JP2011087221A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To select an image file to be transferred to an external device. <P>SOLUTION: A control device 104 creates an image feature list indicating features of a picked-up image file, outside the picked-up image file, while being linked with imaging. In response to a transfer instruction from a user, on the basis of the image feature list and a preset retrieval condition, a picked-up image file satisfying the retrieval condition is selected as an image file to be transmitted to an external device. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a camera.

  The following imaging devices are known. This imaging apparatus has a function of determining an image blur amount of a captured image and not transferring to an external device when the determined image blur amount is larger than a predetermined value (for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-142507 A

  However, in a conventional imaging device, in order to determine whether or not to transfer an image to an external device, when there is a transfer instruction from the user, the amount of blurring of each image is determined each time the transfer is performed. Since it is necessary to select an image to be performed, there is a problem that processing at the time of transfer takes time.

The camera according to the present invention creates an image feature list indicating the characteristics of the captured image file outside the captured image file in conjunction with the imaging unit that captures the subject image and generates a captured image file. Image feature list creation means, search condition setting means for setting specific features of a captured image file as search conditions for selecting a captured image file to be transmitted to an external device from a plurality of captured image files, and a user And a transmission image selection unit that selects a captured image file satisfying the search condition as a transmission image file to an external device based on the image feature list and the search condition.
In the present invention, the transmission image selection unit may select a transmission image file for a captured image file acquired before a search condition is set based on a user instruction. At this time, the transmission image selection unit may select a transmission image file for a captured image file acquired after a search condition is set based on a user instruction.
The transmission image selection unit may select a transmission image file for a captured image file acquired after a search condition is set based on a user instruction.
You may make it further provide the recording means which records the image feature list created by the image feature list creation means on the storage medium in which the captured image file is recorded.
The camera according to the present invention also includes an imaging unit that captures a subject image and generates a captured image file, and a captured image as a search condition for selecting a captured image file to be transmitted to an external device from a plurality of captured image files. A search condition setting means for setting a specific feature of the file, and a transmission list for making the captured image file having the characteristics matching the search condition as a transmission image file to the external device in conjunction with the imaging by the imaging means A transmission list creation unit that creates an image file outside, and a transmission image selection unit that selects a transmission image file to an external device based on a transmission list in response to a transfer instruction from a user. .
In the present invention, recording means for recording the transmission list created by the transmission list creation means on a storage medium in which the captured image file is recorded may be further provided.

  According to the present invention, the processing time during transfer can be shortened.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of one Embodiment of a camera. It is a figure which shows the specific example of a transmission list. It is a flowchart figure which shows the flow of a search condition setting process. It is a figure which shows the specific example of a search condition setting screen. It is a flowchart figure which shows the flow of the process at the time of imaging | photography. It is a 1st figure which shows the specific example of a list | wrist at the time of imaging | photography. It is a flowchart figure which shows the flow of the transfer process of an image file. It is a 2nd figure which shows the specific example of a list | wrist at the time of imaging | photography.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an embodiment of a camera according to the present embodiment. The camera 100 includes an operation member 101, a lens 102, an image sensor 103, a control device 104, a memory card slot 105, a monitor 106, and a communication device 107. The operation member 101 includes various input members operated by the user, such as a power button, a release button, a zoom button, a cross key, an OK button (decision button), a play button, a delete button, and the like.

  The lens 102 is composed of a plurality of optical lenses, but is representatively represented by one lens in FIG. The image sensor 103 is an image sensor such as a CCD or a CMOS, for example, and captures a subject image formed by the lens 102. Then, an image signal obtained by imaging is output to the control device 104.

  The control device 104 includes a CPU, a memory, and other peripheral circuits, and controls the camera 100. Note that the memory constituting the control device 104 includes SDRAM and flash memory. The SDRAM is a volatile memory, and is used as a work memory for the CPU to develop a program when the program is executed or as a buffer memory for temporarily recording data. The flash memory is a non-volatile memory in which data of a program executed by the control device 104, various parameters read during program execution, and the like are recorded.

