JP2010252217A - Imaging device and setting change control method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make setting change by determining a set value after switching based upon setting information by attitudes and control information before and after attitude change of an imaging device when the attitude change is detected. <P>SOLUTION: An imaging device is provided with an attitude detection circuit 51 which detects the attitude of the imaging device and a memory 37 for storing the setting information by the attitudes. The attitude detection circuit 51 detects attitude change of the imaging device (S1_02). A system control unit 39 which performs setting change control over the imaging device in accordance with the detected change determines set values to be changed based upon the stored setting information by the attitudes and control information before and after the attitude change, for example, information associated with a focus detection state and identification information associated with identity of a subject (S1_03, S1_05, and S1_06). In accordance with the determination result, change processing for the setting information is carried out (S1_04, S1_09). Consequently, an automatic focus adjustment frame and a photometry point are automatically changed, so manual operation by a user after the attitude change is not necessary. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to change control of setting information in accordance with a change in posture of an imaging apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a technique is known in which a setting value is changed according to a detected posture by a posture detecting unit when a user changes the posture of a camera according to a scene or subject to be photographed. For example, the area selection camera disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a control unit that changes the area selected by the area selection unit according to the posture detected by the posture detection unit. Further, in the camera disclosed in Patent Document 2, by setting a distance measuring point group shape with a high degree of freedom, correct automatic focus adjustment is performed on the subject intended by the photographer.

JP-A-9-90202 JP 2006-139256 A

  In the prior art, the setting value is simply switched to the relatively same position before and after the camera posture change. This method is effective when photographing the same subject and the same scene before and after the posture change. However, in actual photography, there are many cases where the subject is not the same subject before and after the posture change, or is not the same scene. In the method of performing the setting value switching control to the relatively same position as in the prior art, for example, a situation may occur in which the switching to the position desired by the user is not performed with respect to the control of the automatic focus adjustment frame. At that time, the user is forced to change the position after switching to the position desired by the manual operation, and as a result, there is a problem that the number of operations is increased.

  An object of the present invention is to determine a setting value after switching based on setting information for each posture and control information before and after the posture change and to change the setting when a posture change of the imaging apparatus is detected.

  In order to solve the above problems and achieve the above object, the present invention relates to an attitude detection unit that detects the attitude of an imaging apparatus, a storage unit that stores setting information for each attitude of the imaging apparatus, and an imaging apparatus that includes the attitude detection unit. If a change in posture is detected, according to the change in posture, the setting information to be switched based on the setting information for each posture stored in the storage unit and the control information before and after the posture change is determined. Control means for changing the set information.

  According to the present invention, when a change in posture of the imaging device is detected, the setting information after switching is determined and set based on the setting information for each posture and the control information before and after the posture change of the imaging device. An imaging apparatus that performs a change and a setting change control method thereof can be provided.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a digital single-lens reflex camera in order to describe an imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention together with FIGS. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the memory | storage process example of an attitude | position discrimination | determination setting value. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the example of a determination process of a switching setting value. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the example of a switching process of an automatic focus adjustment frame. It is a figure for demonstrating the switching process of the automatic focus adjustment flame | frame according to the attitude | position of a camera.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of an electronic still camera according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the photographing optical system includes a photographing lens 1 and a shutter 2 having a diaphragm function, and an image pickup device 3 for converting an optical image into an electric signal by a CCD (charge coupled device) or the like is provided as an image pickup means. .

  The circuit unit for processing the output signal of the image sensor 3 includes a process circuit 4, an A (analog) / D (digital) converter 5, and an image compression circuit 6, and a changeover switch 7 is provided at the output stage. The process circuit 4 performs known camera signal processing such as gamma correction. The A / D converter 5 converts the analog output of the process circuit 4 into a digital signal. The image compression circuit 6 compresses image data by adaptive discrete cosine transform (ADCT) or the like. The changeover switch 7 is provided for transmission switching between compressed image data and image data bypassing the image compression circuit 6 (data not compressed).

  The audio signal processing unit includes a microphone 8, a noise reduction circuit 9, an A / D converter 10, and an audio compression circuit 11, and a changeover switch 12 is provided at the output stage. The audio signal output from the external audio input microphone 8 is reduced in noise by the noise reduction circuit 9 and then converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter 10. Then, the audio compression circuit 11 performs data compression using adaptive differential PCM (DPCM) or the like. The changeover switch 12 is provided for switching between transmission of audio data subjected to compression and audio data bypassing the audio compression circuit 11.

