JP2009194548A - Imaging apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging element which does not miss a desired photographing scene for a period until a photographing preparation operation is completed. <P>SOLUTION: This imaging apparatus includes a power supply operation part 15 for instructing a power feeding means 16 to start power feeding in accordance with an operation by a user; an imaging control means 1 for controlling an imaging element 7 for allowing an output of thinning image data and inhibiting an output of all pixel image data from starting an image data output of the imaging element 7 after starting power feeding by the power feeding means 16 until completing a photographing preparation operation including at least one between a focusing operation and an exposure adjustment operation, and releasing the inhibition of the output of the all pixel image data after the completing of the photographing preparation operation so as to allow the output of the all pixel image data; and a volatile storing means 22 for temporarily storing the thinning image data output from the imaging element 7 to store in a nonvolatile image data storage medium 19 for a period from starting the output of the thinning image data until completing the photographing preparation operation. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus using an imaging element.

  Conventionally, imaging is started in conjunction with the half-pressing operation of the release button, the obtained continuous shot image is recorded in the buffer memory, and from the predetermined image after the continuous shooting is started to the full press timing by fully pressing the release button. There is known a camera that stores the image (see Non-Patent Document 1, for example). By performing such continuous shooting, it is possible to shoot without missing a decisive moment even when the shutter button is fully pressed after the moment of shooting.

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  However, in general, immediately after the camera is turned on, a release operation is performed until a shooting preparation operation including an AF preparation operation until the lens is brought into focus and a preparation operation for exposure correction is completed. Even shooting is not allowed. Therefore, before the completion of the shooting preparation operation immediately after the power is turned on, shooting is not permitted even if the release operation is performed. Therefore, the camera operation described in the background art cannot be performed, and a critical moment to be shot is missed. There was a problem that.

