JP2015204553A - Image processing system, image processing method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow printing designation by using a printing designation file in printing designation of an image file of a format not corresponding to the printing designation file.SOLUTION: When a printing-designated file is a RAW image file and there is not an image file of a JPEG format corresponding to the RAW image file, the RAW image file is decoded, developed, coded by the JPEG format, and recorded as the image file of the JPEG format. Furthermore, the file name of an image file selected for printing and a printing condition are generated as a DPOF file and recorded.

Description

  In particular, the present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a program that are suitable for instructing printing of recorded image data.

  In a conventional imaging apparatus, image information (RAW image data) as it is captured by an imaging sensor is debayered (demosaiced) and converted into a signal composed of luminance and color difference. Each signal is subjected to so-called development processing such as noise removal, optical distortion correction, and image optimization. Further, as a subsequent process, the developed luminance signal and color difference signal are generally compression-coded and recorded on a recording medium. At this time, the encoding method currently widely used for still images is the JPEG format (ISO / IEC-10918).

  On the other hand, there is an imaging apparatus that can directly record RAW image data. RAW image data requires an enormous amount of data for recording, but has the advantage that correction and deterioration of the original image can be minimized and white balance, contrast, etc. can be re-edited after shooting. For this reason, RAW image data is particularly favored and used by advanced and professional photographers.

  By the way, since the format of RAW image data varies depending on the pixel configuration of the sensor and the like, it is generally not an international standard such as JPEG, and each camera manufacturer has independently formulated it. There are many cases. Therefore, when the recorded RAW image data is used for printing, it is difficult to develop the RAW image data with a laboratory or printer that does not support the format. Therefore, the image data developed by the photographed camera body and the corresponding application is used for printing. As a RAW image data printing system, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which either RAW image data or corresponding JPEG format image data for preview is selected and printed.

JP 2008-36856 A

  In general, an imaging apparatus such as a digital camera has a function of generating a DPOF (Digital Printing Order Format) file as information for printing. FIG. 11 shows an example of a DPOF file. The DPOF file itself is configured as such a text file, and stores user settings such as how many images are printed, what the print size is, and whether date information is printed. In the example shown in FIG. 11, the character strings 1101 to 1104 further describe the relative path in the recording medium of the image file to be printed.

  After the DPOF file is generated, it is recorded together with the image data in a predetermined directory (folder) of a recording medium such as a memory card. By generating the DPOF file and submitting the recording media to the lab in this way, it becomes possible to complete the print request without specifying printing at the lab counter or the like.

  However, as described above, the format of the RAW image data is unique to the camera manufacturer and is not a format that can be used in common for all cameras. Further, since the RAW image data is in an undeveloped state, the development process itself needs to be performed in a laboratory. The image format that can be specified by the DPOF file is the JPEG format, and there is a problem that the format of the RAW image data cannot be specified, and the RAW image data recorded in the RAW format cannot be specified for printing.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-described problems, an object of the present invention is to enable print designation using a print designation file when designating an image file in a format that does not support the print designation file.

  An image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a selection unit that selects an image file to be specified for printing, and a first format that cannot be specified by a print specification file among the image files recorded on a recording medium by the selection unit. A generating unit that generates an image file of a second format that can be designated by the print designation file by decoding the image file of the first format when an image file is selected; and generated by the generation unit Recording means for recording the recorded image file of the second format on the recording medium and generating a print designation file including printing conditions for the image file of the second format and recording the file on the recording medium. It is characterized by.

  According to the present invention, when an image file having a format that does not support the print designation file is designated for printing, the print designation can be designated using the print designation file.

It is a block diagram showing an example of an internal configuration of an imaging device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the detailed structural example regarding the function which encodes RAW image data. It is a figure which shows the example of the pixel array of a Bayer array of an imaging sensor. It is a figure for demonstrating the encoding block of each pixel of RGB. It is a figure for demonstrating the method of performing 2 pixel addition reading in a row direction. It is a block diagram which shows the other detailed structural example regarding the function which encodes RAW image data. It is a block diagram which shows the detailed structural example regarding the function which decodes the encoded RAW image data. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process sequence which produces | generates a DPOF file. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the file recorded on a recording medium. It is a figure for demonstrating a response | compatibility with a RAW image file and the image file of a JPEG format. It is a figure which shows an example of a DPOF file. It is a figure which shows the example of an index display of the RAW image currently recorded.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration example of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment.
In FIG. 1, an imaging unit 101 includes an optical lens and an imaging sensor. The imaging unit 101 captures a subject image and generates an imaging signal (Bayer data). The developing unit 102 performs development processing such as various correction processing and debayer processing on the Bayer data obtained from the imaging sensor as image processing, and generates image data in the YCrCb format by the development processing.