  The control device 104 generates image data in a predetermined image format, for example, JPEG format (hereinafter referred to as “main image data”) based on the image signal input from the image sensor 103. Further, the control device 104 generates display image data, for example, thumbnail image data, based on the generated main image data. The control device 104 generates an image file that includes the generated main image data and thumbnail image data, and further includes header information, and outputs the image file to the memory card slot 105.

  The memory card slot 105 is a slot for inserting a memory card as a storage medium, and the image file output from the control device 104 is written and recorded on the memory card. The memory card slot 105 reads an image file stored in the memory card based on an instruction from the control device 104.

  The monitor 106 is a liquid crystal monitor (rear monitor) mounted on the back surface of the camera 100, and the monitor 106 displays an image stored in a memory card, a setting menu for setting the camera 100, and the like. . Further, when the user sets the mode of the camera 100 to the shooting mode, the control device 104 outputs the display image data generated based on the image signal acquired in time series from the image sensor 103 to the monitor 106. As a result, a through image (moving image) is displayed on the monitor 106.

  The communication device 107 is a device for communicating with an external device such as a camera or a personal computer having a communication function. For example, a USB interface for performing a wired connection with the external device or a wireless connection. Wireless LAN modules, Bluetooth (registered trademark) modules, and the like are used.

  In the camera 100 according to the present embodiment, the control device 104 selects only an image file that matches a condition set by the user as a transfer target to an external device, and the selected image file is externally transmitted via the communication device 107. Send to. In the present embodiment, the user designates the search condition for the transfer target image before shooting. Then, at the time of shooting, the control device 104 lists information for determining whether or not the image file obtained by shooting matches the search condition based on the search condition specified by the user. Record it on the same memory card as the save destination. In the present embodiment, the list created at the time of shooting is referred to as a “shooting list”.

  Further, at the time of shooting, the control device 104 sets only the image file matching the search condition as a transmission target to the external device based on the search condition of the transfer image file set in advance and the shooting time list. Information for identifying image files matching the search conditions, for example, a transmission list in which file names are listed, is created and recorded in the same memory card as the image file storage destination. That is, the transmission list is recorded outside the image file in the same memory card as the image file storage destination.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the transmission list is a list of file names of image files that match the set search conditions. The image files having file names registered in the transmission list are listed as follows. Can be transferred to an external device. In the example shown in FIG. jpg, 0002. jpg, and 0005. Three image files of jpg are registered as transfer targets. A method for creating a transmission list based on the search condition and the shooting time list will be described later.

  Then, when there is an instruction to transfer an image file from the user to the external device, the control device 104 specifies an image file to be transferred to the external device based on the transmission list, and the specified image file is transferred to the external device. Forward.

  As a result, when transferring an image file, it is possible to identify an image file to be transmitted with reference to the transmission list. Therefore, when transferring an image file, information from the image file is used to identify the image file to be transferred. There is no need to read out data, and the processing load during transfer can be reduced to shorten the processing time.

  First, a method for specifying a search condition for a transfer target image by a user will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. The processing shown in FIG. 3 is performed by the control device 104 as a program that starts when the operation member 101 is operated by the user and an instruction to display a search condition setting screen for specifying a search condition for the transfer target image is issued. Executed by.

  In step S10, the control device 104 displays a search condition setting screen as shown in FIG. 4A on the monitor 106, for example, and accepts the search condition setting by the user on the search condition setting screen. On the search condition setting screen in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4A, it is possible to set whether to include “date and time”, “person”, and “no camera shake” in the search condition. That is, a check box is displayed in association with each item of “date and time”, “person”, and “no camera shake”, and the user can check that item by checking the check box corresponding to each item. Can be set to be included in the search condition. In the example shown in FIG. 4A, “person” and “no camera shake” are set as search conditions.

  When the check box corresponding to “date and time” is checked by the user, the control device 104 displays a date and time setting screen as shown in FIG. Accepts date and time settings as conditions. By setting an arbitrary date and time on this screen, the user can set a search condition so that only an image file of an image shot on the set date is to be transferred to an external device.

