JP2010278916A - Information processing device, imaging apparatus and control method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To photograph contents described in a presentation device, more sharply and without a sense of incompatibility, without performing any photographing operation. <P>SOLUTION: The present invention relates to an information processing device communicable with an imaging apparatus comprising an imaging section for imaging contents being described for an object to be described, a zoom mechanism and a pan mechanism. The information processing device includes: a character/graphic-determining means for determining whether content being described for the object to be described is a character or a graphic based on an image picked up by the imaging section; and a control means for controlling the zoom mechanism and the pan mechanism in accordance with a result determined by the character/graphic determining means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing device, an imaging device, a control method, and a program. For example, it is suitable to be used when a presentation made using a whiteboard, blackboard, screen, or the like is imaged and displayed on a display device.

  Conventionally, it has been common for a presenter to make a presentation using a whiteboard, a blackboard or the like in a meeting or a lecture. In recent years, it has become common for presenters to create presentation materials as electronic data using a personal computer and display them on a screen, a large television, or the like.

  Also, not only a single large projector or large TV that all audience members watch, but also a monitor or the like placed near each audience seat, images taken with presentation materials and cameras (hereinafter referred to as conference images) Is often distributed to monitors. Furthermore, in a so-called remote conference in which a conference at a certain point is listened to from another point, a remote conference is enabled by distributing the conference image from the conference venue where the presentation is made to the point where the listener is present.

By the way, when these meetings and lectures are photographed with a camera, it is not realistic to photograph a whole view of the conference room and to photograph, transmit, and display data with a resolution that can clearly read a board such as a whiteboard. However, when a small letter is written on the board, the contents described in the board are important, and it is necessary to acquire high-definition information to such an extent that the description can be discriminated.
On the other hand, when a figure or the like is described on a white board or the like, the whole figure cannot be seen unless the whole figure falls within the angle of view. Therefore, in general, the shooting conditions of the camera, that is, the zoom amount, pan, and tilt directions are generally switched according to the progress of the conference.

For example, there are communication systems such as communication schools and learning cram schools that allow students to take lectures at a plurality of locations by capturing and distributing the content of lectures held at a certain location with a camera. In these lectures, an operator who operates the camera often operates the zoom amount, pan and tilt directions of the camera as the lecture progresses.
Further, the character image photographing device of Patent Document 1 is provided with a character photographing mode for photographing an object to be photographed such as a blackboard, and when this mode is selected, the resolution required for character discrimination is estimated. A technique for photographing with the estimated resolution is disclosed.

JP-A-9-293121

However, the imaging system as described above has the following problems.
First of all, in the case of a meeting or lecture, a specialized photographer is required, and the cost for conducting the meeting or lecture increases. In this case, a method of operating the camera on the receiving side is also conceivable, but the receiver must perform an operation each time, and an unnecessary operation occurs during a meeting or lecture. Further, when there are two or more receiving sides for one camera, priority is given to the operation for one camera, and an operation with a low priority is inevitably not reflected.

  Second, although the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above can be expected to be effective in still image shooting, the user must select a mode. Switching between the normal shooting mode and the normal shooting mode is not realistic.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and aims at photographing the contents described in a description object more clearly and without a sense of incongruity without the presenter performing a photographing operation. To do.

The present invention is an information processing apparatus that can communicate with an imaging device that includes an imaging unit that captures the contents described in the object to be described, a zoom mechanism, and a pan mechanism. A character / figure determining unit for determining whether the content described in the description object is a character or a graphic from the image being processed, and according to a result determined by the character / figure determining unit, And a zoom mechanism and a control means for controlling the pan mechanism.
In addition, the present invention is an imaging device that includes an imaging unit that captures the content described in the object to be described, a zoom mechanism, and a pan mechanism, from an image captured by the imaging unit. Character graphic determination means for determining whether the content described for the object to be described is a character or a graphic, and depending on the result determined by the character graphic determination means, the zoom mechanism and the pan And a control means for controlling the mechanism.
In addition, the present invention is a control method for controlling an imaging device that includes an imaging unit that captures the contents described in the object to be described, a zoom mechanism, and a pan mechanism. A character graphic determination step for determining whether the content described for the object to be described is a character or a graphic from the image being processed, and according to the result determined by the character graphic determination step, And a control step for controlling the zoom mechanism and the pan mechanism.
In addition, the present invention is a program for controlling an imaging device that includes an imaging unit that captures the contents described in the object to be described, a zoom mechanism, and a pan mechanism. According to the character graphic determination step for determining whether the content described for the object to be described is a character or a graphic from the captured image, and the result determined by the character graphic determination step, A program for causing a computer to execute control steps for controlling the zoom mechanism and the pan mechanism.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to photograph the content described in the description object more clearly and without a sense of incongruity without performing an operation of photographing.