  The buffer memory 13 is storage means for temporarily storing image data (video signal) from the changeover switch 7 and / or audio data (audio signal) from the changeover switch 12. The buffer memory 13 can read the signal at a desired speed in accordance with a control signal from the memory control circuit 14. The memory control circuit 14 controls the A / D converters 5 and 10, the image compression circuit 6, the audio compression circuit 11, the changeover switches 7 and 12, and the buffer memory 13. When the image data is compressed, the compressed image data by the image compression circuit 6 is written into the buffer memory 13 through the change-over switch 7 and under the control of the memory control circuit 14. When the image data is not compressed, the image data output from the A / D converter 5 is written into the buffer memory 13 under the control of the memory control circuit 14. Similarly, when the audio data is compressed, the compressed audio data by the audio compression circuit 11 is written into the buffer memory 13 through the changeover switch 7 and under the control of the memory control circuit 14. When the audio data is not compressed, the audio data output from the A / D converter 10 is written into the buffer memory 13 under the control of the memory control circuit 14.

The interface (I / F) 15 transmits information to and from the memory card 16, the hard disk 17, or an external device. A connector 18 provided on the camera body electrically connects the memory card 16 or the hard disk 17 and the camera body.
The memory card 16 has a management data area 19 and an information data area 20 as recording areas, and information stored in these is read / written from the outside via an interface 21 and a connector 22 on the memory card 16 side. Also, the information in the write protect (write inhibit) unit 23 can be read out via the interface 21 and the connector 22. The interface 21 includes a control circuit such as a CPU and an MPU, a nonvolatile memory such as a ROM and an EEPROM, and a RAM. The interface 21 controls the memory card 16 based on a predetermined program.

  On the other hand, the hard disk 17 has a management data area 24 and an information data area 25 as storage areas, and information stored in these areas is read and written from the outside via an interface 26 and a connector 27. The interface 26 includes a control circuit such as a CPU and an MPU, a nonvolatile memory such as a ROM and an EEPROM, and a RAM, and controls the hard disk 17 based on a predetermined program.

  A shutter driving circuit 28 for driving the shutter 2 and a lens driving circuit 29 for driving a focusing lens in the photographing lens 1 are controlled by a system control unit 39 described later. The distance measuring circuit 30 measures the distance to the subject, and the photometric circuit 31 measures the brightness of the subject. These measurement results are sent to the system control unit 39 described later. For the flash 32, the amount of light emitted from the strobe is controlled by a system control unit 39, which will be described later.

  The temperature detection circuit 33 detects the temperature of the recording medium, the presence or absence of freezing or condensation, and sends the detection result to a system control unit 39 described later. The power supply control circuit 34 detects and controls the power supply state. The power supply unit 35 is configured by a battery, a DC-DC converter, a switch for switching an energized block, and the like, and is controlled by a power supply control circuit 34. The power supply control circuit 34 detects the presence / absence of a battery, the type of battery, and the remaining battery level, and controls the power supply unit 35 based on the detection result and an instruction from a system control unit 39 described later.

The display device 36 displays various information about the camera, captured images, menu items, and the like. The control memory 37 stores information such as shooting operation constants and variables of the system control unit 39 described later.
The switch group 38 includes, for example, the following switches in order to input various operation instructions to the system control unit 39 described later.
-Power switch 40.
Shutter switch (including release button 41, distance metering switch 42, and recording switch 43): The distance metering switch 42 is closed by the first stroke of the release button 41, and the distance measuring circuit 30 and the metering circuit 31 Instructs ranging and photometry. The recording switch 43 is closed by the second stroke of the release button 41 and instructs to record the captured image on the memory card 16 or the hard disk 17. In the figure, these are shown together.
Mode switch 44: A switch for selecting a single (S) mode in which one or one set of shooting is performed, a continuous (C) mode in which a plurality of or a plurality of sets of shooting are continuously performed, and a self-timer shooting mode.
Image mode switch 45: A switch for selecting an image recording method such as the number of recorded images, distinction between frame recording or field recording, aspect ratio, pixel configuration, compression method, compression rate, and the like. Although shown as one switch in the figure, it is composed of a plurality of switches.
Erase mode switch 46: A switch for selecting an erase mode.
Erase switch 47: A switch for instructing execution of erasure.
Audio recording switch 48: A switch for designating ON / OFF of audio recording.
Voice recording execution switch 49: A switch for voice recording execution instruction.
In addition, switches corresponding to various setting buttons, AF start buttons, and the like are provided.

