JP2016005107A - Imaging apparatus and control method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that imaging is performed while setting the number of recording pixels to a minimum recording size for a homepage or mail attachment and when performing imaging in an important event such as an athletic meeting of user's sun or daughter, a recording condition is set in such a manner that image data representing a high-definition image like 10M fine are recorded but if a user changes the setting of the recording condition appropriately for a purpose condition of imaging or the user forgets to perform a setting first, an uncorrectable error such as recording an image of the important event in the minimum recording size may occur.SOLUTION: In the case where the minimum recording size is set, the number of images to be recorded in that size is limited. Therefore, during a subsequent important event, images are prevented from being recorded in the minimum recording size or in the case where a digital camera is being used intensively under minimum recording size setting, user friendliness is prevented from being reduced.

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus such as a digital camera that captures and reproduces still images and moving images.

  In a digital camera, it is possible to set recording conditions such as the number of pixels and the compression rate when recording image data acquired by shooting on a recording medium. For example, in the case of a digital camera having the number of 10M pixels, the recording conditions can be set from 10M mode with the maximum number of pixels to 10M fine, 10M normal, 3M fine, 3M normal, 1M fine, and 1M normal.

  For example, when shooting at an important event such as an athletic meet for children such as for homepages or e-mail attachments, with the number of recording pixels set to the minimum recording size, it is as high as 10M Fine. Recording conditions are set so that image data representing a fine image is recorded.

  In this way, if the user changes the recording condition settings to suit the shooting target conditions, forgetting to make the initial settings, important event images will be recorded at the minimum recording size, etc. , Irreversible things can happen.

  For such a situation, for example, in Patent Document 1, an event date is registered in advance, and if the number of recording pixels and the compression rate are set to be small on the event date, the user is prompted to change to a high-definition setting. Proposing technology.

  In addition, when the power is turned off after setting at the minimum recording size, there are countermeasures such as “forgetting the minimum recording size setting” and “giving a warning about the minimum recording size setting at the next power-on”.

JP-A-2005-340996

  However, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to register an important event date in advance, and if an event date is not registered, it is recorded in a previously set state.

  Also, if the power is turned off after setting the minimum recording size, measures such as “Forget the minimum recording size setting” and “Warn a minimum recording size setting when the power is turned on next” are intentionally minimum. When shooting with the recording size setting, user convenience is reduced.

  Therefore, in the present invention, when a minimum recording size is set, by setting a limit on the number of recordings at that size, it is possible to record at the minimum recording size at the subsequent important event, or intentionally the minimum recording size The purpose is to prevent a decrease in usability when a digital camera is used in the setting.

  In order to solve the above problems, an imaging apparatus according to the present application includes an imaging unit that acquires image data by imaging, a recording unit that records the image data acquired by the imaging unit on a recording medium, and the recording medium that stores the image data. A recording size setting means for setting the recording size, a recording size saving means for saving the recording size before setting the minimum recording size when the minimum recording size is set by the recording size setting means, and a minimum recording size Recording number setting means for setting the number of recordings by size, and a warning to the user that when the number of shots set by the recording size is taken, the recording size saved by the recording size saving means is restored. And a recording size saved by the recording size saving means.

  According to the present invention, the configuration described in the means for solving the problem prevents forgetting to change the recording size, and the image quality of an image taken at an important event is always high definition. it can.

It is a block diagram of a present Example. It is a flowchart of the main routine of a present Example. It is a flowchart at the time of imaging | photography of a present Example. It is a flowchart of the main routine of a present Example. It is a flowchart at the time of imaging | photography of a present Example.

  The present invention will be described using a digital camera as an example.

<First Embodiment>
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, reference numeral 100 denotes an image processing apparatus. 10 is a photographing lens, 12 is a mechanical shutter having an aperture function, 14 is an image sensor that converts an optical image into an electrical signal, and 16 is an A / D converter that converts an analog signal output of the image sensor 14 into a digital signal. .

  A timing generation circuit 18 supplies a clock signal and a control signal to the image sensor 14 and the A / D converter 16, and is controlled by the memory control circuit 22 and the system control circuit 50. In addition to the twelve mechanical shutters, the accumulation time can be controlled as an electronic shutter by controlling the reset timing of the eighteen image sensors, and can be used for moving image shooting and the like.

  An image processing circuit 20 performs predetermined pixel interpolation processing and color conversion processing on the data from the A / D converter 16 or the data from the memory control circuit 22. Further, an electronic zoom function is realized by performing image cutting and scaling processing by 20 image processing circuits.

  Further, the image processing circuit 20 performs predetermined calculation processing using the captured image data, and the system control circuit 50 controls the exposure control means 40 and the distance measurement control means 42 based on the obtained calculation result. TTL AF processing, AE processing, and EF processing are performed.