  When the check box corresponding to “person” is checked by the user, the control device 104 displays a person setting screen as shown in FIG. Accepts the setting of a person as a condition. The user selects a person to be searched from among the persons registered in advance on this screen so that only the image file of the image in which the selected person is detected is to be transferred to the external device. The search condition can be set.

  In addition, in the camera 100 according to the present embodiment, the user can register information on a person's face in advance, and based on the registered face information, who is shown in the image at the time of shooting. Can be identified. For example, as face information, image data of a person's face, data indicating face feature points, or the like is used. In the camera 100 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of face images of a person to be searched can be registered in advance, and when a plurality of persons, for example, images of Mr. A and Mr. B, are registered, the user 4B displays the image of Mr. B on the monitor 106 as shown in FIG. 4D by selecting the right triangle mark on the screen on which the image of Mr. A shown in FIG. 4C is displayed. be able to.

  Further, the screen display can be returned to the image of Mr. A by selecting the left triangle mark on the screen on which the image of Mr. B is displayed. The user can select a person to be set as a search condition while operating the operation member 101 to switch the person displayed on the screen. Then, when the OK button is operated while any one of the screens of FIGS. 4C and 4D is displayed, the person displayed on each screen is set as the search condition. Further, when a right triangle mark is further selected by the user on the screen shown in FIG. 4D, the characters “all images in which a face is detected” are displayed on the monitor 106 as shown in FIG. Is displayed. When the OK button is operated in this state, the search condition can be set so that the image files of all the images whose faces are detected by the known face recognition process are to be transferred to the external device.

  The user sets the search condition so that only the image file of the image with no camera shake is targeted for transfer to the external device by checking the check box corresponding to “no camera shake”. be able to.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4A and FIG. 4F, the user “1. Apply search conditions only to images taken in the future” and “2. Apply search conditions to all images”. By selecting one of “Yes”, it is possible to specify a range of image files to which the search condition set on the search condition setting screen is applied. That is, the user selects “1. Apply search conditions only to images taken in the future” to capture the search conditions set on the search condition setting screen after setting the search conditions. It can be set to apply to an image file of an image. On the other hand, the user selects “2. Apply search conditions to all images”, so that the search conditions set on this search condition setting screen can be captured and stored in the memory card. It can be set to apply to all recorded image files and all image files of images taken after the setting of search conditions.

  Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S20, and the control device 104 determines whether or not the search condition setting by the user using the search condition setting screen has been completed. If a negative determination is made in step S20, the determination process in step S20 is repeated. On the other hand, if a positive determination is made in step S20, the process proceeds to step S30. In step S30, the control device 104 records information for specifying the search condition set on the search condition setting screen in the flash memory or the memory card, and proceeds to step S40.

  In step S40, the control device 104 determines whether or not “2. Apply search conditions to all images” described above has been set on the search condition setting screen shown in FIG. When an affirmative determination is made in step S40, the process proceeds to step S50, and the control device 104 creates a newly set search condition and shooting time for all images that have already been shot and recorded on the memory card. Based on the shooting list, the transmission list shown in FIG. 2 is recreated, and the process proceeds to step S60. A method for creating a transmission list based on the search condition and the shooting time list will be described later.

  On the other hand, if a negative determination is made in step S40, the process proceeds directly to step S60. That is, if “1. Apply search conditions only to images taken in the future” is set on the search condition setting screen shown in FIG. Does not apply a new search condition, and applies the set search condition only to an image file newly acquired after the search condition is set. In step S60, the control device 104 ends the display of the search condition setting screen being displayed on the monitor 106, and ends the process.

  Next, processing at the time of shooting in the camera 100 of the present embodiment will be described using the flowchart shown in FIG. The processing shown in FIG. 5 is executed by the control device 104 as a program that starts when shooting is instructed when the user presses a release button included in the operation member 101.

