JP3913251B2 - Imaging device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus, and more particularly to an imaging apparatus having white balance control means for controlling white balance of a signal obtained from an output of an imaging means.

  In recent years, for white balance control in an imaging apparatus such as a movie video camera or an electronic still camera, a technique for maintaining a good white balance of a video signal automatically captured using the output of an image sensor, that is, TTL automatic tracking White balance control of the formula has come to be performed.

  An outline of an example of white balance control using this method will be described below. In general, in an image pickup apparatus such as that described above, signals obtained from an image pickup device are transmitted through a well-known color separation circuit or process circuit as a Y (luminance) signal, an R (red) -Y signal, and a B (blue) -Y Converted to a signal. In general, a variable gain amplifier is provided for the R signal, B signal, RY signal, BY signal and the like in this process.

  On the other hand, the Y, RY, and BY signals are averaged over a period of one field or more by processing such as integration, and R, G, and B signals are derived using these averaged signals. To do. Then, using these three primary color signals, a control signal for controlling the variable gain amplifier is derived so that the ratio of the three primary color signals becomes 1: 1: 1.

  This makes it possible to automatically perform white balance control without using a colorimetric sensor or the like.

  On the other hand, in the method as described above, white balance control is performed using the output of the image sensor, so if there is a highly saturated subject that occupies a large area in the image pickup image frame, it is affected by the subject and a good white There is a problem that balance adjustment cannot be performed.

In view of this, it is known that a clipping circuit is provided before the above-described averaging process to reduce the influence of a subject with high saturation (for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-120988

  When such a clipping circuit is used, it is considered that the required effect can be obtained when the high level side 1 and the low level side 2 are evenly clipped as shown in FIG. When only the high level side 1 is clipped and the low level side 2 is not clipped as shown in FIG. 8 (2) due to the color of the light source or the color temperature, the white balance adjustment is performed on the low level side. It will be affected by the signal. Of course, the same applies when only the low level side 2 is clipped.

  Specifically, in a movie camera in which the time constant of the averaging circuit is set to be long so that an appropriate white balance state is gradually obtained, it takes a long time to obtain an appropriate white balance state. In addition, when it is necessary to achieve an appropriate white balance state in a short time as in an electronic still camera, there is a problem that photographing is performed in a state where the white balance is not appropriate.

  In addition, the white balance shift due to the influence of the high saturation subject generally occurs when a color shift corresponding to the color temperature conversion of black body radiation occurs, that is, when redness becomes strong or blue becomes strong. Although it does not bother much, when color shifts that do not correspond to changes in color temperature, that is, when greening or purpleting occurs, this is visually annoying.

  Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the above-mentioned annoying white balance deviation by simply limiting the color correction direction during white balance adjustment to only the direction corresponding to the change in the approximate color temperature. The white balance control cannot be performed when photographing under a light source having a greenish color with respect to the black body radiation light such as a fluorescent lamp.

  Under such a background, the present invention provides an image pickup apparatus that can perform good white balance control without being affected by a high-saturation subject that occupies a large area in the image pickup image frame regardless of changes in the color or color temperature of the light source. The purpose is to do.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an image pickup apparatus that can cope with a color change of a light source and can eliminate an annoying color shift that does not correspond to a color temperature change.

Under such an object, according to the present invention, in an imaging apparatus having an imaging means including an optical system and an imaging device, clipping means for clipping amplitude components of a plurality of types of color difference signals obtained from the output of the imaging means. A white balance control means for controlling the white balance of the signal obtained from the output of the imaging means using the output of the clip means, and a clip for changing the clip range of the clip means according to the shutter speed in the imaging means And an changing unit.
Further, in an image pickup apparatus having an image pickup means including an optical system and an image pickup device, a clip means for clipping amplitude components of a plurality of types of color difference signals obtained from the output of the image pickup means, and an output of the clip means, And white balance control means for controlling white balance of a signal obtained from the output of the imaging means, and clip changing means for changing the clip range of the clip means in accordance with the aperture value in the imaging means. An imaging device is provided.