  The system control unit 39 detects the instruction by the switch group 38, the type of the recording medium mounted on the camera body and the state of the recording medium (remaining storage capacity, etc.), and other detection results by the above-described camera body detection device. The entire camera is controlled according to For example, the system control unit 39 sends a control signal to the lens driving circuit 29 according to the measurement result of the distance measuring circuit 30, thereby driving the focusing lens of the photographing lens 1 to control the photographing lens 1 to the in-focus state. Further, the system control unit 39 performs control such as determining the opening time of the shutter 2 by sending a control signal to the shutter drive circuit 28 so that an optimal exposure amount can be obtained based on the photometry result of the photometry circuit 31. Do. The connector 50 is provided for connection with an external device, and is connected to an interface (I / F) 15. The posture detection circuit 51 detects the posture of the camera and sends the posture detection result to the system control unit 39.

  Next, an example of setting change control for a camera having the above-described configuration will be described in detail with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. First, an attitude discrimination setting value storage unit realized by the system control unit 39 and a program executed by the circuit will be described. Note that the posture discrimination setting value means setting information for each posture set corresponding to the camera posture.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a storage process of posture discrimination setting values. First, the system control unit 39 determines the state of the setting button for starting the setting mode corresponding to the setting value (S0_01). As a result, when it is determined that the switch is turned on by the operation of the button, the process proceeds to S0_02, and the posture detection circuit 51 detects the posture in that state. If it is determined that the setting button is not operated and the switch is off, the process in step S0_01 is repeated.

  Next, the system control unit 39 determines the posture detected by the posture detection circuit 51 (S0_03, S0_04). In this example, regarding the posture detection of the camera, three postures of a normal position, a grip top, and a grip bottom are assumed (see (a) and (b) of FIG. 5). In other words, the normal position corresponds to the state where the user holds the camera body in the horizontal direction, and the upper and lower grips indicate the state where the user holds the camera body in the vertical direction, and the grip is above the camera body. Or whether it comes below the camera body. In S0_03, the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the camera is in the normal position. As a result, in the case of the normal position, the process proceeds to S0_05, and the posture in that state is set as an active posture. The active posture means a value or information for specifying which posture the setting value that the user is going to set is a setting value. In S0_05, information indicating the normal position is set by the system control unit 39.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in S0_03 that the camera posture is not the normal position, the process proceeds to S0_04, and the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the camera posture is on the grip. As a result, in the case of the grip, the process proceeds to S0_06, where the grip is set as the active posture. On the other hand, if it is determined that the posture of the camera is not on the grip, the process proceeds to S0_07, and the bottom of the grip is set as the active posture. The setting mode is started by the processing in S0_05 to 07.

Next, the system control unit 39 determines whether an operation for changing the corresponding setting value is performed (S0_08). As a result, when it is determined that the setting value changing operation is performed, the system control unit 39 changes the setting value according to the changing method corresponding to the changing operation (S0_09), and then the process proceeds to S0_10. If it is determined that the setting value changing operation has not been performed, the process proceeds to S0_15.
In order to store the setting value changed in S0_09 in the control memory 37 in association with the active posture, the system control unit 39 determines what the active posture is set in the above step. (S0_10, S0_11). That is, if it is determined in S0_10 that the active posture is the normal position, the process proceeds to S0_12. If not, the process proceeds to S0_11, where it is determined whether or not the active posture is on the grip. The If it is on the grip, the process proceeds to S0_13. If not, the process proceeds to S0_14.

  In S0_12 to S14, the system control unit 39 stores the setting values corresponding to the respective active postures in the memory as posture discrimination setting values. That is, the processing for saving the setting value for the normal position in S0_12, the setting value for grip up in S0_13, and the setting value for grip down in S0_14 is performed, and then the process proceeds to S0_15. Here, the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the switch of the setting button for performing the setting mode end operation is in the ON state. As a result, when it is determined that the switch is on, the setting mode ends. If it is determined that the switch of the setting button is in the OFF state and it is determined that the setting mode is to be continued, the process returns to S0_08 again to determine whether or not a setting value changing operation has been performed.

Next, the setting value determination of the switching destination will be described using the flowchart of FIG. Note that the processing shown in the following steps S1_01 to 09 is realized by the system control unit 39 and a switching destination setting value determination unit configured using a program executed by the circuit.
Since this process is triggered by the occurrence of a camera posture change, first, the system control unit 39 determines whether or not a camera posture change has occurred (S1_01). As a result, when it is determined that a posture change has occurred, the process proceeds to S1_02, but when it is determined that there is no posture change, the process of S1_01 is repeated.