  Further, the image processing circuit 20 performs predetermined arithmetic processing using captured image data, and also performs TTL AWB (auto white balance) processing based on the obtained arithmetic result.

  Further, the image processing circuit 20 performs image identification of image data and processing for detecting the amount of change from the previous frame image.

  A memory control circuit 22 controls the A / D converter 16, the timing generation circuit 18, the image processing circuit 20, the memory 30, and the compression / decompression circuit 32.

  The data of the A / D converter 16 is written into the memory 30 via the image processing circuit 20 and the memory control circuit 22, or the data of the A / D converter 16 is directly written via the memory control circuit 22.

  Reference numeral 28 denotes an image display unit composed of a TFT LCD or the like, and display image data written in the memory 20 is displayed by the image display unit 28 via the memory control circuit 22. If the image data captured using the image display unit 28 is sequentially displayed, the electronic viewfinder function can be realized.

  The image display unit 28 can arbitrarily turn on / off the display according to an instruction from the system control circuit 50. When the display is turned off, the power consumption of the image processing apparatus 100 can be greatly reduced. I can do it.

  When a touch panel is used for the image display unit 28, the operation unit 70 can be omitted by using the touch panel as an operation unit.

  Reference numeral 30 denotes a memory for storing captured still images and moving images, and has a sufficient storage capacity to store a predetermined number of still images and a predetermined time of moving images.

  This makes it possible to write a large amount of images to the memory 30 at high speed even in continuous shooting or panoramic shooting in which a plurality of still images are continuously shot.

  The memory 30 can also be used as a work area for the system control circuit 50.

  Reference numeral 31 denotes a non-volatile memory composed of a flash ROM or the like. The program code executed by the system control circuit 50 is written in the nonvolatile memory 31, and the program code is executed while being read sequentially. In addition, an area for storing system information and an area for storing user setting information are provided in the nonvolatile memory, and various information and settings are read and restored at the next startup.

  Reference numeral 32 denotes a compression / decompression circuit that compresses and decompresses image data by adaptive discrete cosine transform (ADCT) or the like, reads an image stored in the memory 30, performs compression processing or decompression processing, and stores the processed data in the memory 30. Write to.

  Reference numeral 40 denotes an exposure control means for controlling the shutter 12 having a diaphragm function, and has a flash light control function in conjunction with the flash 48.

  Reference numeral 42 denotes distance measurement control means for controlling the focusing of the photographing lens 10, and reference numeral 44 denotes zoom control means for controlling the zooming of the photographing lens 10.

  A flash 48 has an AF auxiliary light projecting function and a flash light control function.

  The exposure control means 40 and the distance measurement control means 42 are controlled using the TTL method. Based on the calculation result obtained by calculating the captured image data by the image processing circuit 20, the system control circuit 50 performs the exposure control means 40 and the distance measurement. Control is performed on the control means 42.

  Reference numeral 50 denotes a system control circuit that controls the entire image processing apparatus 100, and includes a timer 50a, which will be described later, that starts when the playback mode is activated.

  Reference numerals 60, 62, 64, 66, 70, and 72 denote operation means for inputting various operation instructions of the system control circuit 50. A single unit such as a switch, a dial, a touch panel, pointing by line-of-sight detection, a voice recognition device, or the like Consists of multiple combinations.

  Here, a specific description of these operating means will be given. Reference numeral 60 denotes a mode dial switch, which can switch and set various function modes such as power-off, automatic shooting mode, shooting mode, panoramic shooting mode, moving image shooting mode, playback mode, and PC connection mode.

  Reference numeral 62 denotes a shutter switch SW1, which is turned on during the operation of the shutter button, and instructs to start operations such as AF (autofocus) processing, AE (automatic exposure) processing, and AWB (auto white balance) processing.

  A shutter switch SW2 64 is turned on when the operation of the shutter button is completed. In the case of flash photography, after performing EF (flash pre-emission) processing, the image sensor 14 is exposed for the exposure time determined in the AE processing. In flash photography, light is emitted during this exposure period, and the exposure period. Simultaneously with the end of the exposure, the exposure control means 40 shields the light, thereby completing the exposure to the image sensor 14.

  A read process for writing the image data to the memory 30 via the A / D converter 16 and the memory control circuit 22 for the signal read from the image sensor 14, a development process using computations in the image processing circuit 20 and the memory control circuit 22; The image data is read from the memory 30 and compressed by the compression / decompression circuit 32. Next, the start of a series of processing operations such as recording processing for writing image data to the recording medium 200 is instructed.

  Reference numeral 66 denotes a display changeover switch, which can change the display of the image display unit 28. With this function, when photographing is performed using the optical viewfinder 104, it is possible to save power by cutting off the current supply to the image display unit including a TFT LCD or the like.