The image pickup apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention picks up an image formed by the optical system, and selects any one of all-pixel image data based on signals of all pixels and thinned image data based on signals of predetermined pixels among all pixels. An image sensor capable of selectively outputting the image, a focus adjustment unit that performs an in-focus operation of the optical system based on the thinned image data, an exposure adjustment unit that performs an exposure adjustment operation based on the thinned image data, and an image sensor. A power supply unit that supplies power to the focus adjustment unit and the exposure adjustment unit; a power supply operation unit that instructs the power supply unit to start supplying power in response to an operation by a user; and From the start of image data output of the image sensor to the completion of the shooting preparation operation including at least one of the focusing operation and the exposure adjustment operation, the output of the thinned image data is permitted. Image output control means for controlling the image sensor and start of output of thinned image data so that the output of all pixel image data is prohibited and the prohibition of output of all pixel image data is canceled and permitted after the completion of the shooting preparation operation Volatile storage means for temporarily storing the thinned image data output from the image sensor for recording in a nonvolatile image data storage medium during a period from the image capturing preparation operation to the completion of the image capturing preparation operation. Features.
An image pickup apparatus according to a second aspect of the invention picks up an image formed by an optical system, and selects any one of all pixel image data based on signals of all pixels and thinned image data based on signals of predetermined pixels of all pixels. An image sensor capable of selectively outputting the image, a focus adjustment unit that performs an in-focus operation of the optical system based on the thinned image data, an exposure adjustment unit that performs an exposure adjustment operation based on the thinned image data, and an image sensor. A power supply unit that supplies power to the focus adjustment unit and the exposure adjustment unit; a power supply operation unit that instructs the power supply unit to start supplying power in response to an operation by a user; and From the start of image data output of the image sensor to the completion of the shooting preparation operation including at least one of the focusing operation and the exposure adjustment operation, the output of the thinned image data is permitted. Image output control means for controlling the image sensor and start of output of thinned image data so that the output of all pixel image data is prohibited and the prohibition of output of all pixel image data is canceled and permitted after the completion of the shooting preparation operation And recording means for recording the thinned image data output from the image sensor in a non-volatile image data storage medium during a period from when the imaging preparation operation is completed.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the imaging apparatus according to the first aspect, a release operation unit that issues a photographing instruction for acquiring all pixel image data in response to a user operation, and before the photographing preparation operation is completed. Recording in which thinned-out image data stored in the volatile storage means is recorded in a nonvolatile image data storage medium during the period from the start of image data output to the time of operation of the release operation unit when the release operation unit is operated Means.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image pickup apparatus according to the third aspect, the recording means starts the release operation unit from the start of image data output when the release operation unit is operated before the photographing preparation operation is completed. The thinned-out image data stored in the volatile storage means in a period until the correlation value between two consecutive thinned-out image data within the predetermined value after the time of the operation is recorded in the nonvolatile image data storage medium. And
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image pickup apparatus according to the third aspect, the blur amount detecting means for detecting the blur amount of the image picked up by the image sensor and the recording means are arranged so that the release operation is completed before the photographing preparation operation is completed. The thinned-out image data stored in the volatile storage means from the start of image data output until the blur amount detected by the blur amount detection means falls within a predetermined range when the operation of the image data is performed is nonvolatile. It is recorded on an image data storage medium.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the imaging apparatus according to the first or second aspect, a recording mode for recording thinned image data on a non-volatile storage medium and no thinning image data on a non-volatile storage medium are recorded. A selection means for selecting a non-recording mode is provided.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the image pickup apparatus according to the third aspect, the recording means stores all pixel image data in a nonvolatile manner when the release operation unit is operated before the photographing preparation operation is completed. If the thinned image data is recorded on the non-volatile storage medium without being recorded on the medium, and the release operation unit is operated after the photographing preparation operation is completed, the thinned image data is not recorded on the non-volatile storage medium. All pixel image data is recorded on a nonvolatile storage medium.
According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the imaging apparatus according to the seventh aspect, the recording means records to the user that the thinned-out image data is recorded on the non-volatile storage medium without recording all the pixel image data on the non-volatile storage medium. The information processing device further includes notification means for notification.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a situation in which a desired shooting scene is missed as in the prior art until the shooting preparation operation is completed.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of an imaging apparatus according to the present invention, and is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a digital camera. The digital camera includes a main control unit 1, an imaging optical system 2, a lens driving unit 3, a shake correction driving unit 4, an aperture 5, an aperture driving unit 6, an image sensor 7, a driver 8, an AFE (Analog Front End) 9, and a timing generator. 10, a memory card drive device 11, an image processing circuit 12, a gyro sensor 13, a release button 14, a power button 15, a power supply 16, a display panel 17, a display panel drive circuit 18, a nonvolatile built-in memory 20, and a recording setting button 23. I have.

  The subject light that has passed through the photographing optical system 2 forms an image on the image sensor 7 through the diaphragm 5. The diaphragm 5 is driven by a diaphragm driving unit 6. The focus lens of the photographing optical system 2 is adjusted by driving a focus lens provided in the photographing optical system 2 by the lens driving unit 3. The photographing optical system 2 is provided with a blur correction lens that corrects image blur due to camera shake or the like. Based on the camera shake angular velocity detected by the gyro sensor 13, the shake correction driving unit 4 drives the shake correction lens in a direction to reduce the blur of the subject image on the imaging surface.

  An area sensor such as a CCD sensor or a CMOS sensor is used as the image sensor 7 and outputs a photoelectric conversion signal (imaging signal) corresponding to the brightness of the subject image. R (red), G (green), and B (blue) color filters are provided on the imaging surface of the imaging device 7 so as to correspond to the pixel positions, respectively. Since the image sensor 7 captures a subject image through the color filter, the signal output from each light receiving element has color information of the RGB color system.

  The timing generator 10 generates a timing signal in response to a command from the main control unit 1 and supplies the timing signal to the driver 8 and the AFE 9. The driver 8 accumulates charges in the image sensor 7, generates a drive signal for sweeping out the accumulated charges based on the timing signal, and supplies the generated drive signal to the image sensor 7. Here, the AFE 9 and the timing generator 10 are configured separately, but the AFE 9 may include the timing generator 10.

