JP2014168209A - Imaging apparatus, imaging method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging apparatus which can store the imaging result while changing depending on whether or not the imaging result is blurred, when repeating the imaging so as to eliminate the effects of camera shake when imaging a subject.SOLUTION: When a captured image of a subject is blurred, the image is captured again by changing the imaging conditions, and the captured image is stored in a temporary storage area. Such an imaging apparatus has a first storage area for deleting the captured images other than those not blurred, if captured images not blurred are included in the captured images stored in the temporary storage area, and storing the captured images not blurred, and a second storage area for storing the captured image group stored in the temporary storage area if there is no captured image not blurred in the captured images stored in the temporary storage area.

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus represented by a digital camera, an imaging method, and a program.

  Some recent imaging apparatuses have a function of minimizing the influence of camera shake on a captured image by a camera shake correction function at the time of shooting.

  In Patent Document 1, it is determined whether the captured image is affected by the shake of the subject or the shake of the subject depending on the brightness of the subject, and information on the shake caused by the user's button operation or zoom operation is limited. A configuration to be reflected in imaging is described.

  Patent Document 2 describes a configuration in which the amount of blurring of the optical axis is detected, and when the amount of blurring exceeds a predetermined amount, imaging is repeated until the amount of blurring is equal to or less than the predetermined amount.

  Further, Patent Document 3 describes a configuration that can store image data that cannot recognize the characteristics of a subject separately.

JP 2010-200307 A JP 2002-333646 A JP 2010-98566 A

  However, Patent Document 1 describes a configuration in which subject blur is determined when the subject brightness is greater than a predetermined value depending on the subject brightness, but subject blur affects even when the subject brightness is low. It can also be affected.

  Patent Document 2 describes a configuration in which imaging is repeated until the amount of blurring of the optical axis becomes a predetermined amount or less. However, in the case of subject blurring, a configuration in which imaging is repeated is not described.

  Further, Patent Document 3 describes a configuration that deletes a captured image in which the subject is not in focus, but a configuration that deletes a captured image in which the features of the subject cannot be recognized due to out-of-focus, camera shake, or subject blurring. In this case, when shooting a moving subject or a subject with a low luminance, it is not possible to save the captured image for a long time until shooting and deletion are repeated.

  The invention of the present application solves the above problems, and when imaging is repeated in order to minimize the influence of camera shake when imaging a subject, the imaging result is changed and stored depending on whether the imaging result is blurred or not. An object of the present invention is to provide an imaging apparatus capable of

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention provides an imaging unit that images a subject, a blur determination unit that determines whether a captured image captured by the imaging unit is blurred, and the captured image obtained by the blur determination unit. When it is determined that the image is blurred, the imaging unit includes a re-imaging unit that changes the imaging condition and performs imaging, and a temporary storage unit that stores the captured image captured by the imaging unit and the re-imaging unit in a temporary storage area. In the apparatus, when it is determined that the captured image stored by the temporary storage unit is not blurred by the blur determination unit, the captured image stored by the temporary storage unit other than the captured image is deleted and stored in the storage medium. In the case where there is no captured image determined by the blur determination unit in the captured image stored by the first storage unit to be stored and the temporary storage unit Having a second memory means for storing the captured images stored in the temporary storage area in the storage medium.

  According to the present invention, when imaging is repeated in order to eliminate the influence of camera shake as much as possible when imaging a subject, the imaging result can be changed and stored depending on whether or not the imaging result is blurred. As a result, a captured image desired by the user can be obtained without squeezing the memory capacity of the storage medium of the imaging device as much as possible, and even if a captured image that is not blurred cannot be captured, imaging close to the desired by user selection The effect that an image can be obtained is obtained.

It is a figure which shows the hardware constitutions of the imaging device 100 which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the software structure of the imaging device 100 which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the choice of the memory information of the user setting of the imaging device 100 in this embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a control processing procedure of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the control processing procedure of the imaging device 100 in this embodiment. It is an example of the screen image displayed on the screen display part 28 of the imaging device 100 in this embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the control processing procedure of the imaging device 100 in this embodiment. It is an example of the image figure which described the imaging device 100 in this embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment.

  The imaging lens 10 is an optical lens that forms a subject image on the imaging element 14. The shutter 12 has an aperture function. The imaging element 14 is a CCD or CMOS image sensor, and photoelectrically converts the subject image formed by the imaging lens 10 into an electrical signal. The A / D converter 16 converts the analog signal output output from the image sensor 14 into a digital signal. The timing generation circuit 18 supplies a clock signal and a control signal to the image sensor 14, the A / D converter 16, and the D / A converter 26 under the control of the memory control circuit 22 and the system control circuit 50.