It is a figure which shows schematic structure of an imaging system. It is a figure which shows the hardware constitutions of an imaging system. It is a figure which shows the mechanism structure of information processing apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the operation processing of an imaging system. It is a figure showing an example of transition of an image pick-up field by operation processing of an image pick-up system.

Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
First, a schematic configuration of the imaging system 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the present embodiment, a case where a state of a meeting is captured and displayed will be described as an example.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the imaging system 100 includes an imaging device 20, an information processing device 30, and a display device 40.

  First, the imaging device 20 is installed, for example, in a conference hall and at a position where the entire presentation device 10 as a description object as shown in FIG. 1 can be imaged. Here, the presentation device 10 may be a device that can be physically described, such as a whiteboard or a blackboard, or may be a device that can display electronic information, such as an electronic white board or a screen. The imaging device 20 is typically a digital video camera, and photographs the presenter or the presentation device 10 in the form of a moving image.

The information processing apparatus 30 is typically a personal computer, a server, or the like, and is connected so as to be communicable with the imaging apparatus 20. The information processing device 30 controls the driving of the imaging device 20 by performing processing described later based on the image captured by the imaging device 20. Note that the information processing apparatus 30 may be installed at any position, such as inside the conference hall or outside the conference hall.
The display device 40 is a display that displays an image captured by the imaging device 20. The display device 40 is installed, for example, at a position close to the conference listener. The display device 40 may be installed at a remote location outside the lecture hall. In this case, the display device 40 is connected to the imaging device 20 or the information processing device 30 via a network.

Next, the hardware configuration of each device of the imaging system 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
First, the imaging apparatus 20 includes an imaging unit 201, a zoom mechanism 202, a pan mechanism 203, a tilt mechanism 204, and an interface 205. The imaging unit 201 includes an imaging element such as a CCD (not shown). The zoom mechanism 202 is a drive unit that drives a focus lens or the like (not shown) in order to change the shooting region (view angle) of the imaging unit 201. The pan mechanism 203 is a drive unit that drives a pan head (not shown) or the like in order to change the shooting area in the pan direction. The tilt mechanism 204 is a drive unit that drives a head or the like (not shown) in order to change the photographing region in the tilt direction. The interface 205 transmits and receives signals between the information processing device 30 and the display device 40.

  The information processing apparatus 30 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 301, a storage unit 302, and an interface 303. The CPU 301 controls the information processing apparatus 30 as a whole. Further, the CPU 301 can realize a functional configuration shown in FIG. 3 and a flowchart shown in FIG. 4 to be described later by executing a program stored in the storage unit 302. The storage unit 302 stores a program to be executed by the CPU 301, or the CPU 301 temporarily stores information. The interface 303 is for transmitting and receiving signals to and from the imaging device 20.

Next, the functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 30 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
The functional configuration shown in FIG. 3 is realized by the CPU 301 executing a program stored in the storage unit 302.
The information processing apparatus 30 includes a description detection unit 311, a character / graphic determination unit 312, an identifiable magnification calculation unit 313, an outermost edge detection unit 314, and a control unit 315. The control unit 315 includes a zoom magnification control unit 316, a pan control unit 317, and a tilt control unit 318.

  The description detection unit 311 detects the presence / absence of a description for the presentation device 10 from the conference image captured by the imaging device 20. Specifically, the description detection unit 311 detects a change amount from a difference between a plurality of frames in the conference image, and determines whether the difference is a description or a motion of another object (for example, a person). To do. When the description detection unit 311 determines that the description is made in the conference image, the description detection unit 311 stores the description area address in the conference image. Actually, the CPU 301 writes the description area address in a predetermined area on the storage unit 302.

