JP2019186589A - Vehicle image photographing system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a vehicle image photographing system capable of photographing a vehicle image of a whole circumference of a vehicle even in a simple structure.SOLUTION: In a photographing system 10, camera walls 20a to 20d are provided within a prescribed distance from four corners of a vehicle 8 so as to circumference the vehicle 8 stopped at a prescribed position 7 in a photographing studio 2. In each of the camera walls 20a to 20d, three cameras 30 or the like which can photograph a vehicle image of the vehicle 8 as a moving image during a prescribed period are arranged in parallel to a peripheral direction of the vehicle 8. In the three cameras 30a or the like, at least one of cameras 30c, 30d, 30i, and 30j has a wide-angle zoom lens, and photographs the moving image via them. Moving image data of twelve in total, which are output from the three cameras 30a or the like in the camera walls 20a to 20d, are fetched by a computer, and at least one static image data is cut out from the twelve moving image data, and the vehicle image of the whole periphery of the vehicle 8 is generated.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle image capturing system that captures vehicle body images around the entire circumference of a vehicle.

  As a technique related to taking a vehicle body image of a vehicle, for example, there is a “used car auction system” disclosed in Patent Document 1 below. In this technique, a moving image and a still image are taken one by one for a used car that is the subject of an auction prior to the auction. For example, for a still image, a vehicle stopped at a still image shooting location is shot from four directions with four cameras. These four directions are the left and right diagonal fronts and the left and right diagonal rears of the vehicle as disclosed in FIG. Thereby, the auction participant can visually check the state of the target vehicle in the preview information display image based on the still image video viewed from the left and right diagonally front and rear of the vehicle.

JP 2003-162653 A

  However, according to the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, the still image of the vehicle is limited to that seen from the left and right diagonally forward and rear. For this reason, even if it is possible to shoot images that are easy to see in the vicinity of the camera, that is, the left and right corners of the front and rear of the vehicle, the portion that is far from the camera, that is, near the center in the vehicle front-rear direction (near the center pillar) It is difficult to take images that are easy to see for the grill and the tail). Therefore, for example, there is a problem that even if an auction participant tries to visually confirm information that is difficult to describe in the vehicle state diagram (for example, fine scratches, slight dents, etc.), it can be performed only partially. . The state diagram displays the front, rear, left and right of the vehicle roof as shown in a developed view, and represents the position and size of the scratches and dents.

  Such a problem can be solved if, for example, a moving image or still image can be taken while a vehicle to be photographed is placed on a turntable and rotated, but a turntable can be installed at a photographing location. It is necessary to secure the space. Therefore, even if it is possible to open a new studio, it is not very realistic in the case of an existing studio that has no space in the width direction of the vehicle.

  In addition, there is a configuration in which a large number of cameras can be arranged around a place where the vehicle to be imaged stops to take a moving image or a still image. However, when cameras are arranged before and after the vehicle, these cameras are used. Becomes an obstacle to getting in and out of the vehicle. For this reason, the camera for photographing the front and rear of the vehicle needs to adopt a mechanical configuration that can be hung from above or lifted from below so as not to obstruct the entry and exit of the vehicle. Lead to a new problem.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle image capturing system that can capture a vehicle body image of the entire circumference of a vehicle even with a simple configuration.

  In order to achieve the above object, the technical means of claim 1 described in claims is adopted. According to this means, at least four camera support structures are provided within a predetermined distance from the four corners of the vehicle so as to surround the vehicle stopped at a predetermined position in the photographing studio. Further, in each of these four camera support structures, N (plural) cameras capable of capturing a vehicle body image as a moving image during a predetermined period are provided side by side in the vehicle peripheral direction. Of these N cameras, at least one of them has a wide-angle zoom lens and takes a moving image through the wide-angle zoom lens. The total (4 × N) moving image data output from the N cameras of the four camera support structures is acquired by the image processing apparatus and at least one of each of the (4 × N) moving image data is obtained. The still image data is cut out and a vehicle body image of the entire circumference of the vehicle is generated. The “predetermined position in the shooting studio” means a certain range and is a concept including the predetermined range. Therefore, “the four corners of the vehicle” can be restated as “four corners of a predetermined range”.

  Accordingly, among the N cameras provided in the camera support structure, for example, when the camera disposed at one end near the center in the front-rear direction of the vehicle has the wide-angle zoom lens, the front-rear direction of the vehicle It is possible to take an easy-to-see image about the center (near the center pillar). In addition, when the camera placed at the other end near the front or rear of the vehicle has a wide-angle zoom lens, it is possible to take an easy-to-read image near the center of the vehicle in the left-right direction (near the center of the front grille and tail). become. That is, it is possible to take an easy-to-view image even in the vicinity of the vehicle front-rear direction approximately in the center and the vehicle left-right direction approximately in the center which is difficult to see from the four corners of the vehicle. Even in an existing studio where there is not enough space in the width direction of the vehicle, even if the distance between the subject vehicle and the camera is close by widening the lens of the camera provided in the camera support structure Thus, it is possible to take a wide range of body images of the vehicle.

  Further, the technical means of claim 2 described in claims is adopted. According to this means, the camera support structure has a plate wall structure larger than a size capable of covering and concealing an upright worker. Thereby, for example, a driver who has driven the vehicle to a predetermined position, a worker who has photographed the interior of the vehicle, etc. can be hidden behind a camera support structure having a plate wall structure when photographing a vehicle body image. become.

  Further, the technical means of claim 3 described in claims is adopted. According to this means, for each of the N cameras, the camera support structure includes a pedestal for fixing the camera, a left and right movable mechanism for moving the pedestal so that the shooting direction of the camera can be changed to the left and right, and a left and right movable An electric pan motor that can drive the mechanism, a vertically movable mechanism that moves the pedestal so that the shooting direction of the camera can be changed in the vertical direction, an electric tilt motor that can drive the vertically movable mechanism, and an electric command according to a control command input from the outside A pan / tilt control unit for driving and controlling the pan motor and the electric tilt motor. This makes it possible to remotely control the shooting direction of each of the N cameras provided in each of the four camera support structures. For example, a monitor or personal computer ( The photographing direction can be adjusted by remote control while visually confirming the photographed image on a personal computer).

  Further, the technical means of claim 4 described in claims is adopted. According to this means, in the case where a position-based subject is placed at a spatial position that should be the center of the shooting range when the camera takes a picture of a vehicle parked at a predetermined position, the image processing apparatus is provided with each of the N cameras. The image of the subject is recognized based on the moving image data of the subject photographed by the camera or the still image data cut out from the moving image data, and the center position in the image and the position of the subject in the image range of the moving image data or the still image data are A control command for moving the pedestal to which the camera is fixed in the horizontal direction or the vertical direction is output to the pan / tilt control unit so as to be substantially the same. Accordingly, it is possible to automatically adjust pan (left / right direction) and tilt (up / down direction) in each shooting direction for the N cameras provided in each of the four camera support structures.

  Further, the technical means of claim 5 described in claims is adopted. According to this means, the lenses of the N cameras are zoom lenses, an electric zoom mechanism that can zoom in and out, and a zoom control unit that drives and controls the electric zoom mechanism according to a control command input from the outside. , For each of the lenses of the N cameras, the image processing apparatus recognizes the subject based on the moving image data of the subject captured by the camera or the still image data cut out from the moving image data. At the same time, zoom control is performed on a control command for driving the electric zoom mechanism of the lens so that the predetermined reference size of the subject and the image size of the subject are substantially the same in the image range of the moving image data or the still image data. Output to the unit. This makes it possible to automatically adjust zoom-in (enlargement) and zoom-out (reduction) by the lens in the N cameras provided in the four camera support structures.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to take an easy-to-view image even in the vicinity of the center in the vehicle front-rear direction and the vicinity of the center in the vehicle left-right direction, which are difficult to see from the four corners of the vehicle. Even in an existing studio where there is not enough space in the width direction of the vehicle, even if the distance between the subject vehicle and the camera is close by widening the lens of the camera provided in the camera support structure Thus, it is possible to take a wide range of body images of the vehicle. Accordingly, at least one still image data is cut out from each of the total (4 × N) moving image data output from the N cameras provided in each of the four camera support structures, and is extracted around the vehicle. By arranging in the direction order, a vehicle body image of the entire circumference of the vehicle can be obtained. In other words, a vehicle body image of the entire circumference of the vehicle can be obtained by N cameras provided on each of the four camera support structures, and a simple configuration can be provided without providing a camera on the entire circumference of the turntable or the vehicle. You can shoot.

  In the invention of claim 2, for example, a driver who has driven the vehicle to a predetermined position, a worker who has photographed the interior of the vehicle, and the like are behind a camera support structure having a plate wall structure when photographing a vehicle body image. It becomes possible to hide. Therefore, it is possible to prevent workers and the like from appearing in the background of the vehicle body image.

  In the invention of claim 3, since it becomes possible to remotely control the shooting direction of each of the N cameras provided in each of the four camera support structures, for example, a monitor connected to these cameras. It is possible to adjust the shooting direction by remote control while visually checking the shot image with a computer. Therefore, work efficiency can be improved in camera installation and adjustment work.

  In the invention of claim 4, panning (left-right direction) and tilt (up-down direction) in each photographing direction can be automatically adjusted for N cameras provided in each of the four camera support structures. It becomes possible. Therefore, work efficiency can be significantly improved in camera installation and adjustment work.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to automatically adjust zoom-in (enlargement) and zoom-out (reduction) by the respective lenses for the N cameras provided in the four camera support structures. Therefore, work efficiency can be significantly improved in camera installation and adjustment work.

It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example at the time of applying the vehicle image imaging system which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention to the imaging | photography studio for vehicle auctions. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the camera wall which comprises the vehicle image capturing system of this embodiment. FIG. 2A is a front view, and FIG. 2B is a plan view. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view taken along line III shown in FIG. FIG. 4A is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of a camera case, a camera, and a pan head provided on the camera wall. FIG. 4B is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example and a movable example of the camera platform attached to the camera platform. FIG. 4C is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example and a movable example of the camera and the pan head when viewed from above the camera. It is a block diagram which shows the electrical structural example of the vehicle image imaging system of this embodiment. It is a flowchart showing the flow of the vehicle image photographing process performed by the computer shown in FIG. It is an example of the screen displayed on the display screen of a computer in the vehicle image photographing process shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the modification of this embodiment, and is equivalent to FIG. FIG. 8A is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of a camera case, a camera, and a pan / tilt head provided on the camera wall. FIG. 8B is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example and a movable example of an electric pan head and a camera attached to the electric pan head. FIG. 8C is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example and a movable example of the camera and the electric pan head when viewed from above the camera. It is a block diagram which shows the electrical structural example of the vehicle imaging | photography system which concerns on the modification of this embodiment. FIG. 10A is an explanatory diagram showing the positional relationship and the like of the reference subject used for adjusting the shooting direction of the camera when an electric camera platform is mounted on each camera wall. FIG. 10B is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of the reference subject. 10 is a flowchart showing a flow of automatic adjustment processing such as camera direction executed by the computer shown in FIG. 9. 12 is a flowchart showing a flow of a subroutine “camera setting data adjustment processing” shown in FIG. 11. 12 is a flowchart showing a flow of a subroutine “camera setting data reflection process” shown in FIG. 11.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of a vehicle image capturing system of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. This embodiment is a vehicle around image photographing system of a studio for photographing in advance a vehicle body image to be displayed on a large display provided in an auction hall of a used car, a terminal device of the same hall, a terminal device connected to the Internet, or the like. It is about. Hereinafter, the vehicle around image capturing system is also simply referred to as “imaging system”.