  The image processing circuit 20 performs predetermined pixel interpolation processing and color conversion processing on the image data from the A / D converter 16 or the image data from the memory control circuit 22. Further, the image processing circuit 20 performs predetermined calculation processing using the captured image data, and outputs the obtained calculation result to the system control circuit 50. The system control circuit 50 controls the exposure control unit 40 and the distance measurement control unit 42 based on the calculation result obtained from the image processing circuit 20 using the captured image data. Specifically, the system control circuit 50 performs TTL (through the lens) AF (autofocus) processing, AE (automatic exposure) processing, and flash pre-flash processing.

Is going. The system control circuit 50 also performs TTL AWB (auto white balance) processing based on the calculation result obtained from the image processing circuit 20 using the captured image data.

  The memory control circuit 22 controls the A / D converter 16, the timing generation circuit 18, the image processing circuit 20, the image display memory 24, the D / A converter 26, the memory 30, and the compression / decompression circuit 32. For example, under the control of the memory control circuit 22, data output from the A / D converter 16 is written into the image display memory 24 or the memory 30 via the image processing circuit 20 and the memory control circuit 22. Alternatively, under the control of the memory control circuit 22, data output from the A / D converter 16 is written into the image display memory 24 or the memory 30 via the memory control circuit 22.

  The image display memory 24 is a memory for temporarily storing image data for display to be displayed on the image display unit 28. The D / A converter 26 converts the digital signal into an analog signal. The image display unit 28 is a TFT LCD (Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Display) or the like. The display image data written in the image display memory 24 is displayed by the image display unit 28 via the D / A converter 26.

  For example, it is possible to realize an electronic viewfinder (EVF) function by sequentially displaying the image data sequentially captured by the image sensor 14 on the image display unit 28 in real time as a moving image. The image display unit 28 can arbitrarily turn on / off the display according to an instruction from the system control circuit 50.

  Further, the image display unit 28 may be coupled to the imaging device 100 by a rotatable hinge unit (not shown). In this case, the imaging apparatus 100 can use the electronic viewfinder function, the playback display function, and various display functions in the image display unit 28 by adjusting the angle of the hinge unit to set a free orientation and angle. It is.

  The memory 30 stores image data such as captured still images and moving images. Note that the memory 30 has a storage capacity sufficient to store a predetermined number of still images and a predetermined time of moving images. Therefore, in the imaging apparatus 100, the memory 30 can also store images captured by continuous imaging for capturing a plurality of still images, panoramic imaging, or the like. The memory 30 can be used as a work area for the system control circuit 50.

  The compression / decompression circuit 32 compresses or decompresses image data by adaptive discrete cosine transform (ADCT) or the like. The compression / decompression circuit 32 reads the image data stored in the memory 30, performs compression processing or decompression processing, and stores the processed data in the memory 30 again.

  The exposure control unit 40 controls the opening and closing of the shutter 12 having a diaphragm function, and also has a flash light control function in cooperation with the flash 404. The distance measurement control unit 42 controls the focusing of the imaging lens 10. The exposure control unit 40 and the distance measurement control unit 42 are controlled by the system control circuit 50 using the TTL method. Specifically, the system control circuit 50 controls the exposure control unit 40 and the distance measurement control unit 42 based on the calculation result obtained by calculating the captured image data by the image processing circuit 20.

  The zoom control unit 44 controls zooming of the imaging lens 10 under the control of the system control circuit 50. Under the control of the system control circuit 50, the camera shake detection / anti-vibration control unit 46 detects the movement of the imaging apparatus 100 due to camera shake and the like, and also controls the camera shake correction mechanism 102 according to the detected movement. That is, in the imaging apparatus 100, the camera shake detection / anti-vibration control unit 46 is a vibration detection unit that detects the movement of the own apparatus. Note that the movement detection of the imaging apparatus 100 in the camera shake detection / anti-vibration control unit 46 is performed based on output values of a gyro sensor and an acceleration sensor (none of which are shown) provided in the apparatus.

  The connector 48 is also called an accessory shoe, and includes an electrical contact with the flash device 400 and mechanical fixing means.

  The system control circuit 50 controls the entire imaging apparatus 100. The memory 52 stores constants, variables, program codes, etc. for operating the system control circuit 50.

  The nonvolatile memory 56 is an electrically erasable / recordable memory under the control of the system control circuit 50. For example, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable ROM) is used.

  The mode dial 60, the shutter switch 62 (SW1), the shutter switch 64 (SW2), the zoom button 66, and the operation unit 70 are operation units that receive operation instructions from the user. This operation means is composed of one or a plurality of combinations such as a switch, dial, touch panel, etc., and inputs various operation instructions received from the user to the system control circuit 50.

  Here, the above-mentioned operation means will be specifically described. The mode dial 60 receives from the user an instruction to switch each operation mode such as power on / off, automatic imaging mode, manual imaging mode, panoramic imaging mode, playback mode, and PC connection mode.

  The shutter switch 62 (SW1) is turned on by a halfway operation of a shutter button (not shown), thereby instructing the user to start operations (imaging preparation operation) such as AF processing, AE processing, AWB processing, and flash preflash processing. And notifies the system control circuit 50. When the shutter switch 64 (SW2) is turned on when the operation of the shutter button is completed, the shutter switch 64 (SW2) receives an instruction from the user to start a series of imaging operations such as exposure processing, development processing, and recording processing, and notifies the system control circuit 50 of it.

