JP4352554B2 - Electronic camera - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an electronic camera that images a subject with an imaging device such as a CCD.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An image pickup device that picks up an image of a subject passing through a photographing lens, an image processing circuit that performs predetermined image processing such as white balance and γ correction on an image signal output from the image pickup device, and image data after image processing There is known an electronic camera including a monitor to be displayed and a compression circuit that compresses data after image processing by a predetermined method such as JPEG and records the compressed data on a recording medium such as a flash memory.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
When reading photographing information from image data recorded on a recording medium with such an electronic camera, it is necessary to read out each piece of image data from the recording medium and not to extract the image information contained in each image data. did not become. Therefore, when a large amount of image data is recorded on the recording medium, it takes time and effort to collectively manage shooting information of all the image data. As a conventional example, there is one in which data recording shooting information of a plurality of image data is provided separately from image data, and data recording shooting information is recorded on a recording medium when the power is turned off. When it is taken out from the electronic camera, there is a problem that data of photographing information is not recorded on a recording medium.
[0004]
An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic camera that records management data in which photographing information is recorded each time photographed image data is recorded on a recording medium.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention is applied to an electronic camera that captures a subject image with an imaging device through a photographing lens, performs predetermined image processing on the captured subject image, and records the image on a removable recording medium. Then, the image data after image processing is recorded as an image file. To a predetermined directory provided for recording image data Recording circuit for recording and recording medium by recording circuit A given directory of Image data recorded in Only from the image data Each time image data is recorded on a recording medium by a recording circuit as a single management data file in a format in which information relating to imaging conditions can be confirmed in units of image data, or a plurality of frames Recording medium for each recording The same directory where the image data is recorded And a control means for controlling the recording circuit so as to perform recording.
[0006]
In the section of the means for solving the above-described problem to explain the configuration of the present invention, the drawings of the embodiments are used for easy understanding of the present invention, but the present invention is thereby limited to the embodiments. It is not something.
[0007]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1A and 1B show the external appearance of an electronic still camera according to an embodiment of the present invention when stored and carried, wherein FIG. 1A is a view from above and FIG. 1B is a view from behind. Fig. 2 shows the appearance of the camera shown in Fig. 1 during normal shooting. (A) is a view from the front, (b) is a view from above, and (c) is a view from behind. is there. The electronic still camera 1 according to this embodiment is divided into a lens unit 1a including a movable lens 2 and a monitor unit 1b including a display LCD 3, and both the units 1a and 1b are connected to be relatively rotatable.
[0008]
When stored or carried, the lens unit 1a is rotated so that the lens unit 1a and the monitor unit 1b are flat as shown in FIG. Further, during normal photographing, as shown in FIG. 2, the lens unit 1a is rotated so that the photographing zoom lens 2 faces the subject. At this time, the monitor unit 1b is held so that the display LCD 3 faces the photographer, so that the photographer can take a picture while looking at the display LCD 3.
[0009]
In addition to the photographing zoom lens 2, the lens unit 1a includes an electronic flash device 4, a finder window 5, a red-eye reduction / self-timer display lamp 6, a finder eyepiece window 7, and the like. On the other hand, in addition to the display LCD 3, the monitor unit 1b includes a main switch 8, a release button 9, a display panel 10, a shooting distance button 11, a flash mode button 12, an image quality button 13, a monitor button 14, a menu button 15, and a zoom operation switch 16. , A selection dial 17, AF area selection buttons 19a to 19d, and the like.
[0010]
-Recording mode-
The electronic still camera 1 has two operation modes: a recording mode in which a subject image is captured and image data is recorded, and a reproduction mode in which the recorded image data is read and reproduced. By switching the main switch 8, a recording mode (REC) and a reproduction mode (PLAY) are selected. The main switch 8 is switched to at least three positions: PLAY, OFF, and REC. The recording mode is an operation mode in which the captured subject image is recorded as image data, and the reproduction mode is an operation mode in which the recorded image data is read and displayed on the display LCD 3. The description of this embodiment will be focused on the recording mode.
[0011]
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a circuit of the electronic still camera 1 according to the first embodiment. When the main switch 8 is switched to the recording mode: REC, the electronic still camera 1 is turned on and switched to the recording mode. When the CPU 21 activates a predetermined control program, the subject light incident on the photographing zoom lens 2 (FIG. 2) is imaged on the CCD 26 which is an imaging device, and the image signal passes through the analog processing circuit 27 and the A / D conversion circuit. 28 to be converted into a digital signal. The digitally converted signal is guided to an image processing CPU 29 configured as an ASIC, for example, and image preprocessing such as contour compensation and gamma correction is performed and temporarily stored in the buffer memory 30.
