process, as described above, the update process of the item “related image” is performed on the schedule database based on the flowchart of FIG. 11. In this case, since an image to be written in the “related image” section is not found, the “related image” section of the schedule data S05 and S06 is left blank, and the process ends.

  In this embodiment, after that, the following processing is performed to find images estimated to be related to these schedules from images taken before the date and time of these schedule data S05 and S06, and the image file names are determined. Write in the “Related Image” section and make the association.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the operation procedure of another process performed after the schedule database update process of FIG. In FIG. 15, first, the update location of the schedule database file is confirmed (step S1501). This process can be performed in the same manner as step S1101 in FIG. First, consider processing for the schedule data S05. The schedule data S05 is read from the schedule database file (step S1502). Then, other schedule data including the same word as the word written in “location” and “planned content” of the schedule data S05 is searched (step S1503). As a result, the “related image” of the extracted schedule data is searched. The term is read (step S1504). Then, the image file name written in the “related image” section is additionally written in the “related image” section of the schedule data to be updated (step S1505). In this case, the schedule data S05 includes the word “snack ABC” (this is the store name) in the item “place”. Search for schedule data that contains the same word. Then, the word “snack ABC” is included in the “place” item of the schedule S03. Next, the image file name “image 08” written in the “related image” section of the schedule data S03 including the word “snack ABC” is read. Then, the image file name “image 08” is written in the “related image” section of schedule S05 to be updated. If there is schedule data to be updated next, the process returns to step S1502 to repeat the process (step S1506).

  In this case, there is schedule data S06 as update target schedule data. In the schedule data S06, the word “cafe GHI” (this is the store name) is included in the “place” item, and the word “S child” (this is the person name) is included in the “plan contents”. The schedule data including the words “cafe GHI” (only “GHI”, which is a part of the word) or “S child” is searched. Then, the word “S child” is included in the “schedule content” item of the schedule S03. Next, the image file name “image 08” written in the “related image” section of the schedule data S03 is written in the “related image” section of the schedule data S06. FIG. 14B shows the schedule database updated as described above. An image 08 which is a file name of an image taken before the date and time of the schedule data S05 and S06 is written in the “related image” section of the schedule data S05 and S06.

  Next, a description will be given of a case where editing processing is performed on image data that has been captured, generated, and stored by the electronic camera 2. Edit processing (trimming, resizing, color and brightness correction) using the application program of the PC 4 or the functions built in the electronic camera 2 with respect to the image data generated by shooting with the electronic camera 2 ) May be performed. Here, a case where editing processing is performed in the PC 4 will be described.

  Consider a case where an image editing application program installed in the PC 4 is activated to perform editing processing on the image 08. The edited image data is saved as a new image, and the image file name is saved as an image 08-1. The image file of the original image 08 was added with the shooting date and shooting time data, but the added data is the image file of the image 08-1 newly created by editing. Will be added to. Further, the date and time data edited by the image editing application program as described above are also added and stored in the image file of the image 08-1. The CPU 71 is provided with a timer function like the system LSI 21 of the electronic camera 2 and holds the current date and time while being updated. Therefore, when the image file of the newly edited image 08-1 is saved, the date / time information can be acquired from the timer, and can be added to the image file and saved as update date / time data. The file name at the time of saving is a file name (here, the image file name of the original image data before editing (here, image 08) with a branch number such as “−n” (n is a natural number). It is assumed that image 08-1).

  Thus, since new image data has been created, the CPU 71 performs processing for adding data of the image 08-1 to the image management database. In FIG. 17, this process may be performed in the same manner as the process of the flowchart of FIG. 8 performed after image data is stored by the electronic camera 2, but in this embodiment, the process is performed according to the procedure of the flowchart shown in FIG. That is, first, the image file name, shooting date / time data, and update date / time data of the stored image data are read (step S1701 in FIG. 17). These data are temporarily stored in the RAM 73 even after the image data of the image 08-1 is saved. Next, the image file name, shooting date / time data, and update date / time data are written into the image management database file (step S1702 in FIG. 17). FIG. 16 shows the image management database updated in this way. The shooting date and shooting time of the image 08-1 are the same as those of the original image 08. Since the image 08-1 is an image obtained by editing the image 08, unlike the other images, data of the update date and update time is written.