  The exposure process is a process of writing image data to the memory 30 via the A / D converter 16 and the memory control circuit 22 under the control of the system control circuit 50. The development process is a process for performing an operation in the image processing circuit 20 or the memory control circuit 22 on the image data written in the memory 30 under the control of the system control circuit 50. The recording process is a process of reading image data from the memory 30 under the control of the system control circuit 50, compressing the image data by the compression / decompression circuit 32, and writing the image data to the recording medium 200.

  The zoom button 66 has buttons for instructing zooming to the wide-angle side and the telephoto side, and when these buttons are turned on, the zoom control unit 44 zooms to the zoom control unit 44 via the system control circuit 50. Give instructions. Instead of the zoom button 66, a zoom ring may be arranged around the lens barrel, and zooming to the wide angle side and the telephoto side may be instructed according to the rotation direction of the zoom ring.

  The operation unit 70 includes various buttons and a touch panel for receiving instructions from the user. For example, the operation unit 70 includes a switch that can set each function mode such as a menu button, a set button, and a cross button. For example, when the user operates the set button, the image display unit 28 displays icons for changing the white balance mode, the exposure correction value, the compression rate of the image data, the size of the image data, and the like. Further, the user can change the setting of the function indicated by the icon by selecting the icon indicating the function whose setting is to be changed with the cross button and changing the setting value.

  The I / F unit 90 is an interface for connecting to the recording medium 200. The connector 92 connects to the recording medium described above.

  In this embodiment, the interface and connector for attaching the recording medium are provided with one system, but the interface and connector for attaching the recording medium may have either a single configuration or a plurality of configurations. Moreover, it is good also as a structure provided with combining the interface and connector of a different standard.

  The camera shake correction mechanism 102 drives a camera shake correction lens in accordance with the control of the camera shake detection / anti-vibration control unit 46. Specifically, the camera shake correction mechanism 102 drives the camera shake correction lens so that the camera shake detection / anti-vibration control unit 46 cancels the shake of the subject image due to the vibration of the imaging device 100.

  Under the control of the communication control unit 111 and the system control circuit 50, various communication functions such as RS232C, USB, IEEE1394, P1284, SCSI, modem, LAN, and wireless communication are controlled. The connector 112 is connected to other devices via a cable such as USB or IEEE1394 under the control of the communication control unit 111. Under the control of the communication control unit 113, the antenna 114 is connected with other wireless LAN communication such as IEEE802.11b and IEEE802.11g, spread spectrum communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), infrared communication such as IrDA, etc. Connect to the device.

  The recording medium 200 is a memory card, a hard disk drive, or the like. Specifically, the recording medium 200 includes a recording unit 202 configured by a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, or the like, an I / F unit 204 for connecting to the imaging apparatus 100, and a connector 206.

  The flash device 400 includes a connector 402 and a flash 404. The connector 402 is connected to the connector 48 that is an accessory shoe of the imaging apparatus 100. The flash 404 projects auxiliary light onto the subject under the control of the system control circuit 50 connected via the connectors 402 and 48. Under the control of the system control circuit 50, the flash 404 may have an AF auxiliary light projecting function and a flash light control function.

  A motion vector detection processing unit 500 as a motion detection unit detects a motion vector indicating the motion of the subject between images from the image processing result.

  The motion vector is detected from the difference information obtained by comparing two frame images arranged in time series. Specifically, a block made up of a plurality of pixels is matched with a neighboring block in the image of the next frame, and the positional relationship with the matched block is output as a motion vector. Of the motion vectors at a certain time in one image, a relatively small motion and a uniform direction can be identified as a background image, and a large motion and a non-uniform direction can be identified as a moving subject. it can. Then, by subtracting the amount of camera shake obtained from the camera shake detection / anti-vibration control unit 46 from the subject motion vector, the motion of the subject is obtained and used as subject shake information.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 2, the software configuration of the present embodiment performed by the imaging apparatus 100 under the control of the system control circuit 50 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment.

  As illustrated in FIG. 2, the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment includes an imaging unit 1001 that captures a subject and a blur determination unit 1002 that solders whether the captured captured image is blurred. When it is determined by the unit 1002 that the captured image is blurred, the re-imaging unit 1003 performs imaging again by changing the imaging condition. The re-photographing unit 1003 usually performs photographing with an image for continuous shooting.

  The blur determination unit 1002 may include a vibration detection unit 1009 that detects the movement of the imaging apparatus 100 itself, and a motion detection unit 1012 that detects the movement of the subject on the captured image. A camera shake correction unit 1010 that corrects camera shake, a camera shake correction enablement unit 1011 that enables the camera shake correction unit 1010 when the camera shake correction unit 1010 is invalid, and an exposure time determination unit that shortens the shutter speed during re-shooting. 1013 may be included.