  In step S <b> 110, the control device 104 performs shooting processing, generates an image file based on the image signal input from the image sensor 103, and records the generated image file on the memory card via the memory card slot 105. . Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S120, and the control device 104 determines whether or not the shooting time list is already recorded in the same memory card as the storage destination of the image file. If a negative determination is made in step S120, the process proceeds to step S130, and the control device 104 creates a shooting time list in the same memory card as the image file storage destination, and proceeds to step S140 described later.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a specific example of the shooting time list created in step S130. This shooting time list is a list (image feature list) indicating the characteristics of the captured image file, and for each search item for searching for an image file to be transferred on the search condition setting screen described above, for each search item. The determination results are recorded in a list. In the example shown in FIG. 6, data corresponding to each item that can be set as a search condition by the user on the search condition setting screen shown in FIG. 4, that is, “no camera shake”, “with face”, “person”, This is a list for recording the determination result of “shooting date” in association with the file name of the image file. In the present embodiment, each determination result is added to the shooting time list in step S140 described later in conjunction with shooting.

  On the other hand, if an affirmative determination is made in step S120, the process proceeds directly to step S140. In step S140, the control device 104 determines whether or not there is a camera shake, detects a face, recognizes a person, and acquires a shooting date / time for a captured image, and based on the result, stores data in the shooting time list illustrated in FIG. Add

  Specifically, the control device 104 detects the occurrence of camera shake at the time of shooting using, for example, a method described in JP-A-2006-8663. For image files with no camera shake, record “O” in the “No camera shake” field, and for image files with camera shake, record “X” in the same field. .

  The control device 104 detects a human face included in the captured image using a known face recognition technique. For an image file in which a person is detected in the photographed image, “○” is recorded in the “with face” column, and for an image file in which a person is not detected in the photographed image, “×” is displayed in the column. Record.

  In addition, the control device 104 performs template matching processing on the captured image using the image of the person registered in advance as described above, and the person registered in the captured image, for example, Mr. A , B, and C are detected. When a registered person is detected from the photographed image, “○” is recorded in the person name field, and when a registered person is not detected from the photographed image, “ Record “x”. For example, when Mr. A and Mr. B are detected from the photographed image and Mr. C is not detected, columns of “Mr. A” and “Mr. B” are shown as the file name “0001.jpg” in FIG. “○” is recorded in “”, and “×” is recorded in the column “Mr. C”.

  Further, the control device 104 acquires information regarding the shooting date and time at the time of shooting, and “1/1” for an image file whose shooting date and time is set as a search condition, for example, January 1st. “○” is recorded in the column “”, and “X” is recorded in the same column for image files that do not match. Note that when the image file is deleted from the memory card based on an instruction from the user, the control device 104 deletes the record corresponding to the deleted image file from the shooting time list.

  Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S150, and the control device 104 reads information for specifying the search condition set on the search condition setting screen shown in FIG. 4 from the memory card, and the data added to the shooting time list in step S140. It is determined whether or not the feature of the image file indicated by matches the set search condition. For example, as shown in FIG. 4A, when “person” and “no camera shake” are set as search conditions, “no camera shake” and “no camera shake” are included in the data added to the shooting list. If the determination result of “with face” is “◯”, an affirmative determination is made in step S150. Furthermore, when “Mr. A” is set as a search target on the person setting screen shown in FIG. 4C, if the determination result of “Mr. A” is “◯” in addition to the above determination result. In step S150, a positive determination is made.

  If a negative determination is made in step S150, the process ends. On the other hand, if a positive determination is made in step S150, the process proceeds to step S160. In step S160, the control device 104 determines whether or not the transmission list illustrated in FIG. 2 is already recorded in the same memory card as the image file storage destination. If a negative determination is made in step S160, the process proceeds to step S170, and the control device 104 creates a transmission list in the same memory card as the image file storage destination, and proceeds to step S180. On the other hand, if an affirmative determination is made in step S160, the process proceeds directly to step S180.