<< Configuration Overview of Shooting System 10 >>
First, based on FIG. 1, an outline of the configuration of the imaging system 10 of the present embodiment will be briefly described. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example when the photographing system 10 is applied to a photographing studio for a vehicle auction. In the coordinate system shown in the figure, the X-axis direction is the traveling direction of the vehicle 8, the Y-axis direction is the height (vehicle height) direction of the vehicle 8, and the Z-axis direction is the width (vehicle width) of the vehicle 8. Each direction is shown. In the present specification, such an X-axis direction may be referred to as a front-back direction. The Y-axis direction is sometimes referred to as the up-down direction. Further, the Z-axis direction may be referred to as the left-right direction. The same applies to the case where such a coordinate system is shown in other figures. In the present embodiment, the vehicle 8 is a medium-sized vehicle (for example, a total length: 4.8 meters, a total width: 1.7 meters, a total height: 1.5 meters).

  As shown in FIG. 1, the shooting studio 2 provided with the shooting system 10 is a building in which a horizontally long shooting space is partitioned by walls 3 in the traveling direction of the vehicle 8. The left side of FIG. 1 is the entrance 5, and the right side of the page is the exit 6. The vehicle 8 as a subject stops at a predetermined position 7 when entering the photographing studio 2 from the entrance 5. The predetermined position (predetermined range) 7 is provided almost at the center of the photographing studio 2. Then, after the surroundings of the vehicle body and the interior of the vehicle are photographed, the vehicle exits from the exit 6. On the floor surface of the shooting studio 2, a line or mark that directly indicates or indirectly suggests a predetermined position 7 of a rectangle that is long in the X-axis direction is displayed. The predetermined position 7 is set, for example, such that the long side is 6 meters and the short side is 2 meters.

  The photographing system 10 provided in such a photographing studio 2 or the like mainly includes four camera walls 20 (20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d) and a computer 11 that controls these camera walls 20. These camera walls 20 (20a, 20b, 20c, 20d) may correspond to the “camera support structure” recited in the claims. Further, as will be described later, the camera wall 20 has a “plate wall structure”.

  In the present embodiment, the four camera walls 20 are provided in the photographing studio 2. For example, the height is set to about 2.5 meters, and the length in the X-axis direction (width) is about 3 meters. Is set to Therefore, a worker with a standard physique can hide his / her body by moving to the back side (retraction space 4) of the camera wall 20 even in an upright posture.

  In the present embodiment, these camera walls 20 are arranged at positions 2 to 3 meters away from the four corners of the predetermined position 7. That is, the camera walls 20 a to 20 d are provided within a predetermined distance (for example, within 3 meters) from the four corners of the vehicle 8 so as to surround the vehicle 8 stopped at the predetermined position 7 in the photographing studio 2.

  For example, the camera wall 20a is provided at a position 2 to 3 meters (predetermined distance) away from the left front corner 7a in the direction of the exit 6 at the predetermined position 7. The camera wall 20b is provided at a position away from the left rear corner 7b of the predetermined position 7 in the direction of the entrance 5 by the same predetermined distance. The camera walls 20c and 20d are provided at positions away from the right rear corner 7c and the right front corner 7d by the same predetermined distance. In FIG. 1, an alternate long and short dash line between the camera wall 20 (20a to 20d) and the wall 3 indicates a retreat space 4 to be described later.

  In the photographing studio 2, the camera walls 20a to 20d arranged in this way are each provided with three cameras 30. The camera walls 20a to 20d are curved so as to surround the predetermined position 7 (the vehicle 8 stopped at the predetermined position 7). In other words, the planar shapes of the camera walls 20a to 20d are formed in a curved shape along the circumference of an ellipse O drawn around the intersection point (center of the predetermined position 7) P of the diagonal line of the predetermined position 7. The ellipse O has a major axis in the X-axis direction and a minor axis in the Z-axis direction. For example, the major axis is set to 15 meters and the minor axis is set to 7 meters.

  These three cameras 30 are provided so as to be arranged side by side in the peripheral direction of the predetermined position 7 (the vehicle 8 parked at the predetermined position 7) in each of the camera walls 20. More precisely, these cameras 30 are arranged so as to be located on the circumference of the above-described ellipse O. For example, the camera wall 20a provided at a predetermined distance from the left front corner 7a of the predetermined position 7 is provided with cameras 30a, 30b, and 30c from the exit 6 direction toward the front left side of the vehicle 8, respectively. ing. Similarly, cameras 30m, 30k, and 30j are respectively provided on the camera wall 20d that is provided at a predetermined distance from the right front corner 7d from the direction of the exit 6 toward the front right side of the vehicle 8.

  That is, these cameras 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d, 30e, 30f, 30g, 30i, 30j, 30k, and 30m (hereinafter, these may be collectively referred to as “camera 30a and the like”). Reference numeral 30 indicates that the object pointed to corresponds to one of the cameras 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d, 30e, 30f, 30g, 30i, 30j, 30k, and 30m.) Is the center P of the predetermined position 7. It is located symmetrically with respect to. For example, the cameras 30a and 30g, the camera 30b and the camera 30h, the camera 30c and the camera 30i, the camera 30d and the camera 30j, the camera 30e and the camera 30k, and the camera 30f and the camera 30m are respectively point-symmetric with respect to the center P of the predetermined position 7. Is located.

  As a result, it is possible to take an image of the front side 8a of the vehicle 8 or an image of the front side of the left side 8c with the cameras 30a, 30b, 30c of the camera wall 20a. In addition, the camera 30m, 30k, and 30j of the camera wall 20d can capture an image of the front side 8a of the vehicle 8, a front side image of the right side 8d, and the like.

  Cameras 30f, 30e, and 30d are provided on the camera wall 20b provided at a predetermined distance from the left rear corner 7b from the direction of the entrance 5 toward the rear left side of the vehicle 8, respectively. Furthermore, cameras 30g, 30h, and 30i are provided on the camera wall 20c that is provided at a predetermined distance from the right rear corner 7c from the direction of the entrance 5 toward the rear right side of the vehicle 8, respectively.

  As a result, it is possible to take images of the rear side 8b and the left side 8c of the vehicle 8 in the rear direction by the cameras 30f, 30e, and 30d of the camera wall 20b. Further, it is possible to take images of the rear side 8b and the right side 8d of the vehicle 8 in the rear direction by the cameras 30g, 30h, 30i of the camera wall 20c.

  On the other hand, the computer 11 is provided in a room (for example, an operator room or an adjustment room) separately from the photographing studio 2. In the present embodiment, the computer 11 is connected to twelve cameras 30a and the like provided on each of the camera walls 20a to 20d, and performs image processing and the like as described later. The configuration of the computer 11 and its peripheral devices will be described later with reference to FIG.

<< Configuration of Camera Wall 20 >>
Here, the configuration of the camera wall 20 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. Of the four camera walls 20a to 20d, the camera wall 20a and the camera wall 20c are configured similarly. The camera wall 20a and the camera wall 20b are mirror-symmetrically configured with respect to the YZ plane, and the camera wall 20a and the camera wall 20d are mirror-symmetrically configured with respect to the XY plane. Therefore, here, the camera wall 20a is representatively described among the four camera walls 20a to 20d. FIG. 2A shows a front view of the camera wall 20a. FIG. 2B shows a plan view of the camera wall 20a. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view taken along line III shown in FIG. For convenience, in FIGS. 2 and 3, the transparent panel 39 is colored light gray and the dome cover 38 is dark gray.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the camera wall 20a is mainly composed of a vertical frame 21, a horizontal frame 22, an upper panel 23, a side panel 24, front panels 25 and 26, and the like. The vertical frame 21 and the horizontal frame 22 are, for example, aluminum L-shaped angles and square pipes, and constitute a frame structure of the camera wall 20a (see FIG. 2B). The horizontal frame 22 spanned in the X-axis direction is curved into a shape along the elliptic arc of the ellipse O shown in FIG. The horizontal frame 22 is provided, for example, at a plurality of locations (for example, three locations) at different positions in the height direction.

  The top panel 23, the side panel 24, and the front panels 25 and 26 include, for example, a wall body having a plate wall structure formed of a flat plate made of iron (iron plate), and the surface is painted gray. The top panel 23 serves as a top plate that covers the upper side of the camera wall 20a, and the side panel 24 serves as a side plate that covers the side of the camera wall 20a. Since the horizontal frame 22 spanned in the X-axis direction is curved in a shape along the elliptical arc as described above, the front surface of the camera wall 20a is constituted by a plurality of front panels 25 and 26.

  In the present embodiment, the front panels 25 and 26 are set to have the same length in the X-axis direction (short direction), and the total number of the front panels 25 and 26 is, for example, at a predetermined position 7. It is set to a number S (= N × 2-1) obtained by doubling the number N of cameras 30 arranged side by side in the circumferential direction and subtracting one. Since the camera wall 20a includes three cameras 30, the total number S of the front panels 25 and 26 is 5 (= 3 × 2-1).

  In the present embodiment, as will be described below, the front panel 25 covers a part including the part to which the camera 30 is attached. Therefore, the same number of the three front panels 25 and two front panels 26 as the number of the cameras 30 are provided. This constitutes the front surface of the camera wall 20a. In addition, it is not necessary to select a flat flat panel as the front panels 25 and 26, and a curved panel having a curved surface whose short direction is along an elliptical arc may be used for the front panels 25 and 26.

  The front panel 25 is divided into a plurality of wall bodies. That is, the front panel 25 is composed of three types of wall bodies from the top in the Y-axis direction: a curtain plate wall 25a, a blank plate wall 25b, and a waist plate wall 25c. On the other hand, the front panel 26 is composed of a strip-like long wall body.

  The curtain plate wall 25a is a wall that covers the upper side of the blank plate wall 25b and the like, and the waist plate wall 25c is a wall that blocks the lower side of the blank plate wall 25b and the like. The blank plate wall 25b is a wall that closes the front opening of the rack space in which the camera case 33 is not accommodated. In this embodiment, the camera case 33 is accommodated in the middle rack space 28, and the camera case 33 is not accommodated in the upper rack space 27 and the lower rack space 29. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the blank plate wall 25b closes the upper and lower rack spaces 27 and 29. A front lid 36 of the camera case 33 is attached to the middle rack space 28. In FIG. 2 (A), the rack space is represented by a two-dot chain line, and some racks are not denoted by reference numerals.

