JP2017194544A - Optical apparatus and control method thereof, program, and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical apparatus capable of easily setting an optimum zooming speed depending on situation.SOLUTION: The optical apparatus includes: drive means 203 that drives a zoom lens; a first instruction part 212a that instructs to start driving the zoom lens; a second instruction part 212b that instructs to change driving speed of the zoom lens; and a control means 201 that controls the driving of the zoom lens responding to the instruction from the first instruction part and the second instruction part. The first instruction part is different from the second instruction part. The change of the driving speed by the second instruction part is effective during driving the zoom lens.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical device, and more particularly to an optical device capable of controlling the driving of a zoom lens.

  In recent years, with the increase in magnification of compact cameras, there has been a demand for higher speed zoom operations. At the same time, video shooting with a camera is also becoming more important. Generally, when the zoom speed in video shooting is high, it is difficult to follow the subject, and during video shooting, operation is performed from medium speed to low speed. Due to such a background, a wide range of zoom speed settings are desired by users in recent cameras.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a multistage speed switching technique using a lever operation member as a camera having a function of changing the zoom speed stepwise.

JP 2006-304002 A

  However, multistage speed switching by lever operation as in Patent Document 1 requires a user to finely adjust the pushing amount of the lever, which is not convenient when performing continuous speed switching. In addition, it is difficult to construct a multi-stage switching of two or more speeds. On the other hand, with manual zooming using a ring operation like a single-lens lens, it is difficult to perform an operation of following a subject while maintaining a constant speed required during moving image shooting.

  Therefore, in view of the above problems, the present invention provides an optical device that can easily set an optimum zoom speed according to the situation, a control method therefor, a program, and a storage medium.

  An optical apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes a driving unit that drives a zoom lens, a first instruction member that instructs to start driving the zoom lens, and a second that instructs to change the driving speed of the zoom lens. And a control means for controlling the driving of the zoom lens in response to instructions from the first and second indicating members, wherein the first indicating member is the first indicating member. Unlike the second indication member, the change of the driving speed by the second indication member is effective during the driving of the zoom lens.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to easily set an optimal zoom speed according to the situation.

It is a flowchart concerning the 1st Embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a configuration diagram of an imaging system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is an overall view of an imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is explanatory drawing of the speed table concerning the 1st Embodiment of this invention.

  An overview of the system of this embodiment will be described. The embodiment described below is an example of the present invention and does not limit the configuration. If it is a configuration to which the present invention is applicable, the following configuration is not necessary.

  A system of the imaging apparatus 200 (optical apparatus) will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a system block diagram in this case. In FIG. 2, 201 is a system control unit, 202 is a barrel drive control unit, 203 is a barrel drive unit, 204 is a barrel unit, 205 is an imaging unit, and 206 is an imaging control unit. Reference numeral 207 denotes a display unit, 208 denotes a display control unit, 209 denotes a recording unit, 210 denotes an external recording unit, 211 denotes a strobe, 212 denotes an operation unit, 213 denotes a power source unit, and 214 denotes a power source control unit.

  The system control unit 201 includes an exposure control unit 201a, a distance measurement control unit 201b, an image processing unit 201c, and a speed control unit 201d. The lens barrel unit 204 includes an imaging optical system having a plurality of optical elements. In this embodiment, the imaging optical system includes a zoom lens 204a, a focus lens 204b, a diaphragm 204c, and a shutter 204d.

  A system control unit 201 (control means) controls the entire system based on a mounted program using a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or the like. Further, the system control unit 201 uses the exposure control unit 201a, the distance measurement control unit 201b, the image processing unit 201c, and the speed control unit 201d included in the control unit to perform appropriate lens barrel control and image processing according to the situation.