[0012]
The image data once stored in the buffer memory 30 is processed into display image data by a display image creation circuit 31 controlled by the image processing CPU 29. The display image creating circuit 31 reads the image data after image preprocessing stored in the buffer memory 30 and creates a display image by performing a thinning process according to the display resolution of the LCD monitor 3. The display image data created by the display image creation circuit 31 is displayed on the display LCD 3 as a photographic monitor image called a through image. The through image is sequentially updated at predetermined intervals based on the subject light incident on the photographing zoom lens 2 by repeating the above operation.
[0013]
The CPU 21 receives a half-press signal and a full-press signal from a half-press switch 22 and a full-press switch 23 (hereinafter referred to as the release switch 23) that are linked to the release button 9, respectively. When the half-push switch 22 is operated and a half-push signal is input, the focus detection / adjustment device 36 detects the focus adjustment state of the photographic zoom lens 2 in a focus detection area, which will be described later, according to a command from the CPU 21. Then, the photographic zoom lens 2 is driven to the in-focus position so that the subject light incident on the photographic zoom lens 2 forms an image on the CCD 26 that is the imaging device. The CCD 26 is driven and controlled via the timing generator 24 and the driver 25, and the timing generator 24 controls the operation timing of the analog processing circuit 27 and the A / D conversion circuit 28.
[0014]
The electronic still camera 1 is provided with two AF operation modes of “single AF mode” and “continuous AF mode”. When the “single AF mode” is set, the focus detection operation by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 is performed by operating the half-press switch 22 as described above. On the other hand, when the “continuous AF mode” is set, when the main switch 8 is switched to the recording mode position, the focus detection operation by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 is always performed.
[0015]
The electronic still camera 1 includes five areas in the object field as areas in which the focus detection / adjustment device 36 detects the focus adjustment state. Of these five focus detection areas, areas where focus detection is performed by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 are set as follows. On the display LCD 3, a mark indicating the focus adjustment area is displayed in an overlay manner on the through image. FIG. 4 shows a through image displayed on the display LCD 3 and a mark representing the focus adjustment area. In FIG. 4, five marks 4V to 4Z represent focus detection areas. The focus detection area is set by operating the AF area selection buttons 19a to 19d (FIG. 2) from when the half-press switch 22 is operated until a predetermined time elapses.
[0016]
When the half-push switch 22 is operated, the AF area selection buttons 19a to 19d are enabled for a predetermined time, and when the switch 19a is operated during this time, the focus adjustment area 4W is changed from the focus detection area 4W currently set in FIG. The focus detection area 4V is changed to the upper position. Subsequently, when the AF area selection button 19b is operated, the focus detection area 4W is changed again. Further, when the AF area selection button 19c is operated, the focus detection area 4Y is changed to the left with respect to the focus detection area 4W. Similarly, by operating the AF area selection button 19d, the focus detection area 4Z can be changed to the right with respect to the set focus detection area 4W. The selected focus detection area is displayed with emphasis as compared with marks in other areas, for example, an area 4Y in FIG. When the photographer selects one of the marks 4V to 4Z on the main subject, the above-described focus position adjustment state is detected in the focus detection area in the photographing screen corresponding to the selected mark.
[0017]
When the zoom operation switch 16 is operated, the zoom lens driving device 37 drives the photographing zoom lens 2 according to a command from the CPU 21 to change the focal length. The zoom operation switch 16 is a seesaw type switch, and the focal length is moved to either the telephoto side (T) or the wide angle side (W). The photometry device 38 measures the luminance of the subject, and performs photometry when a half-press signal from the half-press switch 22 linked to the release button 9 is input to the CPU 21.
[0018]
When the release switch 23 is turned on after the half-push switch 22 is turned on, the flash device 4 emits light according to the photometry result of the photometry device 38 and the flash mode preset by the flash mode button 12, The subject light from the photographic zoom lens 2 forms an image on the light receiving surface of the CCD 26, whereby signal charges corresponding to the brightness of the subject image are accumulated in the CCD 26. The signal charges accumulated in the CCD 26 are discharged by the driver 25 and input to an analog signal processing circuit 27 including an AGC circuit and a CDS circuit. The analog signal processing circuit 27 performs analog processing such as gain control and noise removal on the analog image signal, and then the digital signal is converted by the A / D conversion circuit 28.
[0019]
The digitally converted signal is guided to the above-described image processing CPU 29, where image preprocessing such as contour compensation and gamma correction is performed and temporarily stored in the buffer memory 30. Then, image data is exchanged between the CPU 21 and the buffer memory 30, and a white balance adjustment value is obtained from the stored image data. Based on the obtained white balance adjustment value, the image processing CPU 29 performs white balance adjustment, and the image data after the white balance adjustment is stored in the buffer memory 30 again.