  The AFE 9 is provided with a CDS (correlated double sampling) circuit, an AGC (auto gain control) circuit, and an ADC, and a timing signal from a timing generator is supplied to each circuit. The CDS circuit performs low frequency noise reduction processing of the image signal. The AGC circuit adjusts the level of the imaging signal by adjusting the gain. The analog processed image signal is converted into a digital signal by the ADC and input to the image processing circuit 12. The image sensor 7 is data thinned out in the horizontal or vertical direction from the data of all the image sensors or data thinned out in both directions in order to reduce the amount of data for real-time display called live view display and moving image recording. Can be output.

  The image processing circuit 12 is a circuit that processes a digital signal, and is configured as, for example, an ASIC. For the data output from the AFE 9, white balance (WB processing), gradation correction processing, color correction processing, format conversion, Apply compression processing. When an image is generated based on the thinned data, the aspect ratio is adjusted in the image processing circuit 12. In the color correction, color information expressed in the RGB color space is also converted into color information expressed in the YCrCb color space.

  The main control unit 1 is constituted by a microcomputer, and includes detection of the state of various switches including a release switch and a power switch that are turned on and off in conjunction with the operation of the release button 14 and the power button 15, and includes the AFE 9 and the lens driving unit 3 Various arithmetic processes such as control of various peripheral circuits, AF calculation for focusing on the subject, and AE calculation for obtaining an appropriate exposure control value for the object scene are performed. The main control unit 1 includes a ROM (not shown) and a DRAM 22 which is a volatile recording medium, and the microcomputer performs overall control of various peripheral circuits by executing predetermined programs. The DRAM 22 is used as a buffer memory for temporarily storing data during and after processing such as image processing and image compression processing.

  A memory card 19 composed of a nonvolatile recording medium such as a flash memory is detachably attached to the memory card drive device 11. The memory card drive device 11 writes the image data after the image processing by the image processing circuit 12 to the memory card 19. Instead of recording the image data on the removable memory card 19, it may be recorded on the built-in memory 20.

  The display panel 17 is a monitor that displays a live view image generated by the image processing circuit 12 and reproduces and displays image data recorded in the memory card 19. As the display panel 17, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display Element) or organic electroluminescence is used. The display panel drive circuit 18 creates display data for displaying an image on the display panel 17 based on the digital image signal from the image processing circuit 12 and displays the display data from the compressed image data read from the memory card 19. Generate data. In that case, image data having an image size suitable for the number of display pixels of the display panel 17 is generated.

  The release button 14 is an operation member for turning on the release switch. When the user operates the release button 14 to turn on the release switch, the main control unit 1 sets the recording timing of a still image or a moving image. The main control unit 1 acquires the data from the image sensor 7 by detecting a change in the state of the release switch, controls the image processing device 12 and the memory card drive device 11, and records the image data in the memory card 19. . The power button 15 is an operation member for starting and stopping the digital camera. When the user turns on the power button 15, the main control unit 1 detects a change in the state of the power switch and controls the power supply 16 and peripheral circuits.

  2 and 3 are diagrams for explaining the control in the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing operations from power activation to shooting processing by a release operation. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a control sequence. A series of processing shown in the flowchart shown in FIG. 2 is performed by executing a photographing processing program in the main control unit 1. This photographing processing program is recorded in a ROM (not shown) or the built-in memory 20. In addition, since the process of each step is performed under control of the main control part 1, in the description of each step, description of the main control part 1 which is the operation subject may be omitted.

  When the user turns on the power button 15, the state of the power switch changes from off to on. The main control unit 1 detects the state change of the power switch, that is, detects the falling edge of the signal shown in FIG. 3, and starts the processing shown in FIG. In step S <b> 1, when the main control unit 1 detects a power activation request based on a change in the state of the power switch, the main control unit 1 supplies power from the power source 16 to various peripheral circuits including the image sensor 7 and the lens driving unit 3. In step S <b> 2, the main control unit 1 determines whether or not it is a data acquisition synchronization timing for taking the timing of capturing image data (thinned data) and image processing. If it is determined in step S2 that the synchronization timing has come, the process proceeds to step S3, and the main control unit 1 starts taking in the thinned data.