  Specifically, the exposure control unit 201a and the distance measurement control unit 201b perform predetermined calculation processing using the image data obtained from the imaging unit 205 and the imaging control unit 206, and drive the lens barrel based on the obtained calculation result. A drive signal is transmitted to the lens barrel drive unit 203 through the control unit 202. The lens barrel unit 204 drives an optical element (such as a lens or a diaphragm) based on the driving transmitted from the lens barrel driving unit 203. The system control unit 201 performs AF (autofocus) processing, AE (automatic exposure) processing, EF (strobe preflash) processing, AWB (auto white balance) processing, and the like by a TTL (through-the-lens) method. The image processing unit 201c performs desired image data processing on the data from the imaging control unit 206, the recording unit 209, and the external recording unit 210, specifically, resizing processing such as pixel interpolation and image reduction, color conversion processing, and the like. . The speed control unit 201d calculates the speeds of the zoom lens 204a and the focus lens 204b by an encoder using an optical detection sensor (not shown). The obtained encoder signal of each lens is sent to the speed control unit 201d so as to obtain a predetermined target speed, the current speed is calculated, and the control signal is sent to the lens barrel drive control unit 202 from the difference from the target speed. .

  The lens barrel drive control unit 202 is mainly configured by a driver IC or the like, and based on control signals from the system control unit 201 and information obtained from sensors (not shown) such as optical detection, magnetic detection, and tilt detection, A desired drive signal is transmitted to the lens barrel drive unit 203. Moreover, the detection signal from each sensor is sent to the speed control unit 201d.

  The lens barrel drive unit 203 includes various lens units of the lens barrel unit 204 and various motors for moving the lens barrel mechanism. As described above, the lens barrel driving unit 203 functions as a driving unit that drives an optical element such as the zoom lens 204 a provided in the lens barrel unit 204. The lens barrel drive unit 203 drives the zoom lens 204a along the optical axis of the imaging optical system provided inside the lens barrel unit 204, for example. The lens barrel driving unit 203 includes various motors such as a DC motor and a stepping motor (not shown). The various motors are configured to realize the functions of the zoom lens 204a, the focus lens 204b, the diaphragm 204c, and the shutter 204d, and operate the lens barrel unit 204 based on a drive control signal from the lens barrel drive control unit 202.

  The imaging unit 205 includes an imaging element such as a CCD or a CMOS. The imaging element receives light via an imaging optical system (such as a zoom lens) provided inside the lens barrel portion 204. The image sensor receives the light beam collected by the lens group incorporated in the lens barrel portion 204 and converts it into an electrical signal. The converted signal is converted into a video signal by a signal processing system circuit in the imaging control unit 206, subjected to predetermined processing, and a signal capable of video display is output.

  The display unit 207 is composed of a display member such as a liquid crystal monitor, and the display image data sent from the display control unit 208 is sent to the display unit 207 via a D / A conversion unit (not shown). Display the desired image. Further, if image data from the imaging unit 205 and the imaging control unit 206 are sequentially displayed on the display unit 207 through the display control unit 208, an EVF (Electronic View Finder) function can be realized.

  A recording unit (storage unit) 209 is used as a temporary recording medium for recording various data such as photographed video information, time information, setting information, and image processing. The recording unit 209 further includes a memory device for storing various programs executed by the system control unit 201. The program used in this case is also held in the recording unit 209. The recording unit 209 also stores and holds, for example, a zoom driving speed speed table (information regarding the driving speed of the zoom lens) shown in FIG. 4 to be described later. The external recording unit 210 is a recording medium such as various memory cards. The external recording unit 210 stores image information data that has been subjected to predetermined processing.

  The strobe 211 has an AF auxiliary light projecting function and a strobe dimming function, and is controlled by the exposure control unit 201a and the distance measurement control unit 201b using the TTL method.

  The operation unit 212 is an operation unit for operating the system. The operation unit 212 includes various operation switches and levers of the apparatus main body such as the lever operation unit 212a and the ring operation unit 212b, and a touch panel incorporated in the display member. It consists of. In the present embodiment, the system control unit 201 controls the driving of the zoom lens 204a in accordance with instructions from the lever operation unit 212a and the ring operation unit 212b. With these operation means, the user performs an arbitrary camera operation. As an example other than the above, the start of operations such as AF processing, AE processing, AWB processing, and EF processing is instructed with SW1 of a shutter switch (not shown), and the operation is completed with SW2. The zoom operation is performed within the specified range while the operation lever of the lever operation unit 212a is being pressed, and the operation is terminated when the operation lever is released. The operation of the imaging device 200 when operating the lever operation unit 212a and the ring operation unit 212b will be described in detail later.