  The front panel 26 is a wall that closes a front opening in a portion where the rack spaces 27, 28, and 29 are not provided. In the present embodiment, since the camera wall 20a is provided so that the three cameras 30 are arranged in the peripheral direction of the vehicle 8, the front panel 26 is attached at two positions between the three cameras. When rack spaces 27, 28, 29, etc. are provided in the internal space of the camera wall 20a closed by the front panel 26, the camera 30 can be attached. In such a case, a front panel 25 (curtain plate wall 25a, blank plate wall 25b, waist plate wall 25c) or the like is attached instead of the front panel 26.

  In the present embodiment, a back panel (not shown) is attached to the back surface of the camera wall 20a. As described later, this prevents a part of the body from entering the camera wall 20a or dust or dirt from entering the camera wall 20a when an operator hides behind the camera wall 20a. ing. If this is not expected, the back panel may not be provided.

  A camera case 33, a front lid 36, and the like are attached to the rack spaces 27, 28, and 29 in which the camera 30 is accommodated. In this embodiment, the camera 30 is accommodated in the middle rack space 28, and a camera box 37 having a front lid 36 and a dome cover 38 is attached to the front opening thereof. In FIG. 3, a pan head 40 is also shown below the camera 30. The configuration of the camera 30 and the camera platform 40 is illustrated in detail in FIG. 4 and will now be described with reference to FIG.

<< Configuration of Camera Case 33 and Camera Box 37 >>
FIG. 4A illustrates an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of the camera case 33, the camera 30, and the camera platform 40 provided on the camera wall 20. 4B is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example and a movable example of the camera platform 40 and the camera 30 attached to the camera platform 40. FIG. Further, FIG. 4C shows an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example and a movable example of the camera 30 and the camera platform 40 when viewed from above the camera 30. For convenience, in FIG. 4A, the transparent panel 39 is colored light gray and the dome cover 38 is colored dark gray.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the camera 30 is attached to the camera wall 20 via a camera case 33. The camera case 33 has a peripheral plate 34 formed in a U shape so as to surround the periphery of the camera 30 except for the lens unit side of the camera 30, and a periphery so as to cover the bottom side (the pan head 40 side) of the camera 30. And a bottom plate 35 that closes the lower opening of the plate 34. The peripheral plate 34 and the bottom plate 35 are welded, for example.

  The peripheral plate 34 includes a flange portion 34 a that is bent outwardly into an L-shape at the lens unit side opening of the camera 30. The flange portion 34 a is for fixing the camera case 33 to the vertical frame 21 of the camera wall 20. That is, the camera case 33 is attached to the camera wall 20 and fixed by screwing the flange portion 34a to the vertical frame 21 with a bolt or the like (not shown).

  A front lid 36 having a window 36a is attached to the front surface of the camera case 33 so that the lens unit 32 of the camera 30 can be exposed. The front lid 36 is configured to have the same external dimensions as the blank plate wall 25b of the front panel 25 described above, and a rectangular window portion 36a is formed at substantially the center thereof. The window 36a is set to a size and a range that can sufficiently secure the shootable range of the camera 30, and the field of view of the camera 30 when the camera platform 40 changes the shooting direction (pan or tilt) of the camera 30. It is formed so that the front lid 36 does not enter inside.

  On both sides of the front lid 36 in the width direction (direction perpendicular to the vertical frame 21), bent portions 36b that are bent in an L shape toward the back side are formed. The bent portion 36b is for enabling the front lid 36 to be fastened to the vertical frame 21 with a bolt or the like (not shown), and a through hole (not shown) through which the bolt can be inserted is formed. ing. For example, an optically transparent transparent panel or the like is attached to the window 36 a of the front lid 36.

  In the present embodiment, the transparent panel 39 is not attached directly to the window portion 36 a but via the camera box 37. The camera box 37 is a triangular prism-shaped box made of, for example, an iron plate, and windows are formed on two side surfaces corresponding to the hypotenuse. One window portion is configured to be able to communicate with the window portion 36 a of the front lid 36, and the other window portion is configured to be able to attach the transparent panel 39.

  In the present embodiment, the camera box 37 is configured such that the other window portion having the transparent panel 39 faces the predetermined position 7 when the camera wall 20 is installed in the photographing studio 2. By adopting a configuration in which the front lid 36 includes such a camera box 37, for example, even if the lens unit 32 of the camera 30 protrudes outside from the window 36 a of the front lid 36, The lens unit 32 is less affected by meteorological phenomena such as the lens unit 32 being shaken by the wind entering from the exit 6), or the lens unit 32 being wet by rainwater falling into the photographing studio 2.

  In this embodiment, an optically transparent dome cover 38 formed in a hemispherical shape is attached to the transparent panel 39. In other words, the dome cover 38 is attached so as to protrude further outside than the boundary surface of the transparent panel 39. Thereby, for example, even if the lens unit 32 can protrude outward from the transparent panel 39 within the movable range of the camera 30, it can be made possible.

  When the dome cover 38 is provided, the transparent panel 39 may be formed of an optically opaque member such as an iron plate instead of the transparent panel 39. Thereby, it becomes possible to make it difficult to visually understand the inside of the camera box 37 from the outside. When the lens unit 32 of the camera 30 is a wide-angle zoom lens 32b, the dome cover 38 is provided so that an optically opaque panel is less likely to obstruct the field of view. It becomes possible to secure widely.

≪Configuration of camera 30 and pan head 40≫
The camera 30 includes a camera body 31 and a lens unit 32. The camera body 31 is, for example, a high-definition high-definition color camera that can shoot a moving image, and is configured to be able to output the captured moving image data via an SDI (Serial Digital Interface). The lens unit 32 also includes an electric zoom lens mechanism, and zoom adjustment by autofocus is also possible. Zoom, white balance, exposure, and the like can be adjusted from the outside. In the present embodiment, the setting data is configured to be received from the computer 11 connected by the RS-232C cable 17 via the camera interface 14 (see FIG. 5).

  The lens unit 32 is, for example, an electric zoom lens, and includes a zoom lens, an electric zoom mechanism, a zoom control unit, a cover that covers them, and the like. The zoom lens, electric zoom mechanism, and zoom control unit are not shown. The zoom lens may be a standard zoom lens 32a or a wide-angle zoom lens 32b. In the camera 30 of this embodiment, the standard zoom lens 32a or the wide-angle zoom lens 32b is selected depending on the location where the camera 30 is attached. In general, the wide-angle zoom lens 32b has a wider angle of view (shooting range) than the standard zoom lens 32a, but the product cost tends to be high. Such lens types will be described later.

  The electric zoom mechanism drives a variable mechanism of the zoom lens by a driving force of a motor, and the drive control of the motor is performed by a zoom control unit. The zoom control unit controls the electric zoom mechanism at the time of zoom adjustment by autofocus, or controls the electric zoom mechanism by a control command received from the computer 11. Control commands sent from the computer 11 are configured to be received via the camera interface 14.

  The pan / tilt head 40 changes the shooting direction of the camera 30 attached to the pan / tilt head 40 to the left / right direction (front / rear direction of the vehicle 8) or the vertical direction, or changes the position of the camera 30 to the front / rear direction (left / right direction of the vehicle 8). It can be changed. The pan head 40 mainly includes a pan / tilt unit 41 and a slide unit 45.

  The pan / tilt unit 41 can change the shooting direction of the camera 30 to the front / rear direction (pan) or the height direction (tilt) of the vehicle 8 (predetermined position 7) in a state where the camera platform 20 is attached to the pan / tilt unit 41. It is configured. The pan / tilt unit 41 includes a holder 42, a tilt shaft 43, a pan shaft 44, and the like. The holder 42 pivotally supports the camera 30 by a tilt shaft 43 so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction (Y-axis direction shown in FIG. 1) (reference numerals 30YU and 30YD shown in FIG. 4B). Further, the pan / tilt unit 41 enables the camera 30 to be rotated in the left-right direction (X-axis direction shown in FIG. 1) by the pan shaft 44 with respect to the slider 47 of the slide unit 45 (FIG. 4C). Reference numerals 30XL and 30XR).

  The slide unit 45 is configured to be able to change the position of the camera 30 in the left-right direction (Z-axis direction shown in FIG. 1) of the vehicle 8 (predetermined position 7) in a state where the camera platform 20 is attached to the camera wall 20. . The slide unit 45 includes a base plate 46, a slider 47, and the like. The slider 47 moves the camera 30 attached (supported) to the slider 47 via the pan / tilt unit 41 with respect to the base plate 46 fixed to the camera case 33 in the front-rear direction (Z-axis direction shown in FIG. 1). ) Is movable (reference numeral 30Z shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C). The movable range of the slider 47 is determined by a long hole 47a formed in the slider 47 and a convex portion 46a formed in the base plate 46 so as to be able to be inserted into the long hole 47a.

  The camera platform 40 configured as described above has individual camera platforms such that the camera 30a and the like are attached to each camera so that the shooting direction of each camera 30a and the like faces the center P (see FIG. 1) of the predetermined position 7. 40 pans are adjusted. The tilt of the camera platform 40 is adjusted to, for example, about 1/2 to about 2/3 of the total height (1.5 meters) of the medium-sized vehicle.

<< Computer 11, configuration of peripheral equipment >>
Next, the configuration of the computer 11 and its peripheral devices will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the electrical configuration of the imaging system 10. The computer 11 is typically a personal computer, and includes, for example, an MPU, main memory (DRAM, etc.), storage device (magnetic disk, flash memory, etc.), communication interface (LAN interface, SDI interface, etc.), display, keyboard, etc. (These are not shown in FIG. 5).

  As will be described later, a vehicle image capturing process program executed by the computer 11 is stored in advance in a storage device. Through this vehicle image capturing process, the computer 11 acquires moving image data from the cameras 30a and the like of the camera walls 20a to 20d through the video hub 12 and the SDI cables 15 and 16 through the SDI interface. The computer 11 is connected to the LAN cable 18 by a LAN interface, and is also connected to the camera interface 14 of the camera 30a and the like via the RS-232C cable 17. The video signal output from the computer 11 to the display is also sent to a sub-display (not shown) via a distributor. This sub-display is arranged, for example, in the evacuation space 4 of one of the camera walls 20a to 20d.

  The video hub 12 is a line concentrator capable of selecting a plurality of channels of video signals through an SDI interface, and includes a LAN interface. In the present embodiment, the video hub 12 is configured to be able to select a 4-channel output system for a 12-channel input system, for example. The number of channels in the input system is matched to the number 12 of cameras 30a and the like, and the number of channels in the output system is matched to the number of camera walls 20a to 20d. Thereby, for example, each camera wall 20a to 20d can be divided into 4 channels (A to D channels) and transmitted to the computer 11. The video hub 12 is also connected to the LAN cable 18. Therefore, the transmission of moving image data of the A to D channels is performed according to a control command received from the computer 11 via the LAN.