  As shown in the control sequence of FIG. 3, when power supply is started, the image sensor 7 outputs thinning data (t11) for live view display, and an image is obtained with respect to the thinning data captured at timing t11. The processing circuit 12 performs the above-described image processing at a timing t21 synchronized with the next thinned data output timing t12. The thinned image data after the image processing is stored in the VRAM 21 for display and is stored in the DRAM 22 as a buffer memory for recording. The display panel drive circuit 18 displays an image on the display panel 17 based on the image data after image processing (thinned image data). In the control sequence of FIG. 3, the thinned image data is displayed on the display panel 17 at the timing t31, and the thinned image data is recorded in the DRAM 22 at the same timing t41.

  Further, the thinned data output at timing t12 is subjected to image processing at timing t22 synchronized with the next thinned data output timing t13. Then, image display on the display panel 17 using the thinned image data after image processing (t32) and recording of the thinned image data in the DRAM 22 (t42) are performed. Live view display is performed by repeatedly executing such a series of processes. Further, the thinned image data is recorded in the DRAM 22 until completion of photographing preparation described later.

  Apart from the above-described image processing, data acquisition for AE processing is performed in synchronization with the data output timing t12 (a1), and exposure is performed so that the output level of the image sensor 7 falls within a predetermined range based on the acquired data. The control value calculation (AE calculation) is performed in synchronization with the data output timing t13 (b1). Based on the calculated exposure control value, the accumulation time of the image sensor 7, the aperture value of the aperture 5 and the ISO sensitivity are controlled (AE control) (c1). This AE control (c1) is started at the falling edge of the fourth imaging data output at timing t14, and is completed before the rising edge (before the next imaging data output is started).

  For example, consider a case where control is performed so that the value becomes 100 for data having a value of 200 in the dynamic range. In this case, when the first is 200, the shutter speed is changed so that it becomes half (100), and the output value should be 100 when the next capture is performed, but since the dynamic range is 200, the first It is not known whether the output value 200 is saturated. When it is controlled to be half when it is saturated (for example, when the actual value is 300), the next output value becomes 150. Therefore, a second AE calculation is required.

  In this way, immediately after the power is turned on, there is no value that should be the initial value of the exposure calculation. Therefore, a series of processes of data acquisition, AE calculation, and AE control for reflecting the AE calculation result is performed once. It is not possible to obtain a reliable exposure control value only by merely. Generally, it is necessary to repeat the above-described series of processes several times. By repeating such an AE operation several times, if the exposure control value is stably within a predetermined range, it becomes possible to perform photographing using all pixel data. In the example shown in FIG. 3, shooting is possible when the AE operation is performed twice (a1) to (c1) and (a2) to (c2).

  In the present embodiment, such a state is referred to as a shooting preparation completion state, and until the shooting preparation completion state (timing t6), the output of all pixel data is prohibited and only the output of thinned data is permitted. When the preparation for photographing is completed, the prohibition state of all pixel data is canceled and output is permitted (t6). Therefore, it becomes possible to perform photographing using all pixel data by turning on the release switch.

  In FIG. 3, the release operation is turned on at the timing t5. In addition, the recording operation of the thinned image data in the DRAM 22 ends when the preparation for photographing is completed. That is, the thinned-out image data based on the output data (t17) before shooting preparation completion (t6) is recorded (buffered) in the DRAM 22 (t47), but output data (t18) after shooting preparation completion (t6). The thinned image data based on the above is not recorded in the DRAM 22. Note that the preparation for photographing includes not only the above-described exposure but also the preparation related to the charging of the AF and flash light-emitting capacitors and the blur correction.

  Note that all pixel data in this embodiment refers to data at the time of normal still image shooting, and the name of all pixels is used in contrast to thinned data, and is not necessarily in a strict sense. Not all pixels included in the image sensor 7 are indicated.