  The power control unit 214 includes a power detection circuit, a DC-DC converter, an eddy current detection circuit, a remaining battery level detection circuit, and the like. The power obtained from the power supply unit 213 is set to a desired voltage for each system. Supply power as needed.

  The power supply unit 213 is a power supply unit including a primary battery such as an alkaline battery or a lithium battery, a secondary battery such as a Li battery, an AC adapter, or the like.

  In the first embodiment, control of the driving device that drives the zoom lens will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4. FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a zoom speed switching control method according to this embodiment. FIG. 3 is an overall view of the imaging apparatus 200 in the present embodiment. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a speed table referred to in zoom speed switching control in this embodiment. The following description and flow are executed by the system configuration shown in FIG.

  First, the operation of the imaging apparatus 200 when the lever operation unit 212a and the ring operation unit 212b are operated will be described. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 304 denotes a lens barrel portion corresponding to the lens barrel portion 204. Reference numeral 311 denotes a release button (third instruction member) for instructing execution of a shooting operation. When the release button (third instruction member) is pressed halfway, a shooting preparation operation (focus adjustment operation or the like) is started. Recording of the read image data onto the recording medium is started. Reference numeral 312a denotes a lever operation member corresponding to the lever operation unit 212a. Reference numeral 312b denotes a ring operation member corresponding to the ring operation unit 212b. A rotary operation type lever operation member (zoom lever) 312 a is attached to the outer periphery of the release button 311. A rotation operation type ring operation member 312b is attached to the outer periphery of the barrel portion 204.

  As shown in the lever operation member 312a of FIG. 3, the lever operation unit 212a is configured to be rotatable left and right about a rotation axis that coincides with the central axis of the release button 311. As described above, the lever operation member 312a is provided so as to be movable around the release button 311, and is configured by a lever member that can move clockwise or counterclockwise with reference to a predetermined position (neutral position). When the lever is at the center (neutral position) of the rotation shaft, the internal switch of the lever operation unit 212a is turned off. In this case, the zoom lens 204a does not operate. The internal switch is turned on by tilting the lever to the left or right with respect to the center of the rotation axis. Accordingly, the system control unit 201 can start driving the zoom lens 204a in the optical axis direction (zooming operation). In other words, the lever operation unit 212a functions as a first instruction member that instructs to start driving the zoom lens 204a in the optical axis direction (zoom operation). Since the connection destination of the internal switch is different between the left and right, the system control unit 201 can recognize whether the user has operated the lever to the left or right. The system control unit 201 operates the zoom lens 204a to the tele side or the wide side by the speed control unit 201d, the lens barrel drive control unit 202, and the lens barrel drive unit 203 according to the detected lever operation direction. In other words, when the lever operation unit 212a is operated, the system control unit 201 performs control so that the zoom lens starts driving in the driving direction of the zoom lens 204a corresponding to the operation direction of the lever operation unit 212a. To do. By releasing the lever operation unit 212a that is tilted to the left or right, the lever returns to the center position of the rotation shaft at the initial position. When the lever returns to the center of the rotation shaft, the internal switch is turned off, and the zoom lens 204a in operation stops operating. In this manner, the lever operation unit 212a can instruct the start, stop, and drive direction of the zoom lens according to the lever operation direction and position.

