JP3168443B2 - Panoramic electronic still camera - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic still camera capable of panoramic photography. In detail, normal shooting and panoramic shooting can be performed, and panoramic shooting can be set to any shooting range. Even if the main subject moves during shooting, the shot image Is an electronic still camera that can shoot without deformation.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A general Leica camera has a photographed image of 24 mm × 36 mm in length and width, and the ratio of length and width in the NTSC video standard is 3: 4. On the other hand, a panoramic photograph is one in which the aspect ratio is determined to be horizontally long.

There are various means for obtaining a panoramic image. A photograph using a silver halide film is roughly classified into three means, a first means for setting a horizontally long image plane from a normal aspect ratio to obtain a horizontally long image, and a panning method for a plurality of images. A second means for photographing and connecting them later, and a third means for obtaining a panoramic image by optically extracting a certain one-dimensional part of the two-dimensional image information and scanning the one-dimensional part on an imaging plane. There are means.

The first means, which uses a horizontally long large-format film, is commercially available as a special-purpose camera.
In addition, a panoramic method using a 35 mm film has been widely used in recent years as a simple means among these means. That is, this method is a method of obtaining a horizontally long image surface by slightly masking the upper and lower portions of the image plane of the Leica format, and obtaining a panoramic photograph by enlarging and printing it. The second means is a method capable of photographing in a free range without requiring any special equipment. The third means uses a special camera for exclusive use. Although there is no versatility, images of any range can be taken seamlessly.

FIG. 10 shows an example of a silver halide film camera provided with a third panoramic means. In this camera, the subject image light passes through the photographing lens 11 and the film 1
The image is formed on the plane No. 2. Further, a light shielding plate 14 having a slit 13 is disposed immediately before the image forming surface of the film 12.
A one-dimensional component of the two-dimensional image of the subject image light enters the film 12 through the slit 13 to expose the film 12.

The camera rotates about a rotation shaft 15, and the rotation of the rotation shaft 15 is transmitted to a sprocket 17 via a reduction gear 16. Therefore, the film 12 is wound up in accordance with the angle at which the camera is rotated, and the subject light forms an image in that range.

[0007] If the angular velocity at the time of rotation is not constant, the above-mentioned camera causes uneven exposure on the image plane. Therefore, the camera is rotated at a constant angular velocity by the power of a macro motor or the like.

Japanese Patent Application No. 2-139465 has already filed a patent application for panoramic photography with an electronic still camera by the inventor of the present invention. In this method, an anamorphic lens is attached to a photographing optical system at the time of photographing, and an image is taken in a state where the left and right sides of the image are compressed. At the time of reproduction, the image data is expanded right and left by signal processing to obtain a panoramic image. .

The second means of a camera using a silver halide film is a camera which uses a home video camera and obtains a horizontally long image by masking the upper and lower parts of the image black by signal processing. There is. This makes it possible to easily switch between normal shooting and panoramic shooting, and to obtain a good panoramic image by playing back on a wide-vision monitor during playback.

[0010] In addition, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-1 / 1986 discloses a camera corresponding to the third means using a silver halide film.
There is an electronic still camera disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 44981. This uses a one-dimensional sensor as an image sensor, and enables a two-dimensional image to be captured by rotating the entire image capturing system at the time of shooting.

[0011]

The above-mentioned conventional panoramic means have advantages and disadvantages, respectively. Means for making the imaging surface itself horizontally long has a general property that the optical performance of the imaging lens decreases (increases in aberration) as the position becomes farther from the center of the imaging surface. It is difficult to secure.

[0012] Further, although the aspect ratio is wider than that of a normal photograph, the aspect ratio and the photographing range are determined, so that the aspect ratio cannot be set freely according to the subject. Further, in the case of an electronic still camera, developing an imaging device having such a special aspect ratio requires a very large development cost, and is generally not realistic.

[0013] The means for joining a plurality of images causes an image shift at the joint. This can be caused by
In addition to the problem that it is difficult to perform perfect panning (positional problem), due to the distortion of the imaging lens,
Distortion occurs around the image.

In the case of a means for scanning a one-dimensional image, stable holding of the camera during scanning is an indispensable condition. In addition, there is no versatility since normal shooting cannot be performed. Also, in particular, in the electronic still camera disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-144981, it is impossible to rotate an arbitrary range due to its configuration.