  Reference numeral 70 denotes an operation unit including various buttons, a touch panel, a rotary dial, and the like, which include a menu button, a set button, a macro button, a multi-screen playback page break button, a flash setting button, a single shooting / continuous shooting / self-timer switching button, and the like. . Menu move + (plus) button, menu move-(minus) button, playback image move + (plus) button, playback image-(minus) button, shooting quality selection button, exposure compensation button, date / time setting button, etc. is there.

  Reference numeral 72 denotes a zoom switch unit as zoom operation means for a user to give an instruction to change the magnification of a captured image. Hereinafter, the zoom switch 72 is also referred to. The zoom switch 72 includes a tele switch that changes the imaging field angle to the telephoto side and a wide switch that changes the imaging angle of view to the wide angle side. By using the zoom switch 72, the zoom control unit 44 is instructed to change the imaging field angle of the photographing lens 10 and becomes a trigger for performing an optical zoom operation. In addition, it also serves as a trigger for electronic zooming change of the imaging angle of view by image cropping by the image processing circuit 20 or pixel interpolation processing.

  Reference numeral 86 denotes a power supply means including a primary battery of an alkaline battery, a secondary battery such as a NiCd battery, a NiMH battery, or a Li ion battery, an AC adapter, or the like.

  Reference numeral 90 denotes an interface with a recording medium such as a memory card or hard disk, and reference numeral 92 denotes a connector for connecting to a recording medium such as a memory card or hard disk.

  Reference numeral 102 denotes protection means that is a barrier that prevents the imaging unit from being soiled or damaged by covering the imaging unit including the lens 10 of the image processing apparatus 100.

  Reference numeral 104 denotes an optical viewfinder, which can take an image using only the optical viewfinder without using the electronic viewfinder function of the image display unit 28.

  A communication unit 110 has various communication functions such as USB, IEEE1394, LAN, and wireless communication.

  Reference numeral 112 denotes a connector for connecting the image processing apparatus 100 to another device by the communication unit 110 or an antenna in the case of wireless communication.

  Reference numeral 200 denotes a recording medium such as a memory card or a hard disk. The recording medium 200 includes a recording unit 202 composed of a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, or the like, an interface 204 with the image processing apparatus 100, and a connector 206 for connecting to the image processing apparatus 100. Reference numeral 210 denotes a recording medium such as a memory card or a hard disk.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the processing when the minimum recording size is set in the present embodiment. The recording size setting screen is displayed by the operation unit 70 from the shooting mode (S101), and the recording size is set. At this time, it is determined whether or not the recording size has been set to the minimum (S102). If the recording size has not been set to the minimum, the recording size setting is terminated and the shooting mode is entered.

  If the minimum recording size is set in S102, the current recording size is stored in the nonvolatile memory 31 (S103). Thereafter, the number-of-shots limit setting screen (S104) is displayed, and it is determined whether to set the number-of-shots restriction (S105). In S105, if the limit on the number of shots is not set, the number of shots at the minimum recording size is set to infinity (S106), the recording size setting is terminated, and the shooting mode is entered. When the number of shots with the minimum recording size is set in S105, the number of shots with the minimum recording size is set (S107), the recording size setting is ended, and the mode is shifted to the shooting mode.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the processing in the shooting mode when the minimum number of recorded sheets is set in FIG. In the shooting mode, the remaining number of shots with the minimum recording size is displayed (S201). Thereafter, when a still image shooting command is given by the operation unit 70, one still image is shot (S202). Thereafter, 1 is subtracted from the number of shots set in S107 of FIG. 2 (S203), and it is determined whether or not the number of shots is 0 (S204). When the sheet count reaches 0 in S204, the recording size is returned to the previous recording size set in S103 in FIG. 2 (S205), and the user is warned of the recording size change (S206). If the sheet count is not 0 in S204, the process returns to S201.

  Further, in S105 of FIG. 2, when the number of shots at the minimum recording size is set, if the minimum recording size remains even after a certain period of time has elapsed since the setting, the recording size is set to S103 of FIG. Return to the previous recorded size set in. At this time, for the determination of the certain period, the certain period is set from the ratio of the total number of images taken with the digital camera and the number of images taken with the minimum recording size. The calculation formula for a certain period is as follows.

Percentage of fixed period = number of shots taken with minimum recording size / total number of shots * 100 (1)
If the ratio of the fixed period is less than 10%, the setting of the recording size is restored when one or more days have elapsed since the number of shots at the minimum recording size was set in S105 of FIG. If the ratio of the fixed period is less than 20%, the recording size setting is returned to 2 days when the ratio of the fixed period is 10%.