  Here, as an example of the description area extraction, a description will be given of using a background difference. For example, the description detection unit 311 acquires a reference background image f at time t, and acquires a frame ft1 after a lapse of Δt1 from the background image and a frame ft2 after a lapse of Δt2. Further, the description detection unit 311 acquires the background image f and the difference images dt1 and dt2 of the ft1 and ft2. In order to acquire the difference, it is preferable to perform preprocessing such as reducing the bit depth of the luminance information in order to absorb a subtle difference in luminance of the camera. If the pixel value of the image DA obtained from the logical product (dt2∩dt1) of dt1 and dt2 obtained as described above is a certain value or more, the point changes from t to t1, and then at t2. There is no change until now. Therefore, this pixel point is highly likely to be a description, and such a detection method may be used.

  Here, an example in which the description detection unit 311 extracts a description area has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this method as long as the same effect can be obtained. Further, in order to improve the accuracy of description detection, an optical flow may be used, or the description has a stroke, so that a filter that detects only a change on the line may be used as a pre-process for acquiring a difference image. Further, the present invention is not limited to the case where description detection is performed only by image processing. For example, if the presentation device 10 is an electronic blackboard, output information may be captured and used for determination.

  The character / graphic determination unit 312 determines whether the description in the conference image captured by the imaging device 20 is a character or a graphic. As a character determination algorithm, for example, pattern matching which is a known technique may be used. In other words, the character / graphic determination unit 312 continuously determines the similarity between the described contents and the stored dictionary data. For example, when the degree of similarity is high, the character / graphic determination unit 312 determines that the description is a character. When the similarity is low, the character / graphic determination unit 312 determines that the description is a graphic.

  The identifiable magnification calculation unit 313 is a minimum that can be set by a zoom magnification control unit 316 described later from the resolution of the conference image captured by the imaging device 20 and the spatial frequency in the description area extracted by the description detection unit 311. Calculate the resolution. Note that the identifiable magnification calculation algorithm of the identifiable magnification calculator 313 will be described later.

  The outermost edge detection unit 314 detects the outermost edge of the description from the description area extracted by the description detection unit 311. When the content described by the character / graphic determination unit 312 is determined to be a graphic, the outermost edge detection unit 314 detects the outermost edge of the graphic, and when it is determined to be a character, the character string of the character Detect the outermost edge of. The outermost edge detection unit 314 reads the description area extracted by the description detection unit 311, connects the description pixels detected in the description area information by labeling, recognizes it as one object, and detects the outermost edge. Here, when detecting the outermost edge of a figure, the outermost edge detection part 314 divides | segments the conference image which the imaging device 20 is imaging into several area | regions. This process corresponds to an example of an area dividing unit. Next, the outermost edge detection unit 314 selects an area where a figure is currently described from the divided areas based on the description area extracted by the description detection unit 311. This process corresponds to an example of a region selection unit. Then, the outermost edge detection unit 314 detects the outermost edge of the graphic in the selected area. Actually, the CPU 301 writes the address of the outermost edge in the storage unit 302.

  At the same time, the outermost edge detection unit 314 notifies the control unit 315 that the outermost edge of the character string or figure does not exist in the current shooting area. That is, when the zoom magnification is set too high and the entire character string or the entire figure described in the current imaging region of the imaging device 20 is not captured, the outermost edge does not exist. In this case, the outermost edge detection unit 314 notifies the control unit 315 that there is no outermost edge.

The control unit 315 controls shooting conditions (zoom magnification, movement amount in the pan direction and tilt direction) of the imaging device 20. The control unit 315 determines the zoom magnification based on the lowest resolution calculated by the identifiable magnification calculation unit 313 and the outermost edge of the character string or figure calculated by the outermost edge detection unit 314. The zoom magnification control unit 316 transmits a zoom amount signal to the zoom mechanism 202 of the imaging device 20 based on the determined zoom magnification.
Further, the control unit 315 determines a movement amount and a movement speed in the pan direction or the tilt direction based on the image captured by the imaging unit 201 or based on the detection by the description detection unit 311. The pan control unit 317 transmits the determined movement amount or movement speed signal in the pan direction to the pan mechanism 203 of the imaging device 20. In addition, the tilt control unit 318 transmits a signal of the determined movement amount or movement speed in the tilt direction to the tilt mechanism 204 of the imaging device 20.

  Next, the algorithm of the identifiable magnification calculation unit 313 will be described. The identifiable magnification calculator 313 cuts out a description area of the conference image captured by the imaging device 20. Then, the image information is converted into YCbCr, and only the luminance information Y is extracted. Further, the luminance level is binarized. The following line width extraction processing and spatial frequency analysis processing are performed on the image P0 subjected to the above processing.