  As shown by the ring operation member 312 b in FIG. 3, the ring operation unit 212 b is configured by a ring member provided concentrically with respect to the optical axis that is the moving direction of the zoom lens, and is disposed around the lens barrel unit 204. The Thus, the ring operation member 312b is rotatably provided on the outer periphery of the lens barrel that houses the zoom lens 204a. The ring has a ring motion detection member such as a light detection sensor and an encoder for detecting the rotation direction and rotation speed of the ring. The user can change the drive speed of the zoom lens 204a by rotating the ring operation member 312b. In other words, the ring operation unit 212b functions as a second instruction member that instructs to change the driving speed of the zoom lens 204a. When the ring operation unit 212b is operated, the system control unit 201 performs control so that the driving speed of the zoom lens 204a is changed according to the operation amount of the ring operation unit 212b. Note that the change of the zoom lens driving speed by the ring operation member 312b is also effective during the driving of the zoom lens by the lever operation member 312a (during the zoom operation). As shown in FIG. 3, the lever operating member 312a (first indicating member) is different from the ring operating member 312b (second indicating member). That is, the ring operation member 312b is provided at a position distant from the lever operation member 312a, and the ring operation member 312b and the lever operation member 312a are configured as separate members. The ring operation by the user is detected by rotating the ring operation unit 212b to generate a pulse signal by the above-described detection member and counting the number of pulses of the generated signal to detect the ring operation amount. Further, the rising / falling edge and frequency of the pulse signal are processed by the system control unit 201 to detect the rotation direction and the rotation speed. The ring operation unit 212b is configured by a mechanism having a click feeling, and one pulse is generated for each click operation. Thus, the ring operation unit 212b of the present embodiment has a mechanism that generates a click feeling for each predetermined operation amount. With the above ring operation detection method, it is possible to grasp the ring operation status by the user.

  FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a lens-integrated digital camera (imaging device). However, the present invention is also applicable to a single-lens reflex digital camera or video camera with interchangeable lenses. Is possible. Here, when the present invention is configured by an imaging system including a lens device and an imaging device body (camera body) to which the lens device can be attached and detached, the lever operation unit 212a is provided in the camera body, and the ring operation unit 212b It is comprised so that it may be provided in a lens apparatus. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, both the lever operation unit 212a and the ring operation unit 212b can be configured to be provided on the camera body. In contrast to this, both members can be provided in the lens device (optical apparatus).

  In the above operation, if the ring operation (speed change) is performed during the lever operation (driving), the speed setting changed during the lever operation after the operation is maintained or the speed before the lever operation is changed. Return to the default speed set in advance.

  By adopting the above configuration, the lever operation is responsible for driving / stopping and driving direction of the zoom operation, and by changing the zoom speed by the ring operation, the speed can be easily changed during the zoom operation, while at the same time holding feeling and intuition Realization of operation.

  Next, zoom drive speed switching control according to this embodiment will be described. The speed control switching in this embodiment is characterized in that the driving speed is selected by detecting the number of rotations (count number), the direction of rotation, and the rotation speed of the ring by the above-described ring operation detection method during zoom driving. Further, the optimum speed setting according to the situation is performed by referring to the position of the zoom lens 204a at the time of the speed changing operation, the shooting mode of the imaging apparatus 200, and the like. For example, if the range in which the drive speed can be changed (changeable range) is changed according to the drive speed of the zoom lens 204a, the optimum speed setting according to the situation can be performed. Details will be described below.

  A zoom drive speed switching method using the ring operation unit 212b will be described. FIG. 4 is a speed table of zoom drive speeds selected by operating the ring operation unit 212b. FIG. 4A is a speed table during still image shooting. FIG. 4B is a speed table at the time of moving image shooting.

  The user selects a desired zoom drive speed by operating the ring operation unit 212b. Examples of selectable zoom drive speeds are shown in FIG. A desired zoom drive speed is selected from the speeds described in the speed table prepared in advance in the recording unit 209 shown in FIG. In this embodiment, the speed table holds a plurality of tables in the recording unit 209 so as to correspond to each situation. The optimal table is appropriately selected from the recording unit 209 by the system control unit 201 depending on the operation state and position of the zoom lens 204a, the shooting mode of the imaging apparatus 200, and the like. Details will be described later.

