JP2017204718A - Imaging apparatus and zoom control method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To select optical zoom or electronic zoom, in accordance with a position of touch operation.SOLUTION: An imaging apparatus 100 captures an image through an imaging lens 101 that executes optical zoom operation. The imaging apparatus includes: touch display means 106, 107 displaying a video generated by imaging and sensing a touch on or proximity to a screen; processing means 108 which executes electronic zoom processing for enlarging a part of the video to be displayed on the touch display means; and control means 103, 105 which executes zoom control by specifying an in-screen area, on the basis of two positions in the screen on the touch display means where touch or proximity has been sensed. The control means causes the imaging lens to execute optical zoom operation when the center of the screen is included in the in-screen area, or causes the processing means to execute electronic zoom processing on the partial video of the video, included in the in-screen area, when the center of the screen is not included in the in-screen area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus, and more particularly to an imaging apparatus capable of optical zoom and electronic zoom.

  In an imaging device such as a digital camera, a smartphone, or a tablet personal computer, a partial video image in which the operation is performed by touching (pinch out) a screen on which a user is capturing an image with two fingers. Some devices perform electronic zoom that enlarges and displays the (subject). However, since the enlarged display using the electronic zoom deteriorates the image quality, it is desirable to perform the enlarged display using the optical zoom as much as possible. In Patent Document 1, electronic zoom is first performed up to a predetermined zoom magnification with respect to a pinch-out operation, and then the electronic zoom magnification is decreased while increasing the zoom magnification of the optical zoom. An imaging apparatus that can obtain the above is disclosed.

JP 2011-205345 A

  However, in the imaging apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, image quality degradation due to electronic zooming first up to a predetermined zoom magnification becomes a problem in response to a pinch-out operation. In addition, if the optical zoom is always performed for the pinch-out operation, when the pinch-out operation is performed at the periphery of the screen, the subject in the periphery may disappear from the screen (displace outside the screen). is there.

  The present invention provides an imaging apparatus and a zoom control method therefor, in which an optical zoom and an electronic zoom are selected according to the place of a touch operation.

  An imaging apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention performs imaging through an imaging lens capable of optical zoom operation. The imaging apparatus displays a video generated by imaging, touch display means capable of sensing contact or proximity to the screen, and processing means for performing electronic zoom processing for enlarging and displaying a part of the video on the touch display means And control means for performing zoom control by specifying an in-screen area based on two positions where contact or proximity is detected on the screen of the touch display means. The control means causes the imaging lens to perform an optical zoom operation when the center of the screen is included in the in-screen area. When the center of the screen is not included in the in-screen area, the control means An electronic zoom process is performed on the included partial video.

  A zoom control method according to another aspect of the present invention is an imaging device that performs imaging through an imaging lens that can perform an optical zoom operation, and displays an image generated by imaging and controls contact or proximity to a screen. The present invention is applied to an imaging apparatus having a touch display means that can be sensed and a processing means that performs electronic zoom processing for enlarging and displaying a part of an image on the touch display means. The zoom control method specifies an in-screen area based on two positions where touch or proximity is sensed on the screen of the touch display means, and when the center of the screen is included in the in-screen area, the image pickup lens is optically zoomed. When the operation is performed and the center of the screen is not included in the in-screen area, the processing means is made to perform an electronic zoom process on a partial image included in the in-screen area of the image.

  According to the present invention, when a touch operation (contact or proximity) is performed in the vicinity of the center of the screen, it is possible to perform an enlarged display in which image quality deterioration due to the optical zoom operation is suppressed. On the other hand, when a touch operation is performed outside the vicinity of the center of the screen, the user-desired partial video by electronic zoom can be enlarged and displayed without being erased from the screen.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an imaging apparatus that is an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a user touch operation in the imaging apparatus according to the embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating zoom control processing in the imaging apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating two touch points when the electronic zoom is selected in the first embodiment, an in-screen area based on the touch point, and an electronic zoom enlargement area. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating two touch points when the optical zoom is selected in the first embodiment, an in-screen area based on the touch, and an electronic zoom enlargement area.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a configuration of an imaging apparatus 100 that is an embodiment of the present invention. The imaging device 100 includes various devices having an imaging function, such as a digital camera, a video camera, a smartphone, and a tablet personal computer.