  Further, the imaging apparatus 100 includes a temporary storage unit 1004 that stores captured images captured by the imaging unit 1001 and the re-imaging unit 1003 in a temporary storage area. Also, if the captured image stored in the temporary storage area is determined not to be blurred by the determination of the blur determination unit 1002, the captured image stored in the temporary storage area other than the unblurred captured image is deleted, and the image is blurred. The imaging apparatus 100 has a first storage unit 1005 that stores an uncaptured captured image in a storage medium, and the captured image stored in the temporary storage area is not blurred by the determination of the blur determination unit. When it is determined that there is no image (that is, all the captured images are blurred), the second storage unit 1006 stores the captured image group stored in the temporary storage area in the storage medium without deleting it.

  In addition, the imaging apparatus 100 includes a captured image multiple display unit 1014 that collectively displays the captured image group stored with the common flag added by the second storage unit 1006, and is displayed on the captured image multiple display unit 1014. An image selection receiving unit 1007 that allows the user to select an image that the user wants to save from the captured image group that has been selected, and a captured image deletion unit 1008 that deletes a captured image other than the captured image selected by the image selection receiving unit 1007 You may have.

  With the above configuration, even when a plurality of captured images with different shooting conditions are taken continuously, only a captured image that is not blurred can be stored, and if a captured image that is not blurred cannot be captured, the image is blurred. The image is stored for the time being, and the user can easily select the captured image to be deleted and the captured image to be stored.

  Hereinafter, the control operation in the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  It is assumed that options as shown in FIG. 3 are selected in advance in the imaging apparatus 100 by user settings (not shown).

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating user-set storage information options of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. For example, data 306 in 300 is stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 or the like as a result of the options. Details will be described later.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a control processing procedure of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. Each process of this flowchart is executed by the system control circuit 50 shown in FIG. That is, it is realized by the system control circuit 50 shown in FIG. 1 executing a program stored in the program area in the memory 52. In the figure, S401 to S418 indicate steps of the process.

  The flowchart of FIG. 4 is started when the user turns on the power with the imaging apparatus 100 (step S401).

  First, in step S402, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 captures a captured image of a subject according to a user instruction. During this shooting, two images can be taken in succession for later use in detecting the movement of the subject. The captured image is temporarily stored in the memory 30 of the imaging device.

  Next, in step S403, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging device 100 reads the user setting storage information of the imaging device 100 stored in the nonvolatile memory 56 or the like, and performs continuous shooting when the image is blurred. Determine whether it is set to do. If the setting is such that continuous shooting is not performed when the image is blurred, the process proceeds to step S418, the photographed image is stored in the recording unit 202, and the processing of this flowchart ends. On the other hand, if it is set to perform continuous shooting when the image is blurred, the process proceeds to step S404. A specific example of setting for performing continuous shooting will be described with reference to FIG.

  In line 301 of FIG. 3, “Yes” is stored in the selection column of the item “automatic continuous shooting”. The item “automatic continuous shooting” in line 301 is an area that stores whether continuous shooting is automatically performed when the image is blurred. In the example of 300, the user setting is made so as to perform automatic continuous shooting. Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  Next, in step S404, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 repeats the subsequent steps S405 to S414 a predetermined number of times. The number of repetitions is the number of times set and stored in the user setting of the imaging apparatus 100. A specific example will be described with reference to FIG.

  In line 302 of FIG. 3, “10” is stored in the selection column of the item “how many times continuous shooting is performed”. The value of the 302th row is an area that stores the number of times of continuous shooting automatically when the image is blurred. The example of 300 is an example in which the user setting is made to perform automatic continuous shooting of 10 sheets. Note that the predetermined number of times may not be a predefined value as shown in FIG. 3, for example, a configuration in which shooting is repeated continuously while the shutter is pressed for shooting. Also good. Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  Next, in step S405, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 determines whether the captured image captured in step S402 is blurred, and if it is blurred, whether the cause is due to camera shake or subject blur. To do. Details of the processing in step S405 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a control processing procedure of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention. Each process of this flowchart is executed by the system control circuit 50 shown in FIG. That is, it is realized by the system control circuit 50 shown in FIG. 1 executing a program stored in the program area in the memory 52. In the figure, S501 to S507 indicate steps of the process.

  The flowchart in FIG. 5 is started when the processing of the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 proceeds to step S405 (step S501).

  First, in step S502, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 determines whether or not the imaging apparatus 100 itself has shaken during shooting in step S402. Whether or not the imaging apparatus 100 has shaken is determined based on the amount of camera shake detected by the camera shake detection / anti-shake control unit 46. Specifically, the determination is made based on output values of a gyro sensor, an acceleration sensor, or the like provided in the apparatus at the time of shooting in step S402. Since the method for correcting camera shake is not the point of the present application, the details are omitted. However, it is determined whether the imaging apparatus 100 is shaking from the output value from the gyro sensor or acceleration sensor, the shutter speed, the focal length of the lens, and the like. If it is determined that there is, the process of step S503 is executed, and the flowchart of FIG.