  In the speed selection, the system control unit 201 detects the ring operation amount from the number of pulses generated by the ring operation unit 212b, thereby selecting a speed desired by the user from the speed table selected / set from the recording unit 209. In other words, the system control unit 201 selects / sets (changes) the driving speed of the zoom lens 204a based on the operation amount of the ring operation unit 212b and the speed table. In a normal ring operation, as described above, one pulse is generated for one click operation, and one count is detected, and the drive speed described in the speed table is sequentially changed from the current set speed in ascending or descending order. . For example, in FIG. 4A, if the current set speed is 1200 of the speed (4), and if the setting is made to reduce the speed when the ring operation unit 212b is moved counterclockwise, one click operation to the left By performing the above, the set speed becomes 1000 of the speed (3). Further, the speed change setting of one step per count can be changed by a prior operation setting. For example, when the operation setting for changing the speed in three steps per count is performed, in the previous example, the set speed is changed from speed (4) to speed (1) by performing a one-click operation to the left. It becomes.

  Furthermore, when the detected ring speed is above a certain level, in other words, when the detected pulse frequency is above a certain level, and when the detected number of counts is above a certain level, an intermediate speed from the current speed to the user's desired speed. Change speed at once without going through. For example, in FIG. 4A, it is assumed that the current set speed is 1200 of speed (4) and the desired change speed is 2000 of speed (8). In that case, when the operating conditions for changing the speed at once are satisfied, the speed (5), (6), (7) between the speeds (4) and (8) is skipped and the speed ( 8) is set. As described above, when the ring operation unit 212b is operated at the first speed, the system control unit 201 changes the lens driving speed by the first change amount, and at the second speed that is faster than the first speed. When operated, the lens driving speed is changed by a second change amount larger than the first change amount. The purpose of this is to reduce the uncomfortable feeling during EVF display and moving image recording by facilitating speed setting in a steep speed change and reducing the discontinuity of the drive speed due to the speed change as much as possible. The threshold value of the detection pulse frequency and the number of counts for changing the speed at once can be arbitrarily set to values that provide the best user experience.

  The speed selected by the user is set as a target speed by the speed control unit 201d, and becomes a target value for speed control in the subsequent zoom operation. By adopting such a configuration, it becomes possible to easily perform multi-stage speed switching that has three or more speeds, which has been difficult with speed switching by a conventional lever.

  In the speed selection, the selectable zoom drive speed is notified to the user through the display unit 207. The user selects a desired speed with respect to the speed displayed on the display unit 207 by the above method. Thus, the display unit 207 can display a range of zoom drive speeds that can be changed (selectable) by the ring operation unit 212b.

  Next, in the zoom drive speed switching method described above, information such as the shooting mode of the imaging apparatus 200 and the position of the zoom lens 204a can be reflected to perform speed switching more appropriately. An example of a speed switching method according to the situation will be described below.

  First, zoom speed setting change switching according to the shooting mode of the imaging apparatus 200 will be described. In general, in a camera capable of setting a multistage speed, the speed is set differently between still image shooting and moving image shooting. This is because the required speed region differs depending on the shooting mode, and the drive speed is usually set in the lower speed region for moving images than for still images. The reason for this is to satisfy the user's desire to quickly bring the angle of view of the subject in the still image, and in the case of moving images while shooting the subject, there is a demand that tracking is difficult if the drive speed is too fast. is there.

  Conventionally, the above-described user demands have been met by providing a unique driving speed for each shooting mode. On the other hand, the present embodiment is characterized in that the switchable zoom speed region is changed by changing the speed table according to the shooting mode (still image, moving image, etc.). A table in which the frequently used speed is set for each shooting mode is prepared, and the reference speed table is switched when the user sets the shooting mode. An example is shown in FIG. In FIG. 4A, for the set speeds (1) to (8), a speed table in which high to medium speed regions that are frequently used in still image shooting are set is prepared. On the other hand, FIG. 4B prepares a speed table capable of finely setting a medium to low speed region that is frequently used during moving image shooting. As described above, the system control unit 201 performs control so as to change the changeable range of the lens driving speed according to the shooting mode of the imaging apparatus 200 (change the reference speed table). Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, when the shooting mode is the moving image shooting mode, the range in which the lens driving speed can be changed is narrower than when the shooting mode is the still image shooting mode. Control. Each speed in the speed table can be pre-determined, but with the most frequently used speed or speed area of the user, the infrequently used speed is automatically set from the usage history to the more likely to be used. May be updated. In this way, by preparing a speed region table suitable for the shooting mode, a speed that is less frequently used is omitted, and the user can set a more detailed speed for a necessary speed region.