  Here, the total number of shots taken with the digital camera is incremented by 1 every time a single shot is taken with the digital camera. At that time, the recording number counter at the currently set recording size is also increased. This makes it possible to acquire the total number of shots taken with a digital camera and the number of shots taken with the minimum recording size.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the processing when the minimum recording size is set in the present embodiment. However, unlike the flowchart of FIG. 2, this is a flowchart in the case where the number of recordings at the minimum recording size is not limited but limited by the period.

  The recording size setting screen is displayed by the operation unit 70 from the shooting mode (S301), and the recording size is set. At this time, it is determined whether or not the recording size has been set to the minimum (S302). If the recording size has not been set to the minimum, the recording size setting is terminated and the shooting mode is entered.

  If the minimum recording size is set in S302, the current recording size is stored in the nonvolatile memory 31 (S303). Thereafter, the number-of-shots limit setting screen (S304) is displayed, and it is determined whether or not the shooting period limit is set (S305). If the shooting period restriction is not set in S305, the shooting period with the minimum recording size is set to infinity (S306), the recording size setting is terminated, and the mode is shifted to the shooting mode. When the shooting period with the minimum recording size is set in S305, the shooting period with the minimum recording size is set (S307), the recording size setting is ended, and the mode is shifted to the shooting mode.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing in the photographing mode when the minimum recording period restriction is set in FIG. In the shooting mode, the shooting period at the minimum recording size is displayed (S401), and it is determined whether it is within the minimum recording size shooting period (S402). If it is determined in S402 that the recording period is within the minimum recording size, still image shooting is performed (S403), and the process returns to S401. If it is determined in S402 that it is outside the minimum recording size shooting period, the recording size is returned to the previous recording size set in S303 of FIG. 4 (S404), and the user is warned of the recording size change (S405).

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when the minimum recording size is set, by setting the limit on the number of shots at the minimum recording size or the limitation on the shooting period, it is possible to prevent forgetting to change the recording size, It becomes possible to always make the image quality of an image taken at an important event high definition.

  In addition, if the power is turned off after setting the minimum recording size, the minimum recording size setting is intentionally set, such as “Forget the minimum recording size setting” or “Warn the minimum recording size setting when the power is turned on next”. The user-friendliness of the user who is shooting is not reduced.

10: photographing lens, 12: shutter, 14: image sensor, 16: A / D converter,
18: Timing generation circuit, 20: Image processing circuit, 22: Memory control circuit,
28: Image display unit, 30: Memory, 32: Image compression / decompression circuit, 40: Exposure control means,
42: Distance control means 44: Zoom control means 48: Flash
50: System control circuit, 50a: Timer, 60: Mode dial switch,
62: Shutter switch SW1, 64: Shutter switch SW2,
66: Display changeover switch, 70: Operation unit, 72: Zoom switch,
90: Interface, 92: Connector, 100: Image processing device,
102: protection means, 104: optical finder, 110: communication means,
112: Connector (or antenna), 200: Recording medium, 202: Recording unit,
204: Interface, 206: Connector

Claims (4)

Photographing means for acquiring image data by photographing;
Recording means for recording the image data acquired by the photographing means on a recording medium;
Recording size setting means for setting a recording size of the image data on the recording medium;
When a minimum recording size is set by the recording size setting unit, a recording size storage unit that stores a recording size before setting the minimum recording size;
Recording number setting means for setting the number of recordings at the minimum recording size;
Means for alerting the user to return to the recording size stored by the recording size storage means when the number of shots set by the recording size has been taken;
An imaging apparatus comprising: returning to a recording size stored by the recording size storage unit. The imaging apparatus includes a total number of shots counting unit that records the number of images acquired by the shooting unit;
A minimum recording number counting means for recording the number of shots with the minimum recording size is provided,
2. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording size is restored to the recording size stored by the recording size storing unit in accordance with the values acquired from the total number of photographed number counting unit and the minimum number of recorded sheet counting unit. Photographing means for acquiring image data by photographing;
Recording means for recording the image data acquired by the photographing means on a recording medium;
Recording size setting means for setting a recording size of the image data on the recording medium;
When a minimum recording size is set by the recording size setting unit, a recording size storage unit that stores a recording size before setting the minimum recording size;
A recording period setting means for setting a recording period at the minimum recording size;
Means for alerting the user to return to the recording size stored by the recording size storage means when the period set by the recording size is exceeded;
An imaging apparatus comprising: returning to a recording size stored by the recording size storage unit. Photographing means for acquiring image data by photographing;
A recording size setting step for setting a recording size of the image data on the recording medium, the control method of the imaging apparatus having recording means for recording the image data acquired by the photographing means on a recording medium;
When the minimum recording size is set in the recording size setting step, a recording size storage step for storing the recording size before setting the minimum recording size;
Recording number setting process for setting the number of recordings at the minimum recording size;
A step of warning the user to return to the recording size stored in the recording size storage step when the number of shots set in the recording size has been taken;
And a step of returning to the recording size stored in the recording size storing step.