  If it is determined in step S502 that the imaging apparatus 100 itself is not shaken, the process proceeds to step S504. Note that the processing in step S504 may be performed after the imaging device 100 itself is determined to be shaking and the processing in step S503 is executed.

  In step S504, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 calculates the size of the subject's movement from the two captured images taken in step S402, and determines whether the subject has moved. Whether or not the subject has moved is determined by the amount of movement of the subject detected by the motion vector detection processing unit 500. Specifically, the two captured images are compared, the magnitude of the movement of the subject is calculated from the positional relationship of the matched blocks in the two captured images and the shooting interval of the captured images, Judge whether the value is greater than or equal to.

In step S504, when the magnitude of the subject movement is equal to or greater than the predetermined value, the process proceeds to step S505, where it is determined that the subject is blurred, and if the magnitude of the subject movement is equal to or less than the predetermined value. Then, the process proceeds to step S506, it is determined that the subject is not shaken, and the process of the flowchart of FIG.
Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S405 of FIG. 4, when the system control circuit 50 of the imaging device 100 determines whether the cause is due to camera shake or subject blur when the captured image captured in step S402 is blurred or blurred. Then, the process proceeds to step S406.

  In step S406, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 divides the processing depending on whether the captured image determined in step S405 is blurred. When the captured image is blurred, i.e., when camera shake is detected, the movement of the subject is detected, or both are detected, the process proceeds to step S407, and when the captured image is not blurred, The process transitions to step S417.

  When the process proceeds to step S407, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 notifies the user with sound or the like in order to notify the user that the captured image is blurred. Whether or not the notification is made by sound is controlled by the stored information of the user setting in FIG. A specific example will be described with reference to FIG.

  In line 304 of FIG. 3, “present” is stored in the selection column of the item “notification at the time of shake (sound)”. The value in the 304th row indicates the value of an area that stores whether to notify the user with sound when the captured image is blurred. The example of 300 is an example in which notification is made by sound when shaken. When the user is notified by sound, the user can recognize that the captured image is blurred, and can continue to capture images to obtain a captured image with less blur.

  Further, “Yes” is stored in the selection column of the item “notification at the time of shake (mark)” in the row 307 of FIG. 3. The value in the row 307 indicates the value of the area that stores whether to visually notify the user of the blurred information when the captured image is blurred. The example of 300 is an example in which a setting is made so as to visually notify when there is a shake. With reference to FIG. 6, the process of visually informing will be described.

  FIG. 6 is an example of a screen image displayed on the screen display unit 28 of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment.

  Reference numeral 601 in FIG. 6 indicates that a camera shake has occurred during shooting, and is a screen image that is displayed after the processing in step S503 in FIG. 5 is performed. At 602, a screen (mark) with shaking hands is displayed to notify the user that camera shake has occurred.

  On the other hand, reference numeral 603 in FIG. 6 indicates that a subject blur has occurred during shooting, and is a screen image displayed after performing the process of step S505 in FIG. A screen (mark) on which a person is moving is displayed at 604 to notify the user that subject blur has occurred.

  By these notifications, the user can recognize that the captured image is blurred, and can continue to capture the captured image with less blur. Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  Next, in step S <b> 408, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 determines the next process depending on whether the shake of the captured image is due to camera shake. The determination of whether or not the camera shake is made using the determination in the process of step S405. That is, when the process of step S503 of the flowchart of FIG. 5 which is the details of the process of step S405 is performed, it is determined that the camera shake has occurred. If the shake of the captured image is due to camera shake, the process proceeds to step S409. If the shake of the captured image is not due to camera shake, the process proceeds to step S410.

  Next, in step S409, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 determines the next process depending on whether the camera shake correction mechanism included in the imaging apparatus is turned on. If the camera shake correction mechanism is already ON, the process proceeds to step S410. If the camera shake correction mechanism is OFF, the process proceeds to step S412.

  When the process proceeds to step S412, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 turns on the camera shake correction mechanism, and performs imaging again in the next step S414. With this process, the user can take an image with the camera shake correction function turned on without being aware of whether the camera shake correction mechanism is turned on or off when the camera shake of the imaging apparatus 100 occurs.

  On the other hand, when the process proceeds to step S410, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 determines whether to continue the setting for performing flash shooting from the stored information of the user setting. A specific example will be described with reference to FIG.

  In line 305 of FIG. 3, “Yes” is stored in the selection column of the item “flash photography”. Whether or not flash photography is to be performed is determined based on the value in line 305. In the example of line 305, settings for performing flash photography are set. When the last captured image is captured, if flash photography has not been performed and the stored information of the user setting on line 305 is “Yes”, the process transitions to step S411, When the last captured image is captured, if flash photography is being performed, or if the stored information of the user setting on line 305 is “none”, that is, if the flash photography setting is to be continued, go to step S413. Transition processing.