  In step S180, the control device 104 adds, to the transmission list, the file name of the captured image, that is, the file name of the image file that matches the determination result indicated by the data added to the shooting time list and the set search condition. To end the process.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the flow of image file transfer processing in the present embodiment. The processing shown in FIG. 7 is executed by the control device 104 as a program that is activated when an instruction to transfer an image file is given by the user.

  In step S210, the control device 104 reads the transmission list from the memory card and proceeds to step S220. In step S220, the control device 104 determines whether or not the file name of the image file is registered in the transmission list. If a negative determination is made in step S220, the process ends. On the other hand, when an affirmative determination is made in step S220, the process proceeds to step S230, where an image file with a registered file name is selected as a transmission target, and the selected image file is transmitted to an external device via the communication device 107. Transmit to step S240.

  In step S240, the control device 104 deletes the file name of the image file that has been transmitted to the external device from the transmission list. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S250, and the control device 104 determines whether or not the transfer to the external device has been completed for all the image files whose file names are registered in the transmission list. If a negative determination is made in step S250, the process returns to step S220 and is repeated. On the other hand, when an affirmative determination is made in step S250, the process ends.

According to the present embodiment described above, the following operational effects can be obtained.
(1) The control device 104 creates and uses a transmission list for making an image file having characteristics matching a search condition set in advance by the user into an image file to be transmitted to an external device in conjunction with imaging. In response to a transfer instruction from a user, an image file to be transmitted to an external device is selected based on a transmission list. As a result, the control device 104 does not need to read out information from the image file in order to select the image file to be transferred, so the processing load during transfer can be reduced and the processing time can be shortened.

(2) When “2. Apply search condition to all images” is set on the search condition setting screen, the control device 104 acquires an image file acquired before the search condition is set. That is, the transmission list is recreated for all image files that have already been shot and recorded on the memory card. As a result, when the search condition is changed during shooting, it is possible to select the image file to be transferred by applying the changed search condition to the shot image.

(3) When “1. Apply search conditions only to images taken in the future” is set on the search condition setting screen, the control device 104 sets a new image file for the captured image file. The search condition that has been set is applied only to an image file that is newly acquired after setting the search condition. As a result, when the user changes the setting of the search condition, it becomes possible to select an image file to be transferred only for an image file acquired thereafter.

(4) The control device 104 records the shooting time list and the transmission list in the same memory card as the image file storage destination. As a result, even if the memory card is inserted into a camera other than the camera that shot the image, the transfer list is recorded using the shooting list and the transmission list recorded in the memory card on the other camera. An image can be selected.

-Modification-
The camera of the above-described embodiment can be modified as follows.
(1) In the above-described embodiment, the user sets the search conditions for the image file to be transferred in advance. Then, the control device 104 adds data to the shooting list and the transmission list at the time of shooting, and specifies an image file to be transmitted based on the transmission list when an instruction to transfer the image file is received from the user. I did it. However, the control device 104 creates only the shooting list at the time of shooting, and creates a transmission list based on the search condition and the shooting list when the user gives an instruction to transfer the image file. The image file to be transmitted may be specified based on the transmitted list. As a result, since a transfer list is not created at the time of shooting, the processing at the time of shooting can be reduced.

(2) The user may set the search condition for the image file to be transferred after instructing the transfer of the image file without specifying it before shooting. In this case, the control device 104 creates a shooting time list at the time of shooting, and displays the search condition setting screen shown in FIG. 4 on the monitor 106 when the user gives an instruction to transfer an image file. The search condition setting from the user is accepted. Then, after the search condition is set by the user, the control device 104 may create a transmission list based on the set search condition and the shooting time list. As a result, the user can set a desired search condition each time a transfer instruction is issued.

(3) In the above-described embodiment, when “2. Apply search condition to all images” is set on the search condition setting screen shown in FIG. 4A in step S50 of FIG. The control device 104 creates a transmission list based on the newly set search condition and the shooting time list created at the time of shooting for all images that have already been shot and recorded on the memory card. The example of redoing was explained. In this case, the transmission list created based on the old search conditions (old transmission list) may be replaced with the newly created transmission list (new transmission list) and recorded, or the old transmission list may be left as it is. The transmission list may be recorded separately. Which recording method is used may be arbitrarily set by the user. In addition, when the new transmission list is recorded separately while the old transmission list is kept, the user is asked whether or not to refer to the old transmission list when specifying the image file to be transferred when transferring the image file. May be set arbitrarily.