  Next, zoom speed setting change switching according to the operating state of the zoom lens 204a will be described. In the zoom speed setting, when the zoom lens 204a is operating, as described above, it is desirable to limit the speed change because the usability deteriorates because it is difficult to match the subject if the change is too steep. In addition, when trying to change from low speed operation to maximum speed operation at once, it is necessary to consider setting an upper limit for the speed change depending on the requirements of the hardware configuration such as the motor followability of the lens barrel drive unit 203.

  Therefore, with regard to the method of changing the current speed from the current speed to the user's desired speed at once, there is a technique for limiting the steep speed change beyond the limit by setting an upper limit for the speed change at a stroke during driving. Conceivable. In other words, the system control unit 201 limits the amount of change in the lens driving speed when the ring operation unit 212b is operated at a speed greater than a predetermined value during driving of the zoom lens. Specifically, for example, in FIG. 4B, when the current speed setting is 400 (speed 4), it is desired to limit the steep speed change at the time of video. Even in the case of performing, it is possible to skip up to two and to change only up to speed (6). Further speed change is set by operating the ring operation unit 212b again after changing to speed (6). Furthermore, by changing the pulse frequency and the threshold value of the number of counts necessary to change from the current speed to the user's desired speed at once, the speed cannot be changed at once without increasing the user operation amount. It is also possible.

  Next, the change of the speed switching area depending on the position of the zoom lens 204a will be described. In the zoom speed setting change switching according to the shooting mode of the imaging device 200 described above, the high to medium speed region is preferable for still image shooting, and the medium to low speed region is preferable for moving image shooting, but there are exceptions depending on the lens barrel configuration and usage. is there. For example, in the case of a still image, in a high-magnification lens barrel with an optical magnification of nearly 50 times, when the object is to be kept at the angle of view on the telephoto side, if the drive speed is high, the angle of view changes greatly with a small amount of operation. Is bad. In addition, depending on the position of the zoom lens 204a, there is a situation where a steep speed change is not appropriate. For example, when switching from a low speed to a high speed operation while driving to the lens end side at a position close to the lens end, it reaches the end during the speed change from low speed to high speed, and sudden stop occurs during control overshoot It is possible to do. In such a case, adverse effects due to an increased load on the lens barrel, motor, and power supply are expected.

  From the above, in this case, the user's feeling of use is improved by changing the speed region switching more appropriately in consideration of the position of the zoom lens 204a, and an inadvertent speed change is prevented in advance. Specifically, in the speed switching by the user operation while the zoom lens 204a is being driven, a speed switching restriction area is provided in advance in association with the position of the zoom lens 204a. When a speed switching instruction is issued by a user operation, the system control unit 201 refers to the current position of the zoom lens 204a and determines whether the current position falls within the speed switching restriction area. In the case of the speed switching restriction region, the switching prohibition process to a speed above a certain level is performed using the method and speed table shown in the zoom speed setting change switching according to the operation state of the zoom lens 204a described above. In other words, the system control unit 201 changes the changeable range of the lens driving speed according to the position of the zoom lens 204a. Specifically, when the position of the zoom lens 204a is in at least one of the end region and the tele-side region in the movable range of the zoom lens, the changeable range is changed.

  The zoom speed switching control method according to the present embodiment has been described above. However, in addition to the method using the speed table, the proposed method can be used as long as a plurality of speed switching can be performed for the ring operation. Can do.

  The flow of the zoom speed switching control method according to the present proposal will be described with reference to FIG. In detail, an example of zoom speed switching control that is expected to be most effective in this project is described. In addition, the following Example is only an example in this case, and in the range to which this structure and method are applied, it is not necessary to follow the following flow. Moreover, the above-mentioned description content is applied also at the time of the following flow unless there is particular notice. FIG. 1 shows an overall flow in the first embodiment.

  First, the system control unit 201 starts ring encoder detection in order to detect the operation amount of the ring operation unit 212b (S101).