  When the process proceeds to step S411, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 changes the setting to perform flash photography, and performs photography again in the next step S414. With this process, when the flash photography is not prohibited and the subject brightness is low, the flash photography is repeated, and the photography is repeated until there is no blurring of the subject, thereby obtaining a captured image with less blur.

  When the process transitions to step S413, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 sets the flash speed to the shutter speed priority mode (Tv mode) while increasing the shutter speed while taking over the previous shooting. In step S414, shooting is performed. In step S413, the flash setting is set to the shutter speed priority and the aperture priority mode (ISO auto), with the shutter speed being fast and the aperture being constant, with the shooting taken over immediately before, and the shooting is executed in step S414. You may make it do. With this processing, regardless of whether there is camera shake or subject shake, if a previously captured image is shaken, it is possible to obtain a captured image with less blur by repeating shooting with an increased shutter speed. .

  As described above, the captured image is captured in step S414, and the captured image is temporarily stored in the memory 30 of the imaging device. Thereafter, the process returns from step S415 to step S404, and steps S405 to S414 are repeated as many times as specified in step S404.

  In step S415, if imaging is repeated a predetermined number of times specified in step S404, the process proceeds to step S416. In step S <b> 416, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 gives the same unique flag to the image group that has been captured in step S <b> 402 and step S <b> 414 and temporarily stored in the memory 30. Whether or not the captured image is one of a group of captured images captured for a predetermined number of times due to blurring or a captured image that is not captured normally is determined by the addition of this flag.

  On the other hand, returning to step S405, it is determined whether or not the photograph is blurred as shown in FIG. 5, and if it is determined that the photograph is not blurred (that is, the process of step S506 in FIG. 5 is passed), step S406 is performed. In step S417, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 shifts the processing to step S417, and exits the processing loop from step S404 to step S415.

  In step S <b> 417, the system control circuit 50 of the image capturing apparatus 100 deletes from the memory 30 images other than the captured image that is not blurred among the captured images temporarily stored in the memory 30, that is, the last captured image. In this process, when a non-blurred captured image is captured, only necessary captured images that are unblurred are stored in the storage medium 200 by deleting other than unblurred images, and the storage medium 200 is wasted. It is possible to prevent an increase in capacity.

  Next, in step S <b> 418, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 saves the captured image temporarily stored in the memory 30 in the storage medium 200. When the process transitions from step S417, a captured image other than the captured image deleted in step S417 is stored in the storage medium 200.

  On the other hand, when the process to step S418 has changed from step S416, the memory 30 stores the predetermined number of captured images specified in step S404. All the captured images are stored in the storage medium 200. This process saves a series of captured images that are blurred, so that the user picks up the captured images that suit the user's preference by selecting well-captured captured images among the captured images. be able to.

  Through the above processing, in a situation where the user captures a blurred captured image, it is possible to acquire a captured image that is not blurred as much as possible, and when a captured image that is not blurred cannot be acquired, a series of captured images is captured. By saving all of these, the user can later select a captured image that is well taken from those captured images.

  Next, a processing flow for selecting a picked-up image picked up by a user from a series of picked-up images taken due to blurring will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a control processing procedure of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention. Each process of this flowchart is executed by the system control circuit 50 shown in FIG. That is, it is realized by the system control circuit 50 shown in FIG. 1 executing a program stored in the program area in the memory 52. In the figure, S701 to S709 indicate steps of the process.

  The flowchart of FIG. 7 is started when the process of the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 is changed from the shooting mode to the browsing mode by the user.

  First, in step S <b> 701, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 accepts an operation for switching the captured image viewing mode from the imaging mode of the imaging apparatus 100 by a user operation.

  Next, in step S <b> 702, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 displays thumbnails of a plurality of captured images on the image display unit 28, and the user selects a captured image that the user wants to enlarge and display on the image display unit 28. Accept. An image of the image display unit displaying the plurality of captured images displayed in step S702 as thumbnails will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 8 is an example of an image diagram depicting the imaging device 100 according to the present embodiment, and reference numeral 800 denotes an image display unit 28 (801, 806, 810) and an operation unit 70 (804, 805, 808, etc.) on the back of the imaging device 100. 809, 813).

  In step S <b> 702, an image displayed on the image display unit 28 is indicated by 801. Four thumbnails are displayed in 1/4 in the area 801, and a series of captured images that are captured due to blurring of the thumbnails are displayed in a superimposed manner as in 802.

  The determination as to whether or not to display the images in multiple overlaps as in 802 is made based on the flag assigned in step S416. That is, since the same unique flag is assigned in step S416 if the captured image is a plurality of captured images because the captured image is blurred, the group of captured images to which the flag is assigned is represented by 802. Are displayed in multiple layers.

  On the other hand, only one normal image is displayed as in 803, which is captured without blurring. Due to the difference in display method, a series of captured image groups captured by a plurality of images can be easily determined as captured images captured normally.