  Next, a process of associating the newly generated image (image 08-1 in this case) with the schedule data is performed. In step S803 in FIG. 8, the schedule data including the shooting date / time of the image is searched. Here, since the shooting date / time of the image 08-1 is the same as that of the image 08, the “related image” item includes “image 08”. ”Is written (step 1703 in FIG. 17). That is, the image 08-1 may be associated with the same schedule data as the schedule data with which the image 08 is associated. In the example of the schedule database in FIG. 14B, the schedule data in which “image 08” is written in the related image is S03, S05, and S06, and these are extracted. Then, a new image file name is written in the “related image” section of the extracted schedule data (step S1704 in FIG. 17). Here, the file name of image 08-1 is written in addition to the “related image” section of schedule data S 03, S 05, S 06.

  Next, a process of associating the newly generated image (image 08-1 in this case) with the news data is performed. As in the case of the schedule data, news data in which the image file name “image 08” is written in the “related image” section is searched from the news database file (step S1705 in FIG. 17). In the example of FIG. 10, news N03 is extracted. Then, an image file name of image 08-1 is added and written in the “related image” section of the extracted news N 03.

FIG. 18A is a schedule database updated as described above, and FIG. 18B is the news database.
As described above, the image data newly created by the editing process is associated with the schedule data and the news data by setting the same related information as the original image. In the display as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, an edited image such as the image 08-1 can also be displayed.

  Next, when the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2 are connected via a USB cable, the schedule database and news database of FIG. 18 stored in the hard disk 74 of the PC 4, the image management database of FIG. 16, and the image data of the image 08-1. Is transferred to the electronic camera 2. In the electronic camera 2, these data are stored in the hard disk 60, and an edited image such as the image 08-1 can be displayed in the display as shown in FIGS. .

  In the above embodiment, each function is assigned to the electronic camera 2 and the PC 4 as follows. The schedule data and news data are input, set, and changed by the PC 4, and the process of associating the schedule data and news data with the photographed photograph image can be performed by both the electronic camera 2 and the PC 4. Further, photographing of a photographic image and recording of image data are performed by the electronic camera 2, and editing of the image data is performed by the PC 4.

  However, the schedule data may be input, set, and changed with the electronic camera 2. When setting or changing is performed with the electronic camera 2, the schedule database is created and updated with the electronic camera 2 and transferred to the PC 4. This can be realized by providing the electronic camera 2 with an input unit (keyboard or handwriting input area).

  The electronic camera 2 may be provided with a LAN interface so that the electronic camera 2 can be directly connected to the Internet through a wireless LAN or the like. In this case, news data can also be input directly from the electronic camera 2. The input news data and news database can be transferred to the PC 4 by connecting to the PC 4 later.

  The process of associating the schedule data and the news data with the photographed photograph image is preferably performed by a device that can input, set, and change the schedule data, but may be configured by only one of them. For example, the association process may be performed only by the electronic camera 2, the association information created by the electronic camera 2 may be transferred to the PC 4, and the association information may be shared by both. In addition, the association process can be performed only by the PC 4, and after the image data captured by the electronic camera 2 is transferred to the PC 4, the association process of the schedule data, news data and the image data is performed by the PC 4, and then created. The association information may be shared by transferring the association information to the electronic camera 2.

  Image editing may be performed with the electronic camera 2. The image edited with the electronic camera 2 is transferred to the PC 4. The association of the edited image with the schedule data and news data may be performed by either the electronic camera 2 or the PC 4.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, an image recording system according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The configuration of the system is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIGS. In the first embodiment, the image management database is updated on the PC 4 only when the image data generated by the electronic camera 2 is edited. In the present embodiment, the image data acquired on the PC 4 is image managed. Can be added to the database file.