  For example, at the transmission timing of the A channel, the video hub 12 transmits the moving image data captured by the cameras 30a, 30b, and 30c of the camera wall 20a to the computer 11 in a time-divided manner into predetermined time slots. At the B channel transmission timing, the moving image data captured by the cameras 30d, 30e, and 30f of the camera wall 20b are time-divided into predetermined time slots and transmitted to the computer 11. Similarly, the moving image data of the cameras 30g, 30h, and 30i of the camera wall 20c is transmitted through the C channel, and the moving image data of the cameras 30j, 30k, and 30m of the camera wall 20d is transmitted through the D channel at the respective timings.

  In the present embodiment, the camera interface 14 included in the camera 30a or the like is an interface compliant with RS-232C, and electrically connects the cameras 30a and the like in a daisy chain shape. When a control command with an address is received from the computer 11, the camera 30 at the address performs control according to the control command.

  Note that the number of channels included in the video hub 12 may be as long as the number of input systems is equal to or greater than the number of cameras 30a and the like, and the number of output systems is preferably large, but may be equal to or greater than one channel and the number of cameras 30a and the like. In the present embodiment, the file server 13 or the like is connected to the LAN cable 18. The file server 13 is executed by the computer 11 such as unique information (exhibition number, vehicle type, model, displacement, mileage, vehicle name, etc.) related to the vehicle 8 described in the exhibition inspection form. Still image data or the like cut out (captured) from the moving image data by the vehicle image photographing process is accumulated. The file server is a concept including a database server.

  In addition, for example, other personal computers, printers, wireless LAN access points, and the like are connected to the LAN cable 18 as peripheral devices not shown. Note that interior image data captured by a digital camera for interior image capture carried by an operator is stored in the file server 13 via a wireless LAN access point. In some cases, a display device (monitor device) that constantly displays moving image data sent from a specific camera 30 (for example, camera 30d) of the camera 30a or the like or a separately provided camera is provided. In this case, it is not necessary to project a moving image on the display of the computer 11 in the moving image data acquisition process (S107) of the vehicle image photographing process described below.

<< Vehicle image capturing process by computer 11 >>
Next, the vehicle image capturing process executed by the computer 11 will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of the vehicle image photographing process executed by the computer 11. FIG. 7 shows an example of a screen displayed on the display screen of the computer 11 in the vehicle image photographing process.

  Note that the software button displayed on the display screen 70 of FIG. 7 can be selected by pressing the key by the operator of the computer 11 when the corresponding key switch is present on the keyboard. It can also be selected by clicking a software button with a pointing device such as. In the following description, a case will be described by way of example where the operator can select by pressing a key switch even if it can be selected by clicking the mouse.

  As shown in FIG. 6, when the vehicle image shooting process is started, first, a predetermined initialization process is performed in step S101, and then a shooting mode setting process is performed in step S103. In the initialization process, for example, a work file, a flag, or the like related to the vehicle image capturing process is cleared, or setting data or the like is expanded on the main memory. In the shooting mode setting process, default values of setting data relating to zoom, white balance, exposure, and the like that are individually set for each camera 30a and the like are transmitted to the camera interface 14. Accordingly, the camera 30a and the like are set to default values for zoom, white balance, and the like.

  In the present embodiment, as in the display screen 70 shown in FIG. 7, for example, the shooting mode is displayed as a camera mode button 96 such as “clear”, “cloudy”, “evening”, and “night”. For example, “clear” in the currently set shooting mode is displayed in yellow (light gray in FIG. 7), and “cloudy” and the like other than that are displayed in gray. In this shooting mode, the operator sets the shooting mode to be set as “clear” → “cloudy” → “evening” → “night” → “sunny” →... Can be switched cyclically.

  When the shooting mode setting process in step S103 is completed, the process waits until a shooting start instruction is issued (S105). That is, as shown in FIG. 7, the process waits until the “collective shooting” 75 of the function F5 key displayed on the display screen 70 of the computer 11 or the “four-point shooting” 76 of the F6 key is pressed (S105; No). Note that the display example in FIG. 7 exemplifies a screen display in a state where the processing has progressed to some extent, and thus is not displayed at the time of processing in step S103 (for example, a four-point still image 94, a multi-still image 95, etc. Note that) is already displayed.

  For example, the operator of the computer 11 waits for the start of shooting until the vehicle 8 stops at the predetermined position 7 or waits for the start of shooting until the worker finishes shooting the interior image of the vehicle 8. In addition, when shooting of a moving image is started by the camera 30a of the camera walls 20a to 20d, the worker may be reflected in the moving image. Therefore, when the worker completes predetermined work such as moving the vehicle 8 or photographing the interior, the worker hides in the retreat space 4 (see FIG. 1) provided on the back side of the camera walls 20a to 20d. It is possible to prevent such reflection. The operator confirms that the predetermined work and evacuation by the worker has been completed by visual observation, income (intercommunication) or the like, and then presses “collective photographing” 75 or “four-point photographing” 76.

  When “collective shooting” 75 or “four-point shooting” 76 is pressed (S105; Yes), a shooting start control command with an address such as each camera 30a is transmitted from the computer 11 to the camera interface 14. . As a result, the camera 30a and the like start moving image shooting of the vehicle 8, respectively. Note that during the “predetermined period” described in the claims, the video hub 12 acquires the moving image data of the camera 30a and the like by moving image data acquisition processing in at least the next step S107 after the camera 30a or the like starts moving image shooting. This is within the period until transmission.

  In step S107, the moving image data acquisition process is performed. Here, a case where “collective shooting” 75 is pressed will be described as an example. When “4-point shooting” 76 is pressed, among the three cameras 30a and the like provided in the camera walls 20a to 20d, the video hub 12 is connected from the cameras 30b, 30e, 30h, and 30k arranged in the center. Only moving image data sent through the network is subject to image processing. This point is different from the case of “batch shooting” in which moving image data of all the cameras 30a and the like is subjected to image processing.

  In the process of step S107, for example, a control command capable of instructing the video hub 12 to output the moving image data of the cameras 30a, 30b, and 30c from the A channel among the moving image data transmitted from each camera 30a and the like is sent to the video hub 12. Send. Thereby, the moving image data of the cameras 30a, 30b, and 30c is sent from the video hub 12 via the A channel. Thereby, on the display of the computer 11, for example, a moving image sent from the cameras 30a, 30b, and 30c is divided and displayed as a four-point still image 94 shown in FIG. A moving image sent from one specific camera 30 (for example, the camera 30c) may be displayed largely in a broken line indicated by reference numeral 94.

  Therefore, in the next step S109, capture processing is performed on the image data input from the A channel, and still image data is cut out (captured) from the moving image data. For example, it is temporarily stored in the storage device. Store. One or more still image data may be extracted from the moving image data. When two or more still image data are cut out, a trimming process (S117) described later is also performed on these two or more still image data.

  By performing such moving image data acquisition processing (S107) and capture processing (S109) from the A channel to the D channel (S111; No), still image data can be cut out for each moving image data output from the camera 30a or the like. It becomes possible. If it is determined in step S111 that the capture process has been performed on all data (S111; Yes), a shooting completion display process is performed in subsequent step S113.

  The shooting completion display process (S113) is performed by changing the display color of the shooting completion indicator 99a on the display screen 70 from gray to red. In other words, the shooting completion indicator 99a displays the background color of the characters “shooting complete” in gray before the shooting is completed, and displays the background color in red after the shooting is completed. The adjustment completion indicator 99b displayed on the right side of the shooting completion indicator 99a is displayed with a gray background color of “adjustment completed” before the adjustment is completed, and displayed in red after the adjustment is completed. Is done.

  The photographing completion indicator 99a and the adjustment completion indicator 99b are displayed on the display screen 70 when a sub-display is provided in the retreat space 4 behind the camera walls 20a to 20d where workers can wait. Is displayed, so that the worker can also check it on the screen.

  When the cutout (capture) of the still image is completed as described above, trimming frame setting processing is performed in step S115. Trimming in the vehicle image photographing process means that an unnecessary image portion around the image of the vehicle 8 is cut out, and a boundary line set for this purpose is a trimming frame. Image processing that deletes the outside of the trimming frame while leaving the inside of the trimming frame is trimming processing performed in the next step S117. Trimming is also referred to as “cutout”.

  As in the display screen 70 shown in FIG. 7, in this embodiment, the size of the trimming frame is displayed as a frame size button 93 of “Frame 1” to “Frame 9”. For example, the currently set “frame 6” of a predetermined size is displayed in yellow (light gray in FIG. 7), and other “frame 1” to “frame 5” and “frame 7” to “frame 9” are displayed. It is displayed in gray. The frame size is set by pressing the “frame size +” 80 of the F10 key to increase the frame size in the “frame 1” direction, and the frame size set by pressing the “frame size−” 81 of the F11 key. The size goes down in the “frame 9” direction.

  The trimming frame can also be selected by clicking the frame size buttons 93 of “Frame 1” to “Frame 9” with a pointing device such as a mouse. Here, the operator sets “frame 6” manually. Since the trimming frame can be arbitrarily set in this way, in step S115, the size of the trimming frame corresponding to “frame 1” to “frame 9” set when the trimming frame setting process is executed is developed on the main memory. Read from the settings file. Then, it is used for the next trimming process.

  In the trimming process in step S117, after the still image data cut out from the moving image data of the camera 30a or the like and temporarily stored in the storage device or the like is read out, the image data in the frame is cut out using the trimming frame in step S115. Perform image processing. This process is performed for all the still image data cut out in step S109 until it ends (S119; No). Thus, as will be described later, the still image data after the trimming process in step S117 is connected so as to be arranged in the order of the peripheral direction of the vehicle 8, thereby enabling an around view (see FIG. It can be seen that vehicle image data equivalent to 360-degree images) can be generated.

  Note that when there are a plurality of still image data cut out from the moving image data in step S109 for the same camera 30, for example, all the still image data may be trimmed, or the first (or last) in time. Still image data that has been cut out may be trimmed. If there are a plurality of trimmed still image data for the same camera 30, for example, all trimmed still image data may be displayed on the display screen 70 so that the operator can select it.

  If it is determined in step S119 that the trimming process has been performed on all data (S119; Yes), the vehicle body image display process is performed in subsequent step S121. In this process, the still image after trimming in step S119 is displayed on the four-point still image 94 and the multi-still image 95 on the display screen 70. That is, the contents shown in FIG. 7 are displayed on the display screen 70 of the computer 11. That is, in the four-point still image 94, the upper right image is captured by the camera 30b, the lower right image is captured by the camera 30e, the lower left image is captured by the camera 30h, and the upper left image is captured by the camera 30k.