  In S1_02, it is determined whether or not the current AF (automatic focus adjustment) mode is a one-shot (ONE SHOT) mode in which the automatic focus adjustment is terminated by focusing. This is because the user needs to know what AF control the subject is performing. As a result of the determination, if it is determined that the current AF mode is ONE SHOT, the process proceeds to S1_03. If it is determined that the current AF mode is not ONE SHOT, the process proceeds to S1_05.

  In S1_03, the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the current AF state is in focus in order to know what the current AF control state is. The “AF state” in the present embodiment means an operation state of AF control and includes four states of stop, ranging, in-focus, and out-of-focus. That is, in this example, information regarding the focus detection state is used as control information before and after the posture change. If it is determined that the current AF state is in focus, that is, if the AF start button remains on even after focusing in the one-shot mode, the current selected AF frame and AF state are not changed. The holding is prioritized, and the process ends without changing the selected AF frame. The selected AF frame here means a selected autofocus frame.

If the determination result in S1_03 is not in focus, the process proceeds to S1_04. After the AF frame switching process is performed based on the posture discrimination setting value based on the storage process described above, the switching of the selected AF frame is completed. A specific example of the switching process will be described in detail later.
If the determination result in S1_02 is not the one-shot mode, it is determined whether or not the subject is the same before and after the posture change (S1_05). In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the AF mode (subject tracking mode) of “AI SERVO” is used as a mode other than ONE SHOT, and the AF start button is kept on before and after the posture change. Yes. Therefore, it is recognized that the subject is the same before and after the change in the posture of the camera. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the same subject is used based on the change in color and shape using the image information acquired by the image sensor 3. You may recognize sex. Thus, the identification information regarding the presence or absence of the identity of the subject before and after the posture change is used.

If it is determined in S1_05 that the subjects before and after the posture change are not the same, the process proceeds to S1_04. In this case, since the subject has changed after the posture change, it is necessary to quickly change the set value to the set value after the posture change. Therefore, after the selected AF frame is changed according to the AF frame switching process based on the posture discrimination setting value based on the storage process described above, the process ends.
If it is determined in S1_05 that the subject is the same before and after the posture change, the process proceeds to S1_06, and the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the current AF state is out of focus. As a result, when it is determined that the AF state is out of focus, the process proceeds to S1_07, but when it is determined that the AF state is not out of focus, the process proceeds to S1_09.

In S1_07, the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the AF frame based on the posture discrimination setting value corresponding to the current posture is in the vicinity of the current selected AF frame. As a result, when it is determined that the AF frame based on the posture discrimination setting value is in the vicinity of the currently selected AF frame, the process proceeds to S1_04, and AF frame switching processing based on the posture discrimination setting value is performed. . On the other hand, if it is determined that the AF frame based on the posture discrimination setting value is not in the vicinity of the currently selected AF frame, the process proceeds to S1_08. Here, the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the AF frame based on the posture discrimination setting value corresponding to the current posture is an area setting including the current AF frame. As a result, when it is determined that the area setting includes the current AF frame, the process proceeds to S1_04, and AF frame switching processing based on the posture discrimination setting value is performed. If a negative determination result is obtained in S1_08, the process proceeds to S1_09.
In S1_09, an AF frame switching process based on the subject position is performed based on the current selected AF frame position, and the process ends after the selected AF frame is changed.

  As described above, in the one-shot mode, the AF frame is not automatically switched during focusing, and the AF frame is automatically switched according to the posture discrimination setting value when out of focus. When the AF mode is AI SERVO and the subject is the same before and after the posture change and is not out of focus, the AF frame is automatically switched according to the determination result in S1_07 and 08.

Next, AF frame switching processing will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Note that the processing shown in the following steps S2_01 to S12_12 is realized by an AF frame switching unit configured using the system control unit 39 and a program executed by the circuit.
First, it is determined whether or not the reference for switching control is a posture discrimination setting value (S2_01). As a result, when it is determined that the posture discrimination setting value is the reference, the process proceeds to S2_02. Otherwise, the process proceeds to S2_05.

  In S2_02, the current posture is detected. That is, the detection result of the posture detection circuit 51 is sent to the system control unit 39. Then, the system control unit 39 determines whether the detected posture is the normal position, above the grip, or below the grip (S2_03, S2_04). That is, in S2_03, it is determined whether or not the detected posture is the normal position. If the determination result is the normal position, the process proceeds to S2_06. If the determination result is other than the normal position, the process proceeds to S2_04. Here, it is determined whether or not the detected posture is on the grip. If the determination result is on the grip, the process proceeds to S2_07. If the determination result is on the grip, the process proceeds to S2_08.