  FIG. 19A is a diagram showing an image management database stored in the PC 4 in the present embodiment. The images named Image A and Image B registered in the image management database are store map images retrieved from the server 7 connected to the Internet network 6 and downloaded. Image A is a map image showing the location of “Izakaya DEF”. These images are map data, and unlike the photo images, the shooting date and time do not have much meaning, so the shooting date and shooting time are not written in the image management database.

  FIG. 20A is a diagram illustrating a schedule database stored in both the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2. It can be considered that such schedule data is set in the PC 4 and transferred to the electronic camera 2.

  FIG. 20B shows a case where schedule data is added by the PC 4 after the schedule database of FIG. 20A is created by the PC 4 and transferred to the electronic camera 2. In FIG. 20B, a schedule S02 is added, and information “image A” is written in the “related image” section of the schedule S02. Since the store name “Izakaya DEF” is written in the location field of the schedule S02, the image name “Image A”, which is an image of a map showing the location of “Izakaya DEF”, is written as the related image. That is, since the image of this map can be used when going to the place, it was operated by the schedule management program and associated with the schedule data in S02 (that is, the image name in the “related image” section). Is written).

  Next, database update on the electronic camera 2 side will be described. The electronic camera 2 takes a picture after the schedule database of FIG. 20A is transferred from the PC 4. Two photographs are taken, and information on the image data is written in the image management database. FIG. 19B is a diagram showing an image management database created by the electronic camera 2. The shooting date and shooting time of image 01 and image 02 are recorded respectively.

  Based on the information in the image management database in FIG. 19B, the schedule database in FIG. 20A is updated. Since the image 01 and the image 02 are photograph images taken within the time of the schedule S01, the image file names of the image 01 and the image 02 are written in the “related image” section of the schedule S01. The schedule database updated in this way is shown in FIG.

  As described above, the operation when the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2 are connected with the USB cable and the data is exchanged in the state where the schedule database is updated in both the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2 will be described.

  FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing a data exchange process when the PC 4 is connected to the electronic camera 2 via the USB cable 3. When the operation mode of the electronic camera 2 is switched to the transfer mode by the mode switching button 50b of the electronic camera 2, and the electronic camera 2 and the PC 4 are connected via the USB cable 3, the PC 4 is connected to the electronic camera 2. This is recognized and a connection is established (step S2101 in FIG. 21).

  Then, the PC 4 transfers the schedule database file (FIG. 20C) stored in the hard disk 60 of the electronic camera 2 to the PC 4 (step S2102 in FIG. 21). The transferred schedule database file is stored in the RAM 73 of the PC 4. Then, the schedule database file (FIG. 20B) stored in the hard disk 74 of the PC 4 is compared (step S2103 in FIG. 21). Then, the schedule database stored in the hard disk 74 of the PC 4 is updated to reflect the contents updated by the electronic camera 2 (step S2104 in FIG. 21). When the schedule database of FIG. 20B and the schedule database of FIG. 20C are compared, the schedule data S01 exists in both, but the schedule database of FIG. 20C (updated by the electronic camera 2). In the schedule data S01, the image file names “image 01, image 02” are written in the “related image” section, but the schedule of the schedule database (stored in the PC 4) in FIG. The item “related image” in the data S01 is blank. Therefore, the image file name “image 01, image 02” is added to the “related image” section of the schedule data S02 of the schedule database (FIG. 20B) stored in the hard disk 74 of the PC 4. FIG. 20D is a diagram showing the schedule database updated in this way. The schedule database file updated in this way by the PC 4 is stored in the hard disk 74 of the PC 4, transferred to the electronic camera 2, and stored in the hard disk 60 of the electronic camera 2 (step S 2105 in FIG. 21).

  Next, based on the updated schedule database, the newly associated image data is transferred by both the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2. The newly registered image data can be recognized by comparing the schedule databases stored in the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2 during the above-described schedule database update processing. As a result, since it can be seen that the image 01 and the image 02 are newly registered as related images of the schedule data S01 in the electronic camera 2, the image data of the image 01 and the image 02 is transferred from the hard disk 60 of the electronic camera 2 to the PC 4. The data is transferred to the hard disk 74 and stored (step S2106 in FIG. 21). Further, it can be seen that the schedule data S02 is newly added in the PC 4, and the image A is registered as a related image of the schedule data S02. The data is transferred to the second hard disk 60 and stored (step S2107 in FIG. 21). As described above, both the PC 4 and the electronic camera 2 share the image data acquired by the PC 4 and associated with the schedule data, and the image data captured and generated by the electronic camera 2 and associated with the schedule data. be able to.