[0020]
The image data subjected to the image preprocessing as described above is further subjected to, for example, predetermined format processing (image post-processing) for JPEG compression by the image processing CPU 29 and controlled by the image processing CPU 29. The compression circuit 32 receives data compression at a predetermined ratio of the JPEG method. When the image data is subjected to data compression processing, the occupied area occupied by the compressed image data in the buffer memory 30 is reduced, so that the buffer memory 30 can accept new image data.
[0021]
Image data that has been subjected to data compression in the JPEG format is given a predetermined data name by the CPU 21 and is recorded on a recording medium (PC card, CF card, etc.) 34 such as a flash memory together with time information from the real-time clock 35. In addition to the image data, shooting information data in which shooting conditions such as shutter speed and aperture value are recorded is recorded on the recording medium 34. When the recording process on the recording medium 34 is finished, a series of photographing processes is finished.
[0022]
In addition, the display panel driver 33 is connected to the CPU 21, and the display panel 10 displays the flash mode setting by the flash mode button 12, the range setting by the shooting distance button 11, the compression rate setting by the image quality button 13, and the like. Is displayed.
[0023]
-Playback mode-
When the main switch 8 is switched to the playback mode position, the electronic still camera 1 is switched to the playback mode when the power is turned on. When image data has already been recorded on the recording medium 34, the recorded image data is read into the CPU 21. The data read by the CPU 21 is sent to the buffer memory 30 and then processed into display image data by the display image creating circuit 31 controlled by the image processing CPU 29. Then, the reproduced image is displayed on the display LCD 3. During the playback mode, a playback image is displayed on the display LCD 3, but the screen of the subject image captured through the shooting zoom lens 2: the through screen is not displayed. Further, neither exposure adjustment (AE) based on the photometry result by the photometry device 38 nor detection (AF) of the focus adjustment state by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 is performed.
[0024]
-Menu settings-
The menu button 15 is used when setting the shooting conditions of the electronic still camera 1 in detail. When the menu button 15 is operated in a state where the main switch 8 is switched to the recording mode: REC, the display of the setting change screen is turned on. Note that the menu button 15 is effective even when the main switch 8 is switched to the playback mode: PLAY. However, in this embodiment, the operation is switched to the recording mode. The state that is being described will be described.
[0025]
The setting change screen is displayed in an overlay manner on the through screen displayed on the display LCD 3. Processing for overlay display is performed by the image processing CPU 29 in accordance with a command from the CPU 21. While the setting change screen is displayed as an overlay, the aforementioned marks 4V to 4Z (FIG. 4) indicating the focus detection area are not displayed as an overlay. 5 and 6 are diagrams for explaining a setting change screen displayed as an overlay on the display LCD 3 of the electronic still camera 1. FIG. 5 (a) is an initial screen displayed as an overlay.
[0026]
5A, the setting change screen includes a page number display unit 51, a first item display unit 52, a tag display unit 53, and a first operation explanation display unit 54. For example, in the case where there are 21 setting items such as shooting conditions set for the electronic still camera 1, the setting items are grouped into a predetermined number and displayed in a menu format for each group. One page is composed of a predetermined number of setting items grouped, and a setting change screen is composed of a plurality of pages. In the present embodiment, in consideration of the display resolution of the display LCD 3 and the visibility when displayed on the display LCD 3, the number of setting items that can be displayed on one screen on the display LCD 3 is determined as seven items, and menu items 1 to 7 are set. The 21st setting items are classified into page 1, the 8th to 14th setting items in the menu are stored in page 2, and the 15th to 21st menu items are stored in page 3. Are managed. In addition, when adding a setting item newly, what is necessary is just to add the page 4 or later and to contain a setting item.
[0027]
The page number display unit 51 displays the page number. Of these, the page number selected by the cursor is highlighted (white in the figure) in comparison with other page numbers not selected. Since FIG. 5A is the first screen switched to the setting change screen, page 1 is automatically selected. At this time, “shooting menu 1” representing the contents of page 1 is displayed on tag display portion 53. In the first item display section 52, the first to seventh setting items included in page 1 are displayed. In this embodiment, the setting item related to white balance adjustment is “WB”, the setting item related to photometry is “photometry”, the setting item related to continuous shooting is “continuous shooting”, and the setting item related to camera shake reduction processing is “blur”, The setting item regarding the converter lens is displayed as “converter”, the setting item regarding gradation correction as “gradation”, and the setting item regarding edge enhancement as “edge”. These setting items may be displayed with icons representing the setting items instead of characters.
[0028]
The first operation explanation display unit 54 displays operation switches necessary for the displayed setting change screen and a description of the operation thereof. In the example of FIG. 5A, the menu button 15 is operated to turn off the display of the setting change screen, and the upward AF area selection button 19a and the downward AF area selection button 19b are operated to perform page selection. It means that.