In view of the above-mentioned circumstances, the present invention can perform normal photographing and panoramic photographing. In panoramic photographing, the photographing range can be arbitrarily changed.
The purpose is to develop an electronic still camera that is not affected by the optical performance of the taking lens.

[0016]

According to the present invention, there is provided an electronic still camera for recording an image taken by an image pickup means on a recording medium, comprising: a normal photographing mode and a panoramic photographing mode. Means for reading out an image signal from an image pickup device which is a two-dimensional sensor for picking up an image of a subject by switching to a normal photographing mode by a normal method; and switching to a panoramic photographing mode. Means for repeatedly reading an image signal from a specific area of the imaging device by switching, further comprising: means for rotating the camera in conjunction with an operation of reading the image signal of the specific area; temporarily reading the read image signal. A panoramic electronic still camera is proposed, comprising a memory means for recording and an image forming means for reading out the contents of the memory and forming an image.

The above-mentioned memory means divides the entire image signal into a plurality of predetermined areas and records them, and the image forming means reads out the image data of each area read from the memory means.
Data in standard image format,
It is possible to record data relating these plural images in the auxiliary recording area of each image data.

[0018]

By switching to the normal photographing mode, the image photographed by the image pickup device is read out as a whole, and normal photographing is performed by processing this image signal.

When the mode is switched to the panoramic photographing mode, an image signal of a specific area of the image sensor is repeatedly read out in conjunction with the rotation of the camera. Then, the read image signal is temporarily recorded in the memory means. In this recording, the entire image signal is divided into a plurality of areas.

The memory contents thus recorded are recorded in a predetermined format in the image forming means to form a panoramic image. For example, a panoramic image is formed by reading out image data of each area recorded in the memory means and recording the image data on a memory card or the like in a standard image format.

[0021]

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a panoramic electronic still camera. A subject image light passes through a photographing optical system 21 and forms an image on a light receiving surface of a CCD image pickup device 22.

The output signal of the CCD image sensor 22 is supplied to the amplifier 2
After being amplified by 3, it is converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter 24. Then, this digital signal is input to the signal processing circuit 25 and processed into a video signal. This video signal is temporarily recorded in a frame buffer (buffer memory) 26 and then transferred to a memory card 27 where it is recorded.

On the other hand, the electronic still camera is mounted on a rotary adapter 28 for panning in the horizontal direction. The rotary adapter 28 is provided with a detection sensor 29 for detecting the mounting of the electronic still camera. The CPU 30 receives the detection signal of the sensor 29 and switches to the panorama shooting mode. Switching between the normal photographing mode and the panoramic photographing mode can also be performed by operating the input means 31 to input a switching signal to the CPU 30.

FIG. 2 shows a simplified configuration diagram of the rotary adapter 28. As shown in the figure, a mounting screw 32 is provided on the upper part of the rotary adapter 28, and the mounting screw 32 is screwed into a tripod screw hole of the electronic still camera 33 to mount the electronic still camera 33 on the rotary adapter 28. Also,
A tripod screw hole is provided at a lower portion of the rotary adapter 28, and a tripod 34 is attached to and supported by the tripod screw hole.

The rotary adapter 28 has an electric contact 35 connected to an electric contact (not shown) of the electronic still camera 33.
And the electronic still camera 3 is connected via the electric contact 35.
The control signal is exchanged with the control signal 3 to synchronize the rotation of the electronic still camera 33 with the reading of the image signal from the CCD image sensor 22. The electric contact 35 can also be used as the detection sensor 29 described above.

Further, a positioning pin 36 is provided on the rotary adapter 28, and the pin 36 is inserted into a positioning hole of the electronic still camera 33 for positioning, so that the electric contact 3
5 is connected.

The rotary adapter 28 is driven to rotate by a driving device 37. The driving device 37 includes a stepping motor, a motor driving circuit, a gear train, and the like, and is controlled by a control device 38. Control device 3
8 controls the driving device 37 in accordance with a control signal sent from the electronic still camera 33 via the electric contact 35.

Next, a case where the above-mentioned electronic still camera 33 is used in a normal photographing mode will be described. In addition,
In the case of this photographing, a signal obtained from the CCD image pickup device 22 is recorded on the memory card 27 as a two-dimensional image signal.