  After starting ring encoder detection in S101, the system control unit 201 detects the shooting mode (S102). Examples of the shooting mode include still image shooting, moving image shooting, and still image shooting, and a shooting mode (hereinafter referred to as movie auto shooting) in which a few seconds of moving images are recorded together.

  After detecting the shooting mode in S102, the system control unit 201 sets a speed table determined by the detected shooting mode, and sets a speed region in which the zoom speed can be switched (S103).

  After the system control unit 201 performs zoom speed region switching in S103, the system control unit 201 determines whether an operation has been performed by the ring operation unit 212b from the detected ring encoder signal (S104). When it is determined in S104 that the user has performed the ring operation, the system control unit 201 detects the operation amount of the ring operation unit 212b by the user (S105). If it is determined in S104 that the user has not performed the ring operation, the system control unit 201 next determines whether the user has operated the lever operation unit 212a (S107).

  After detecting the ring operation amount in S105, the system control unit 201 changes the speed from the current speed setting value to the zoom speed based on the detection result (S106). The set speed is set from the speed area described in the speed table selected in S103.

  After changing the zoom speed setting in S106, the system control unit 201 proceeds to S107. If it is determined in S107 that the user has operated the lever operation unit 212a, the system control unit 201 detects the moving direction of the zoom lens 204a from the signal from the lever operation unit 212a (S108). If it is determined in S107 that the user has not operated the lever operation unit 212a, the process returns to S104.

  After detecting the moving direction of the zoom lens 204a in S108, the system control unit 201 starts zoom encoder detection (S109). Due to the start of the zoom encoder detection in S109, the lens barrel drive control unit 202 starts zoom speed measurement from the detected zoom encoder signal (S110).

  After starting the zoom speed measurement in S110, the lens barrel drive control unit 202 transmits a drive signal to the lens barrel drive unit 203 to start the operation of the zoom lens 204a (S111).

  After the zoom lens 204a starts to be driven by the lens barrel drive unit 203 in S111, the system control unit 201 makes a ring operation detection determination as in S104 (S112).

  When it is determined in S112 that the user has performed the ring operation, the system control unit 201 detects the operation amount of the ring operation unit 212b by the user (S113). If it is determined in S112 that the user has not performed the ring operation, the system control unit 201 next determines whether the user has operated the lever operation unit 212a (S118).

  After detecting the ring operation amount in S113, the system control unit 201 calculates and acquires the current position of the zoom lens 204a from the detected detection result of the zoom encoder (S114).

  After acquiring the current position of the zoom lens 204a in S114, the system control unit 201 determines whether to update the zoom speed area (S115). If it is determined in S115 that the speed area needs to be updated, the system control unit 201 updates the zoom speed area (S116).

  If it is determined in S115 that the speed area update is not necessary, the zoom speed is changed according to the current speed area setting (S117).

  After updating the zoom speed area in S116, S117 is performed by setting the updated speed area.

  After changing the zoom speed in S117, the system control unit 201 determines whether or not the user has finished operating the lever operation unit 212a in the same manner as in S107 (S118). In S118, when it is determined that the user has finished the operation of the lever operation unit 212a, the system control unit 201 determines whether the speed initialization setting is performed (S119).

  If the speed initialization is set in S119, the system control unit 201 sets the predetermined initial zoom speed (S120). After resetting to the initial zoom speed in S120, the zoom operation is terminated. If the speed initialization is not set in S119, the final zoom speed is set and the zoom operation is terminated. In other words, after the instruction by the lever operation unit 212a is finished, the lens drive speed (final zoom speed) set while the instruction by the lever operation unit 212a is being performed is controlled. Alternatively, control is performed so as to return to the lens driving speed (initial zoom speed) set before the instruction from the lens operation unit 212a is started.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the zoom operation is driven / stopped and the driving direction is operated by a lever, and the speed change is performed by a ring operation. A zoom operation at a constant speed can be easily performed. In addition, by reflecting the shooting mode, the zoom lens position, and the operation state in the speed region setting, it is possible to perform speed switching more appropriately.