  Returning to FIG. 2, in step S <b> 4, the main control unit 1 determines whether or not the recording setting of the buffered thinned image data in the memory card 19 is valid. The setting as to whether or not to record the thinned image data on the memory card 19 is performed in advance by the operation of the recording setting button 23 by the user. Alternatively, the menu screen may be called on the display panel 17 and the user may set the operation member in advance based on the menu screen.

  If it is determined to be valid in step S4, the process proceeds to step S5 to start buffering of the thinned image data and display of the image on the display panel 17 using the thinned image data. The buffering of the thinned image data means that the main control unit 1 stores the thinned data in the DRAM 22. Specifically, the buffering of the thinned image data is output from the image sensor 7 in the period after the start of power supply in step S1 and after the validity determination is made in step S4 until the completion of shooting preparation described later. This means that the thinned image data is stored in the DRAM 22 by the main control unit 1. In the buffering of the thinned image data, all the thinned data in the buffering period is basically stored, but the thinned image data in a part of the buffering period may be stored. As an image to be displayed on the display panel 17, a panel display image is generated based on the thinned image data for buffering. Alternatively, two image processing lines may be provided separately for recording and panel display.

  In step S6, the main control unit 1 determines whether or not the release switch is on. The main control unit 1 repeats the process of step S6 until it detects the on state of the release switch, and proceeds to step S7 when it detects the on state of the release switch. In step S7, the main control unit 1 determines whether or not the above-described shooting preparation is completed. If it is determined in step S7 that shooting preparation is complete, the process proceeds to step S8, the buffering of the thinned image data started in step S5 to the DRAM 22 is terminated, and the process further proceeds to step S9 to store the buffered thinned image data in the memory. Record on the card 19. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S10, the photographing process based on all pixel data is performed, and the series of processes shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S7 that the preparation for photographing has not been completed, the process proceeds to step S14, and a warning display indicating that photographing processing based on all pixel data by turning on the release switch cannot be performed is displayed on the display panel. 17 is displayed.

  If it is set in advance not to record the thinned image data and the process proceeds from step S4 to step S11, in step S11, the main control unit 1 starts live view display using the thinned image data. In step S12, the main control unit 1 determines whether or not the release switch is turned on. If release switch on is detected, the process proceeds to step S13, where it is determined whether or not preparation for shooting has been completed. If it is determined in step S13 that the preparation for photographing is not completed, the process proceeds to step S15. If it is determined that preparation for photographing is completed, the process proceeds to step S10 to perform the photographing process. When the photographing process in step S10 is completed, the series of processes in FIG. On the other hand, when the process proceeds from step 13 to step S15, the main control unit 1, similarly to step S14 described above, displays a warning display indicating that the photographing process based on all pixel data by turning on the release switch cannot be executed. Displayed on the display panel 17.

  In the processing shown in FIG. 2 described above, when the recording setting is valid, the thinned image data obtained from the thinning data output after the camera is activated until the completion of the photographing preparation is buffered in the DRAM 22 and before the photographing semi-detail is completed. When the release switch is turned on, the buffered thinned image data is recorded on the memory card 19. Therefore, conventionally, even before the preparation for shooting, where shooting was not permitted even if the user performed a release operation and the shooting scene was missed, such a situation can be avoided in the camera of the present embodiment, Recorded as thinned image data.

(Modification)
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a modification of the processing operation shown in FIG. 2, and shows the processing after step S4 in FIG. The omitted steps S1 to S3 are exactly the same as those in FIG. In FIG. 4, the processing of the portion surrounded by the broken line is different from the flowchart shown in FIG. 2, and the following description will focus on the different portion.

  In step S5, when starting the buffering of the thinned image data and the live view display on the display panel 17, the main control unit 1 proceeds to step S106 and determines whether or not the preparation for photographing is completed. If it is determined in step S106 that the photographing preparation is completed, the process proceeds to step S107, the buffering of the thinned image data started in step S5 to the DRAM 22 is terminated, and the process further proceeds to step S108, where the thinned image data recorded in the DRAM 22 is completed. Are all deleted. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S106 that the preparation for photographing has not been completed, steps S107 and 108 are skipped and the process proceeds to step S109.