  The user selects a captured image to be confirmed using the cursor key 805 in a state where 801 is displayed. Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S702, when the user selects a captured image to be confirmed as described above while the thumbnail of the captured image is displayed on the image display unit 28, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 in the next step S703. Then, it is determined whether or not the selected captured image is a series of blurred captured image groups. This will be described with reference to FIG.

  On the display screen 801 in FIG. 8, when a group of overlapping images such as 802 is selected by the cursor key 805 and the determination key 806, it is determined that a series of blurred captured image groups has been selected. To do. On the other hand, if only one captured image such as 803 is selected, it is determined that a non-blurred captured image is selected. Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S703 in FIG. 7, if the selected captured image is not blurred, the process proceeds to step S709, and the captured image is displayed on the image display unit 28 as a normal captured image viewer. On the other hand, if the selected captured image is a series of captured image groups that are blurred, the process proceeds to step S704.

  In step S <b> 704, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 displays captured images one by one from the selected series of blurred captured image groups. With reference to FIG. 8, a process of displaying one image from a series of blurred captured image groups will be described.

  A display screen 806 in FIG. 8 shows a state in which a blurred image is displayed, and is an example in which one of the image groups 802 in the display screen 801 is displayed. The user looks at the displayed captured image 806 and determines whether to leave or delete it. Note that the display screen 806 displaying the captured image can display the next captured image and the original captured image in the series of captured images with the cursor key 808. Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  Next, in step S <b> 705, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 accepts the user's judgment in order to accept from the user a decision to leave or delete the captured image currently displayed on the display screen. With reference to FIG. 8, a process for accepting a determination as to whether or not to save a captured image from the user will be described.

  When the user wants to save the captured image being displayed on the display screen 806 in FIG. 8, the user presses a decision button 809. Then, a check box 807 in the display screen 806 is checked to indicate that the captured image 806 is selected as a captured image to be saved. Subsequently, the user confirms the next captured image to be saved by pressing the cursor key 808 and repeats the selection process. Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  Next, in step S706, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 receives an input indicating whether the user has finished selecting a captured image to be stored. Whether or not the input is completed is determined based on whether or not the display of a series of captured images is completed on the display screen 806 in FIG. 8 or a specific key on the operation unit 70 is pressed. If the selection of the captured image to be stored by the user is completed, the process proceeds to step S707. If the selection of the captured image is not completed, the process proceeds to step S704, and the process of continuously accepting the user's selection is performed. .

  When the process proceeds to step S707, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 performs a process of prompting the user to confirm whether or not the captured image that has not been selected may be deleted. This will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the display screen 810 in FIG. 8, a captured image checked as 811 is a captured image with a check box 807 designated by the user on the display screen 806, and a check is performed as 811. A warning screen is displayed as shown at 812 as to whether other than the captured image can be deleted. In the case where it is possible to delete other than the picked-up image that is checked, the user presses a decision button 813. Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S707, when the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 receives an input from the user and inputs that it is possible to delete other than the checked captured image, the process proceeds to step S708. . On the other hand, if the user wants to save the captured images other than the checked captured images, the user presses a button other than the decision button 813 and does nothing with the series of captured images. The process ends.

  When the process proceeds to step S708, the system control circuit 50 of the imaging apparatus 100 deletes from the storage medium 200 other than the captured image that is checked as indicated by 811 in FIG. In the example of 810 in FIG. 8, if the captured image other than the checked captured image, that is, the image being displayed on the display screen of 810, the captured image corresponding to 814 is deleted and the process is performed. finish.

  With the above configuration, even if a captured image that is completely unblurred cannot be captured as a result of repeated capturing by the image capturing device as much as possible, the user can select from the captured images that are not completely unblurred. If it is determined that there is a captured image that satisfies the user, the captured image is picked up and stored, and the captured image that is no longer needed can be easily deleted.

  As described above, according to the invention of the present application, an image pickup apparatus that can not be shot well with a single shot but can take a plurality of shots under different shooting conditions, and the shot image without blurring of the shot shot image is obtained. If the captured image is taken, the blurred captured image is deleted, and if the captured image without blur is not obtained, all the captured images are saved to later pick up the blurred image of the user's tolerance. Is possible.

  In addition, the user can pick up a well-captured captured image from a series of blurred captured images, and the remaining captured images (images unnecessary for the user) can be easily deleted. Accordingly, it is not necessary to select an image to be deleted one by one, and as a result, there is an effect of preventing the memory capacity of the image pickup apparatus due to a plurality of images taken.

  It should be noted that the configuration and contents of the various data described above are not limited to this, and it goes without saying that the various data and configurations are configured according to the application and purpose.

  Although one embodiment has been described above, the present invention can take an embodiment as, for example, a system, apparatus, method, program, or recording medium, and specifically includes a plurality of devices. The present invention may be applied to a system including a single device.