  Also, in the multi-still image 95, for convenience of explanation, when 12 images are divided into four parts vertically and horizontally, the left image is the camera 30a, the center image is the camera 30b, and the right image is the camera 30c among the three images on the upper right. Of the three images at the lower right, the right image was taken by the camera 30d, the center image was taken by the camera 30e, and the left image was taken by the camera 30f. Of the three images on the lower left, the right image is taken by the camera 30g, the center image is taken by the camera 30h, and the left image is taken by the camera 30i. Of the three upper left images, the left image is taken by the camera 30j and the center image is taken by the camera 30k. The right images are taken by the camera 30m.

  The still images displayed in the multi-still image 95 are connected in, for example, the above-described order (arranged in the order of the surrounding direction of the vehicle 8), so that the vehicle body image of the entire circumference of the vehicle 8 can be viewed in an around view (360 degrees). Image). That is, the upper right image of the camera 30a → the upper right image of the camera 30b → the upper right image of the camera 30c → the lower right image of the camera 30d → the lower right image of the camera 30e → the lower right image of the camera 30f → the camera 30g Lower left and right images → Lower left center image of camera 30h → Lower left and left image of camera 30i → Upper left and left image of camera 30j → Upper left center image of camera 30k → Upper left and right image of camera 30m To do. This makes it possible to obtain vehicle body image data equivalent to an around view (360-degree image).

  If “4-point shooting” 76 is pressed in step S105, only the 4-point still image 94 is displayed on the display screen 70 in step S121, and the multi-still image 95 is not displayed. For this reason, when “4-point shooting” 76 is pressed, body image data equivalent to around view (360-degree image) cannot be obtained.

  In subsequent step S123, an adjustment completion display process is performed. In this process, the display color of the adjustment completion indicator 99b on the display screen 70 is changed from gray to red. As described above, the adjustment completion indicator 99b is displayed with a gray background before the adjustment is completed.

  When such a series of capture (cutout) and trimming (cutout) is completed, the computer 11 waits for the next input command in step S125. That is, it is determined which one of “ENTER” key “STORE” 83, ESC key “SCREEN CLEAR” 71 or F12 key “END” 82 is pressed.

  If it is determined that the “save” 83 has been pressed (S125; “save”), all the image data of the still image after trimming by the image data saving process in the subsequent step S127 is saved in the file server 13. As a result, unique information about the vehicle 8 such as an exhibition number associated with the stored still image data is displayed in the storage history display area 97 of the display screen 70. Then, the currently displayed four-point still image 94, multi-still image 95, etc. are erased by the image display erasure process in step S129, and then the process proceeds to step S105 to prepare for the start of the next photographing “batch photography”. It waits for the key 75 or “four-point shooting” 76 to be pressed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the “screen clear” 71 has been pressed (S125; “screen clear”), the image data storage process in step S127 is skipped and the image display erasure process in step S129 is performed. That is, after the trimmed still image data is discarded without being saved (S129), the process proceeds to step S105, and keys for “batch shooting” 75 and “four-point shooting” 76 are prepared in preparation for the start of the next shooting. Wait for it to be pressed.

  Further, when “end” 82 is pressed (S125; “end”), for example, another window for confirming whether or not the present vehicle image photographing process is actually finished is displayed on the display screen 70, and the final confirmation is made. Is input, the present vehicle image photographing process is terminated, and the display of the display screen 70 is terminated. It should be noted that pressing of “END” 82 can be accepted while other processing is being executed.

  As a process that is not described in the flowchart of FIG. 6, for example, when the “redisplay interior” 72 of the function F2 key is pressed, the interior image of the vehicle 8 is redisplayed in the interior image display area 92. The interior image data (interior image data) is captured by a digital camera carried by an operator separately from the camera 30a provided in the camera walls 20a to 20d and stored in the file server 13 via a wireless LAN or the like. It is also displayed in the interior image display area 92 of the display screen 70 at substantially the same time or at another timing. The interior image data is associated with data unique to the vehicle 8 such as an exhibition number. Therefore, when the “redisplay interior” 72 is pressed, the computer 11 acquires the interior image data of the vehicle 8 from the file server 13 based on the unique data of the vehicle 8 and displays it again in the interior image display area 92. .

  The interior image deletion area 91 provided on the left side of the interior image display area 92 is used to delete an unnecessary interior image with a mouse or the like when the interior image displayed in the interior image display area 92 is deleted. It is used for removing the interior image from the interior image display area 92 by dragging and dropping it into the image deletion area 91.

  Further, “re-trimming” 73 of the function F3 key is pressed by the operator when the trimming frame is changed, for example. When the “re-trimming” 73 is pressed, the computer 11 reads out the temporarily stored still image data from the storage device or the like as in the above-described trimming process (S117), and newly sets it. The trimmed frame is used to perform image processing for cutting out the image data in the frame, and the trimmed image data is displayed on the four-point still image 94 or the multi-still image 95.

  “Manual” 74 of the F4 key of the function enables selection of manual setting and automatic setting of the trimming frame by toggle (alternatively every time the key is pressed). That is, when manual setting is selected, “manual” is displayed in the F4 key portion, and “automatic” is displayed in the F4 key portion when automatic setting is selected. Since the above-described vehicle image capturing process is premised on manual setting of the trimming frame, “manual” is displayed. Note that the description of the automatic setting of the trimming frame is omitted.

  Further, when the “multi-shooting” 77 of the function F7 key is pressed, the computer 11 displays the 12 still images after trimming by the trimming process (S117) as four-point still images 94 in another window or the like. Display as large as. In this case, it is difficult to display all 12 still images on the display screen 70 at the same time. Therefore, for example, as described above, a still image that is displayed largely by operating a mouse scroll wheel or a specific key on the keyboard, as described above, the upper right left image of the camera 30a → the upper right center image of the camera 30b → the upper right image of the camera 30c → the camera 30d lower right image → camera 30e lower right center image → camera 30f lower right left image → camera 30g lower left right image → camera 30h lower left center image → camera 30i lower left left image → camera 30j upper left left image Display processing is performed to change the display image so that the upper left center image of the camera 30k appears in the order of the upper left right image of the camera 30m.

  When the function “F8 key“ exhibition number acquisition ”78 is pressed, the computer 11 acquires the exhibition number of the vehicle 8 from the file server 13 on the basis of the data unique to the vehicle 8, and displays the exhibition number. It is displayed in the display area 98. In addition, after the operator clicks the exhibition number display area 98 with a mouse or the like, the exhibition number of the vehicle 8 can be directly input with the keyboard. The exhibition number is associated with the still image data when the still image data is stored in the file server 13.

  Next, the types of lenses such as the camera 30a provided on the camera walls 20a to 20d will be described. In the present embodiment, the same lens unit 32 such as the camera 30a is not selected. That is, the camera 30a or the like may have a standard zoom lens 32a or a wide-angle zoom lens 32b.

  For example, the wide-angle zoom lens 32b is also selected for the cameras 30c, 30d, 30i, and 30j, which are arranged at positions closest to the vehicle 8 in the peripheral direction of the vehicle 8 among the three camera walls 20a to 20d. Is done. In addition, the wide-angle zoom lens 32b is selected for the cameras 30b, 30e, 30h, and 30k, which are arranged at the center in the circumferential direction of the vehicle 8 among the three camera walls 20a to 20d. The standard zoom lens 32a is selected for the remaining cameras 30a, 30f, 30g, and 30m.

  Accordingly, among the three cameras 30 provided on the camera walls 20a to 20d, the cameras 30c, 30d, 30i, and 30j arranged at the ends near the center of the vehicle 8 in the front-rear direction have the wide-angle zoom lens 32b. Therefore, the opposite end of the vehicle 8 (in the case of the camera 30c, in the vicinity of the left rear corner 7b of the vehicle 8, in the case of the camera 30d, in the vicinity of the left front corner 7a of the vehicle 8, in the case of the camera 30i, In the vicinity of the right front corner portion 7d, and in the case of the camera 30j, it is possible to take an easy-to-view image even in the vicinity of the center pillar including the vicinity of the right rear corner portion 7c of the vehicle 8.

  Further, for example, even for a vehicle having a large length in the front-rear direction (the entire length of the vehicle), the vehicle is within the angle of view (shooting range) of these cameras 30c, 30d, 30i, and 30j by using the wide-angle zoom lens 32b. (In the case of the camera 30c, in the vicinity of the left rear corner 7b of the vehicle 8, in the case of the camera 30d, in the vicinity of the left front corner 7a of the vehicle 8, and in the case of the camera 30i, the right front corner 7d of the vehicle 8). In the case of the camera 30j, it is possible to take an image that can be seen up to the right rear corner 7c of the vehicle 8).

  Furthermore, among the three cameras 30 provided on the camera walls 20a to 20d, the cameras 30b, 30e, 30h, and 30k arranged at the center in the circumferential direction of the vehicle 8 have the wide-angle zoom lens 32b. Even for a vehicle with a high height, it is possible to take an image that can be seen sufficiently up to the vicinity of the ceiling of the vehicle within the angle of view (shooting range) of these cameras 30b, 30e, 30h, and 30k.

  Of the three cameras 30 provided on the camera walls 20a to 20d, the standard zoom lens 32a is used instead of the wide-angle zoom lens 32b for the cameras 30a, 30f, 30g, and 30m arranged at the end farthest from the vehicle 8. Have. The standard zoom lens 32a generally has a lower product cost than the wide-angle zoom lens 32b. Therefore, an increase in cost of the imaging system 10 can be suppressed as compared with the case where the wide-angle zoom lens 32b is selected for all the cameras 30a and the like.

  If such a cost is not a problem, these cameras 30a, 30f, 30g, and 30m are also connected to the opposite end of the vehicle 8 (in the case of the camera 30a) by using the wide-angle zoom lens 32b. Near the right front corner 7d of the vehicle 8, in the case of the camera 30f, near the right rear corner 7c of the vehicle 8, in the case of the camera 30g, near the left rear corner 7b of the vehicle 8, and in the case of the camera 30m, the vehicle 8 It is possible to take an image that is easy to see up to the vicinity of the left front corner 7a.

  Further, even in the case of an existing studio where there is not enough space in the left and right (vehicle width) direction of the vehicle 8, the camera 30 a provided on the camera walls 20 a to 20 d (particularly, disposed in the center in the circumferential direction of the vehicle 8). Since the cameras 30b, 30e, 30h, and 30k) have the wide-angle zoom lens 32b, a vehicle body image of the vehicle 8 can be taken in a wide range even when the vehicle 8 and the camera 30a are close to each other.

  As described above, in the photographing system 10 of the present embodiment, the four camera walls 20a to 20d are arranged at the four corners (predetermined positions 7) of the vehicle 8 so as to surround the vehicle 8 stopped at the predetermined position 7 in the photographing studio 2. Left front corner portion 7a, left rear corner portion 7b, right rear corner portion 7c, and right front corner portion 7d). Further, in each of these four camera walls 20a to 20d, three cameras 30 and the like capable of capturing a vehicle body image of the vehicle 8 as a moving image during a predetermined period are provided side by side in the peripheral direction of the vehicle 8. Of these three cameras 30a, etc., at least one of the cameras 30c, 30d, 30i, and 30j has a wide-angle zoom lens 32b and photographs a moving image through the wide-angle zoom lens 32b. A total of 12 moving image data output from the three cameras 30a of the four camera walls 20a to 20d is acquired by the computer 11 and at least one still image data is cut out from each of the 12 moving image data. A vehicle body image of the entire circumference of the vehicle 8 is generated.