  In FIG. 1, a zoom lens 101 is an imaging lens having an imaging optical system therein and capable of changing a focal length by moving a zooming lens by driving a zoom motor (not shown), that is, an optical zoom operation. is there. The zoom lens 101 may be provided integrally with the imaging apparatus 100, or may be replaceable with respect to the imaging apparatus 100. The zoom magnification of the zoom lens (imaging optical system) 101 is referred to as an optical zoom magnification in the following description.

  The image sensor 102 is a photoelectric conversion element (imaging element) that photoelectrically converts (captures) a subject image formed by the imaging optical system in the zoom lens 101 and outputs an imaging signal as an electrical signal.

  An image processing unit (processing unit) 108 generates a video signal by performing various types of image processing on the imaging signal output from the image sensor 102. An LCD (Liquid Crystal Display Device) 107 as a display element displays an image corresponding to an image signal. The video referred to here includes a live view video. The live view video is a video displayed on the LCD 107 simultaneously with imaging by the image sensor 102 (so-called in real time) so that the user can confirm the subject and composition before or during imaging for acquiring a recording image. It is an image of. The video signal is held in the memory 104 as video data. Furthermore, the image processing unit 108 also performs electronic zoom processing that cuts out a part (partial video) of the live view video and displays the enlarged video on the LCD 107.

  A UI (user interface) 106 receives various instructions from the user and notifies the main control unit 105 described later. The UI 106 includes a switch and a dial. In this embodiment, the UI 106 includes a touch panel that enables input by a touch operation superimposed on the display surface of the LCD 107. The LCD 107 and the touch panel constitute touch display means, and the touch panel corresponds to the screen of the touch display means.

  Note that there are two types of touch panels, one that senses only the touch of a finger or the like, and the other that can sense proximity that is not touch, and any type of touch panel in this embodiment can be used. In the following description, for convenience, contact and proximity are collectively referred to as touch.

  The zoom control unit 103 controls the optical zoom operation of the zoom lens 101 in accordance with an instruction from the main control unit 105.

  The main control unit 105 controls the entire operation of the imaging apparatus 100 in accordance with an input from the UI 106. The main control unit 105 includes a microcomputer and controls the operation of the imaging apparatus 100 according to an imaging control program as a computer program stored in the memory 104. In addition, the main control unit 105 performs zoom control in accordance with a zoom instruction from the user input through the UI (touch panel) 106. That is, the main control unit 105 controls the optical zoom operation or the image processing unit via the zoom control unit 103 so as to obtain an optical zoom magnification according to a zoom instruction or an enlargement magnification (electronic zoom magnification) by electronic zoom processing. 108 causes the electronic zoom processing to be performed. The main control unit 105 and the zoom control unit 103 constitute control means.

  The bus 111 is used for transmitting and receiving data, commands, and the like among the main control unit 105, zoom control unit 103, image sensor 102, image processing unit 108, UI 106, LCD 107, and memory 104.

  The touch operation on the touch panel (screen) when the user issues a zoom instruction will be described with reference to FIG. A user who gives a zoom instruction simultaneously touches two places (hereinafter referred to as two points) on the touch panel with two fingers. Then, the finger slides on the touch panel in the direction in which they are separated. This operation is called a pinch out operation. Note that the term “simultaneous” here includes not only the completely same case but also a case where another point is touched within a very short predetermined time after touching one point.

  In this embodiment, zoom control is performed as described later based on the positions (coordinates) of two points at the time of the first touch of the two fingers on the touch panel when a pinch-out operation is performed. However, zoom control may be performed based on the positions of the last two points when the pinch-out operation is performed. Also, zoom control is performed based on the positions of the two points when the distance between the two points is the longest in the pinch-out operation. Furthermore, the zoom control is not limited to whether or not a pinch-out operation has been performed thereafter, and may be performed based on the positions of the two points at the time of simple simultaneous touching on the two points.