  The JPEG encoding / decoding unit 104 converts the developed image data in the YCrCb format into the JPEG format, which is a well-known image compression format. The JPEG encoding / decoding unit 104 has not only a function of encoding image data in the JPEG format but also a function of decoding image data in the JPEG format. The RAW encoding / decoding unit 103 encodes the Bayer data (RAW image data) obtained from the imaging sensor as it is. The RAW encoding / decoding unit 103 also has a function of decoding encoded RAW image data.

Here, a configuration for encoding and decoding RAW image data will be described.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed configuration example regarding a function of encoding RAW image data.
In FIG. 2, RGB image data input from the image sensor is processed by the row division function unit 201 and then temporarily stored in the frame memory 202. The arrangement of each color component at this time varies depending on the pixel arrangement of the image sensor, but for example, a Bayer arrangement as shown in FIG. 3 is used.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of the pixel array of the image sensor. In the arrangement shown in FIG. 3, the three primary colors R (red), G (green), and B (blue) are acquired depending on the arrangement of the color filters of the corresponding pixels. Furthermore, in a CMOS sensor, which is a kind of imaging sensor, it has become possible to add a calculation function for each pixel data inside the sensor, and a readout method called pixel addition is often employed.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the Bayer array image sensor, the total number of G pixels 301 is four times that of R pixels 302 and B pixels 303. For example, in the encoding process, as shown in FIG. 4, a set of G 16 × 16 pixels and a set of B and R 8 × 8 pixels are defined as encoding units (encoding blocks).

  Hereinafter, an example in which two-pixel addition reading is performed in the row (or column) direction will be described as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, an even-numbered row (G1) and an odd-numbered row (G2) of read pixels are divided into a G pixel group, and each of them is an encoded block (G1 block) composed of only G1 pixels. , And a G2 block only as a coding block (G2 block). The row division function unit 201 in FIG. 2 configures a coding block in this way.

  The motion vector detection unit 206 in FIG. 2 performs a motion detection process on the G pixel plane. The algorithms for motion detection itself are conventional MPEG and H.264. It is similar to an encoding method such as H.264 (or MPEG-4 AVC). Specifically, for example, the absolute value sum of the pixel difference values in the encoding block unit is obtained between the encoding target frame and the reference frame, and the position where the minimum value is obtained is adopted as the motion vector.

  However, the G1 block targets only the G1 pixel also in the reference frame, and the G2 block retains the symmetry between the encoding target image and the reference image by targeting only the G2 pixel also in the reference frame. It is important.

  The motion compensation processing unit 203 performs motion compensation for each of the G pixel plane, the B pixel plane, and the R pixel plane in accordance with the motion vector obtained in the G pixel plane. At this time, for the B pixel plane and the R pixel plane, motion compensation is performed by reducing the motion vector of the G pixel plane to ½.

  The integer conversion unit 204 performs frequency conversion on the difference image data after the motion compensation is performed. Here, H. In the H.264 (or MPEG-4 AVC) recommendation, integer conversion is used. Although the conversion formula used in the integer conversion unit 204 is not specifically mentioned, unlike the DCT (discrete cosine transform) used in MPEG-2, the calculation itself can be configured with integer precision, and is a reversible conversion. It has the characteristics.

  The entropy encoding unit 205 performs variable length encoding of the converted coefficient data and outputs code data. In this method, lossless encoding is performed, and the transform coefficient quantization function employed in general encoding is not provided. With the above configuration, lossless encoding using motion compensation can be performed as it is on the output data of the image sensor that has been added and read.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating another detailed configuration example regarding the function of encoding RAW image data.
The example shown in FIG. 6 is different from the configuration of FIG. 2 in that data output from the image sensor is added and read in the column direction, and a column division function unit 601 is used instead of the row division function unit 201. I have. With such a configuration, addition reading in the column direction can be processed in the same manner as in the row direction.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed configuration example related to a function of decoding encoded RAW image data.
In FIG. 7, when reproduction of the encoded RAW image data (code data) is started, the code data is input to the entropy decoding unit 701. The entropy decoding unit 701 performs a decoding process on the input code data and outputs an integer transform coefficient. The inverse integer conversion unit 702 performs a conversion process reverse to that of the integer conversion unit 204 illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 6. The motion compensation unit 703 performs motion compensation processing with reference to the decoded image stored in the frame memory 705 for each encoded block. The row combination function unit 704 combines the G1 block and the G2 block to form an image.