  As a result, the vehicle front-rear direction near the center or the vehicle left-right direction near the center is difficult to see from the four corners of the vehicle 8 (the left front corner 7a, the left rear corner 7b, the right rear corner 7c, and the right front corner 7d of the predetermined position 7). It is also possible to take images that are easy to see. Further, even in the case of an existing studio 2 that has no space in the left and right (vehicle width) direction of the vehicle 8, the lens of the camera 30a and the like provided on the camera walls 20a to 20d is a wide-angle zoom lens 32b. As a result, even if the distance between the subject vehicle 8 and the camera 30 or the like is short, a vehicle body image of the vehicle 8 can be taken over a wide range.

  Accordingly, at least one still image data is cut out from a total of twelve moving image data output from the three cameras 30 provided on each of the four camera walls 20a to 20d, and these are extracted around the vehicle 8 By arranging in the direction order, a vehicle body image of the entire circumference of the vehicle 8 can be obtained. That is, the vehicle body image of the entire circumference of the vehicle 8 can be obtained without using a turntable or a camera on the entire circumference of the vehicle 8 by the three cameras 30a provided on each of the four camera walls 20a to 20d. Even the configuration can be taken.

  In addition, the vehicle body image of the vehicle 8 is taken as a moving image during a predetermined period by the three cameras 30 and the like, and at least one still image data is cut out from each moving image data to generate a vehicle body image of the entire circumference of the vehicle 8. is doing. Therefore, for example, the camera 30a included in the camera walls 20a to 20d of the imaging system 10 uses such a mechanical switch as compared with a case where a still image is captured with a shutter-type digital camera having a mechanical switch. Therefore, the failure rate of the imaging system 10 can be reduced.

  In the imaging system 10 of the present embodiment, the camera walls 20a to 20d have a plate wall structure that is larger than a size that can cover and hide an upright worker. Thereby, for example, a driver who has driven the vehicle 8 to the predetermined position 7 or a worker who has photographed the interior of the vehicle 8 is behind the camera walls 20a to 20d having a plate wall structure at the time of photographing a vehicle body image. It becomes possible to hide. Therefore, it is possible to prevent workers and the like from appearing in the background of the vehicle body image.

≪Example of modification of shooting system 10≫
Next, in the imaging system 10 of the present embodiment, the imaging system 10 ′ according to the modification of the present embodiment when the camera platform of the camera 30 included in the camera walls 20a to 20d is changed to the electric camera platform 50 will be described with reference to FIGS. This will be described with reference to FIG. First, the modified electric head 50 will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. The imaging system 10 ′ according to the modification of the present embodiment is different from the imaging system 10 described above only in the electric pan head 50 of the camera 30 and the control system for the electric pan head 50. Therefore, in FIGS. 8 to 10, differences will be described, and description of components that are substantially the same as those of the imaging system 10 described above will be omitted.

  FIG. 8A is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of the camera case 33, the camera 30, and the electric camera platform 50 provided on the camera walls 20a to 20d. FIG. 8B is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example and a movable example of the electric camera platform 50 and the camera 30 attached to the electric camera platform 50. FIG. 8C is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example and a movable example of the camera 30 and the electric camera platform 50 when viewed from above the camera 30a and the like. FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical configuration of the imaging system 10 ′ according to the modification of the present embodiment. Further, FIG. 10A is an explanatory diagram showing the positional relationship of the reference subject 9 used for adjusting the shooting direction of the camera 30a and the like when the electric camera platform 50 is mounted on each of the camera walls 20a to 20d. Yes. FIG. 10B illustrates an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of the reference subject 9. For convenience, in FIG. 8A, the transparent panel 39 is colored light gray and the dome cover 38 is dark gray. Also in FIGS. 10A and 10B, the sphere 9a of the reference subject 9 is colored dark gray for convenience.

  As shown in FIGS. 8A to 8C, the electric camera platform 50 is electrically remote-controlled by the up and down movable unit 52 and the left and right movable unit 54 in the shooting direction of the camera 30 attached to the movable base 51. It is configured to be possible.

  In a state where the electric head 50 is attached to the camera wall 20, the up and down movable unit 52 uses the motor output of the tilt motor 53 as a driving force source to set the shooting direction of the camera 30 in the height direction of the vehicle 8 (predetermined position 7). (Tilt) can be changed. The left / right movable unit 54 is configured to be able to change the shooting direction of the camera 30 to the front / rear direction (pan) of the vehicle 8 (predetermined position 7) using the motor output of the pan motor 55 as a driving force source.

  The control unit 56 includes an RS-485 interface, and the tilt motor 53 and the pan motor 55 are arranged so that the vertically movable unit 52 and the horizontally movable unit 54 can move the movable base 51 to a target angle in accordance with an externally input control command. Is controlled. The elevation angle of the vertically movable unit 52 and the rotation angle of the left and right movable unit 54 are both configured to be detectable by sensors, and both angle data output from each sensor are input to the control unit 56, for example, tilt Used for feedback control of the motor 53 and the pan motor 55.

  Thereby, the camera 30 attached to the movable pedestal 51 rotates upward or downward (Y-axis direction shown in FIG. 1) by an arbitrary angle (reference numerals 30YU and 30YD shown in FIG. 8B), Further, it is possible to rotate leftward or rightward (X-axis direction shown in FIG. 1) (reference numerals 30XL and 30XR shown in FIG. 8C).

  The vertical movable unit 52 may have any mechanical configuration as long as the mechanism can rotate the movable base 51 in the vertical direction using the tilt motor 53 as a driving force source. The left and right movable unit 54 may have any mechanical configuration as long as the mechanism can rotate the movable base 51 in the left and right directions using the pan motor 55 as a driving force source.

  The electric head 50 configured in this way is connected to the computer 11 via the RS-485 cable 19. Since the RS-485 interface is capable of multidrop connection, the control units 56 of the electric camera platform 50 provided in each of the cameras 30a and the like are connected in a daisy chain. When a control command with an ID is received from the computer 11, the control unit 56 of the electric pan head 50 with the ID performs control according to the control command.

  In the modified imaging system 10 ′, since the cameras 30a and the like of the camera walls 20a to 20d are all provided with such an electric camera platform 50, the respective imaging directions of these cameras 30a and the like can be remotely controlled. Is possible. Therefore, for example, it is possible to remotely adjust the shooting direction of the camera 30a and the like while visually confirming the shot image with the computer 11 connected to the camera 30a and the like.

  Further, for example, by placing the reference subject 9 as shown in FIG. 10B at the center of the predetermined position 7 in the photographing studio 2, it becomes easier to adjust. The center of the predetermined position 7 is determined, for example, as an intersection of diagonal lines of the predetermined position 7 that is a rectangle long in the X-axis direction. In the present embodiment, the center of the predetermined position 7 is the virtual line α connecting the camera # 1 (camera 30a) and the camera # 7 (camera 30g), the camera # 6 (camera 30f), and the camera # 12 (camera 30m). It coincides with the intersection with the connecting virtual line β.

  The reference subject 9 includes, for example, a sphere 9a having a diameter set to about 30 centimeters, a pole 9b having one end connected to the sphere 9a, and a base 9c connected to the other end of the pole 9b, It is comprised by. The base 9c is, for example, an iron base formed in a circular shape having a diameter of about 50 centimeters. This makes it possible to stably support the pole 9b having the sphere 9a on one end side. The length h of the pole 9b is set to, for example, about 1/2 to about 2/3 of the total height (1.5 meters) of the medium-sized vehicle. In this embodiment, it is set to 1 meter.

≪Camera direction automatic adjustment processing by computer 11≫
In the modified example of the present embodiment, in the state where the reference subject 9 is arranged at the center of the predetermined position 7, for example, the camera 11 is automatically adjusted by the computer 11 as shown in FIG. It becomes possible to automatically adjust the shooting direction. From here, the automatic adjustment processing of the camera direction and the like by the computer 11 will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 to 13 in addition to FIG.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the flow of automatic adjustment processing such as camera direction executed by the computer shown in FIG. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the flow of the subroutine “camera setting data adjustment processing” shown in FIG. Further, FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the flow of the subroutine “camera setting data reflection process” shown in FIG. It should be noted that each program of automatic adjustment processing such as camera direction, camera setting data adjustment processing, and camera setting data reflection processing executed by the computer 11 is stored in advance in a storage device.

  As shown in FIG. 11, in the automatic adjustment process such as the camera direction, first, a predetermined initialization process is performed in step S201. In this process, for example, work files and flags related to automatic adjustment processing such as camera direction are cleared. In subsequent step S203, camera setting data adjustment processing for camera #n is performed. The camera #n refers to the cameras 30a to 30c of # 1 to # 3 shown in FIG. That is, the camera 30a corresponds to the camera # 1, the camera 30b corresponds to the camera # 2, and the camera 30c corresponds to # 3. The flowchart of the camera setting data adjustment process is shown in FIG. 12 as a subroutine for the automatic adjustment process for the camera direction and the like, and will be described below with reference to FIG.

<< Camera setting data adjustment processing by computer 11 >>
As shown in FIG. 12, in the camera setting data adjustment process, an XY direction initial value reading process is performed in step S301. The XY direction is both the X-axis direction (front-rear direction), that is, pan, and the Y-axis direction (up-down direction), that is, tilt. The initial values of pan and tilt are, for example, default pan and tilt angles that are set in advance as angles at which the shooting directions of the camera # 1 to the camera # 3 should originally face the reference subject 9. For example, the camera direction and the like It is stored in the storage device when the automatic adjustment processing program is installed. Therefore, in this process, first, the initial pan and tilt values corresponding to the camera 30a of the camera # 1 are read from the storage device.

  In the next step S303, pan / tilt control processing is performed. At this time, control for driving the camera # 1, that is, the electric camera platform 50 of the camera 30a is performed according to the initial pan and tilt values read out in step S301. That is, with respect to the electric camera platform 50 that controls the shooting direction of the camera 30a of the camera wall 20a, predetermined control commands are set so that the left and right movable unit 54 has a default pan angle and the vertical movable unit 52 has a default tilt angle. Each initial value data is transmitted. Thereby, the electric camera platform 50 of the camera 30a controls the pan and tilt of the camera 30a to be the default angles, that is, the camera 30a faces the default shooting direction.

  In subsequent step S305, a photographing process is performed. That is, since the electric camera platform 50 of the camera 30a is controlled so that the camera 30a faces the default shooting direction, the reference subject 9 is shot in that direction. The reference subject 9 is arranged at the center of the predetermined position 7 as described above. Therefore, after the moving image data of the reference subject 9 photographed in step S305 is acquired from the camera 30a via the video hub 12 and captured to cut out the still image data, the still image data is extracted in the next step S307. Perform image recognition processing.

