JP2769545B2 - Camera with automatic shooting function - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a camera which is set in advance so that when a desired subject enters a shooting range of a camera arranged at a desired position, the shutter is released. The present invention relates to a camera having an automatic photographing function.

[Conventional technology]

Automatic photographing by a camera is required, for example, when photographing a small animal with a high level of caution.

Conventionally, when performing automatic shooting, the camera is set at a desired position, the focus position is irradiated with infrared light using a sensor using infrared light, etc., and this sensor and the release of the camera are linked, and the small animal is An apparatus that is released and exposed when detected is used.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

However, the conventional automatic photographing device is separate from the camera, and requires a device for controlling the release of the camera and other devices, so that the size of the automatic photographing device becomes large. In addition, since it is an expensive automatic photographing device, it is limited to a case where it is used for a special purpose.
For this reason, photography by automatic photography is not easily enjoyable.

On the other hand, cameras equipped with an auto focus mechanism, an automatic exposure mechanism, and the like have been widely used so that photographing can be easily performed. That is, the subject distance is measured, the brightness of the subject is measured, and the photographing is performed by controlling the focal length, the aperture, and the shutter speed based on the distance measurement data and the photometry data obtained from the measurement results. Thus, recent cameras are provided with a function for acquiring photographing data on a subject. To facilitate the organization of photos, the camera is equipped with a date mechanism that allows the date and time of shooting to be imprinted on the film. For this purpose, the CPU mounted on the camera has a built-in timer circuit.

The present invention focuses on the fact that the camera itself can acquire photographing data relating to a subject and has a timer circuit as described above, and provides a camera that can perform automatic photographing using these functions. It is intended to be.

[Means for solving the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, a camera having an automatic photographing function according to the present invention is configured such that an automatic photographing is commanded in a camera having photographing data acquiring means for acquiring photographing data on a subject such as an autofocus mechanism and an automatic exposure mechanism. In this case, initial photographing data relating to photographing at the time of this command is set, photographing data relating to photographing at that time is acquired as intermittent photographing data at predetermined time intervals, and the initial photographing data and intermittent photographing data are successively compared. The main feature is that when these are different from each other by a predetermined value or more, the shutter is released based on the intermittent photographing data. Here, the intermittent photographing data is photographing data intermittently acquired at predetermined time intervals. If the initial photographing data is released at a predetermined value or more, the intermittent photographing data is used. Will be taken.

[Action]

Assume that the initial shooting data and the intermittent shooting data are distance measurement data.

It is assumed that distance measurement data of, for example, 10 m is given as the initial shooting data. The auto focus mechanism operates at predetermined time intervals, and distance measurement data up to the subject at that time is acquired as intermittent photographing data. This intermittent photographing data is compared with the initial photographing data. If the intermittent photographing data is 10 m, it is not released because the value is equal to the initial photographing data.

Then, if 5 m is obtained in the distance measurement data, which is intermittent photographing data after a predetermined time, it is released because it is different from the initial photographing data, so that it is exposed and photographed by the camera.

If the intermittent shooting data is different from the initial shooting data,
As long as the camera is installed at a fixed position, some object exists between the initially set distance and the camera. That is, when the object is present, distance measurement data is obtained from the object, and a photograph focused on the object is taken.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, a camera having an automatic photographing function according to the present invention will be specifically described based on the illustrated embodiment.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing a control mechanism of this camera. This camera has two CPs, a main CPU 2 and a sub CPU 4.
It is composed mainly of U. The main CPU 2 is arranged on the camera body side, and the sub CPU 4 is arranged on the camera back cover.