[0029]
The cursor for selecting the page number is moved using the AF area selection buttons 19a to 19d described above. When the setting change screen is displayed on the display LCD 3, the AF area selection buttons 19a to 19d are used to move the cursor position up, down, left and right. For example, when page 1 is selected and “1” in the page number display section 51 is highlighted, when the downward AF area selection button 19b is pressed, the cursor moves down and page 2 is selected. . When page 2 is selected, “2” is highlighted in the page number display section 51 and the eighth to fourteenth setting items included in page 2 are displayed. Similarly, when page 3 is selected, “3” is highlighted in the page number display section 51, and the 15th to 21st setting items included in page 3 can be displayed.
[0030]
Next, a setting item setting operation included in each page will be described. For example, when the right AF area selection button 19d is operated in a state where page 1 is selected as shown in FIG. 5A, the first selection item in the first item display section 52 is selected by the cursor. The When the rightward AF area selection button 19d is operated again in this state, white balance adjustment as the first setting item is selected as shown in FIG. 5B. At this time, “WB” is highlighted on the first item display section 52, “white balance” is displayed on the tag display section 53, and a second operation explanation display section 55 is newly displayed. The second operation explanation display unit 55 displays which switch should be operated to set the setting item. In the example of FIG. 5 (b), it is indicated that the right-facing AF area selection button 19d or the selection dial 17 (FIG. 1) may be operated.
[0031]
As shown in FIG. 5B, when the rightward AF area selection button 19d is operated with the white balance adjustment setting item selected, the second item display section 56 shown in FIG. Is newly displayed. In the second item display unit 56, selection items related to the setting item selected in the first item display unit 52 are displayed. In the example of FIG. 6 (a), selection items related to white balance adjustment are displayed. Of these, the selection item selected by the cursor is emphasized compared to other selection items that are not selected (white in the drawing). Is displayed. In FIG. 6A, the photographer uses the upward AF area selection button 19a and the downward AF area selection button 19b to select, for example, “auto”, “sunlight”, “light bulb”,. When “bulb” is selected, the above-described image processing CPU 29 performs white balance adjustment according to illumination light from the bulb. That is, as soon as a selection item is selected with the cursor, the internal setting state of the electronic still camera 1 changes.
[0032]
When the right AF area selection button 19d is operated in a state where the second item display unit 56 as shown in FIG. 6A is displayed, the page number shown in FIG. 5A is selected. Return to the setting change screen. In this state, another page number can be selected by operating the upward AF area selection button 19a and the downward AF area selection button 19b. When the menu button 15 is operated, the overlay display on the setting change screen is turned off.
[0033]
The switching setting to the two AF operation modes of “single AF mode” and “continuous AF mode” described above is also performed using the setting change screen by the menu button 15. By operating the AF area selection buttons 19a to 19d, for example, an item related to the AF operation is selected from the setting items included in the page 2. FIG. 6B shows a state in which page 2 is selected. When the AF area selection button 19d is operated to select “AF”, a selection item (not shown) regarding the AF operation is displayed on the second item display unit 56 described above. Since “continuous AF mode” and “single AF mode” are displayed as selection items, the selection item is selected by operating the upward AF area selection button 19a and the downward AF area selection button 19b, The determination may be made by operating the AF area selection button 19d facing right.
[0034]
When the “single AF mode” is set, the focus detection operation by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 is performed every time the half-press switch 22 is operated as described above, and the “continuous AF mode” is set. As long as the main switch 8 is switched to the recording mode position, the focus detection operation by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 is always performed.
[0035]
The settings made using the setting change screen by the menu button 15 become effective immediately without pressing the menu button 15 again to turn off the overlay display of the setting change screen. Accordingly, in addition to the above-described white balance adjustment included in the setting items of page 1, for example, gradation correction for adjusting the brightness of the image and exposure correction for adjusting the aperture value during exposure are displayed on the setting change screen. If this is done, the through screen displayed on the display LCD 3 changes based on the contents set on the setting change screen. As a result, the photographer can change the settings while confirming in real time from the through screen displayed on the display LCD 3 together with the setting change screen whether white balance adjustment, gradation correction and exposure correction are correctly performed.
[0036]
When the release switch 23 is turned on while the setting change screen by the menu button 15 is displayed as an overlay, the electronic still camera 1 performs shooting based on the content selected by the cursor at that time. That is, when the release switch 23 is operated in a state where any of the selection items displayed on the second item display unit 56 is selected with the cursor, it is not determined by the right AF area selection button 19d. Even the content selected with the cursor is reflected in the shooting process.
[0037]
When the shooting process described above is started by the release switch 23, the display of the setting change screen displayed as an overlay on the display LCD 3 is temporarily turned off, and an icon indicating that the shooting process is being performed as shown in FIG. Is done. In FIG. 7, the icon displayed on the right is a processing icon 71 indicating that the photographing process is being performed, the icon displayed in the center is a keep icon 72 for extending the freeze screen display time, and the icon displayed on the left. Is a delete icon 73 for deleting photographed image data. The freeze screen is an image being photographed that is displayed on the display LCD 3 for a predetermined time after the release switch 23 is turned on, unlike the through image that is sequentially updated as the monitor image before photographing as described above.
