JP2012222765A - Imaging apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging apparatus capable of enabling an image-taking person to perceive a reference distance, when images for displaying on a stereoscopic display device are taken.SOLUTION: The imaging apparatus comprises: an imaging part for taking a right-eye image to be given to an observer's right eye and a left-eye image to be given to an observer's left eye; a reference distance setting part for setting a reference distance which is a subject distance of a subject in which positions of a right-eye image and a left-eye image displayed become the same on a display plane; and an adjustment part for adjusting the imaging part according to the reference distance.

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus.

A stereoscopic display device that displays a stereoscopic image is known. The stereoscopic display device can display an image so that an object appears to pop out from the display surface. In addition, the stereoscopic display device can display an image so that an object can be seen behind the display surface. An imaging device for stereoscopic display that captures a right-eye image and a left-eye image to be displayed on a stereoscopic display device is also known. (For example, see Patent Documents 1 to 3).
[Prior art documents]
[Patent Literature]
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-282592 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-307352 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-283379

  By the way, the stereoscopic display device displays the right-eye image and the left-eye image at a position where the subject is shifted in the left-right direction according to the distance from the viewpoint. The viewer recognizes the image for the right eye and the image for the left eye as one stereoscopic image with a perspective due to the shift. When displaying an image for the right eye and an image for the left eye, there is a subject distance of subjects whose positions on the display surface are the same. Conventionally, this distance is generally fixed by an imaging device.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, in the first aspect of the present invention, an imaging unit that captures an image for the right eye given to the right eye of the viewer and an image for the left eye given to the left eye of the viewer; A reference distance setting unit that sets a reference distance that is a subject distance of a subject that has the same position on the display surface when the right-eye image and the left-eye image are displayed, and the imaging unit is adjusted according to the reference distance And an adjusting unit.

  In the second aspect of the present invention, an imaging unit that captures a plurality of images given to each of a plurality of viewpoints, and a subject distance of a subject whose position on the display surface is the same when each of the plurality of images is displayed An imaging apparatus is provided that includes a reference distance setting unit that sets a reference distance, and an adjustment unit that adjusts the imaging unit according to the reference distance.

  It should be noted that the above summary of the invention does not enumerate all the necessary features of the present invention. In addition, a sub-combination of these feature groups can also be an invention.

An example of the appearance of imaging device 10 concerning an embodiment of the present invention is shown. 1 shows a functional configuration of an imaging apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. An example of the image for right eyes and the image for left eyes produced | generated by the imaging device 10 which concerns on embodiment of this invention is shown. The functional structure of the imaging device 10 by the modification of embodiment of this invention is shown. The functional structure of the imaging device 10 by the other modification of embodiment of this invention is shown.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims. In addition, not all the combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential for the solving means of the invention.

  FIG. 1 shows an example of the appearance of the imaging apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. The imaging device 10 captures image data to be displayed on the stereoscopic display device.

  More specifically, the imaging device 10 generates a right-eye image obtained by imaging a subject from a viewpoint corresponding to the right eye, and a left-eye image obtained by imaging the subject from a viewpoint corresponding to the left eye. The imaging device 10 may generate still image data as a right eye image and a left eye image, or may generate moving image data.

  The imaging device 10 captures light from a subject from a viewpoint corresponding to the right eye and captures a right-eye imaging unit 102, and captures light from the subject from a viewpoint corresponding to the left eye and left A left-eye imaging unit 104 that captures an eye image is provided. Each of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 may be provided integrally with the housing 12.

  FIG. 2 shows a functional configuration of the imaging apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. The imaging apparatus 10 includes an imaging unit 100, a recording unit 120, a reference distance setting unit 130, an adjustment unit 140, a focus setting unit 150, an input unit 160, and a viewfinder unit 170.

  The imaging unit 100 captures a right-eye image given to the viewer's right eye and a left-eye image given to the viewer's left eye. That is, the imaging unit 100 captures a right-eye image obtained by imaging a subject from a viewpoint corresponding to the right eye and a left-eye image obtained by imaging the subject from a viewpoint corresponding to the left eye. The imaging unit 100 includes a right-eye imaging unit 102 and a left-eye imaging unit 104. The right-eye imaging unit 102 captures a right-eye image to be given to the right eye of the viewer. The left-eye imaging unit 104 captures a left-eye image to be given to the viewer's left eye.