  In step S109, the main control unit 1 determines whether or not the release switch is on. If the release switch is on, the main control unit 1 proceeds to step S110. If the release switch is not on, the main control unit 1 returns to step S106. In step S110, the main control unit 1 determines whether or not the shooting preparation is completed. If it is determined that the preparation for shooting is completed, the process proceeds to step S10 to execute the shooting process. If it is determined that the preparation for shooting is not completed, the process proceeds to step S111.

  In step S111, buffering data (thinned image data) from when recording to the DRAM 22 is started until the release switch 14 is turned on is recorded on the memory card 19. In the subsequent step S112, the main control unit 1 displays a warning display on the display panel 17 indicating that the photographing process based on all the pixel data by turning on the release switch cannot be executed. In step S <b> 113, the main control unit 1 once clears buffering data related to the thinned image data stored in the DRAM 22. Then, buffering of the thinned image data is resumed, and the process returns to step S106.

  By performing the processing in step S113, if there are a plurality of release operations until the completion of shooting preparation, the thinned-out image data recorded in the memory card 19 by the second and subsequent release operations is started from the restart of buffering in step S113. This is thinned image data. That is, in the second and subsequent release operations, not all of the thinned image data from the start of buffering in step S5 is recorded on the memory card 19, so recording of the memory card 19 necessary for recording the thinned image data is not performed. The capacity can be kept small.

  In the modification shown in FIG. 4, when the user operates the release button 14 a plurality of times before the preparation for photographing is completed, thinned image data is recorded in the memory card 19 for each release operation. In that case, an image of a scene that the user tried to shoot is included in a portion close to the last frame of each thinned image data. Therefore, a desired scene in the thinned-out image data can be easily found when rearranging the shooting data later. Of course, also in the processing operation shown in FIG. 2, after step S14, the number of frames of the buffered thinned-out image data is recorded in the memory card 19 after the release switch is turned on. If is added, the same effect can be achieved.

  In the processing operation shown in FIG. 2 described above, the thinned image data is buffered from the start of the acquisition of the thinned data to the completion of the shooting preparation, and all the buffered thinned image data is recorded in the memory card 19. In the processing operation shown in FIG. 4, the buffering range is the same as in the processing operation of FIG. 2, but the thinned image data to be recorded on the memory card 19 is in the range from the start of buffering to the release switch on. there were.

  However, the method of determining the buffering range and the recording range is not limited to these, and may be set as follows. In the first example, buffering is performed from the start of fetching of thinned data to the completion of shooting preparation, and recording to the memory card 19 is performed by recording one frame at the timing when the release switch is turned on or a plurality of frames before and after the release switch is turned on. In the second example, only the latest multiple frames (for example, 5 frames) are always buffered by the FIFO (First In First Out) method, and if the release switch is turned on, the latest buffered at that time Or a plurality of frames after the release switch is turned on in addition to the latest frames.

  Further, as in the example shown in FIG. 4, the recording range is not divided at the release switch-on timing, and the stable state parameter is within the predetermined range in consideration of the stable state of the image at that time. The recording range may be set until a stable state is reached. As what can be considered as a stable state of the image in this case, the photographing composition can be stable. As parameters used for determination of stability, for example, in the AE relationship, there are changes in the luminance value (Y data) of each area obtained by dividing the screen into a plurality of colors and the hue (Cb, Cr data) of each area. Alternatively, stability may be determined using an image blur amount based on the detection value of the gyro sensor 13.

  For example, when the luminance values of the divided areas are used, the luminance values in the area of interest are compared with respect to two consecutive thinned image data. When the photographic composition changes due to movement of a subject to be imaged or camera shake at the time of shooting, there may be a difference in luminance value in the area between two consecutive thinned image data. The luminance value difference ΔY varies depending on the area, but if the largest difference ΔY is equal to or less than a predetermined reference value, the luminance value is determined to be stable. That is, the thinned image data stored in the DRAM 22 is recorded in the memory card 19 in the period from the start of buffering to the DRAM 22 until the difference ΔY after the release switch is turned on becomes equal to or less than the reference value.