[0038]
The in-process icon 71 is displayed until the series of shooting processes described above is completed. The keep icon 72 is displayed together with the in-process icon 71 for a predetermined time during which the freeze screen is displayed: for example, 3 seconds. When the flash mode button 12 disposed near the display position of the keep icon 72 is operated while the keep icon 72 is being displayed, the display time of the freeze screen is set to another predetermined time: for example, 20 seconds. Extended. The delete icon 73 is displayed while the freeze screen is displayed. If the shooting distance button 11 disposed near the display position of the delete icon 73 is operated while the delete icon 73 is displayed, the shooting process is started by operating the release switch 23, and the flash memory The image data recorded on the recording medium 34 is deleted.
[0039]
When the predetermined display time for displaying the freeze screen ends, the display of the freeze image, the in-process icon 71, the keep icon 72, and the delete icon 73 is stopped. Then, a through image newly picked up through the photographing zoom lens 2 and a setting change screen once turned off by the operation of the release switch 23 as described above are overlaid and displayed on the through image. The setting change screen in this case is different from the screen when the menu button 15 with the page 1 selected is first operated as shown in FIG. 5A, and the release switch 23 is operated while the previous setting change screen is displayed. The screen at the point in time is reproduced.
[0040]
-Recorded data-
FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the names of data given when image data that has been shot and processed in the electronic still camera 1 that operates as described above is recorded on the recording medium 34. FIG. 8 is called a directory tree and shows, for example, the structure of a data file managed by a personal computer (PC). The recording format of the image data recorded with the electronic camera matches the data format managed by the computer so that the image data can be processed by the computer and the recorded image can be output to the printer via the computer. Is desirable. Therefore, it is determined by DCF (Design rule for Camera File system) that the names of image data recorded by the electronic camera are distinguished by adding a directory 110 called “DCIM” under the root directory 100 shown in FIG. It has been.
[0041]
A method for assigning the image data name 120 provided under the directory 110 will be described. As shown in FIG. 8, the image data name 120 includes a plurality of subdirectories 130 and a file name 140 provided under each subdirectory 130. These structures are the same as those used in a system called DOS that handles storage devices such as personal computers. Some personal computer basic programs (OS) call a directory a folder.
[0042]
FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the subdirectory 130. The subdirectory 130 includes, for example, a numerical part 131 and a name part 132. The numerical value part 131 is given an integer. On the other hand, the name part 132 is made up of up to five alphabets, numbers and symbols. The name part 132 may be changed for each subdirectory 130 or the same part. As described above, since the numerical value part 131 is different for each subdirectory 130, even if the name part 132 has the same name, it is identified that it is a different subdirectory 130.
[0043]
FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the file name 140. The file name 140 includes a header part 141, a numerical value part 142, and an extension 143. The header part 141 is given a four-digit alphabet character. For example, “DSCN” indicates that the data with the file name 140 is image data recorded by the electronic still camera 1. The numerical value part 142 is given a 4-digit integer. The extension 143 “JPG” indicates that the image data with the file name 140 is image data compressed in the JPEG format. As described above, the image data recorded by the electronic camera is given a name composed of the subdirectory 130 and the file name 140 so that it can be processed by a personal computer.
[0044]
The file name 140 is given one file name different from that formed by the header part 141, the numerical value part 142, and the extension 143 “JPG”. This file name includes, for example, a header part “INFO” and an extension “TXT”. This “INFO.TXT” file is the shooting information included in the plurality of image data with the file name 140 recorded in the same subdirectory 130, that is, when the image data is shot. This is a file that records shooting conditions such as the shutter speed and aperture value, the setting state where the electronic camera is set, etc., and is recorded together as one shooting information data. The extension “TXT” indicates that the shooting information data, which is an “INFO.TXT” file, is data recorded in a text format. One “INFO.TXT” file is provided for each subdirectory 130.
[0045]
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of shooting information data recorded in an “INFO.TXT” file. In FIG. 11, the file name and shooting information of the image data recorded with the file name “DSCN3091.JPG” and the file name and shooting information of the image data recorded with the file name of “DSCN3092.JPG” are shown. Are listed. If only the shooting information data is recorded in one file in this way, only one “INFO.TXT” file can be read, and the image data can be read without reading multiple image data one by one. It is possible to know whether the image data is photographed under such photographing conditions. Furthermore, when it is sufficient to know only the shooting information, it is not necessary to read out the image data recorded in the JPEG format, so that the processing time can be shortened. In particular, when the number of pixels constituting one image data is large as it is called a megapixel, it takes time to read one image data, so one “INFO.TXT” file is provided and this file is saved. By reading, the processing time can be greatly reduced.