  If image recognition processing is possible for moving image data, the image recognition processing is performed on the still image data in the next step S307 without capturing the moving image data sent from the video hub 12. Also good.

  In the image recognition processing in step S307, the position of the sphere 9a of the reference subject 9 in the still image data is grasped by image recognition. Then, in the subsequent XY direction deviation amount calculation processing in step S309, as the position (reference position) that should originally exist, for example, the image position (subject) of the sphere 9a from the center position (center position in the image) in the photographed image. The amount of misalignment is calculated. This deviation amount is obtained as an error on the plane coordinates in the X-axis direction (pan) and the Y-axis direction (tilt).

  It is determined whether or not the errors on the plane coordinates in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction are within a predetermined allowable range by the determination processing within the allowable deviation amount error in the next step S311. If it is determined that the center position in the image and the position of the subject are substantially the same (or the same) and are within an allowable error (S311; Yes), the process proceeds to the next step S313 and the Z direction is reached. Initial value reading processing is performed. On the other hand, if it is determined that it is not within the allowable error (S311; No), the process proceeds to step S312.

  In the XY direction correction value calculation processing in step S312, errors on the plane coordinates in the X-axis direction and Y-axis direction are converted into pan and tilt angles, and an excess / shortage angle is corrected from the current angle to a correction value (relative angle). ). Further, an absolute angle may be calculated as the correction value.

  Based on the calculated pan and tilt correction values, the pan / tilt control process is performed again in step S303. In this second processing, control for driving the electric camera platform 50 of the camera # 1 (camera 30a) is performed according to the pan and tilt correction values calculated in step S312. The processes in steps S303, S305, S307, and S309 are performed until it is determined in S311 that the error on the plane coordinates in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction is within a predetermined allowable range by the determination process within the allowable deviation amount in S311. Repeatedly.

  In step S313, a Z-direction initial value reading process is performed. The Z direction is the Z-axis direction (left-right direction), that is, zoom. The initial value of the zoom (magnification) is, for example, a value set in advance as the original magnification with respect to the reference subject 9, and is stored in the storage device when, for example, a program for automatic adjustment processing such as camera direction is installed. Therefore, in this process, first, the initial value of the magnification corresponding to the camera 30a of the camera # 1 is read from the storage device.

  In the next step S315, zoom control processing is performed. At this time, the electronic zoom of the camera # 1, that is, the camera 30a is controlled according to the initial value of the zoom (magnification) read out in step S313. That is, a predetermined control command and initial value data are transmitted to the zoom control unit that controls the electric zoom lens mechanism of the camera 30a of the camera wall 20a so that the magnification of the electric zoom becomes a default value. Thereby, the zoom control unit of the camera 30a controls the electric zoom lens mechanism so that the magnification of the electric zoom of the camera 30a becomes the default value.

  In subsequent step S317, a photographing process is performed. In other words, since the power zoom of the camera 30a is controlled so that the magnification becomes the default value, the reference subject 9 is photographed at the default magnification. After the moving image data of the reference subject 9 photographed in step S317 is acquired from the camera 30a via the video hub 12 and captured to cut out still image data, image recognition is performed on the still image data in the next step S319. Process.

  In the image recognition processing in step S319, the size of the sphere 9a of the reference subject 9 in the still image data is grasped by image recognition. Then, by the subsequent Z-direction misalignment calculation processing in step S321, the original size (reference magnification), for example, from the size of the sphere 9a in the captured image (reference size of the subject), the image of the sphere 9a is changed. It calculates how much the size (image size of the subject) is shifted. This deviation amount is obtained as an error on the plane coordinate in the Z-axis direction (zoom).

  It is determined whether or not the error on the plane coordinate in the Z-axis direction is within a predetermined allowable range by the determination processing within the allowable deviation amount error in the next step S323. Then, when it is determined that the reference size of the subject and the image size of the subject are substantially the same (or the same) and are within the allowable error (S323; Yes), the adjustment of the camera setting data of the camera # 1 is completed. Therefore, the camera setting data adjustment process is terminated, and the process returns to the camera direction automatic adjustment process shown in FIG. On the other hand, if it is determined that it is not within the allowable error (S323; No), the adjustment of the camera setting data of the camera # 1 has not been completed yet, and the process proceeds to step S322.

  In the Z-direction correction value calculation processing in step S322, the corrected magnification obtained by converting the error on the plane coordinate in the Z-axis direction into the magnification of the electric zoom and correcting with the excess / deficiency magnification is calculated.

  Based on the electric zoom magnification calculated and corrected in this way, the zoom control process is performed again in step S315. In the second process, the electric zoom lens mechanism of the camera # 1 (camera 30a) is controlled according to the corrected magnification calculated in step S322. Each process of steps S315, S317, S319, and S321 is repeatedly performed until it is determined that the error on the plane coordinate in the Z-axis direction is within the predetermined allowable range by the determination process within the allowable deviation amount error of S321.

  Returning to the automatic adjustment process such as the camera direction shown in FIG. 11, a process of determining whether or not the adjustment of the camera # 1 to the camera # 3 is completed in step S205. If the adjustment up to camera # 3 has not been completed yet (S205; No), the camera setting data adjustment process in step S203 is performed for camera # 2 and camera # 3 that have not been adjusted. On the other hand, when the adjustment of the camera setting data of the camera # 1 to the camera # 3 is completed (S205; Yes), the camera setting data reflection process of the camera #m in the subsequent step S207 is performed.

  That is, the camera setting data adjustment process shown in FIG. 12 may take time depending on the state of the camera 30a or the like. That is, if the shooting directions of the camera 30a and the like are different or the initial setting value of the power zoom magnification varies greatly, it takes a considerable amount of time to complete the above-described camera setting data adjustment processing. There is a case. Therefore, as a means for minimizing the execution of the camera setting data adjustment process that may take time, the computer 11 is caused to perform the camera setting data reflection process (see FIG. 13) in step S207.

  In the camera setting data adjustment process described above, the process flow is configured such that the XY direction initial value reading process is performed in S301 and then the pan / tilt control process is performed in Step S303. , 30b, 30c so that the shooting direction of the reference subject 9 is directed toward the sphere 9a of the reference subject 9 (so that the sphere 9a of the reference subject 9 is within the angle of view of the cameras 30a, 30b, 30c). After adjusting 50 to some extent, the camera setting data adjustment processing may be performed from the photographing processing in step S305.

  In the camera setting data adjustment process described above, the process flow is configured such that the Z direction initial value reading process is performed in S313 and then the zoom control process is performed in Step S315. For example, the cameras 30a and 30b are preliminarily configured. , 30c and the like (after adjusting the size of the sphere 9a of the reference subject 9 that falls within the angle of view of the cameras 30a, 30b, and 30c) to some extent manually by an operator, etc., from the shooting process in step S317 The camera setting data adjustment process may be performed.

  As a result, it is possible to adjust the camera setting data because the work proceeds with the setting contents according to the local environment and characteristics of each shooting studio in which the camera walls 20a to 20d are installed without reading the default values uniformly set in advance. The time required for processing can be shortened.

<< Camera setting data reflection processing by computer 11 >>
In the camera setting data reflection process shown in FIG. 13, the camera setting data of camera # 1 to camera # 3 obtained by the camera setting data adjustment process in step S203 is effectively used. That is, as described with reference to FIG. 1, the camera walls 20 a to 20 d are arranged such that the camera 30 a is positioned on the circumference of the ellipse O. The camera 30a and the like are positioned point-symmetrically with respect to the center P of the predetermined position 7 as described above. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, cameras # 1 (30a) and # 7 (30g), camera # 2 (30b) and camera # 8 (30h), camera # 3 (30c) and camera # 9 (30i), The camera # 4 (30d) and the camera # 10 (30j), the camera # 5 (30e) and the camera # 11 (30k), the camera # 6 (30f) and the camera # 12 (30m) are respectively the center P of the predetermined position 7 It is located symmetrically with respect to.

  Further, the camera 30a and the like are positioned symmetrically with respect to a line γγ ′ passing through the center P of the predetermined position 7 in the X-axis direction. For example, camera # 1 (30a) and camera # 12 (30m), camera # 2 (30b) and camera # 11 (30k), camera # 3 (30c) and camera # 10 (30j), camera # 4 (30d) And camera # 9 (30i), camera # 5 (30e) and camera # 8 (30h), camera # 6 (30f) and camera # 7 (30g) are respectively on lines γγ ′ passing through the center P of the predetermined position 7. It is located in line symmetry. These are also located in mirror symmetry with respect to the XY plane passing through the line γγ ′.

  For this reason, in the camera setting data reflection process, the camera setting data of the camera # 1 (30a) is directly copied and passed to the camera # 7 (30g) positioned symmetrically (S401). The “camera setting data” is data in the XY direction and the Z direction described with reference to FIG. 12, and more specifically, the electric camera platform 50 of the camera 30a (or the cameras 30b and 30c). Are angle data in the X-axis direction (pan) and Y-axis direction (tilt), and magnification data of the electric zoom lens (zoom) of the camera 30a. “Copy and pass” refers to the angle data of the electric pan head 50 in the X-axis direction (pan) and the Y-axis direction (tilt) and the magnification data of the electric zoom lens (zoom) of the camera 30a. The storage device stores the data of the electric camera platform 50 and the data of the camera as the initial value in the XY direction and the initial value in the Z direction in association with the camera # of the other party to be transferred.

  Further, the camera # 12 (30 m) positioned in line symmetry (mirror symmetry) is reversely copied and passed (S403). The “reverse copy” means that the data related to the front-rear direction of the vehicle 8 is reversed in the X-axis direction, and more specifically, the front-rear direction for controlling the left and right movable unit 54 of the electric head 50. The data relating to (pan) is to be reproduced with the front and back reversed (the same applies hereinafter). Further, “reversed copy and pass” means angle data obtained by inverting the front and rear in the X-axis direction (pan), angle data in the Y-axis direction (tilt), and the camera 30a. By associating magnification data of the electric zoom lens (zoom) with the camera # number of the other party to be transferred, the data of the electric camera platform 50 and the data of the camera are stored in the storage device as the XY direction initial value and the Z direction initial value. It is.

  Similarly, for the camera setting data of the camera # 2 (30b), the camera setting data of the camera # 2 (30b) is copied and passed to the camera # 8 (30h) positioned symmetrically (S407). Further, the camera # 11 (30k) positioned in line symmetry (mirror symmetry) is reversely copied and transferred (S409).

  Similarly, for the camera setting data of the camera # 3 (30c), the camera setting data of the camera # 3 (30c) is directly copied and passed to the camera # 9 (30i) positioned symmetrically (S413). Further, the camera # 10 (30j) positioned in line symmetry (mirror symmetry) is reversely copied and passed (S415).