  In this embodiment, assuming that the two points touched on the touch panel by the user in FIG. 2 are point A and point B, the user has a rectangular area having points A and B as diagonal vertices as indicated by solid line frames in the figure. It is assumed that the object in the region within the screen is desired to be enlarged and observed.

  Next, zoom control processing performed by the main control unit 105 and the zoom control unit 103 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The main control unit 105 and the zoom control unit 103 perform the zoom control process according to a zoom control program that is a part of the above-described imaging control program.

  When the main control unit 105 senses (detects) a touch on the touch panel via the UI 106, the main control unit 105 starts this processing, and determines whether or not there are two touch points in step S301. If the touch location is not two points, the main control unit 105 ends this process. That is, zoom control is not performed when the detected touch locations are not two points. On the other hand, if there are two touch locations, the main control unit 105 proceeds to step S302, and calculates the coordinates of the four vertices of the rectangular in-screen region with the detected two points as diagonal vertices. That is, an in-screen area based on the two detected points is specified.

  4 and 5 show a state at the first time point when the user touches two points on the touch panel at the same time. Point A and point B are the two points touched by the user. The in-screen area identified by calculating the coordinates of the four vertices in step S302 by the main control unit 105 is indicated by a solid line frame.

  Next, in step S303, the main control unit 105 determines whether or not the two touch points are moved away from each other, that is, whether or not a pinch-out operation has been performed. When it is determined that the pinch-out operation has not been performed, the main control unit 105 repeats the determination of this step. If it is determined that a pinch-out operation has been performed, the main control unit 105 proceeds to step S304.

  In step S304, the main control unit 105 determines whether or not the screen center of the LCD 107 (hereinafter referred to as the screen center) is included in the in-screen area specified by the coordinates of the four vertices calculated in step S302. . The screen center corresponds to the intersection of two diagonal lines on a rectangular screen. When the screen center is not in the in-screen area (out of the in-screen area), the main control unit 105 proceeds to step S307. On the other hand, when the screen center is within the in-screen area, the main control unit 105 proceeds to step S305.

  FIG. 4 shows a state in which the screen center C is outside the in-screen region, and FIG. 5 shows a state in which the screen center C is in the in-screen region.

  In step S307, the main control unit 105 inscribes four vertexes of a rectangular area (hereinafter referred to as an electronic zoom enlargement area) in which at least one side (or two sides) of the in-screen area has the same aspect ratio as the LCD 107 screen. Calculate the coordinates. In FIG. 4, a rectangular area indicated by a broken line is an enlarged display area in which one side of the in-screen area is inscribed.

  In step S308, the main control unit 105 causes the image processing unit 108 to cut out a partial video in the electronic zoom enlargement region having the four vertices whose coordinates are calculated in step S306 from the currently displayed live view video. Is enlarged and displayed on the LCD 107. At this time, the electronic zoom process is performed so that the partial video included in the electronic zoom enlargement area of the live view video is displayed on the entire screen. Thereby, the enlarged display by the electronic zoom process of the partial image near the two points touched on the touch panel by the user (that is, the user desires the enlarged display by the electronic zoom) is performed.

  Thus, when the screen center is not included in the screen area, the main control unit 105 sets the electronic zoom enlargement area including the screen area. Then, the image processing unit 108 is caused to perform electronic zoom processing so that a partial video included in the electronic zoom enlarged region of the live view video is displayed on the entire screen.

  On the other hand, in step S305, the main control unit 105 determines the coordinates of the four vertices of a rectangular area (hereinafter referred to as an optical zoom enlargement area) in which at least one side of the area in the screen is inscribed and has the same aspect ratio as the screen of the LCD 107. calculate. Here, the optical zoom magnification region is a region whose center coincides with the screen center. A rectangular area indicated by a broken line in FIG. 5 indicates an optical zoom enlargement area, and the center of the optical zoom enlargement area coincides with the screen center C.