[0046]
The assignment of the recording data name as described above is performed using the setting change screen by the menu button 15 described above. When the AF area selection buttons 19a to 19d are operated while the setting change screen is displayed, for example, items related to folder settings (not shown) are selected from the setting items included in page 3. When the AF area selection button 19d is operated to select “folder setting” (not shown), a selection item (not shown) related to folder setting is displayed on the second item display unit 56. “Select Folder”, “Create Folder”, “Change Folder Name”, “Delete Folder”, etc. are displayed in the selection items, so that the upward AF area selection button 19a and the downward AF area selection button 19b are operated. Then, the selected item is selected, and the operation is performed according to the instruction displayed on the display LCD at that time.
[0047]
For example, when creating a folder name (subdirectory name), select up to 5 letters, numbers and symbols with the selection dial 17 and press the AF area selection button 19d facing right to create the folder name at that time. Is done. In the electronic still camera 1, a folder is a group provided so that image data can be classified into related data when the quantity of captured image data is large.
[0048]
When the folder name, that is, the above-described subdirectory 130 is not set using the setting change screen, the electronic still camera 1 sets, for example, “100NIKON” as the subdirectory 130. This is a default value of the subdirectory 130. “100” indicating the first set subdirectory is set in the numerical value part 131, and a predetermined symbol is set in the name part 132.
[0049]
Next, the file name 140 assigned to each subdirectory 130 created as described above will be described. Of the file name 140, the header portion 141 is used as information about an electronic camera that records image data, for example. In this embodiment, since the electronic still camera 1 is used, “DSCN” is set. The numerical value part 142 is a number assigned sequentially from “0001” to each created subdirectory 130. For example, when the electronic still camera 1 is set to record the first image data in the newly created subdirectory 130, “0001” is set in the numerical value part 142, and the image data is recorded. When the image data is recorded, the maximum value of the numerical value part 142 of the file name 140 recorded corresponding to the subdirectory 130 is backed up in the electronic still camera 1. Thereafter, when image data is recorded in the same subdirectory 130, the maximum value of the backed up numerical value portion 142 is advanced by +1 according to the number of frames to be recorded, and the image data is recorded. The numerical value part 142 can be set up to a maximum of “9999” under one subdirectory 130, but the subdirectory 130 can be newly set even if the value of the numerical value part 142 does not reach “9999”. . In this case, the numerical section 142 is given to the newly provided subdirectory 130 by a number consecutive from “0001”.
[0050]
The extension 143 is given based on the compression format of the image data. In the electronic still camera 1 according to this embodiment, since it is recorded as compressed data in the JPEG format, “JPG” is given as the extension 143.
[0051]
The shooting information data “INFO.TXT” file is updated by adding shooting information of new image data to the existing shooting information data “INFO.TXT” each time new image data is recorded in the subdirectory 130. Ie overwrite. When the first image data is recorded in the subdirectory 130, since the existing photographing information data “INFO.TXT” does not exist, it is newly created and recorded. When the image data is deleted from the subdirectory 130, the shooting information corresponding to the deleted image data is deleted from the existing shooting information data “INFO.TXT” and updated.
[0052]
The photographing process of the electronic still camera 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. In step S201 of FIG. 12, exposure adjustment (AE) based on the photometric result of the photometric device 38 (FIG. 3) is performed, and subsequently focus detection (AF) by the focus detection / adjustment device 36 is performed in step S202. When the AF operation ends, image preprocessing is performed in step S203.
[0053]
FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the image preprocessing 250. In step S251, charges corresponding to the brightness of the subject image are accumulated in the CCD 26 (FIG. 3), and the charges accumulated in step S252 are sequentially discharged and input to the analog signal processing circuit 27. In step S253, analog signal processing is performed in the analog signal processing circuit 27, and in the subsequent step S254, the A / D conversion circuit 28 converts the analog signal into a digital signal. The digitized image signal is subjected to contour compensation and gamma correction by the image processing CPU 29 in step S255 and then temporarily stored in the buffer memory 30, and then subjected to image processing such as white balance adjustment and image preprocessing 250. Ends.
[0054]
When the image preprocessing described above in step S203 in FIG. 12 is completed, in step S204, the display image creation circuit 31 controlled by the image processing CPU 29 processes the image preprocessed data into display image data. A through image is displayed on the display LCD 3. In step S205, it is determined whether or not the half-push switch 22 has been operated. If it is determined that the switch has been operated (Y in step S205), the process proceeds to step S206, and an AE operation for photographing is performed, and subsequent step S207. On the other hand, when it is determined in step S205 that the half-pressing operation has not been performed (N in step S205), the process returns to step S201 again.