First, in the line width extraction process, the description area is Hough transformed to extract line elements. The extracted line element is mapped with the original image P0, and the line width orthogonal to the line direction is extracted. This line width extraction is performed on a plurality of line elements, and the average is defined as the line width. This process corresponds to an example of a line width acquisition unit.
Next, in the spatial frequency analysis process, the above-described image P0 is divided into appropriate block sizes (for example, blocks of about 8 × 8), and spatial frequency analysis is performed by discrete Fourier transform for each block. For this portion, discrete cosine transform used for JPEG compression or the like may be used. The above-described processing corresponds to an example of a spatial frequency acquisition unit.

  Next, the identifiable magnification calculator 313 estimates the identifiable magnification. By the above-described line width extraction processing and spatial frequency analysis processing, the average line width of the image P0 and the spatial frequency of the description area expressed by the line width can be acquired. The identifiable magnification calculation unit 313 calculates the identifiable magnification X for the average line width being equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold Wth or the spatial frequency being equal to or less than the threshold fth. When the line width obtained by the above-described line width extraction process is W and the frequency obtained by the above-described spatial frequency analysis process is f, the discriminable magnification X can be calculated as follows.

Xw = Wth / W
Xf = f / fth
When Xw> Xf, X = Xw
Other than the above X = Xf
Note that the method of calculating the identifiable magnification is not limited to this case as long as the same effect as described above can be obtained.

  Next, operation processing in the imaging system will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation process of the imaging system. The flowchart illustrated in FIG. 4 is realized by the CPU 301 of the information processing device 30 executing a program stored in the storage unit 302. The flowchart shown in FIG. 4 is executed at the start timing of the conference. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of transition of the imaging region. Hereinafter, description will be given with reference to FIG. 5 as appropriate.

First, in step S <b> 101, the description detection unit 311 continuously acquires conference images from the imaging unit 201 of the imaging device 20 after performing initialization processing. Here, for example, as shown in FIG. 5A, the conference image of the shooting area 401 including the entire presentation device 10 is acquired. Here, the description detection unit 311 continuously acquires the conference image and determines whether or not there is a description in the conference image.
When the description detection unit 311 detects a region that seems to be a description region in a part of the conference image, the description detection unit 311 stores the description region address in the conference image of the description region. Here, the description area address may typically be the X and Y coordinate values in the image. Next, the process proceeds to step S102.

  Step S102 is a step of controlling the zoom amount, pan direction movement amount, and tilt direction movement amount of the imaging device 20 based on the description area address stored in the description detection unit 311 in step S101. Done. Note that step S102 may be omitted and the process may proceed to the next step S103 in order to suppress an excessive change in the imaging region.

  Step S <b> 102 is executed by the description detection unit 311, the identifiable magnification calculation unit 313, the control unit 315, the zoom magnification control unit 316, the pan control unit 317, and the tilt control unit 318. The identifiable magnification calculation unit 313 displays the resolution based on the resolution of the current conference image, the resolution of the display device 40, the ratio or resolution of the description area in the conference image, and based on the spatial frequency of the description area. In the device 40, a resolution that can at least identify the description area is calculated. At the same time, the control unit 315 calculates the amount of movement in the panning or tilting direction for controlling the panning mechanism 203 or the tilting mechanism 204 of the imaging device 20 so that the description area is in the center of the shooting area. Then, the zoom magnification control unit 316, the pan control unit 317, and the tilt control unit 318 transmit signals to the imaging device 20 based on the calculated resolution and the movement amount in the pan direction or the tilt direction. As a result, the imaging apparatus 20 moves the shooting area to the shooting area 402 shown in FIG.

Step S103 is a step of determining whether the described content is a character or a graphic. Step S <b> 103 is executed by the character / graphic determination unit 312. When the description detection unit 311 detects a description in the conference image, the character / graphic determination unit 312 receives the description area address from the description detection unit 311. Then, the character / graphic determination unit 312 identifies a description location in the conference image based on the acquired description area address and the conference image captured by the imaging device 20, and determines whether the description location is a character or not. It is determined whether it is. This process corresponds to an example of a character / graphic determination unit. The character / graphic determination unit 312 stores the determination result. In practice, the CPU 301 stores information on the determination result in the storage unit 302.
If the character / graphic determination unit 312 determines that the described content is a character, the process proceeds to step S104. On the other hand, if it is determined that the described content is a graphic, the process proceeds to step S108.