That is, the CCD image pickup device 22 is driven by the driver 39 and outputs an image signal for one frame as serial data every 1/30 second. This output signal is converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter 24 and then sent to the signal processing circuit 25 sequentially. Signal processing circuit 2
5, the separation of each color component in the signal and the gain control
, Gamma correction, color balance adjustment, matrix calculation of signal components, and the like, and the processed video signal is recorded in the frame buffer 26.

The CPU 30 controls the memory controller 40 to write the image data of the frame buffer 26 to the memory card 27 in a predetermined format. At this time, accompanying data relating to the image is recorded in the auxiliary data recording area of the memory card 27. This data format is shown in FIG.
The contents of the auxiliary data include, for example, the date and place where the image was taken, the type of the subject, and information related thereto.

Next, a case where the camera is used in the panoramic photographing mode will be described. The operations of the CCD image sensor 22 and the A / D converter 24 are the same as those in the normal photographing mode.
The signal processing circuit 25 extracts only a part of the signal from the A / D converter 24, performs signal processing, and sends the signal to the frame buffer 26.

FIG. 4 shows a state in which the CCD image sensor 22 reads out image signals. Reference numeral 41 denotes an area of all pixels. In the case of the normal photographing mode, an image of the effective pixel area 43 excluding the blanking area (shaded area) 42 is output. In the case of the panoramic photographing mode, the signal processing circuit 25 converts only the signal in the area 44, which is the central part of the signal, into a predetermined signal, and then writes it into the frame buffer 26.

At this time, the CPU 30 sends a rotation signal as a control signal to the rotation adapter 28 in conjunction with the writing operation. The rotation adapter 28 pans the electronic still camera 33 by a fixed ratio in synchronization with the rotation signal.
When the photographing of the preset range is completed, the CPU 30 controls the memory controller 40 to control the frame buffer 26.
Is transferred to the memory card 27.

FIG. 5 shows the image data in the frame buffer 26.
Data. A1 to A15 indicate image data corresponding to the area 44, respectively. The memory controller 40 takes out continuous data from which a normal image can be formed, converts the data into a normal image data format, and writes the converted data into the memory card 27.

At this time, the relationship between the plurality of image data is written in the recording area of the auxiliary data. If a special reproducing device is used at the time of reproduction, a panoramic image can be created by connecting a plurality of images and output by referring to the auxiliary data. Further, when a general reproducing apparatus is used, a panoramic image cannot be output, but each image can be completely reproduced. FIG. 6 shows the relationship between the shooting state of a panoramic image shot as described above and the shot image. In addition,
a1 to a15 are image data written in the memory card 27.

Next, the relationship between the effective pixel area 43 and the use area 44 at the time of panoramic shooting will be described. As described above, when a plurality of images are shot by panning and connected to form an image, it is difficult to completely connect the images because the peripheral image is distorted due to lens distortion. Become.

The panoramic electronic still camera 33 of this embodiment
In the case of (1), since panning is performed in the horizontal direction, there is no adverse effect that the image is distorted due to distortion in the vertical direction. However, the area 44 should be narrowed as much as possible to eliminate the influence. However, if the width is made too narrow, there is a disadvantage that it takes too much time for shooting.

For example, a 1/2 inch CCD image pickup device 2
In the case where a lens having a focal length of 10 mm is used using the lens No. 2, the horizontal angle of view of the imaging range is 33.5 degrees. Assuming that only two vertical lines are used so that the area 44 has the narrowest horizontal width (because a predetermined signal cannot be obtained in the case of a color image sensor with one line), a 400,000 pixel type is used. Since there are approximately 800 pixels in the horizontal direction in the CCD image pickup device 22, the range of 33.5 degrees cannot be photographed unless reading is carried out 800 times 2 = 400 times.

This is not practical because it takes about 7 seconds when the CCD image pickup device 22 is driven by the usual method. Therefore, by setting the region 44 to be about several tens of lines in the vertical direction within a range where distortion can be ignored, a good panoramic image can be obtained in a sufficiently practical time.

FIG. 7 shows another embodiment in which the image signal reading state of the CCD image pickup device 22 is changed. In this embodiment, image reading areas 44a and 44b for panoramic photography are provided on both sides of the effective pixel area 43.

Since the areas 44a and 44b provided in this manner are shifted to the left and right with respect to the optical axis, they are affected by horizontal distortion and the image is distorted. However, since aberration characteristics are the same in the vicinity sufficiently close to the position, there is no possibility of occurrence of mismatch at a joint of images when scanning is performed.