  When the updated schedule database and the image data of the image A are transferred from the PC 4, the electronic camera 2 stores them in the hard disk 60 and updates the image management database. The image management database (FIG. 19B) stored in the hard disk 60 is read, and the image A newly transferred from the PC 4 is registered and stored. FIG. 19C is a diagram showing the image management database updated in this way.

  The PC 4 updates the schedule database and stores the image data of the image 01 and the image 02 from the electronic camera 2 on the hard disk 74 and also updates the image management database (FIG. 19A) stored on the hard disk 74. To do. Images 01 and 02 newly transferred from the electronic camera 2 are registered and stored in the image management database of FIG. FIG. 19D is a diagram showing the image management database updated in this way.

  Also in the present embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the display as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13 can be performed both in the PC 4 and in the electronic camera 2. As described above, regarding the display of the images associated with each other, the display method is the same as described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 13, when the “image” portion next to “Project Meeting” is clicked (or touched), the associated images (image 01 and image 02) are displayed, and “image” next to “Izakaya DEF” is displayed. Clicking (or touching) "" displays an associated image A (a map showing the location of "Izakaya DEF").

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, the image data acquired by the PC 4 and associated with the schedule data can transfer the image data and the association information to the electronic camera 2. Furthermore, the image data captured by the electronic camera 2 and associated with the schedule data can be transferred to the PC 4 together with the association information. Therefore, both the electronic camera 2 and the PC 4 can have the same image data and association information, and both can browse image data based on the association information.

  In the present embodiment, the PC 4 is configured to download image data such as a map from the server 7 connected to the Internet line network 6. However, the electronic camera 2 is provided with a LAN interface, and the wireless LAN or the like is provided. The electronic camera 2 may be directly connectable to the Internet. In this case, image data such as a map related to the schedule data can be downloaded by the electronic camera 2 from the server 7 and associated with the schedule data. Then, the association information with the downloaded image data and schedule data can be transferred to the PC 4 by connecting to the PC 4 later.

  As in the first embodiment, schedule data can be input, set, and changed by the electronic camera 2 and the schedule database created and updated by the electronic camera 2 may be transferred to the PC 4. Then, the PC 4 may perform processing for associating the schedule data input by the electronic camera 2 with the image data acquired by the PC 4 via the Internet.

  In the first embodiment and the second embodiment, the association between the image data and the schedule data is performed based on whether or not the date and time when the image data was generated (shooting date and time) is within the schedule time zone. However, it is not necessary to limit to this. You may link | relate the thing in which only a day (year / month / day) matched, without considering imaging | photography time and the time slot | zone of a schedule. If the association is performed over a wider range, the association may be performed based on whether the week, month, season, and year are the same. In the first embodiment, the association between news data and image data is associated with the shooting date and the date when the news occurs, but this may also be associated based on the week, month, season, year, or the like. .

  In the first embodiment and the second embodiment, when setting the schedule data, the start time and the end time are set together with the date, but the start time and the end time are not necessarily set. There is no need. Sometimes it is sufficient to know what is happening on the day without setting the time. In this case, associating with captured image data may be performed based on the shooting date without considering the shooting time as described above.