  Each of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 includes a lens 32, an imaging element 34, and an image generation unit 36. The lens 32 of the right-eye imaging unit 102 receives light from the subject at the viewpoint corresponding to the right eye. The lens 32 of the left-eye imaging unit 104 receives light from the subject at the viewpoint corresponding to the left eye. Light from the subject incident on the lens 32 forms an image on the image sensor 34. The image sensor 34 converts the subject image captured by the lens 32 into an electrical signal. The image generation unit 36 generates an image from the electrical signal converted by the image sensor 34. In the present embodiment, each of the image generation units 36 of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 generates an image from data of a part of the imaging region in the image data from the imaging element 34. For example, the image generation unit 36 generates an image from a part of the rectangular area of the subject image converted by the image sensor 34 into an electrical signal.

  Then, the image generation unit 36 of the right-eye imaging unit 102 outputs the generated image as a right-eye image. In addition, the image generation unit 36 of the left-eye imaging unit 104 outputs the generated image as a left-eye image.

  The recording unit 120 records the right-eye image captured by the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye image captured by the left-eye imaging unit 104 on a recording medium. The adjustment unit 140 controls the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104. Such an imaging device 10 can capture the right-eye image and the left-eye image displayed by the stereoscopic display device and record them on a recording medium.

  The focus setting unit 150 sets the focusing distance of the imaging unit 100 and controls the lens 32 so as to focus at the set focusing distance. The focus setting unit 150 may set the in-focus distance by the operation of the input unit 160 by the photographer. For example, the focus setting unit 150 may set the distance from the imaging device 10 to the subject overlapping the focus point as the focus distance when the focus button is pressed or the shutter button is pressed halfway.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of an image for the right eye and an image for the left eye generated by the imaging device 10 according to the present embodiment.

  The right eye image and the left eye image generated by the imaging device 10 are the same subject due to the difference in the position and direction of the optical axis of the lens 32 in each of the right eye imaging unit 102 and the left eye imaging unit 104. It is displayed at a position shifted in the left-right direction. For example, the distant subject 42 is displayed at a position shifted to the right in the right-eye image, and is displayed at a position shifted to the left in the left-eye image. On the contrary, the foreground subject is displayed at a position shifted to the left in the right-eye image, and is displayed at a position shifted to the right in the left-eye image.

  Here, for a subject at a specific distance from the viewpoint, the left-right position in the right-eye image matches the left-right position in the left-eye image. The subject distance of the subject whose position on the display surface is the same when the right-eye image and the left-eye image are displayed in this way is referred to as a reference distance.

  The reference distance setting unit 130 sets a reference distance. As an example, the reference distance setting unit 130 sets the subject distance of the subject specified by the photographer as the reference distance. The reference distance setting unit 130 may set the reference distance separately from the focusing distance. The photographer may set the reference distance by operating the input unit 160. The reference distance setting unit 130 may set the distance to the subject that overlaps the focus point as the reference distance when the reference distance setting button is pressed or when the shutter button is pressed halfway continuously twice. As another example, the reference distance setting unit 130 may set a distance designated by a reference distance setting dial as the reference distance. The reference distance setting dial may specify a specific reference distance value, or may specify a plurality of reference distance ranges such as short distance, medium distance, and long distance.

  As an example, the reference distance is a viewing distance (a distance from the display surface to the viewer) in a stereoscopic display device that displays a right-eye image and a left-eye image. The recommended viewing distance is, for example, about 2 to 3 meters. By using the subject distance of the subject specified by the photographer as the reference distance, it is possible to display the subject intended by the photographer so that the subject is present at the viewing distance from the viewer during stereoscopic display.

  As another example, the reference distance setting unit 130 may set the reference distance to be the same as the in-focus distance set by the focus setting unit 150. Such an imaging apparatus 10 can capture an image for stereoscopic viewing in which the distance of the subject at the time of shooting is equal to the distance of the display image at the time of stereoscopic display. That is, when the image captured by the imaging device 10 is stereoscopically displayed, the subject of interest can be displayed so as to be positioned on the display surface of the stereoscopic display device. Thus, according to the imaging device 10, it is possible to provide a viewer with a stereoscopic image with a sense of reality and presence.