As shown in FIG. 1, the main CPU 2 includes various operation switches 6, an auto focus (AF) circuit 8, an automatic exposure (A)
E) Circuit 10, lens driving means 12, shutter driving means 1
4. Signals are exchanged with the film feeding means 16, the strobe circuit 18, the zoom driving means 20 and the like to exchange necessary information. The operation switch 6 includes a shutter button, a zoom switch, and the like. The AF circuit 8 exchanges distance measurement data obtained by measuring the distance to the subject with the main CPU 2. The AE circuit 10 transmits and receives photometric data obtained by measuring the luminance of the subject to and from the main CPU 2. The lens driving means 12 drives the photographing lens to the in-focus position at the time of release based on the distance measurement data obtained by the AF circuit 8. The shutter driving unit 14 controls the aperture, shutter speed, and the like at the time of release, based on the photometric data obtained by the AE circuit 10. The film feeding means 16 feeds the film to the first frame when the film is loaded, winds up the film by one frame after the release to prepare for the next photographing, and rewinds the film after all the frames have been photographed. Things. The strobe circuit 18 emits a strobe, and the strobe emits light even when the luminance is insufficient due to the photometry data obtained by the AE circuit 10. The zoom drive means 20 is provided in a camera equipped with a zoom mechanism, and moves a photographic lens along an optical axis to change a photographic magnification.

For example, when the shutter button is depressed for photographing, the first-stage switch is turned on when the shutter button is depressed to almost half, the distance is measured by the AF circuit 8, the photometry is performed by the AE circuit 10, and the distance measurement data and photometry are measured. Data is obtained. Further, when the shutter button is depressed, the second-stage switch is turned ON, the photographing lens is driven by the lens driving means 12, and the lens is focused, and the shutter is released by the shutter driving circuit 14 to expose the film. After the release, the film is wound up by the film feeding means 16.

The sub CPU 4 receives and processes information transmitted by operating the various mode set switches 22, and provides the processed information to the main CPU 2 by a serial signal. The various modes include an automatic shooting mode, a self shooting mode, and a flash shooting mode. Also, the information processed by the main CPU 2 is received by a serial signal, processed and stored. That is, information is not stored in the main CPU 2, and the storage is performed by the sub CPU 4. Further, the sub CPU 4 is provided with a timer circuit, which stores a date and time, and sends a command for imprinting the date and the like on the film as needed. A liquid crystal display (LCD) 24 is connected to the sub CPU 4 to display the date, time, which mode is selected, the number of film shots, the remaining battery power, and the like.

The reset signal output port of the sub CPU 4 is
The main reset information line 26 is connected to the reset port 2a of the CPU 2 and the sub reset port 4a of the sub CPU 4 is connected to the reset signal output port of the main CPU 2 by the sub reset information line 28, and is transmitted from the main CPU 2 or the sub CPU 4. Each is reset by a reset signal.

The operation of the above-configured camera according to the present invention at the time of automatic photographing will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

To perform automatic photographing with this camera, the automatic photographing mode switch is selected by operating the automatic photographing mode switch of the mode set switch 22. At this time,
The LCD 24 indicates that the camera is in the automatic shooting mode.

In the case of automatic photographing, the camera is arranged at a desired position, and when a small animal passes in front of the camera, the camera is released. Point the camera at.

When the automatic shooting mode is selected and the shutter button is pressed thereafter, the operation jumps from the standby state to the release subroutine (step 201).

In step 203, photometry is performed by the AE circuit 10 to acquire photometry data. Next, in step 204, distance measurement is performed to obtain distance measurement data. That is, when the camera is arranged to face one standing tree as described above, the distance to the standing tree is measured to obtain distance measurement data.
Then, the distance measurement data is transmitted from the main CPU 2 to the sub CPU 4 as initial photographing data F1, and is registered in the sub CPU 4.
Since the moving position of the photographing lens is divided into a plurality of stages, and the focusing operation is performed by moving to a predetermined stage, the initial photographing data F1 is obtained as data in which the number of photographing stages of the lens.

Then, when the shutter button is further pressed, the second-stage switch (SP2) is turned on. SP2 is ON in step 205
It is determined whether or not the operation has been performed, and if NO, the process proceeds to step 206, where it is determined whether or not SP1 is maintained ON. If the determination in step 206 is YES, step 20
Returning to 5, the determination of SP2 is performed, and the determination of step 205 and step 206 is repeated as long as SP1 is ON. If the determination in step 206 is NO, it means that the fingertip or the like has been released from the shutter button. In this case, since the camera arrangement is changed, the process returns from step 207 to the standby state. If the shutter button is pressed again, the process jumps to step 201 again.