  In the first embodiment and the second embodiment, the connection between the electronic camera 2 and the PC 4 is performed via the USB cable 3. However, wireless communication such as wireless USB can be performed without using the cable. You may do it. This can be realized by providing each of the electronic camera 2 and the PC 4 with a wireless communication interface for communicating with the other party.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an image recording system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the electronic camera used for the image recording system of embodiment of this invention. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a PC (personal computer) used in an image recording system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 4A is a diagram showing the contents of a schedule database created by the PC 4, and FIG. 4B is a process for associating image data generated by the electronic camera 2 with the schedule database of FIG. 4A. It is a figure which shows the content of the schedule database after performing. 5A is a diagram showing the contents of a news database created by the PC 4, and FIG. 5B is a process of associating image data generated by the electronic camera 2 with the news database of FIG. 5A. It is a figure which shows the content of the news database after performing. It is a figure which shows the content of the image data management database in which the information of the photograph image image | photographed with the electronic camera 2 was registered. 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure for storing image data in the system LSI 21 of the electronic camera 2. 6 is a flowchart showing an image management database, schedule database, and news database update processing procedure performed after image data is stored in the system LSI 21 of the electronic camera 2. FIG. 9A is a diagram showing the contents of the schedule database after the schedule database of FIG. 4B is corrected, and FIG. 9B is the association of image data with the schedule database of FIG. 9A. It is a figure which shows the content of the schedule database after performing a process again. FIG. 10A is a diagram showing the contents of the news database after the news database of FIG. 5B is corrected, and FIG. 10B is the association of image data with the news database of FIG. It is a figure which shows the content of the news database after performing a process again. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the reset process of an association with the image data with respect to the schedule database and news database in CPU71 of PC4 when a schedule data and news data are changed. It is a figure which shows the monthly schedule display screen displayed on the display monitor 31 or the display part 77. FIG. It is a figure which shows the daily schedule display screen displayed on the display monitor 31 or the display part 77. FIG. FIG. 14A shows the contents of the schedule database after adding schedule data to the schedule database of FIG. 9B, and FIG. 14B shows the schedule database of FIG. It is a figure which shows the content of the schedule database after updating the correlation information of image data with respect to it. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of another process with respect to a schedule database performed after the schedule database update process of FIG. It is a figure which shows the content of the updated image management database at the time of performing an edit process with respect to the image data preserve | saved at PC4, and preserve | saving as new image data. It is a flowchart which shows another example of the update process procedure of an image management database, a schedule database, and a news database after new image data is produced | generated. It is a figure which shows the schedule database (FIG. 18 (a)) and news database (FIG.18 (b)) updated as a result of the process of FIG. It is a figure which shows the content of the image management database produced by each of PC4 and the electronic camera 2 in the image recording system of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the content of the schedule database produced by each of PC4 and the electronic camera 2 in the image recording system of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement of data exchange when PC4 and the electronic camera 2 are connected in the image recording system of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1: image recording system, 2: electronic camera, 2a: connection terminal, 3: USB cable 4: PC (personal computer), 4a, 4b: connection terminal, 5: access point, 6: Internet network, 7: server, 8: LAN cable
10: imaging unit, 11: CCD image sensor, 12: analog signal processing unit, 13: A / D converter, 14: timing generator, 20: image processing unit, 21: system LSI, 21a: digital signal processing unit, 21b : Management data generation unit, 21c: controller, 22: ROM, 23: RAM, 30: image playback unit, 31: display monitor, 32: monitor controller, 40: USB interface, 50: operation unit, 60: hard disk,
70: computer main body, 71: CPU, 72: ROM, 73: RAM, 74: hard disk, 75: USB interface, 76: input / output interface, 77: display unit, 78: input unit, 79: LAN interface.

Claims (6)

Recording means for recording image data and generation date and time information of the image data;
Information input means for inputting and holding information related to the date and time;
Management data generating means for generating management data indicating an association between the image data and information related to the date and time based on the generation date and time information;
An image recording apparatus comprising: management data updating means for updating the management data in accordance with the correction when the information related to the date and time held by the information input means is corrected . The image recording apparatus according to claim 1,
The image recording apparatus, wherein the information input means inputs information related to the date and time via the external device. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The information related to the date and time is schedule information. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1,
The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information related to the date and time is news information. In the image recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The management data update unit performs the update process when the information related to the corrected date and time relates to a past date and time. In the image recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The management data updating unit performs a correction process of associating information related to the corrected date and time with information related to the date and time before and after the information.