  Although not specifically shown, information for managing a program group stored in the recording medium, for example, version information, creator, etc. is also stored, and information depending on the OS on the program reading side, for example, a program is identified and displayed. Icons may also be stored.

  Further, data depending on various programs is also managed in the directory. In addition, when a program or data to be installed is compressed, a program to be decompressed may be stored.

  As described above, a recording medium in which a program code of software for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments is recorded is supplied to the system or apparatus, and the computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus is stored in the recording medium. It goes without saying that the object of the present invention can also be achieved by reading and executing the program code.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the recording medium realizes the novel function of the present invention, and the recording medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.

  As a recording medium for supplying the program code, for example, a flexible disk, hard disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM, CD-R, DVD-ROM, magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card, ROM, EEPROM, A silicon disk or the like can be used.

  Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an OS (operating system) or the like running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by performing part or all of the actual processing and the processing is included.

  Furthermore, after the program code read from the recording medium is written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted in the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function expansion is performed based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that the case where the CPU or the like provided in the board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

  Further, the present invention may be applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices or an apparatus composed of a single device. Needless to say, the present invention can be applied to a case where the present invention is achieved by supplying a program to a system or apparatus. In this case, by reading a recording medium storing a program represented by software for achieving the present invention into the system or apparatus, the system or apparatus can enjoy the effects of the present invention.

  Furthermore, by downloading and reading out a program represented by software for achieving the present invention from a server, database, etc. on a network using a communication program, the system or apparatus can enjoy the effects of the present invention. It becomes.

  In addition, all the structures which combined each embodiment mentioned above and its modification are also included in this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Imaging device 1001 Image pick-up part 1002 Blur judgment part 1003 Re-imaging part 1004 Temporary memory | storage part 1005 1st memory | storage part 1006 2nd memory | storage part 1007 Image selection reception part 1008 Captured image deletion part 1009 Vibration detection part 1010 Camera shake correction part 1011 Camera shake Correction validation unit 1012 Motion detection unit 1013 Exposure time determination unit 1014 Captured image multiple display unit

Claims (7)

Imaging means for imaging a subject;
A blur determination unit that determines whether a captured image captured by the imaging unit is blurred;
A re-imaging unit that changes an imaging condition and captures an image when the blur determination unit determines that the captured image is blurred;
In an imaging apparatus having a temporary storage unit that stores a captured image captured by the imaging unit and the re-imaging unit in a temporary storage area,
When it is determined that the captured image stored by the temporary storage unit is not blurred by the blur determination unit, the captured image stored by the temporary storage unit other than the captured image is deleted and stored in the storage medium. 1 storage means;
When the captured image stored by the temporary storage unit does not include a captured image that is determined not to be blurred by the blur determination unit, the captured image group stored in the temporary storage area is stored in a storage medium. Storage means,
An imaging device comprising: The second storage means assigns a common flag to each captured image group stored in the temporary storage area,
Image selection accepting means for accepting selection of one or a plurality of captured images from a group of captured images having a common flag stored by the second storage means;
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a captured image deleting unit that deletes a captured image other than one or a plurality of captured images received by the image selection receiving unit.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the re-imaging unit repeats imaging for a predetermined number of times while it is determined that the captured image is blurred.   The captured image multiplex display unit that collectively displays the captured image group having the common flag stored in the second storage unit on an image display unit included in the imaging device. 3. The imaging device according to 3. Vibration detecting means for detecting movement of the imaging device;
A camera shake correction unit that detects the movement of the imaging device by the vibration detection unit and drives the lens so as to cancel the detected movement;
An imaging device having
When the imaging device is moved by a predetermined value or more by the vibration detection unit, a camera shake correction enabling unit that enables the camera shake correction unit;
Movement detecting means for detecting movement of the subject from the captured image stored by the temporary storage means;
Exposure time determining means for shortening the exposure time when the magnitude of movement of the subject detected by the motion detection means is a predetermined value or more;
The re-imaging means images the subject with the exposure time shortened by the exposure time determining means, and shortens the exposure time until the magnitude of the movement of the subject detected by the motion detection means becomes a predetermined value or less. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein imaging is repeated by the predetermined number. An imaging process for imaging a subject;
A blur determination step of determining whether the captured image captured by the imaging step is blurred;
When it is determined that the captured image is blurred by the blur determination step, a re-imaging step of changing the imaging condition and imaging,
In the imaging method including a temporary registration step of registering the captured image captured by the imaging unit and the re-imaging step in a temporary storage area,
When it is determined that the captured image captured by the re-imaging process is not blurred by the blur determination process, the captured image registered by the temporary registration process other than the captured image is deleted and registered in the storage medium. 1 registration process;
When there is no captured image that is determined not to be blurred by the blur determination step in the captured image registered by the temporary registration step, a second group that registers the captured image group registered in the temporary storage area in a storage medium. Registration process,
An imaging method characterized by comprising:   The program for an imaging device to perform the imaging method described in Claim 6.

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