As described above, by changing the clip range of the clip means according to the shutter speed in the image pickup means including the optical system and the image pickup device, the clip range can be changed according to the change of the color temperature due to the change of the light amount. Since the color signal can always be properly clipped even at the color temperature, white balance control can be performed without being affected by a highly saturated subject regardless of the color temperature.
Further, as described above, by changing the clip range of the clip means according to the aperture value in the image pickup means including the optical system and the image pickup device, the clip range can be changed according to the change in the color temperature due to the change in the light amount. Since the color signal can always be properly clipped at any color temperature, it is possible to perform white balance control that is not affected by a subject with high saturation regardless of the color temperature.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an imaging apparatus as a first embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, 1 is an optical system that forms an image of reflected light from a subject and restricts the amount of light, 3 is an image sensor that converts the subject image through the optical system 1 into an electrical signal, and 5 is an output of the image sensor 3. A known color separation circuit for extracting R, G, and B signals from A, 7 and 9 for R signal and B amplifier for amplifying the R signal and B signal, respectively, and 11 for R signal output from the R amplifier and B amplifier ( R ′), B signal (B ′), and further a G signal, and a process circuit for deriving a Y signal, an (RY) signal, and a (BY) signal.

  Reference numeral 13 denotes a peak-to-peak (PP) clipping circuit for clipping the high-level and low-level portions of the Y, RY, and BY signals from the process circuit 11, and reference numeral 15 denotes three signals output from the clipping circuit 13. , And 17 is an analog-digital (A / D) conversion of the three signals output from the integration circuit 15 to obtain three digital values YD, (RY) D, and (BY) D, respectively. An A / D converter 19 for outputting is a microprocessing unit (MPU) to which these digital values YD, (R−Y) D, and (B−Y) D are connected.

  21 is a photometric sensor for measuring the brightness of the subject, 23 is an A / D converter for A / D converting the output of the photometric sensor 21, and 25 is a digital-analog (digital control value RCD and BCD output from the MPU 19, respectively. D / A) D / A converter for conversion, and the gain of the R amplifier 7 and B amplifier 9 is controlled by the output of the D / A converter 25. PSW is a power switch of the image pickup apparatus, and 31, 33, and 35 are output terminals.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the MPU 19 of the present embodiment, and the operation of the present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG.

  When the power switch PSW is turned on (step S1), power is supplied to each part of the apparatus. Here, the reflected light of the subject is controlled and limited by the optical system 1 to form an image on the image pickup surface of the image pickup device 3, and the electric signal read from the image pickup device 3 follows the filter arrangement of the element 3. Processing is performed by the color separation circuit 5 to obtain R, G, and B signals. Among these signals, the R signal and the B signal are amplified by the R amplifier 7 and the B amplifier 9 with gains determined by control signals RC and BC, which will be described later, respectively. Output signals R ′ and B ′ of the R amplifier 7 and B amplifier 9 are input to the process circuit 11 together with the G signal.

  The process circuit 11 outputs Y, (R−Y), and (B−Y) signals using R ′, B ′, and G signals, respectively. The three main signals of the process circuit 11 are supplied from the output terminals 31, 33, 35 to the outside and the recording / reproducing unit.

  The three signals are converted into digital values YD, (R−Y) D, and (B−Y) D via the clip circuit 13, the integration circuit 15, and the A / D converter 17, respectively, and are connected to the MPU 19.

  On the other hand, the output of the photometric sensor 21 is also converted into a digital value LD via the A / D converter 23 and connected to the MPU 19.

  When the power switch PSW is turned on, the MPU 19 reads and stores L0, a, b, c, and d as initial values in the internal memory. Here, L0 is a value obtained by digitizing a signal from the photometric sensor 21 for a subject with a certain brightness, and the setting of the subject is a value corresponding to the brightest indoor light. Also. “a”, “b”, “c”, and “d” are values used for an arithmetic expression when the white balance control voltage is derived, and optimum values are set in advance.

In step S3, the digital value LD which is a photometric output is read, and in step S4, L0 and LD are compared. Here, if LD> L0, the process proceeds to step S5, and the clip range of the PP clip circuit 13 is made compatible with the high color temperature. For specific to the B -Y signal as shown in FIG. 3 (1) high clip range As not to be clipped only high unit as shown in (a) (shown in FIG hatching) Shift to the level side. As a result, the clip range is clipped almost evenly on the high level side and the low level side as shown in FIG. Similarly, as the low-level unit as shown in (b) of FIG. 3 (2) for R -Y signal only (hatched portion) is prevented from being clipped, the diagram (2) (b) The clip range is shifted to the low level side as shown in.