  As a result, the present invention can perform multi-stage speed switching without changing hands during zoom operation, and can easily perform constant speed operation after speed switching. That is, it is possible to easily set an optimum zoom speed according to the situation.

  As mentioned above, although preferable embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to these embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and change are possible within the range of the summary.

  For example, the present invention can 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 or the like) of the system or apparatus reads and executes the program code. It is processing. In this case, the program (that is, a program that can be executed by a computer in which each step in each embodiment is described) and a storage medium that stores the program constitute the present invention.

  The present invention can be suitably used for an imaging apparatus such as a compact digital camera, a single-lens reflex camera, and a video camera.

201 System control unit 212a Lever operation unit 212b Ring operation unit

Claims (18)

Driving means for driving the zoom lens;
A first indicating member for instructing start of driving of the zoom lens;
A second indicating member for instructing a change in the driving speed of the zoom lens;
Control means for controlling the driving of the zoom lens in accordance with instructions from the first instruction member and the second instruction member;
The first indicating member is different from the second indicating member,
The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the change of the driving speed by the second indicating member is effective during the driving of the zoom lens.   The control means controls the zoom lens to start driving in the driving direction of the zoom lens according to the operation direction of the first indicating member when the first indicating member is operated. 2. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the second instruction member is operated, the driving speed is controlled to be changed according to an operation amount of the second instruction member. The optical apparatus is an image pickup apparatus including an image pickup element that receives light through the zoom lens,
The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit changes a changeable range of the driving speed according to a shooting mode of the imaging apparatus.   The optical system according to claim 3, wherein the control unit narrows the changeable range when the shooting mode is a moving image shooting mode than when the shooting mode is a still image shooting mode. machine.   5. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit that displays a changeable range of the driving speed. 6.   The control means changes the driving speed by a first change amount when the second indicating member is operated at a first speed, and the second indicating member is faster than the first speed. 6. The optical device according to claim 1, wherein, when operated at a second speed, the driving speed is changed by a second change amount that is larger than the first change amount. 7. machine.   The optical device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit changes a changeable range of the drive speed in accordance with a drive speed of the zoom lens.   The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit limits a change amount of the driving speed during driving of the zoom lens.   9. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit changes a changeable range of the driving speed according to a position of the zoom lens.   The control means changes the changeable range when the position of the zoom lens is in at least one of an end region and a tele-side region of the movable range of the zoom lens. The optical apparatus according to claim 9. Storage means for storing information relating to the driving speed of the zoom lens;
11. The control unit according to claim 1, wherein the control unit changes the driving speed of the zoom lens based on an operation amount of the second indicating member and information on the driving speed. The optical device according to Item.   The control means maintains the driving speed set while the instruction by the first instruction member is performed after the instruction by the first instruction member is completed, or the instruction by the first instruction member 12. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the driving speed is returned to the driving speed set before the operation is started. The optical apparatus is an image pickup apparatus including an image pickup element that receives light through the zoom lens,
The first instruction member is provided around a third instruction member that instructs execution of a photographing operation,
13. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second instruction member is provided on an outer periphery of a lens barrel that houses the zoom lens. The optical apparatus is an image pickup apparatus including an image pickup element that receives light through the zoom lens,
The first instruction member is configured to be movable around a third instruction member that instructs execution of a photographing operation, and is configured by a lever member that is movable clockwise or counterclockwise with reference to a predetermined position. ,
The second indicating member is formed of a ring member that is provided concentrically with an optical axis that is a moving direction of the zoom lens, and that is rotatably provided on an outer periphery of a lens barrel that houses the zoom lens. The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the optical apparatus is an optical apparatus.   The optical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first instruction member instructs start, stop, and drive direction of the zoom lens. Instructing the start of driving of the zoom lens by a first indicating member;
Instructing to change the driving speed of the zoom lens by a second indicating member different from the first indicating member;
Controlling the driving of the zoom lens in response to instructions from the first and second indicating members,
The change of the driving speed by the second indicating member is effective during the driving of the zoom lens.
A method for controlling an optical apparatus.   A computer-executable program in which the steps of the control method according to claim 16 are described.   A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute the steps of the control method according to claim 16.