  Step S104 is a step of calculating an identifiable magnification. Step S <b> 104 is executed by the identifiable magnification calculation unit 313. The identifiable magnification calculation unit 313 calculates the minimum zoom magnification (identifiable magnification) at which the currently described character can be identified by the display device 40 from the description area address. The identifiable magnification calculation unit 313 stores the calculated identifiable magnification. Actually, the CPU 301 stores the identifiable magnification in the storage unit 302.

  Step S105 is a step of comparing the current zoom magnification with the identifiable magnification calculated in step S104. Step S105 is executed by the control unit 315. The control unit 315 compares the current zoom magnification X set by the zoom magnification control unit 316 with the identifiable magnification XN calculated in step S104. If the control unit 315 determines that the comparison result of X> XN is TRUE, that is, if the identifiable magnification XN is lower than the current zoom magnification X, the process proceeds to step S106. On the other hand, when the comparison result of X> XN is determined to be FALSE, that is, when the identifiable magnification XN is higher than the current zoom magnification X, the identifiable magnification XN is more than the current zoom magnification X. In this case, the process proceeds to step S107.

Step S106 is a step of performing zoom-out by the zoom mechanism 202 of the imaging device 20 in order to display the entire character string. Step S <b> 106 is executed by the control unit 315, the outermost edge detection unit 314, and the zoom magnification control unit 316. Step S106 displays the entire character string when X> XN, that is, when the character string currently being described is sufficiently identifiable on the display device 40 and the entire character string does not fall within the imaging region. To be executed.
Here, when the outermost edge detection unit 314 determines that there is no outermost edge of the character string in the shooting region, the control unit 315 continuously sets the zoom magnification to the zoom magnification control unit 316 by a predetermined amount. Instruct to decrease. The zoom magnification control unit 316 transmits a zoom amount signal to the zoom mechanism 202 of the imaging device 20 based on the instruction. The zoom mechanism 202 of the imaging device 20 performs zoom-out based on the zoom amount transmitted from the zoom magnification control unit 316. Further, when the outermost edge detection unit 314 detects the outermost edge of the character string in the captured conference image by zooming out by the zoom mechanism 202, the control unit 315 is notified that the outermost edge of the character string has been detected. Based on this notification, the control unit 315 stops the instruction to decrease the zoom magnification to the zoom magnification control unit 316. That is, as shown in FIG. 5C, zoom-out is performed from the shooting area 403a including the character string “ABC” to the shooting area 403b including the entire character string “ABCDEF”. Here, the control unit 315 decreases the zoom magnification within the calculated identifiable magnification. If the zoom magnification is equal to or less than the identifiable magnification, the process proceeds to the next step S107.

  On the other hand, step S107 is a step of moving in the pan direction or the tilt direction by the pan mechanism 203 or the tilt mechanism 204 of the imaging apparatus 20 in order to display characters. Step S <b> 107 is executed by the control unit 315, the zoom magnification control unit 316, the pan control unit 317, and the tilt control unit 318. Hereinafter, a case of moving in the pan direction will be described. Step S107 is executed when X <= XN, that is, when the currently described character cannot obtain a sufficient resolution in the display device 40. Specifically, the control unit 315 instructs the zoom magnification control unit 316 to set the zoom magnification XN. Further, the control unit 315 calculates the amount of movement in the pan direction so that the currently described character is, for example, the center of the shooting region.

In addition, when the description is continuously moving, the control unit 315 determines and describes the direction in which the description increases in time series based on the conference image captured by the imaging device 20. The movement amount or movement speed in the pan direction is calculated so as to follow the character. Note that the control unit 315 may determine the direction in which the description moves based on the information detected by the description detection unit 311 and calculate the movement amount or movement speed in the pan direction.
The zoom magnification control unit 316 transmits a zoom amount signal to the zoom mechanism 202 of the imaging device 20 based on the instructed zoom magnification. The zoom mechanism 202 of the imaging device 20 performs zooming based on the zoom amount transmitted from the zoom magnification control unit 316. In addition, the pan control unit 317 transmits a signal indicating the movement amount or movement speed in the pan direction to the pan mechanism 203 of the imaging device 20 based on the instructed movement amount or movement speed in the pan direction. The panning mechanism 203 of the imaging device 20 moves the imaging region in the panning direction based on the panning movement amount or moving speed transmitted from the pan control unit 317. That is, as shown in FIG. 5D, the shooting area 404b is moved from the shooting area 404a including the character string “ABCDEF” or the like in the pan direction including the currently described character “HI” or the like. To do. Note that the shooting area is also moved in the tilt direction by similar processing.