(4) In the above-described embodiment, the example in which the shooting time list is created in the format shown in FIG. 6 has been described. However, the shooting time list may be created in other formats. For example, in the example of FIG. 6, the determination results of “no camera shake”, “with face”, “person”, and “shooting date / time” are managed in one list. You may make it manage with. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, for each determination result, a list in which the file names of image files satisfying the respective conditions are recorded is created. That is, the “camera shake-free list” (FIG. 8A) in which the file names of image files determined to have no camera shake are recorded, and the file names of image files determined to have a human face in the image are recorded. The “face list” (FIG. 8B), for each person registered in advance, a “person identification list” (FIG. 8C) in which the file names of image files containing the person are recorded. Alternatively, a “shooting date list” (FIG. 8D) in which file names of image files shot on a specific shooting date are recorded may be individually recorded. These separately created shooting time lists are recorded in the same memory card as the image file storage destination, as in the above-described embodiment, and the control device 104 determines the search conditions, these shooting time lists, Create a send list based on.

(5) In the above-described embodiment, when there is an instruction to transfer an image file from the user, the control device 104 identifies the image file to be transmitted based on the transmission list, and externally identifies the identified image file. An example of transmitting to a device has been described. However, when there is an instruction to transfer an image file from the user, the control device 104 transmits the transmission list to the external device, and in response to an image transmission request from the external device side, the requested image file is externally transmitted. You may make it transmit to an apparatus. In this case, the external device may specify an image file to be transmitted from the camera 100 based on the received transmission list, and issue a transmission request for the specified image file to the camera 100.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the configurations in the above-described embodiments as long as the characteristic functions of the present invention are not impaired. Moreover, it is good also as a structure which combined the above-mentioned embodiment and a some modification.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Camera, 101 Operation member, 102 Lens, 103 Image sensor, 104 Control apparatus, 105 Memory card slot, 106 Monitor, 107 Communication apparatus

Claims (7)

Imaging means for capturing a subject image and generating a captured image file;
In conjunction with imaging by the imaging means, an image feature list creating means for creating an image feature list indicating the characteristics of the captured image file outside the captured image file;
Search condition setting means for setting a specific feature of the captured image file as a search condition for selecting a captured image file to be transmitted to an external device from among the plurality of captured image files;
In accordance with a transfer instruction from a user, transmission image selection means for selecting the captured image file satisfying the search condition as a transmission image file to the external device based on the image feature list and the search condition. A camera characterized by that. The camera of claim 1,
The transmission image selection unit selects the transmission image file with respect to the captured image file acquired before the search condition is set based on a user instruction. The camera according to claim 2,
The transmission image selection unit selects the transmission image file with respect to the captured image file acquired after the search condition is set based on a user instruction. The camera of claim 1,
The transmission image selection unit selects the transmission image file with respect to the captured image file acquired after the search condition is set based on a user instruction. In the camera according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The camera further comprising recording means for recording the image feature list created by the image feature list creation means on a storage medium in which the captured image file is recorded. Imaging means for capturing a subject image and generating a captured image file;
Search condition setting means for setting a specific feature of the captured image file as a search condition for selecting a captured image file to be transmitted to an external device from among the plurality of captured image files;
A transmission list creation for creating a transmission list for making a captured image file having characteristics matching the search condition as a transmission image file to the external device in conjunction with imaging by the imaging means outside the captured image file Means,
A camera comprising: a transmission image selection unit that selects a transmission image file to the external device based on the transmission list in response to a transfer instruction from a user. The camera according to claim 6, wherein
The camera further comprising recording means for recording the transmission list created by the transmission list creation means on a storage medium in which the captured image file is recorded.

Images