  In step S306, the main control unit 105 calculates a zoom magnification (hereinafter referred to as an optical zoom magnification) of the imaging optical system for displaying the optical zoom enlargement area on the entire screen of the LCD 107, and includes the optical zoom magnification. A zoom command is sent to the zoom control unit 103. The zoom control unit 103 drives the zoom motor of the zoom lens 101 so that the optical zoom magnification of the zoom lens 101 becomes the optical zoom magnification included in the zoom command in accordance with the zoom command. Thereby, the enlarged display by the optical zoom operation of the partial image near the two points touched on the touch panel by the user (that is, the user desires the enlarged display by the optical zoom) is performed. When the calculated zoom optical zoom magnification exceeds the upper limit value of the optical zoom magnification of the zoom lens 101, the zoom control unit 103 drives the zoom motor so that the optical zoom magnification of the zoom lens 101 becomes the upper limit value. .

  As described above, when the screen center is included in the in-screen area, the main control unit 105 sets the optical zoom enlargement area with the screen center as the area center. Then, the zoom lens 101 is caused to perform an optical zoom operation so that a partial video included in the optical zoom magnification region of the live view video is displayed on the entire screen.

According to this embodiment, when a touch operation is performed in the vicinity of the center of the screen, it is possible to perform an enlarged display while suppressing image quality deterioration due to the optical zoom operation. In addition, when a touch operation is performed outside the center of the screen, the user-desired partial video by electronic zoom can be enlarged and displayed without being erased from the screen.
(Other examples)
The present invention supplies a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or apparatus read and execute the program This process can be realized. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

  Each embodiment described above is only a representative example, and various modifications and changes can be made to each embodiment in carrying out the present invention.

100 Imaging Device 101 Zoom Lens 103 Zoom Control Unit 106 UI
105 Main control unit 107 LCD

Claims (8)

An imaging apparatus that performs imaging through an imaging lens capable of optical zoom operation,
Touch display means capable of displaying video generated by imaging and sensing contact or proximity to the screen;
Processing means for performing electronic zoom processing for enlarging and displaying a part of the video on the touch display means;
Control means for performing zoom control by specifying a region in the screen based on two positions where the contact or proximity is detected in the screen,
The control unit causes the imaging lens to perform the optical zoom operation when the screen inner area includes the center of the screen, and causes the processing unit to perform the optical zoom operation when the screen inner area does not include the screen center. An image pickup apparatus that causes the electronic zoom processing to be performed on a partial image included in the in-screen area of the image.   The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit specifies a rectangular area having the two positions as diagonal vertices as the in-screen area.   When the center of the screen is included in the in-screen area, the control means sets an optical zoom enlargement area whose center coincides with the center of the screen, and a portion included in the optical zoom enlargement area of the video The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the optical zoom operation is performed by the imaging lens so that an image is displayed on the entire screen.   The control means sets an electronic zoom enlargement region including the screen internal region when the screen internal region does not include the center of the screen, and a partial video included in the electronic zoom enlargement region of the video is 4. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing unit is configured to perform the electronic zoom process so that the image is displayed on the entire screen. 5.   5. The optical zoom enlargement area and the electronic zoom enlargement area are areas in which at least one side of the in-screen area is inscribed and has the same aspect ratio as the screen. The imaging device according to item.   5. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit specifies the in-screen region in response to simultaneous sensing of the contact or proximity to the two locations. 6. The control means includes
The location of the two locations at the time of sensing the contact or proximity to the two locations;
Based on either the first or last two positions when a pinch-out operation is performed after sensing the contact or proximity, and the two positions farthest apart in the pinch-out operation The imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein an in-screen region is specified. An imaging device that performs imaging through an imaging lens capable of optical zoom operation, displays a video generated by imaging, and can detect touch or proximity to a screen, and touch a part of the video. A zoom control method for an image pickup apparatus having processing means for performing electronic zoom processing for enlarging display on a display means,
Identify the area in the screen based on the two positions of the screen where the contact or proximity is detected,
When the screen area includes the center of the screen, the imaging lens performs the optical zoom operation,
A zoom control method comprising causing the processing means to perform the electronic zoom processing on a partial video included in the screen area of the video when the screen center is not included in the screen area.