  The frame memory 705 is a memory for storing the image (decoded image) combined by the row combination function unit 704, and also functions as a memory for storing a motion compensation reference image. Here, since the decoded image is still being read from the imaging sensor, the following processing is performed when displaying this image. First, the center-of-gravity correction unit 706 performs center-of-gravity correction processing for making the distance between pixels in the G1 and G2 rows constant. Since the image data whose center of gravity has been corrected remains in the Bayer array, when it is displayed, development processing is further performed in the development processing unit 707 to construct a displayable image.

  As described above, since the format of the RAW image data is unique to the camera manufacturer and is not a format that can be used in common for all cameras, various configurations are applied to the configuration of the RAW encoding / decoding unit 103. be able to. 2 and 6, the configuration of lossless encoding of moving image data has been described. However, the configuration of the RAW encoding / decoding unit 103 is preferably a configuration capable of performing lossless encoding. Thereby, it is possible to decode the encoded RAW image data and generate the developed image data without degrading the image quality.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 1, the DPOF control unit 105 generates a DPOF (Digital Printing Order Format) file as a print designation file. Details of this processing will be described later. The recording medium 106 is a recording medium such as a memory card, in which encoded RAW image data, encoded JPEG image data, a DPOF file, and the like are recorded. The primary storage device 107 is a storage device including a DRAM, an SRAM, or the like. The user interface 108 is used for inputting various instructions. The control unit 109 controls the entire imaging apparatus 100 and performs processing such as recording an image file on the recording medium 106. The display unit 110 includes a liquid crystal panel or the like, and is a display unit that performs image display during shooting or playback, menu display, image index display, and the like.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure for generating a DPOF file in the present embodiment.
First, in S801, processing is started when an instruction is input from the user interface 108 by a user operation. In step S <b> 802, the control unit 109 specifies an image file to be printed in accordance with a selection operation from the user interface 108. Also, information such as the number of prints, print size, and whether or not to print date information is received from the user interface 108 by the user's operation for the image file to be printed.

  In step S <b> 803, the control unit 109 determines whether the file designated for printing is in the RAW format. If the result of this determination is that the file designated for printing is in the normal JPEG format, in S807, the DPOF control unit 105 selects an image file in JPEG format as the file to be designated for printing.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S803 that the file designated for printing is in the RAW format, the process advances to step S804. In step S <b> 804, the control unit 109 checks whether a JPEG format image file corresponding to the corresponding RAW format image file (RAW image file) exists on the recording medium 106. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the corresponding RAW image file and the JPEG image file are managed with the same file name with different extensions. Then, it is checked whether a JPEG format image file having the same file name exists.

  As a result of this check, if there is a corresponding JPEG format image file, it is assumed that development processing has been performed in the past from the RAW image data related to the corresponding RAW image file, and the process proceeds to S808. In step S <b> 808, the DPOF control unit 105 selects and designates a JPEG format image file (having the same file name) generated by developing from the RAW image data. As described above, when the image selected in the mode for designating the image to be printed is a RAW image, it has a function of designating printing by substituting the already developed image file corresponding to the RAW image.

  On the other hand, if there is no corresponding JPEG format image file as a result of the check in S804, the control unit 109 reads the RAW image file from the recording medium 106 and decodes it in the RAW encoding / decoding unit 103 in S805. I do. Then, development processing is executed in the development unit 102. In step S <b> 806, the JPEG encoding / decoding unit 104 encodes the image data after the development processing in the JPEG format, and the control unit 109 newly records it as an image file on the recording medium 106. At this time, the file name is the same as that of the original RAW image file, and, for example, the extension is made different as file identification information. Thereafter, by referring to the identifier of the file, it can be identified whether or not it has been developed. In step S809, the DPOF control unit 105 selects a newly recorded JPEG format image file and designates printing. As described above, when the image selected in the mode for designating the image to be printed is a RAW image, it also has a function of designating printing of an image file obtained by newly performing RAW development.

  Subsequently, in S810, the DPOF control unit 105 generates a DPOF file as shown in FIG. 11, for example, and describes the file name of the image file selected for printing in the DPOF file. At this time, the printing conditions designated in S802 are also described. The DPOF control unit 105 records the generated DPOF file on the recording medium 106.