  The adjustment unit 140 adjusts the imaging unit 100 according to the reference distance. The adjustment unit 140 changes a region where the image signal of the right eye image and the image signal of the left eye image are cut out from the light receiving region of the image sensor according to the reference distance. Specifically, the adjustment unit 140 controls the positions of the imaging regions cut out by the respective image generation units 36 of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104, and moves the subject located at the reference distance to the left. The same position is set in the eye image and the right eye image. As a result, the imaging apparatus 10 according to the present modification can move the position of the subject at the reference distance in the image without mechanically moving the imaging element 34, and thus can simplify the control. .

  Further, each of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 may capture an image by focusing on a subject specified by the photographer. In this case, the adjustment unit 140 sets each of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 so that the subject specified by the imager is located at the same position in the left-eye image and the right-eye image. The position of the imaging region cut out by the image generation unit 36 is controlled. Thereby, the imaging device 10 can display a main subject so as to be positioned at a distance of the display surface during stereoscopic display.

  For example, in the example of FIG. 3, the adjustment unit 140 has a right-eye lens (that is, the lens 32 in the right-eye imaging unit 102) for capturing a right-eye image and a left-eye image for capturing a left-eye image. The distance from the eye lens (that is, the lens 32 in the left-eye imaging unit 104) is adjusted according to the reference distance. Specifically, the adjustment unit 140 sets the right eye lens 32 and the left eye lens 32 so that the subject located at the reference distance is in the same position in the left eye image and the right eye image. Adjust the interval.

  Subjects located outside the reference distance are displayed at different positions in the left-eye image and the right-eye image. For example, in the example of FIG. 3, the mountain 42 where the distance from the imaging device 10 to the subject is larger than the reference distance is displayed at different positions in the left-eye image and the right-eye image. By adjusting the distance between the right-eye lens 32 and the left-eye lens 32 in accordance with the reference distance, optical images in which the positions of the subjects located at the reference distance are the same are formed on the image sensor 34, respectively. Can be made.

  As another example, the adjustment unit 140 may move the image sensor 34 so that the subject located at the reference distance is located at the same position in the left-eye image and the right-eye image. That is, the adjustment unit 140 adjusts the relative positions of the lens 32 and the image sensor 34 so that the subject located at the reference distance is in the same position in the left-eye image and the right-eye image. Alternatively, the adjustment unit 140 adjusts the distance between the imaging element 34 in the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the imaging element 34 in the left-eye imaging unit 104 so that the subject located at the reference distance is within the left-eye image and The same position in the right-eye image.

  The finder unit 170 displays a preview image for confirming a captured image, information indicating imaging conditions, and the like via, for example, an eyepiece lens that the photographer looks into when imaging. The finder unit 170 of the present embodiment displays reference position information indicating a subject whose subject distance matches the reference distance together with the preview image. With such a configuration, the photographer can grasp the reference position information while looking at the preview image, so that it is easy to image the intended subject as the reference position.

  The finder unit 170 may further display distance information indicating the subject distance of each subject in the preview image. For example, the finder unit 170 may display the subject distance for each person or thing. Specifically, a label may be attached to each subject, and the subject distance may be displayed on the label. As another example, the finder unit 170 may display the subject distance for each range of the subject distance shown in the preview image. When a plurality of subjects are included in the preview image, the photographer can know the distances of the individual subjects while viewing the preview image, and it becomes even easier to capture the intended subject as a reference position.

  FIG. 4 shows a functional configuration of the imaging apparatus 10 according to a modification of the present embodiment. In this modification, the lenses 32 of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 are provided so that the interval and / or the convergence angle can be changed. The interval and / or the convergence angle of the lenses 32 of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 are controlled by the adjustment unit 140.

  In the present modification, the adjustment unit 140 changes the distance and / or the convergence angle between the lens 32 in the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the lens 32 in the left-eye imaging unit 104, and the reference distance setting unit 130 sets the adjustment angle. The subject located at the reference distance is set to the same position in the left-eye image and the right-eye image. As a result, the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 each acquire an image in an imaging range in which the center is shifted from the optical axis of the lens 32 as a right-eye image and a left-eye image. The subject located at the distance can be set to the same position in the left-eye image and the right-eye image.