[0055]
When the AF operation in step S207 is completed, the results of both the above AE and AF operations are held in the CPU 21, and it is checked in step S208 whether or not the full push switch 23 is operated. When it is determined that the full-press switch 23 is operated (Y in step S208), the display of the AF area display marks 4V to 4Z (FIG. 4) is turned off in step S210, and the in-process icon 71 (FIG. 4) is displayed. The display of 7) is turned on. In step S211, image preprocessing is performed. This image preprocessing is the same processing as the above-described image preprocessing performed in step S203. When the image preprocessing in step S211 is completed, the image data subjected to the image preprocessing is sent to the compression circuit 32 (FIG. 3), and image postprocessing is performed to compress the data to a predetermined ratio by the JPEG method (step S1). S212). When a freeze screen is displayed on the display LCD 3 in step S213, recording processing for the recording medium 34 is performed in subsequent step S214.
[0056]
FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the recording process 400. In step S401, the compressed image data is recorded in the predetermined subdirectory 130 in the recording medium 34 with a predetermined image data name assigned by the CPU 21. In step S402, it is determined whether or not the shooting information data file “INFO.TXT” exists in the subdirectory 130 in which the image data is recorded. If a negative determination is made (N in step S402), the process proceeds to step S403, and a shooting information data file “INFO.TXT” is created in the subdirectory 130 in which the image data is recorded. If an affirmative determination is made in step S402 (Y in step S402), the process proceeds to step S404.
[0057]
In step S404, the file name of the image data recorded in step S401 and the shooting information when the image data was shot are added to the shooting information data file “INFO.TXT” and overwritten. Thus, the process of FIG. The time during which the above recording process is performed is a predetermined display time of the freeze screen.
[0058]
In FIG. 12, when the recording process to the recording medium 34 in step S214 is completed, the display of the in-process icon 71 is turned off in step S215. In step S216, it is determined whether or not to extend the freeze screen display. If it is determined to extend (Y in step S216), a time-up determination for extending the freeze screen display is performed in step S217. If it is determined not to extend in step S216 (N in step S216), the process proceeds to step S218.
[0059]
If time-up determination is made in step S217 (Y in step S217), the process proceeds to step S218, and if time-up determination is not made (N in step S217), the process waits for time-up. In step S218, it is determined whether or not the image data recorded on the recording medium 34 is to be erased. When it is determined to be erased (Y in step S218), the process proceeds to step S219, and an erasing process is performed. On the other hand, when it is determined not to erase (N in step S218), the process proceeds to step S220.
[0060]
FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the erasing process 450. In step S451, the image data recorded in step S214 described above is deleted. In the subsequent step S452, the file name of the image data deleted in step S451 and the shooting information when this image data was shot are deleted and overwritten on the shooting information data file “INFO.TXT”. As a result, the processing of FIG. 15 is completed.
[0061]
In step S220 of FIG. 12, it is determined whether or not a menu flag described later is set. When it is determined that it is not set (N in step S220), the display of the AF area display marks 4V to 4Z (FIG. 4) is turned on, and the processing of FIG. When it is determined in step S220 that the menu flag is set (Y in step S220), the process jumps to the menu process described below.
[0062]
When it is determined in step S208 that the full press switch 23 has not been operated (N in step S208), it is checked in step S209 whether the time is up. If it is determined in step S209 that the time is not up, the CPU 21 holds the results of both the AE and AF operations, returns to step S208, and waits for the full-press switch 23 to be operated. If it is determined in step S209 that the time is up (Y in step S209), the photographing process in FIG. 12 is terminated.
[0063]
Menu processing of the electronic still camera 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. When the menu button 15 is operated, the menu process of FIG. 16 is performed. In step S301, a menu flag indicating that menu processing is being executed is set in the CPU 21, and display of the AF area display marks 4V to 4Z (FIG. 4) is turned off in step S302. In step S303, the setting change screen display is overlaid on the through screen. In step S304, the setting process for each setting item described above is performed. In step S305, it is determined whether or not the half-press switch 22 is turned on. If a negative determination is made (N in step S305), the process proceeds to step S306. If an affirmative determination is made (Y in step S305), the process proceeds to step S310. .
[0064]
In step S306, it is determined whether or not the menu button 15 is turned off by the menu button 15. If it is determined that the operation has been turned off (Y in step S306), the process proceeds to step S307, and the overlay display on the setting change screen is turned off. On the other hand, when it is not determined in step S306 that the operation has been turned off (N in step S306), the process returns to step S304 and the setting process is repeated. In step S308, the display of the AF area display marks 4V to 4Z (FIG. 4) is turned on, and after the menu flag is reset in step S309, the processing in FIG. 16 ends.
[0065]
In step S310, the state of the setting change screen, that is, information such as the page number being displayed and the setting item selected by the cursor is stored in the memory in the CPU 21. In subsequent step S311, after the overlay display on the setting change screen is turned off, the process jumps to step S206 in the photographing process of FIG.