In order to make the influence of the aberration characteristic the same, the width of the regions 44a and 44b should be as narrow as possible. However, if the width is too narrow, the above-described problem occurs. Therefore, by setting the width to about several tens of lines in the vertical direction in which distortion can be ignored, a good panoramic image can be obtained in a sufficiently practical time. It is possible.

FIG. 8 shows the image data of the frame buffer 26. A11 to A15 and A17 to A21 correspond to the areas 44a and 44b, and A16 is the image data corresponding to the area 43. . FIG. 9 shows the relationship between the shooting state of a panoramic image according to the present embodiment and the shot image. Here, a11 to a21 are image data written in the memory card 27.

In the photographing operation of this embodiment, images are continuously taken in in conjunction with the rotation of the entire camera, and are sequentially written into the frame buffer 26. The CPU 30 controls the memory controller 40 and transfers it to the memory card 27 in the form of standard image data for recording.

A 16 in FIG. 8 and a 16 in FIG. 9 are images taken in the effective pixel area 43. In this part, the output of the CCD image pickup device 22 is read out in a normal format, and the memory controller 40 reads the image data in a predetermined format.
Write to C27. Note that a11 to a15 correspond to the region 44a.
Here, a17 to a21 are images picked up in the area 44b, respectively, and are similarly written in the memory card 27.

The panoramic electronic still camera 33 of the present embodiment.
By arranging the main subject in the area of a16, it is possible to perform shooting that is the same as normal shooting. In addition, the surrounding scenery which is considered to be relatively insignificant can be photographed in an accurately matched state, though the influence of the aberration of the image pickup lens system appears somewhat.

[0047]

As described above, the panoramic electronic still camera according to the present invention can obtain a panoramic picture different from a normal aspect ratio, and can capture a subject image having any aspect ratio. . In addition, reproduction can be reliably performed without using a special reproduction device at the time of reproduction, and unlike the case where a plurality of photographs are connected to obtain a panoramic image, no inconsistency occurs in the connected portions. . In particular, since the main subject can be photographed at a time, even if the subject slightly moves, there is no influence, and a good image can be photographed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a circuit configuration of a panoramic electronic still camera embodying the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a simplified configuration diagram showing a rotating adapter on which the panoramic electronic still camera is mounted.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of image data showing a recording state of a memory card.

FIG. 4 is a simplified diagram showing a pixel readout area for panoramic imaging provided in an effective pixel area of a CCD image sensor.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a frame buffer recording state when a panoramic electronic still camera is panned and photographed.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a relationship between a shooting state of a panoramic image and a shot image.

FIG. 7 is a simplified diagram similar to FIG. 4, but showing another embodiment in which the pixel readout area for panoramic photography is changed.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a recording state of a frame buffer in another embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a shooting state and a shot image when panoramic shooting is performed in another embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a simplified diagram showing an example of a conventional panoramic camera using a silver halide film.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 21 shooting optical system 22 CCD image sensor 24 A / D converter 25 signal processing circuit 26 frame buffer 27 memory card 28 rotation adapter 30 CPU 31 input means 41 whole pixel area 42 blanking area 43 effective pixel area 44, 44a, 44b Pixel readout area for panoramic photography

Continuation of the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H04N 5/232 H04N 5/225 H04N 5/335 H04N 5/907 H04N 5/91

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] An electronic still camera for recording an image picked up by an image pickup means on a recording medium, comprising: means for switching between a normal photographing mode and a panoramic photographing mode. A means for reading out an image signal from an image pickup device which is a two-dimensional sensor for picking up an image of a subject by switching, and a means for repeatedly reading out an image signal from a specific area of the image pickup device by switching to a panoramic photographing mode. Means for rotating the camera in conjunction with an operation of reading an image signal in a specific area, a memory means for temporarily recording the read image signal, and an image for reading the contents of the memory to form an image. A panoramic electronic still camera, comprising a forming means. 2. The memory means divides an entire image signal into a plurality of predetermined areas and records the divided image data. The image forming means reads image data of each area read from the memory means by a standard image format. 3. The panorama according to claim 1, wherein the data is recorded in a mat format and data relating the plurality of images is recorded in an auxiliary recording area of each image data. Electronic still camera.