  On the other hand, step S108 is a step of detecting the outermost edge of the figure. Step S <b> 108 is executed by the outermost edge detection unit 314. Step S108 is executed when it is determined in step S103 that the current description content is a figure. The outermost edge detection unit 314 detects the outermost edge of the graphic centered on the current description area. Here, when the outermost edge detection unit 314 determines that there is no outermost edge of the figure, processing such as the next step S109 is performed.

  Step S109 is a step of setting the zoom amount in the imaging region including the outermost edge of the figure. Step S <b> 109 is executed by the control unit 315, the outermost edge detection unit 314, the zoom magnification control unit 316, the pan control unit 317, and the tilt control unit 318. Hereinafter, a case of moving in the pan direction will be described. In step S108, when the outermost edge detection unit 314 determines that there is no outermost edge of the figure in the shooting area, the control unit 315 continuously sets the zoom magnification to the zoom magnification control unit 316 by a predetermined amount. Instruct to decrease. The zoom magnification control unit 316 transmits a zoom amount signal to the zoom mechanism 202 of the imaging device 20 based on the instruction. The zoom mechanism 202 of the imaging device 20 performs zoom-out based on the zoom amount transmitted from the zoom magnification control unit 316. That is, as shown in FIG. 5E, the shooting area 405a moves from the shooting area 405a to the shooting area 405b including the outermost edge of the currently described figure.

  Further, when the outermost edge detection unit 314 detects the outermost edge of the figure in the captured conference image by zooming out by the zoom mechanism 202, the control unit 315 is notified that the outermost edge of the figure has been detected. Based on this notification, the control unit 315 stops the instruction to decrease the zoom magnification to the zoom magnification control unit 316. Note that the control unit 315 instructs the pan control unit 317 to drive the pan mechanism 203 so that the outermost edge of the figure enters the imaging region. At this time, the imaging region is also moved by the same process in the tilt direction.

  Step S110 is a step in which the processing from step S103 to step S109 described above is repeated. Step S <b> 110 is executed by the description detection unit 311. In step S110, the description detection unit 311 determines whether or not a description update is detected in a certain time. Here, when the description detection unit 311 does not detect the update of the description within a certain time, the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 4 is ended. On the other hand, if a description update is detected at a certain time, the process returns to step S103. Therefore, for example, as long as the presenter continues to describe in the presentation apparatus 10, it is determined whether the presenter is a character or a figure continuously, and the imaging apparatus 20 sets an appropriate zoom amount. Note that the determination in step S109 includes a change in the zoom amount or the like due to the setting change of the imaging device 20 in the update.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the processing of the information processing apparatus 30 differs depending on the contents described in the presentation apparatus 10. That is, the information processing apparatus 30 performs shooting with a zoom amount that can identify the character when the character is described, and further maintains the necessary resolution by following the character string when the character is continuously described. While adjusting the shooting area. On the other hand, when a figure is described, it is possible to shoot in a shooting area where the entire figure can be seen. As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to shoot more clearly and without a sense of discomfort according to the contents described in the presentation device 10. In addition, since shooting conditions (zoom magnification, movement amount in the pan direction and tilt direction) are automatically changed according to characters and figures, the progress of a meeting or the like can be made smooth.
Therefore, for example, it is not necessary to operate the imaging device 20 by a presenter, a listener, or the like, and it is possible to provide a photographed image according to the progress of the description to the presentation device 10 in particular.

  In the present embodiment, as the imaging system 100, only the case where the imaging device 20 and the information processing device 30 are configured separately so as to communicate with each other has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this case. That is, the imaging device 20 and the information processing device 30 may be integrated to form an imaging device.

  The steps of the imaging system 100, the information processing apparatus 30, the imaging apparatus 20 that integrates the imaging apparatus 20 and the information processing apparatus 30, and the steps of the imaging method in the above-described embodiment are stored in the storage unit. Can be realized by operating. This program and a computer-readable recording medium on which this program is recorded are included in the present invention.