  However, the camera setting data of the camera # 4 (30d) to the camera # 6 (30f) cannot be passed only by this. Therefore, the camera setting data that has been reversely copied to camera # 7 (30g) to camera # 9 (30i) is further transferred from camera # 7 (30g) to camera # 9 (30i) to camera # 4 (30d) to camera # 6 ( 30f) and reverse copy (S405, S411, S417).

  Since camera # 4 (30d) to camera # 6 (30f) and camera # 10 (30j) to camera # 12 (30m) have a point-symmetric relationship, camera # 10 (30j) to camera # 12 ( 30m) camera setting data may be copied and passed to camera # 4 (30d) to camera # 6 (30f) as they are.

  When the reverse copy process in step S417 ends, the camera setting data reflection process ends, and the process returns to the camera direction automatic adjustment process shown in FIG.

  Returning to the automatic adjustment process such as the camera direction shown in FIG. 11, a process of determining whether or not the reflection of the camera # 4 to the camera # 12 is completed in step S209. If the reflection up to camera # 12 has not been completed yet (S209; No), the camera setting data reflection process in step S207 is performed for camera # 5 and the like that have not been reflected. On the other hand, when the reflection of the camera setting data of the camera # 4 to the camera # 12 is completed (S209; Yes), the camera setting data adjustment process of the camera #m in the subsequent step S211 is performed.

  Similar to step S203 described above, the camera setting data adjustment process shown in FIG. 12 is executed for camera # 4 to camera # 12. However, the XY direction initial value read from the storage device by the XY direction initial value reading process in step S301 is obtained by copying or inverting the camera setting data of the cameras # 1 to # 3 by the camera setting data reflection process shown in FIG. Are generally stored in the storage device. Therefore, in the case of camera # 4 to camera # 12 (9 units), the number of cameras is three times that of camera # 1 to camera # 3 (3 units), but in the case of camera # 1 to camera # 3. It is possible to complete the camera setting data adjustment processing for the cameras # 4 to # 12 in a time shorter than three times the required time. That is, the time can be shortened.

  Returning to the automatic adjustment process such as the camera direction shown in FIG. 11, a process of determining whether or not the adjustment of the camera # 4 to the camera # 12 is completed in step S213. If the adjustment up to camera # 12 has not yet been completed (S213; No), the camera setting data adjustment process in step S211 is performed for camera # 5 and the like that have not been adjusted. On the other hand, when the adjustment of the camera setting data of the camera # 4 to the camera # 12 is completed (S213; Yes), the automatic adjustment process such as the camera direction is ended.

  As described above, in the photographing system 10 ′ according to the modification of the present embodiment, the reference subject 9 is placed at a spatial position that should be the center of the photographing range when the camera 30a or the like photographs the vehicle 8 stopped at the predetermined position 7. In the case of the arrangement, the computer 11 determines the sphere of the reference subject 9 based on the moving image data of the reference subject 9 captured by the camera 30a or the like or the still image data cut out from the moving image data for each of the twelve cameras 30a and the like. The movable pedestal 51 to which the camera 30a and the like are fixed is vertically moved so that the center position in the image and the position of the sphere 9a are substantially the same in the image range of the moving image data or the still image data. Alternatively, a control command for moving in the left-right direction is output to the control unit 56. As a result, it is possible to automatically adjust pan (left and right direction) and tilt (up and down direction) of each of the shooting directions of 12 cameras 30a and the like provided on each of the four camera walls 20a to 20d. become. Accordingly, it is difficult to take time and labor for installation and adjustment work of the camera 30a and the like, and the work efficiency can be significantly improved.

  In the imaging system 10 ′ according to the modified example of the present embodiment, the lenses of the lens unit 32 included in the twelve cameras 30a and the like are the standard zoom lens 32a and the wide-angle zoom lens 32b, and can be zoomed in and out. In the case of including a zoom mechanism and a zoom control unit that drives and controls the electric zoom mechanism in accordance with a control command input from the outside, the computer 11 uses a camera for each of the lenses included in the twelve cameras 30a and the like. The image of the sphere 9a is recognized based on the moving image data of the sphere 9a of the reference subject 9 photographed by 30a or the like or the still image data cut out from the moving image data, and is determined in advance within the image range of the moving image data or the still image data. The reference size of the sphere 9a and the image size of the sphere 9a So as to be substantially the same, and outputs a control command for driving the electric zoom mechanism of the lens with respect to the zoom control unit. This makes it possible to automatically adjust zoom-in (enlargement) and zoom-out (reduction) by the lens in 12 cameras provided on the four camera walls 20a to 20d. Accordingly, it is difficult to take time and labor for installation and adjustment work of the camera 30a and the like, and the work efficiency can be significantly improved.

  In the above-described embodiment, the configuration example in which the three cameras 30 are provided on the camera wall 20 has been described. However, the camera wall 20 may be provided with a plurality of cameras. For example, two cameras or four or more cameras may be provided. Good. When the number of cameras 30 provided on the camera wall 20 is four or more, for example, instead of the front panel 26, the front panel 25 (curtain plate wall 25a, blank plate wall 25b) is replaced with the portion where the front panel 26 is attached. , Waist plate wall 25c) and the like are attached. In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the three cameras 30 are provided so as to be arranged in the peripheral direction of the vehicle 8 has been described as an example. However, a plurality of cameras 30 are provided so as to be arranged in the height direction of the vehicle 8. Also good. In this case, the camera 30, the camera case 33, the camera box 37, and the like are attached to the portion where the blank plate wall 25b is attached.

  In other words, the camera 30 may be attached to the upper rack space 27, the middle rack space 28, and the lower rack space 29 (a total of three cameras 30), or these rack spaces 27, 28, Alternatively, two cameras 30 may be attached to any two of 29. Thereby, the cameras 30 can be arranged in a matrix.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, four corners (left front corner portion 7a, left rear corner portion 7b, right rear corner portion 7c, right front corner portion 7d) at predetermined positions 7 provided substantially at the center of the photographing studio 2 are provided. Although two camera walls 20a to 20d are provided, if there is a space to be arranged around the predetermined position 7, the number of camera walls 20 may be five or six, for example. If the camera support structure is configured to support or hold the camera 30a or the like when it is not necessary to provide the retreat space 4 for the worker to retreat, the camera panel 20 to the front panel 25 can be supported. , 26 and the like (a configuration including a vertical frame 21 and a horizontal frame 22).

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the top panel 23, the side panel 24, and the front panels 25 and 26 are painted in gray. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and illumination light in the shooting studio 2 is unnecessarily reflected. For example, achromatic colors such as white and black may be used as long as the paint color does not interfere with the shooting of the vehicle 8 such as, for example, the color of the captured image or image. A chromatic color may also be used.

  Specific examples of the present invention have been described in detail above, but these are merely examples and do not limit the scope of the claims. The technology described in the claims includes various modifications or changes of the specific examples described above. In addition, the technical elements described in the present specification or drawings exhibit technical usefulness alone or in various combinations, and are not limited to the combinations described in the claims at the time of filing. Furthermore, the technique illustrated in this specification or the drawings achieves a plurality of objects at the same time, and has technical utility by achieving one of these objects. Note that the description in parentheses in the [Explanation of Symbols] can clearly indicate the correspondence between the terms used in the above-described embodiments and the terms described in the claims.

2 ... Shooting studio 4 ... Retreat space 5 ... Inlet 6 ... Exit 7 ... Predetermined position 7a ... Left front corner (four corners of vehicle)
7b ... Left rear corner (four corners of the vehicle)
7c ... Right rear corner (four corners of the vehicle)
7d ... Right front corner (four corners of the vehicle)
8 ... Vehicle 9 ... Reference subject (position reference subject)
10, 10 '... photographing system (vehicle image photographing system)
11: Computer (image processing apparatus)
20, 20a to 20d ... Camera wall (camera support structure)
30, 30a to 30k, 30m ... Camera 31 ... Camera body 32 ... Lens unit 32a ... Standard zoom lens 32b ... Wide angle zoom lens 40 ... Pan head 41 ... Pan / tilt unit 45 ... Slide unit 50 ... Electric pan head 51 ... Movable base (pedestal)
52. Vertical movable unit (vertical movable mechanism)
53. Tilt motor (electric tilt motor)
54. Left / right movable unit (left / right movable mechanism)
55 ... Pan motor (electric pan motor)
56 ... Control unit (pan / tilt control unit)
70 ... Display screen

Claims (5)

A vehicle image capturing system for capturing a vehicle image of the entire circumference of a vehicle,
At least four camera support structures provided within a predetermined distance from four corners of the vehicle so as to surround the vehicle stopped at a predetermined position in the photographing studio;
N (plural) cameras provided in each of the four camera support structures side by side in the circumferential direction of the vehicle and capable of capturing a vehicle body image of the vehicle as a moving image during a predetermined period;
A total of (4 × N) moving image data output from the N cameras provided in each of the four camera support structures is acquired, and at least one of each of these (4 × N) moving image data is acquired. An image processing device that cuts out still image data and generates a vehicle image of the entire circumference,
The N cameras provided in each of the four camera support structures are characterized in that at least one of the cameras has a wide-angle lens and photographs the moving image through the wide-angle lens. Vehicle image capturing system.   The vehicle image capturing system according to claim 1, wherein the camera support structure has a plate wall structure having a size that can cover or hide an upright worker. The camera support structure is provided for each of the N cameras.
A pedestal for fixing the camera;
A left-right movable mechanism for moving the pedestal so that the shooting direction of the camera can be changed to the left-right direction;
An electric pan motor capable of driving the left and right movable mechanism;
A vertically movable mechanism for moving the pedestal so that the shooting direction of the camera can be changed in the vertical direction;
An electric tilt motor capable of driving the vertically movable mechanism;
A pan / tilt control unit that drives and controls the electric pan motor and the electric tilt motor according to a control command input from the outside;
The vehicle image capturing system according to claim 1, further comprising: In the case where a position-based subject is placed at a spatial position that should be the center of the shooting range when the camera stops at the predetermined position,
For each of the N cameras, the image processing device
The subject is image-recognized based on the moving image data of the subject taken by the camera or still image data cut out from the moving image data, and the center position in the image within the image range of the moving image data or the still image data and the subject A control command for moving the pedestal on which the camera is fixed in the left-right direction or the up-down direction so that the position of the camera is substantially the same is output to the pan / tilt control unit. 4. The vehicle image photographing system according to 3. The lenses of the N cameras are zoom lenses, and include an electric zoom mechanism that can zoom in and zoom out, and a zoom control unit that drives and controls the electric zoom mechanism according to a control command input from the outside. If
The image processing apparatus, for each of the lenses of the N cameras,
The subject is image-recognized based on the moving image data of the subject photographed by the camera or still image data cut out from the moving image data, and the subject that is predetermined within the image range of the moving image data or the still image data 5. The control command for driving the electric zoom mechanism of the lens is output to the zoom control unit so that the reference size of the subject and the image size of the subject are substantially the same. Vehicle image capturing system described in 1.