  A specific configuration of the clip circuit capable of changing the clip range in this way is shown in FIG. In FIG. 4, 27, 31, and 33 are transistors, 29 is a resistor, and 35 and 37 are reference voltage sources. In such a circuit configuration, by setting the voltages E1 and E2 of the reference voltage sources 35 and 37 to a high level, the clip range can be shifted to a high level, and by setting the voltage level to a low level, the clip range can be reduced. Shift to the level side.

  In general, if the photometric output is higher than the level described above, it can be predicted that the photo is taken outdoors, that is, under sunlight or in cloudy weather, and the probability is extremely high when illuminated by high color temperature light. The change of the clip level range can be made almost uniform between the high level side and the low level side with a very high probability. Therefore, as described above, it is possible to effectively remove the influence of a subject with high saturation.

  On the other hand, if LD> L0 is not satisfied in step S4, the process proceeds to step S6, where the external light is estimated to be room light, and the clip range is made compatible with the low color temperature. Specifically, as shown in (c) of FIG. 3 (1), for the RY signal, the clip range is shifted to the low level side, and as shown in (c) of FIG. For, shift the clip range to the higher level. As a result, similarly, the clip range can be made substantially equal on the high level side and the low level side, and the influence of the subject with high saturation can be effectively removed.

  After the clip range is determined in step S5 or step S6, in step S7, the digital values YD, (RY) D, (BY) D are read from the A / D converter 17, and these values are read. The values of R, G and B signals are derived from the above by matrix calculation.

  In step S8, the RCD that is the control value of the R amplifier 7 is obtained by the equation a · R / G + b, and the BCD that is the control value of the B amplifier 9 is similarly obtained by the equation c · B / G + d. The digital values RCD and BCD obtained in this way are output to the D / A converter 25 in step S9, converted to analog control voltages RC and BC, the gains of the R amplifier 7 and B amplifier 9 are controlled, and white balun control is performed. Done.

  Such a process is repeated until the power switch PSW is turned off, and when the power switch PSW is turned off (step S10), the process is terminated.

  As described above, in the image pickup apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the clipping range of the color difference signals RY and BY by the PP clip circuit 13 is changed according to the brightness of external light. By doing so, it is possible to effectively remove the influence of a high-saturation subject on white balance control under various environments.

  In the above-described embodiment, the two clip ranges are switched with a certain brightness as a boundary, but three or more clip ranges are set and selected, and a sharp color near the change point of the clip range is selected. It is also possible to adopt a configuration that avoids this change. Similarly, it is possible to change the clip range gradually with a predetermined time constant.

(Second embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The configuration itself of the image pickup apparatus of the present embodiment is as shown in FIG. 1 as in the first embodiment, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the MPU 19 in this embodiment, and the operation will be described below using this flowchart. In the flowchart of FIG. 5, the same steps as those in FIG.

  In the present embodiment, after the power switch PSW is turned on, the initial value to be read when the apparatus is started is not limited to L0, a, b, c, d described in the first embodiment, and will be described later. A constant m indicating the number of times of reading and a reference value F0 for detecting the presence or absence of flicker are read (step S11).

  Next, in step S12, 1 is set in the variable n, and when the digital value LD which is the photometric output is read in step S3, the digital value LD is set in Ln in step S14. In step S15, n and m are compared. If n = m, n is set to n + 1 (step S13), the process returns to step S3, and the above operation is repeated.

  When n = m is determined in step S15, a digital value, which is a photometric output having a time difference between L1 to Lm, is placed. Here, in step S16, the maximum value LMAX and the minimum value LMIN in L1 to Lm are extracted, and the average value LAVE of L1 to Lm is calculated. Then, LMAX + LMIN is further calculated as a value LF indicating the flicker amount from these values.

  Next, in step S18, LAVE is compared with L0. This step S18 has the same meaning as step S4 in the first embodiment. When LAVE> L0, the clip range of the PP clip circuit 13 is set to a high color in step S5 as in the first embodiment. Temperature support.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S18 that LAVE> L0 is not satisfied, the process proceeds to step S19, and the value LF indicating the flicker amount is compared with the reference value F0. If LF> F0, it is determined that there is no flicker, and the process proceeds to step S6 where the clip range of the PP clip circuit 13 is made compatible with the low color temperature as in the first embodiment.