  In S2_06 to 08, processing for obtaining and setting information of the AF frame stored in the posture discrimination setting value storage unit is performed in accordance with the detected posture. That is, after obtaining and setting AF frame information for the normal position in S2_06, for gripping in S2_07, and for gripping in S2_08, the process proceeds to S2_09. If it is determined in S2_01 that the posture discrimination setting value is not a reference, the process proceeds to S2_05, and processing for setting an AF frame is performed so that the position is relatively the same as the original selected AF frame. Is called. Here, “relatively the same position” means that the position of the relative coordinates of the AF frame before and after the posture change of the camera is the same or a position in the vicinity thereof.

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not necessary and sufficient AF control can be performed with the AF frame determined to be the switching destination, and switching is permitted if AF control is possible, and switching is prohibited if AF control is not possible. Processing is performed.

  In S2_09, the system control unit 39 determines whether the AF frame set by the above processing is a position where a sufficient amount of AF control can be obtained based on the status of the lens mounted on the camera body and the like. To do. As a result, when it is determined that a sufficient amount of light cannot be obtained, the process ends without changing to the AF frame. When it is determined that the amount of light that can be controlled by AF is obtained, the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the strobe is currently used (S2_10). The situation in which the strobe is used in the present embodiment is a state in which the built-in strobe protrudes upward from the camera body or an external strobe is attached, and charging is completed, and the user intends This means that the flash is not set to not use. If it is determined in S2_10 that the strobe is used, the process proceeds to S2_11. If it is determined that the strobe is not used, the process proceeds to S2_12.

In S2_11, the system control unit 39 determines whether or not the AF frame set in the above process is in a position that matches a projection pattern of infrared auxiliary light necessary for AF control. As a result, if it is determined that the AF frame is at a position that matches the projection pattern, the process proceeds to S2_12. If not, the process ends as it is.
After the process of changing the selected AF frame to the AF frame set as described above is performed in S2_12, the process ends.

  FIGS. 5C and 5D show an example of AF frame switching processing in accordance with the camera posture change. The left figures in (c) and (d) show examples of images taken in the normal position, and the right figure shows examples of images taken in the state on the grip. (C) shows a shooting situation in which the subject changes before and after the posture change, and (d) shows a shooting situation in which the subject does not change before and after the posture change. In the figure, a plurality of rectangular frames indicated by dotted lines represent AF frames, and a rectangular frame indicated by a solid line represents a selected AF frame. If the subject changes after the camera posture changes, the position of the selected AF frame is switched with respect to the subject (see reference numeral 501). Even if the subject is the same after the camera posture changes, the selected AF frame is switched for the same subject (see reference numeral 502). Thus, since the AF frame intended by the user is automatically changed according to the change in the posture of the camera, it is not necessary for the user to manually change the position of the AF frame when changing the posture.

  In this embodiment, the setting change of the AF frame according to the change in the posture of the camera has been described. However, the posture discrimination setting value may be used as the position information of the photometric point. In this case, the AF state used in the embodiment is used as it is, and in other cases, exposure control is performed in accordance with the photometry point. Therefore, the control flow and the like are established as they are even if the same processing as in the above embodiment is used.

  As described above, when a change in posture is detected, the setting value of the switching destination is determined and determined based on the posture discrimination setting value and the control information before and after the posture change. A control method can be provided.

37 Memory 39 System Control Unit 51 Attitude Detection Circuit

Claims (4)

Attitude detection means for detecting the attitude of the imaging device;
Storage means for storing setting information for each posture of the imaging device;
When the posture change of the imaging apparatus is detected by the posture detection unit, the setting information to be switched based on the setting information for each posture stored in the storage unit and the control information before and after the posture change according to the posture change An imaging apparatus comprising control means for changing the setting information according to the determination and the determination result.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting information is information used to select an autofocus frame or a photometric point.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control information is information relating to a focus detection state or a subject. A setting change control method for an imaging apparatus, comprising: an attitude detection unit that detects an attitude of the imaging apparatus; and a storage unit that stores setting information for each attitude,
A detection step of detecting a change in posture of the imaging apparatus by the posture detection means;
According to the posture change detected in the detection step, the setting information to be switched is determined based on the setting information for each posture stored in the storage unit and the control information before and after the posture change, and the setting information is determined according to the determination result. A setting change control method for an imaging apparatus, comprising: a step for changing.

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