If the determination result of step 205 is YES, step 20
8 determines whether the automatic shooting mode is set. If the determination is YES, the timer is set in step 209 to start counting, and step 210
Proceed to. In step 210, it is determined whether or not the counted time has exceeded the time set by the timer. If not, the determination result is NO and step 210
Is repeated. If the determination in step 210 is YES, the process proceeds to step 211, where distance measurement is performed, and distance measurement data is obtained. This distance measurement data is sent from the main CPU 2 to the sub CPU 4 as intermittent photographing data F2. Then, the process proceeds to a step 212, where a comparison is made with the initial photographing data F1 obtained in the step 204.

That is, the distance measurement data is acquired as the intermittent photographing data F2 in step 211 at predetermined time intervals. In addition,
This predetermined time is the time set in the timer,
This time may be specified when the photographer selects the automatic photographing mode. For example, it is preferable that the setting can be made in accordance with the ecology of the small animal to be photographed, and it is more preferable that the setting can be made arbitrarily within several seconds to several hours.

The distance measurement data is obtained as the number of steps at the in-focus position of the photographing lens. In step 212, the initial photographing data F1 and the intermittent photographing data F2 are compared to determine whether or not there is a difference of α steps or more. When the result of this determination is NO, the AF circuit 8 has measured the distance to the original standing tree in the same manner as when the initial shooting data F1 was obtained, and no change has occurred in the subject. Therefore, the process returns to step 209 and waits until the predetermined time elapses again.

If the determination result in step 212 is YES, it means that the subject has changed due to, for example, the presence of a small animal between the camera and the standing tree. That is, in the automatic photographing mode, the photographer wants to photograph the subject such as a small animal. First, the routine proceeds to step 213, where the intermittent photographing data F2 is set as distance measurement data. Then, the process proceeds to step 214, in which the lens driving means 12 is operated to move the taking lens to the lens stage at the in-focus position. Next, proceed to step 215, and step 203
Exposure is performed by operating the shutter driving means 14 with the aperture and shutter speed based on the photometric data obtained in step (1). In step 216, the photographing lens is returned to a predetermined stage to wait for the next photographing, and the process proceeds to step 217.

In step 217, it is determined whether or not the film is present. If not, the determination is NO, and since it is not possible to take the next image, the process proceeds to step 207 to return to the standby state. Become. Step 217 is Y
If it is determined to be ES, the process proceeds to step 218, in which the film feeding means 16 is operated to wind up the film by one frame and waits for the next photographing, and then proceeds to step 219.

In step 219, it is determined whether to continue the automatic shooting mode. This is a case where the number of times of automatic shooting can be set when the automatic shooting mode is set, and it is determined whether or not the number of times of automatic shooting has been equal to the set number of times. When this determination is NO, the automatic shooting of the set number of times has been completed, so the process proceeds to step 207 and returns to the standby state. If the result of the determination is YES, the automatic photographing is continued, and step 220
Proceed to.

In step 220, it is determined whether or not the mode is for updating the ranging stage. The setting of the range finder update mode is selected simultaneously with the setting of the automatic shooting mode. If this mode is selected, step
The determination result at 220 is YES, the process proceeds to step 221, and the intermittent shooting data F2 obtained at step 211 is newly set as the initial shooting data F1, that is, the initial shooting data F1 is changed, and the process returns to step 209. If the determination result in step 220 is NO, the process proceeds to step 222 and returns to step 209 without changing the initial photographing data F1. This is the initial shooting data F1
If the small animal stops between the camera and the standing tree while the distance measurement data obtained in step 204 remains, if the flow from step 209 is repeated again, step 2
A determination of NO is made at 12, and the same small animal is photographed at step 215. In other words, the image is shot even though the subject does not substantially change. On the other hand, when the range finder update mode is selected, the initial photographing data F1 is replaced with the intermittent photographing data F obtained in step 211.
Update to 2 so if a small animal stops, step 2
The determination in step 12 is YES, and automatic photographing is not performed until the small animal moves. That is, when there is a change in the subject from the state of the previous photographing, automatic photographing is performed.