  If it is determined in step S19 that LF> F0, it is determined that flicker exists. In this case, it is estimated that the light source is a fluorescent lamp, and the clip range of the PP clip circuit 13 is made compatible with the fluorescent lamp. To do. Specifically, when a fluorescent lamp is used as a light source, the clip levels of both RY and BY are lowered as shown in (d) of FIGS. Shift to the level side. This is because the fluorescent light is greener than other blackbody radiation approximate light.

  The calculation of the white balance control voltage after step S7 is the same as in the first embodiment, and digital values RCD and BCD for white balance control are output in step S9.

  According to the above-described embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, when the outside light is not bright, it is determined that the image is taken indoors, and the presence or absence of flicker is detected to detect the indoor shooting. Whether the light source is a fluorescent lamp or other light source is detected, and the clipping range of each of the color difference signals RY and BY by the PP clip circuit 13 even in photographing under a relatively frequent fluorescent lamp Can be changed so that the high level side and the low level side are evenly clipped, and it is possible to cope with various environments and further reduce the possibility of the influence of a highly saturated subject on white balance control.

  In the second embodiment, it is estimated that the light source is a fluorescent lamp only when the diplomatic brightness is low and the presence of flicker is detected. However, there are few opportunities for indoor shooting other than the fluorescent lamp. Therefore, it is naturally possible to adopt a configuration in which only the flicker is detected and the clip range is switched between high color temperature support and fluorescent lamp support.

(Third embodiment)
The third embodiment of the present invention will be described below. The configuration of the imaging apparatus of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the MPU 19 in this embodiment. In the flowchart of FIG. 6, the same steps as those in FIG.

  In the same manner as the image pickup apparatus of the first embodiment, the image pickup apparatus of the present embodiment determines in step S4 whether the external light is brighter or darker than a certain brightness, and if it is bright, the clip of the PP clip circuit 13 is determined. The range is made compatible with the high color temperature. At this time, the calculation method of the white balance control values RCD and BCD is changed from that of the first embodiment.

  That is, in this embodiment, in the initial value reading process (step S21) immediately after the power switch PSW is turned on, in addition to the a, b, c, and d described above, the values used for the arithmetic expression when deriving the white balance control voltage are used. When e, f, g, and h are read and it is determined in step S4 that the external light is brighter than a certain brightness, the clipping range of the PP clip circuit 13 is made to correspond to the high color temperature in step S5, and in step S22. R and B are derived from YD, (R−Y) D, and (B−Y) D, respectively. Here, this derivation may be, for example, R = YD + (R−Y) D and B = YD + (B−Y) D.

  In step S23, R and B are used to obtain RCD, which is the control value of the R amplifier 7, using the equation e · R / B + f. Similarly, BCD, which is the control value of the B amplifier 9, is obtained as g · R. It is determined by the formula / B + h. When white balance control is performed using only R and B in this way, the color correction direction is only the color temperature change direction of the black body radiation. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a color shift that does not correspond to the color temperature change caused by the white balance control, that is, an obtrusive color shift such as greening or purpleening.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S4 that the external light is not brighter than a certain brightness, the clipping range of the PP clip circuit 13 is made to correspond to the low color temperature in step S6, and the first embodiment is performed in steps S7 and S8. The white balance control values RCD and BCD are calculated in the same manner as in FIG. In this calculation method, as described above, RCD is obtained by the equation a · R / G + b and BCD is obtained by the equation c · B / G + d. Therefore, color correction can be performed in directions other than the color temperature change direction.

  In other words, when the outside light is dark, shooting under various light sources such as fluorescent lamps can be considered. For example, in the case of a fluorescent lamp, white balance control corresponding to the greenish color is controlled. It is necessary to perform color correction in directions other than the color temperature change direction as described above. However, when the external light is bright, it can be estimated that the light source light is almost sunlight. There is almost no need for color correction in directions other than the temperature change direction. Rather, there is a problem in that an unpleasant color shift due to the influence of the subject described above occurs.