  FIG. 5 shows a functional configuration of the imaging apparatus 10 according to another modification of the present embodiment. In this modification, the imaging elements 34 of the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 are movable in the left-right direction of the acquired subject image perpendicular to the optical axis of the imaging optical system 32. Is provided. The moving position of the image sensor 34 is controlled by the adjustment unit 140.

  Further, in the present modification, the adjustment unit 140 includes the position of the imaging region of the imaging device 34 relative to the optical axis of the lens 32 in the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the imaging device relative to the optical axis of the lens 32 in the left-eye imaging unit 104. The position of the imaging region 34 is moved so that the subject located at the reference distance set by the reference distance setting unit 130 is the same position in the left-eye image and the right-eye image. As a result, the right-eye imaging unit 102 and the left-eye imaging unit 104 each acquire an image in an imaging range in which the center is shifted from the optical axis of the lens 32 as a right-eye image and a left-eye image. The subject located at the distance can be set to the same position in the left-eye image and the right-eye image.

  In each of the above embodiments, the imaging unit 100 captures two images to be given to each of the two viewpoints, that is, a right-eye image and a left-eye image. However, the imaging unit 100 may capture three or more images given to each of three or more viewpoints. In this case, the reference distance setting unit 130 sets a reference distance that is a subject distance of a subject having the same position on the display surface when each of a plurality of images is displayed. The adjustment unit 140 adjusts the imaging unit 100 according to the reference distance set by the reference distance setting unit 130.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated using embodiment, the technical scope of this invention is not limited to the range as described in the said embodiment. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications or improvements can be added to the above-described embodiment. It is apparent from the scope of the claims that the embodiments added with such changes or improvements can be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  The order of execution of each process such as operations, procedures, steps, and stages in the apparatus, system, program, and method shown in the claims, the description, and the drawings is particularly “before” or “prior to”. It should be noted that the output can be realized in any order unless the output of the previous process is used in the subsequent process. Regarding the operation flow in the claims, the description, and the drawings, even if it is described using “first”, “next”, etc. for convenience, it means that it is essential to carry out in this order. It is not a thing.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Imaging device, 12 Case, 32 Lens, 34 Image sensor, 36 Image generation part, 100 Imaging part, 102 Right eye imaging part, 104 Left eye imaging part, 120 Recording part, 130 Reference distance setting part, 140 Adjustment Section, 150 focus setting section, 160 input section, 170 viewfinder section

Claims (11)

An imaging unit that captures an image for the right eye given to the right eye of the viewer and an image for the left eye given to the left eye of the viewer;
A reference distance setting unit that sets a reference distance that is a subject distance of a subject that has the same position on a display surface when the right-eye image and the left-eye image are displayed;
An adjustment unit that adjusts the imaging unit according to the reference distance;
An imaging apparatus comprising: The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the adjustment unit changes a region in which the image signal of the right eye image and the image signal of the left eye image are cut out from a light receiving region of an imaging element according to the reference distance. The adjusting unit adjusts an interval between a right-eye lens for capturing the right-eye image and a left-eye lens for capturing the left-eye image according to the reference distance. The imaging device described in 1. The adjustment unit adjusts a convergence angle between a right-eye lens for capturing the right-eye image and a left-eye lens for capturing the left-eye image according to the reference distance. The imaging apparatus according to 1. The adjustment unit adjusts an interval between a right-eye image sensor for capturing the right-eye image and a left-eye image sensor for capturing the left-eye image according to the reference distance. Item 2. The imaging device according to Item 1. The imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the reference distance setting unit sets a subject distance of a subject specified by an imager as the reference distance. A focus setting unit for setting a focusing distance of the imaging unit;
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reference distance setting unit sets the reference distance to be the same as the in-focus distance. The imaging apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the focus setting unit and the reference distance setting unit set the focusing distance and the reference distance according to the same user operation. The imaging according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising: a finder unit that displays reference position information indicating a subject whose subject distance matches the reference distance, together with a preview image for confirming a captured image. apparatus. The imaging apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the finder unit further displays distance information indicating a subject distance of each subject in the preview image. An imaging unit that captures a plurality of images to be given to each of a plurality of viewpoints;
A reference distance setting unit that sets a reference distance that is a subject distance of a subject that has the same position on the display surface when each of the plurality of images is displayed;
An adjustment unit that adjusts the imaging unit according to the reference distance;
An imaging apparatus comprising:

Images