The above case is a case where the automatic shooting mode is set and maintained, and the determination in step 208 is YES. If the decision result in the step 208 is NO, it is in a normal state not in the automatic photographing mode and SP2 is ON (step 20).
Since the shutter button has been depressed in step 5), the process proceeds to step 214, where the shutter button is released and exposed.

In this embodiment, the automatic photographing is performed by judging the change in the distance measurement data. However, the automatic photographing can be performed by judging the change in the photometry data. In this case, if the initial photographing data is always changed to intermittent photographing data in consideration of nightfall, automatic photographing is not performed when the change width of the photometric data is small, and the photometric data suddenly changes. Automatic shooting is performed only in such a case, so that the subject can be reliably captured.

Further, in this embodiment, the photometric data is shown as being initially obtained even when the automatic shooting mode is set, but in the automatic shooting mode, the photometric data is obtained every time the intermittent shooting data F2 is obtained. You can also. Further, in this embodiment, a flowchart without flash emission is shown, but if it is determined that the exposure is insufficient from the acquired photometric data, flash photography can be performed.

〔The invention's effect〕

As described above, according to the camera having the automatic photographing function according to the present invention, if there is a change in the photographing data obtained from the subject, the release is automatically and reliably performed, and the subject that caused the change can be photographed. . In addition, by adjusting the predetermined time, it is possible to continuously perform automatic photographing.

In addition, since automatic shooting can be performed using the function of recent cameras, anyone can easily do without the need for a large-scale automatic shooting device such as an infrared sensor or a release device linked to it. And you can enjoy automatic shooting at low cost.

Furthermore, since it is easy to change an existing camera to a camera that can automatically shoot, there is no need to provide new equipment and the like, and there is almost no increase in production costs.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram for explaining the relationship between the functions of a camera having this automatic photographing function. Fig. 2
9 is a flowchart in the case of performing automatic shooting. 2 Main CPU, 4 Sub CPU 8 AF circuit (auto focus mechanism) 10 AE circuit (auto exposure mechanism) 22 Mode switch

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] In a camera having photographing data acquisition means for acquiring photographing data on a subject, such as an autofocus mechanism and an automatic exposure mechanism, when automatic photographing is instructed, initial photographing data relating to photographing at the time of the instruction is set. The photographing data relating to the photographing at that time is acquired as intermittent photographing data at predetermined time intervals, and the initial photographing data and the intermittent photographing data are sequentially compared with each other. A camera equipped with an automatic photographing function characterized in that the camera is released. 2. A camera having photographing data acquisition means for acquiring photographing data on a subject, such as an autofocus mechanism and an automatic exposure mechanism, wherein when automatic photographing is instructed, initial photographing data relating to photographing at the time of the instruction is set. The photographing data relating to the photographing at that time is acquired as intermittent photographing data every predetermined time, and the initial photographing data and the intermittent photographing data are sequentially compared, and if they do not differ by more than a predetermined value, the photographing data is acquired at that time. A camera having an automatic photographing function, wherein the initial photographing data is replaced with intermittent photographing data, and when the initial photographing data differs from the intermittent photographing data by a predetermined value or more, the camera is released. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the initial photographing data and the intermittent photographing data are distance measurement data relating to a distance to a subject acquired by the autofocus mechanism. A camera having the automatic photographing function described in the above. 4. The automatic photographing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the initial photographing data and the intermittent photographing data are photometric data on subject brightness acquired by the automatic exposure mechanism. A camera with a shooting function. 5. The camera having an automatic photographing function according to claim 1, wherein a predetermined time for acquiring said intermittent photographing data is variable.