  Therefore, according to the present embodiment, white balance can be corrected satisfactorily even when photographing under a fluorescent lamp, and an unsightly color shift can be prevented when photographing outdoors.

  In the present embodiment, the clipping range of the PP clip circuit 13 is changed depending on the brightness of the outside light. However, even when shooting under a fluorescent lamp is performed without changing the clipping level, the white range is excellent. The balance can be corrected, and the effect of preventing an unsightly color shift can be obtained in outdoor shooting.

  In the above embodiment, the calculation method of the white balance control value is switched at a certain brightness. However, in order to avoid a sudden color change, the control value is gradually changed to have a predetermined time constant. It is also possible to do this.

(Fourth embodiment)
Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The configuration of the imaging apparatus of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, and FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the MPU 19 in this embodiment. In the flowchart of FIG. 7, the same steps as those in FIGS. 2, 5, and 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  In this embodiment, the brightness of external light is determined by calculating LAVE in the same manner as in the second embodiment, and the presence / absence of flicker is determined from LF (= LMAX-LMIN). Also in this embodiment, as in the second embodiment, the clip range of the PP clip circuit 13 is selected from three for high color temperature, low color temperature, and fluorescent lamp.

  Also, only when flicker is detected in step S19, RCD and BCD are obtained by the formulas a · R / G + b and c · B / G + d, and color correction is performed in directions other than the color temperature change direction. In other cases, RCD and BCD are obtained from the equations e · R / B + f and g · R / B + h, and color correction is not performed in directions other than the color temperature change direction. With this configuration, it is possible to more accurately determine the necessity of color correction in a direction other than the color temperature change direction, and in more opportunities, color misregistration due to unnecessary color correction other than the color temperature change direction. Can be prevented.

The above had to measure the brightness of the outside light by using a photometric sensor 21 in each of the embodiments, taken determines the light amount from the aperture value and shutter speed determines the input morphism amount which photometric output In this case, the present invention can be realized without providing a photometric sensor separately.

  The methods of the above embodiments can be applied to both a movie camera and an electronic still camera as an image pickup apparatus. However, when applied to an electronic still camera, the present applicant applies first. As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 1-255507, white balance control during still image shooting (main exposure) is performed during exposure (pre-exposure) prior to still image shooting. What is necessary is just to make it perform the step which leads to control value calculation at the time of the said pre-exposure.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the imaging device of the Example of this invention. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the imaging apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a wave form diagram for demonstrating the change operation | movement of the clip range by the imaging device of the Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows the specific structure of the PP clip circuit in FIG. It is a flowchart for demonstrating operation | movement of the imaging device of 2nd Example of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating operation | movement of the imaging device of the 3rd Example of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating operation | movement of the imaging device of the 4th Example of this invention. It is a wave form diagram for demonstrating the nonuniformity of a clip range.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Optical system 3 Image pick-up element 5 Color separation circuit 7, 9 Variable gain amplifier 8a, 8b Clamp circuit 9a, 9b Clip circuit 11 Process circuit 13 Clip circuit 15 Integration circuit 17, 23 Analog-digital (A / D) converter 19 Micro Processing unit (MPU)
21 Photometric sensor 25 Digital-to-analog (D / A) converter PSW Power switch

Claims (4)

In an imaging apparatus having an imaging means including an optical system and an imaging element,
Clip means for clipping amplitude components of a plurality of types of color difference signals obtained from the output of the imaging means;
Using the output of the clip means, a white balun of the signal obtained from the output of the imaging means
White balance control means for controlling
Clip changing means for changing the clip range of the clip means according to the shutter speed in the imaging means;
An imaging device comprising: In an imaging apparatus having an imaging means including an optical system and an imaging element,
Clip means for clipping amplitude components of a plurality of types of color difference signals obtained from the output of the imaging means;
Using the output of the clip means, a white balun of the signal obtained from the output of the imaging means
White balance control means for controlling
Clip changing means for changing the clip range of the clip means according to the aperture value in the imaging means;
An imaging device comprising: 3. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the changing unit changes the clip range of the clip unit to a clip range corresponding to a high color temperature when the amount of light is larger than a predetermined level. 3. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the changing unit changes the clip range of the clip unit to a clip range corresponding to a low color temperature if the light amount is smaller than a predetermined level.

Images