  When recording the buffered thinned-out image data to the memory card 19, the recording form is recorded one frame at a time as still image data, and the necessary frames of the recorded still image data (entire or frames in a predetermined range) are recorded. Is recorded on the memory card 19. Further, the thinned image data may be buffered as moving image data, and the entire moving image data may be recorded on the memory card 19, or data in a predetermined frame range may be cut out as still image data and recorded on the memory card 19.

  When recording the moving image data in the MPEG format on the memory card 19, the above-described stability determination is performed based on the magnitude of the MPEG motion vector. That is, for the thinned image data of two consecutive frames (frames) of moving image data, the magnitude of the motion vector between frames is used for stability determination. In this case, since the motion of the entire screen due to camera shake or the like is determined instead of the motion vector due to the motion of the subject, for example, the entire screen is divided into a plurality of areas, and an area with a small motion vector is considered. If the size of the motion vector in the area becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined reference value, it is determined that the motion (blur) of the image on the entire screen is stable.

  In the embodiment described above, still image shooting has been described as an example, but the present invention can be similarly applied to moving image shooting. That is, when the moving image data is buffered from the time before completion of shooting preparation, and the user turns on a shooting switch (corresponding to the release switch described above) for starting moving image shooting before completion of shooting preparation, The ringed moving image data is also recorded on a non-volatile recording medium such as the memory card 19.

As described above, in the imaging apparatus according to the present embodiment, the imaging preparation operation including at least one of the focusing operation and the exposure adjustment operation is completed from the start of image data output of the imaging element 7 after the power supply by the power supply 16 is started. Until then, the output of the thinned-out image data is permitted and the output of all the pixel image data is prohibited, and after the completion of the shooting preparation operation, the prohibition of the output of all the pixel image data is canceled and permitted. In the period from the start of the output of the thinned image data to the completion of the shooting preparation operation, the thinned image data output from the image sensor 7 is buffered in the DRAM 22, and the buffered data is recorded in the memory card 19. Therefore, even if the release button 14 is operated from the start of image data output to the completion of shooting preparation, To, I never miss a shooting scene.
The thinned image data output from the image sensor 7 may be recorded in the memory card 19 without being buffered in the DRAM 22.
Furthermore, after the start of image data output by the image sensor 7, the thinned image data or the gyro sensor 13 is detected until the correlation value between two consecutive thinned image data after the release operation unit is operated is within a predetermined value. By recording the thinned image data on the memory card 19 until the blur amount based on the value falls within the predetermined range, a more stable image can be recorded.
In addition, by switching the setting for recording the thinned image data to the memory card 19 and the setting for not recording by the operation of the recording setting button 23, the thinned image data is stored in the memory card when recording is not necessary. 19 can be prevented from being recorded.
Furthermore, when thinned-out image data is recorded in the memory card 19 when the release operation is performed, a warning is displayed on the display panel 17 to notify the user of the warning, so that the user can It can be easily recognized that not all pixel image data but thinned image data is recorded in the memory card 19.

  In addition, the above description is an example to the last, and this invention is not limited to the said embodiment at all unless the characteristic of this invention is impaired.

1 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of an imaging apparatus according to the present invention, and is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a digital camera. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the processing operation from a power activation to the imaging | photography process by release operation. It is a figure which shows a control sequence. It is a flowchart which shows the modification of processing operation.

Explanation of symbols

  1: main control unit, 2: photographing optical system, 3: lens driving unit, 4: blur correction driving unit, 5: aperture, 6: aperture driving unit, 7: image sensor, 8: driver, 9: AFE (Analog Front End), 10: Timing generator, 11: Memory card drive device, 12: Image processing circuit, 13: Gyro sensor, 14: Release button, 15: Power button, 16: Power supply, 17: Display panel, 18: Display panel drive Circuit: 19: Memory card, 20: Built-in memory, 21: VRAM, 22: DRAM, 23: Record setting button

Claims (8)