  In the present embodiment, a software program that implements the functions of the above-described embodiments may be directly or remotely supplied to the system or apparatus. And the case where it is achieved also by reading and executing the program code supplied as mentioned above by the computer of the system or apparatus is included.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Imaging system 10 Presentation apparatus 20 Imaging apparatus 30 Information processing apparatus 40 Display apparatus 201 Imaging part 202 Zoom mechanism 203 Pan mechanism 204 Tilt mechanism 205 Interface 301 CPU
302 Storage Unit 303 Interface 311 Description Detection Unit 312 Character / Graphic Determination Unit 313 Recognizable Magnification Calculation Unit 314 Outermost Edge Detection Unit 315 Control Unit 316 Zoom Magnification Control Unit 317 Pan Control Unit 318 Tilt Control Unit

Claims (11)

An information processing apparatus capable of communicating with an imaging apparatus including an imaging unit that captures the contents described for a description object, a zoom mechanism, and a pan mechanism,
A character / figure determining means for determining whether the content described for the object to be described is a character or a graphic from the image captured by the imaging unit;
An information processing apparatus comprising: a control unit that controls the zoom mechanism and the pan mechanism according to a result determined by the character graphic determination unit. An identifiable magnification that calculates a zoom magnification that can be identified when the character is displayed on a display device when the character graphic determination means determines that the content described for the object to be described is a character. A calculation means;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the zoom mechanism based on the identifiable magnification calculated by the identifiable magnification calculating unit. Line width acquisition means for acquiring a line width of a character described in the description object from an image captured by the imaging unit, and a spatial frequency for acquiring a spatial frequency from the image captured by the imaging unit And obtaining means.
The identifiable magnification calculating unit calculates the identifiable magnification based on the line width acquired by the line width acquiring unit and the spatial frequency acquired by the spatial frequency acquiring unit. The information processing apparatus described in 1. Comparing means for comparing the identifiable magnification calculated by the identifiable magnification calculating means with the current zoom magnification;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control unit controls the zoom mechanism and the pan mechanism according to a comparison result by the comparison unit. Further comprising outermost edge detection means for detecting an outermost edge of a character string of characters described with respect to the description,
The control means determines that the discriminable magnification is lower than the current zoom magnification by the comparison means, and if the outermost edge of the character string cannot be detected by the outermost edge detection means, the description object The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the zoom mechanism is controlled so as to include the entire character string of characters described in relation to   When the comparing means determines that the identifiable magnification is higher than the current zoom magnification, the control means controls the zoom mechanism based on the identifiable magnification calculated by the identifiable magnification calculating means. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the pan mechanism is controlled so as to follow the character described with respect to the descriptive material while controlling. Further comprising outermost edge detection means for detecting the outermost edge of the graphic described in the description object;
When it is determined by the character graphic determination means that the content described for the described object is a graphic,
The said control means controls the said zoom mechanism so that the whole figure described with respect to the said description thing may be included based on the outermost edge of the figure detected by the said outermost edge detection means. Item 4. The information processing apparatus according to Item 1. Area dividing means for dividing the image captured by the imaging unit into a plurality of areas;
An area selection means for selecting a currently described area from the plurality of areas divided by the area dividing means;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the outermost edge detection unit detects an outermost edge of a graphic in the region selected by the region selection unit. An imaging apparatus comprising an imaging unit that captures the content described for an object to be described, a zoom mechanism, and a pan mechanism,
A character / figure determining means for determining whether the content described for the object to be described is a character or a graphic from the image captured by the imaging unit;
An image pickup apparatus comprising: a control unit that controls the zoom mechanism and the pan mechanism according to a result determined by the character graphic determination unit. A control method for controlling an image pickup apparatus including an image pickup unit for picking up the contents described for a description object, a zoom mechanism, and a pan mechanism,
A character graphic determination step for determining whether the content described for the object to be described is a character or a graphic from the image captured by the imaging unit;
A control method comprising: a control step of controlling the zoom mechanism and the pan mechanism according to the result determined by the character / graphic determination step. A program for controlling an imaging device including an imaging unit that captures the content described for a description object, a zoom mechanism, and a pan mechanism,
A character graphic determination step for determining whether the content described for the object to be described is a character or a graphic from the image captured by the imaging unit;
A program for causing a computer to execute a control step for controlling the zoom mechanism and the pan mechanism according to a result determined by the character / graphic determination step.

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