  In step S <b> 811, the control unit 109 determines whether there is an input for further print designation from the user interface 108 by a user operation. As a result of this determination, if there is further input for print designation, the process returns to S802 and the process is repeated. On the other hand, as a result of the determination in S811, if there is an input to end the print designation, the process proceeds to S812 and the process ends. As described above, the DPOF file itself is updated by the number of image files designated for printing, and a DPOF file as shown in FIG. 11 is generated.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a structure example of a file recorded on the recording medium 106. The example shown in FIG. 9 has a structure compliant with the DCF standard (Digital Camera Format). As shown in FIG. 9, under the image folder 901, predetermined subfolders 902 that differ depending on conditions such as the shooting date are created, and a JPEG image file 905 and a RAW image file 906 are stored in the subfolder 902. On the other hand, a DPOF file 904 named “AUTOPRINT.MRK” is stored in the MISC folder 903, and print designation information is sequentially described in the DPOF file 904.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the correspondence between RAW image files and JPEG format image files. In FIG. 10, an “IMG — 0100.CR2” file 1001, an “IMG — 0101.CR2” file 1003, and an “IMG — 0102.CR2” file 1005 are all RAW format RAW image files. Here, the extension “CR2” indicates that the file is a RAW format file uniquely set by the camera manufacturer. The “IMG — 0100.JPG” file 1002 and the “IMG — 0101.JPG” file 1004 are corresponding JPEG image files. On the other hand, for the “IMG — 0102.CR2” file 1005, there is no corresponding JPEG format file. Therefore, when this image file is designated for printing, an “IMG — 0102.JPG” file 1006 is newly generated and recorded on the recording medium 106 based on the method of the present embodiment.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an index display example of a RAW image. In accordance with an instruction from the user interface 108, the imaging apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment displays a list of reduced images (index display) of RAW image files recorded on the recording medium 106 and displays the list on the display unit 110. be able to. At this time, along with the reduced image 1201 of the displayed RAW image, a mark 1202 indicating that the image is designated for printing is displayed. Whether printing is designated is determined by referring to the recorded DPOF file. In the present embodiment, even when a separately generated JPEG image file is designated for printing, a print designated mark 1202 is added to a reduced image of the corresponding RAW image and displayed. To. In other words, by associating file names between RAW image files and JPEG format image files, it is possible to share and manage the presence or absence of print designation.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when a RAW image file is designated to be printed, a corresponding developed JPEG image file is generated. As a result, printing processing can be performed in a laboratory or the like using the DPOF file. In the above description, DPOF has been described as an example of the print designation file. However, the present embodiment is not limited to DPOF, and can be similarly applied to files and data having the same print designation function.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention can also be realized by executing the following processing. That is, software (program) that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or apparatus via a network or various storage media, and a computer (or CPU, MPU, or the like) of the system or apparatus reads the program. It is a process to be executed.

103 Raw encoding / decoding unit 105 DPOF control unit 106 Recording medium 109 Control unit

Claims (9)

A selection means for selecting an image file to be printed;
When the first format image file that cannot be designated for printing by the print designation file is selected by the selection means from among the image files recorded on the recording medium, the image file in the first format is decoded. Generating means for generating an image file of a second format capable of print designation by the print designation file;
Recording the second format image file generated by the generation unit on the recording medium, and generating a print designation file including printing conditions for the second format image file and recording the recording file on the recording medium And an image processing apparatus.   The image file of the second format corresponding to the image file of the first format is recorded on the recording medium when the image file of the first format is selected by the selection means. In this case, the generation unit does not newly generate the image file of the second format, and the recording unit sets a print condition for the image file of the second format already recorded on the recording medium. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a print designation file is generated and recorded on the recording medium.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image file in the first format is an image file in which RAW image data is encoded.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the generation unit generates the image file of the second format by performing a development process after decoding the image file of the first format.   5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image file in the first format is an image file in which RAW image data is losslessly encoded.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print designation file is a DPOF (Digital Printing Order Format) file.   The index display of the image file of the first format further includes display means for displaying print designation information set for the image file of the second format together with the reduced image. The image processing apparatus according to any one of 1 to 6. A selection process for selecting an image file to be printed;
In the selection step, when an image file of the first format that cannot be designated for printing by the print designation file is selected from among the image files recorded on the recording medium, the image file of the first format is decrypted. A generation step of generating an image file of a second format that can be designated for printing by the print designation file;
Recording the second format image file generated in the generation step onto the recording medium, and generating a print designation file including printing conditions for the second format image file and recording the recording file on the recording medium And an image processing method. A selection process for selecting an image file to be printed;
In the selection step, when an image file of the first format that cannot be designated for printing by the print designation file is selected from among the image files recorded on the recording medium, the image file of the first format is decrypted. A generation step of generating an image file of a second format that can be designated for printing by the print designation file;
Recording the second format image file generated in the generation step onto the recording medium, and generating a print designation file including printing conditions for the second format image file and recording the recording file on the recording medium A program for causing a computer to execute a process.

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