An image sensor that captures an image formed by an optical system and can selectively output either all pixel image data based on signals of all pixels or thinned image data based on signals of predetermined pixels among all pixels When,
A focus adjusting means for performing a focusing operation of the optical system based on the thinned image data;
Exposure adjustment means for performing an exposure adjustment operation based on the thinned image data;
Power supply means for supplying power to the image sensor, the focus adjustment means, and the exposure adjustment means;
A power supply operation unit that instructs the power supply means to start supplying power in response to an operation by a user;
From the start of image data output of the image sensor after the start of power supply by the power supply means, until the shooting preparation operation including at least one of the focusing operation and the exposure adjustment operation is completed, the thinned image data is output. Imaging control means for controlling the imaging element to permit and prohibit the output of the all-pixel image data, and to cancel and permit the output of the all-pixel image data after the completion of the shooting preparation operation; ,
During the period from the start of output of the thinned image data to the completion of the shooting preparation operation, the thinned image data output from the image sensor is temporarily stored for recording in a nonvolatile image data storage medium. And an image storage device. An image sensor that captures an image formed by an optical system and can selectively output either all pixel image data based on signals of all pixels or thinned image data based on signals of predetermined pixels among all pixels When,
A focus adjusting means for performing a focusing operation of the optical system based on the thinned image data;
Exposure adjustment means for performing an exposure adjustment operation based on the thinned image data;
Power supply means for supplying power to the image sensor, the focus adjustment means, and the exposure adjustment means;
A power supply operation unit that instructs the power supply means to start supplying power in response to an operation by a user;
From the start of image data output of the image sensor after the start of power supply by the power supply means, until the shooting preparation operation including at least one of the focusing operation and the exposure adjustment operation is completed, the thinned image data is output. Imaging control means for controlling the imaging element to permit and prohibit the output of the all-pixel image data, and to cancel and permit the output of the all-pixel image data after the completion of the shooting preparation operation; ,
Recording means for recording the thinned image data output from the image sensor in a nonvolatile image data storage medium in a period from the start of outputting the thinned image data to the completion of the shooting preparation operation. An imaging device that is characterized. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
A release operation unit that issues a shooting instruction to acquire the all-pixel image data in accordance with a user operation;
If the release operation unit is operated before the shooting preparation operation is completed, the thinning stored in the volatile storage unit during a period from the start of image data output to the operation of the release operation unit is performed. An image pickup apparatus comprising: a recording unit that records image data in the nonvolatile image data storage medium. The imaging device according to claim 3.
When the release operation unit is operated before the shooting preparation operation is completed, the recording unit performs two consecutive thinned-out image data from the start of the image data output to the time when the release operation unit is operated. An image pickup apparatus, wherein the thinned image data stored in the volatile storage means is recorded in the nonvolatile image data storage medium until a correlation value between the values becomes within a predetermined value. The imaging device according to claim 3.
A blur amount detecting means for detecting a blur amount of an image captured by the image sensor;
When the release operation unit is operated before the photographing preparation operation is completed, the recording unit detects that the amount of blur detected by the blur amount detecting unit is within a predetermined range from the start of image data output. An image pickup apparatus, wherein the thinned image data stored in the volatile storage unit is recorded in the non-volatile image data storage medium during a period up to. The imaging device according to claim 1 or 2,
And a selection unit that selects a recording mode in which the thinned image data is recorded in the nonvolatile storage medium and a non-recording mode in which the thinned image data is not recorded in the nonvolatile storage medium. An imaging device. The imaging device according to claim 3.
When the release operation unit is operated before the photographing preparation operation is completed, the recording unit stores the thinned image data without recording the all-pixel image data on the nonvolatile storage medium. When the release operation unit is operated after recording to the nonvolatile storage medium and the photographing preparation operation is completed, the all-pixel image data is recorded without recording the thinned image data on the nonvolatile storage medium. An image pickup apparatus that records in the nonvolatile storage medium. The imaging apparatus according to claim 7,
The recording means further comprises notification means for notifying a user that the thinned-out image data has been recorded in the nonvolatile storage medium without recording the all-pixel image data in the nonvolatile storage medium. An imaging device.

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