[0066]
When an affirmative determination is made in step S220 in FIG. 12 (Y in step S220), processing subsequent to step S312 in FIG. 16 is performed. In step S312, the setting change screen state stored in step S310 is read. In step S313, after the setting change screen overlay display is turned on based on the read setting change screen information, the setting process in step S304 is performed.
[0067]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, the following operational effects are obtained.
(1) All the image data file names and shooting information recorded in the same subdirectory 130 (folder) are collectively recorded as one “INFO.TXT” file in the same subdirectory 130. I made it. Therefore, an image in which image data recorded in the same subdirectory 130 is photographed under any photographing condition without reading a plurality of pieces of image data one by one by reading one file in text format. You can know if it is data. As a result, the management of the image data becomes easy, and it is not necessary to read out the image data recorded in the JPEG format when only the shooting information is to be checked, so that the checking time can be shortened. In particular, when the number of pixels constituting one image data is large as it is called a megapixel, it takes time to read one image data, so that the processing time can be greatly shortened.
(2) Since the “INFO.TXT” file is updated each time image data is recorded, the recorded image data always matches the shooting information data in the “INFO.TXT” file. To come.
[0068]
In the above description, the electronic still camera 1 is photographed one frame at a time, and the image data and the photographing information data are recorded on the recording medium 34 each time. The present invention can also be applied to the case where the electronic still camera 1 has a continuous shooting function and continuously shoots a plurality of frames. For example, when image data of a plurality of frames is stored in the buffer memory 30 and the image data is recorded on the recording medium 34 every predetermined number of frames, the image data of the predetermined number of frames is stored on the recording medium 34. What is necessary is just to update the content of imaging | photography information data "INFO.TXT" file, whenever it records.
[0069]
The correspondence between each component in the claims and each component in the embodiment of the invention will be described. The photographing zoom lens 2 is the photographing lens, the CCD 26 is the imaging device, the CPU 21 is the recording circuit and the control means, The shooting information data corresponds to the management data.
[0070]
【The invention's effect】
As described above in detail, the present invention has the following effects.
According to the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, the recording medium is recorded by the electronic camera. A given directory of Image data recorded in only Each time image data is recorded on a recording medium as a management data file that is in a format in which information relating to the imaging conditions can be confirmed in units of image data and is different from the image file In the same directory where the image data is recorded It was recorded on a recording medium. Therefore, for example, unlike the case where management data is recorded on a recording medium when the power of the electronic camera is turned off, even when the recording medium is removable from the electronic camera and removed from the electronic camera, Recorded in the same directory The image data and management data information always match. As a result, management of image data becomes easy.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIGS. 1A and 1B are views showing an external appearance of an electronic still camera according to an embodiment when the electronic still camera is housed and carried, wherein FIG. 1A is a view from above, and FIG.
2 is a diagram showing an external appearance of the camera of FIG. 1 during normal shooting, where (a) is a view from the front, (b) is a view from above, and (c) is a view from behind. It is a figure.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a circuit block of an electronic still camera according to an embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a mark representing a through image and a focus adjustment region.
5A is a diagram illustrating a state in which page 1 is selected, and FIG. 5B is a diagram illustrating a state in which items relating to white balance adjustment are selected.
6A is a diagram illustrating a second item display unit, and FIG. 6B is a diagram illustrating a state in which page 2 is selected.
FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining an icon during shooting processing;
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating data names given when image data is recorded on a recording medium.
FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a subdirectory name.
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a file name.
FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of shooting information data recorded in an INFO.TXT file.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart for describing a photographing process.
FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating image preprocessing.
FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a recording process.
FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating an erasing process.
FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating menu processing.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 ... electronic still camera, 2 ... zoom zoom lens,
3 ... display LCD, 4 ... flash device,
4V to 4Z: AF area mark, 8: Main switch,
9 ... Release button, 11 ... Shooting distance button,
12 ... Flash mode button, 15 ... Menu button,
16: Zoom operation switch, 17 ... Selection dial,
19a to 19d ... AF area selection button, 21 ... CPU,
22 ... half-press switch, 23 ... full-press switch,
26: CCD, 29 ... Image processing CPU,
31 ... Display image creation circuit, 32 ... Compression circuit,
34 ... Recording medium, 36 ... Focus detection / adjustment device,
37 ... zoom lens driving device, 38 ... photometry device,
51 ... Page number display section 52 ... First item display section,
53 ... tag display section, 54 ... first operation explanation display section,
55 ... second operation explanation display section, 56 ... second item display section,
71 ... Processing icon, 72 ... Keep icon,
73 ... Delete icon

Claims (4)

In an electronic camera that captures a subject image with an imaging device through a photographing lens, performs predetermined image processing on the captured subject image, and records the image on a removable recording medium.
A recording circuit for recording to the recording medium to the image data predetermined directory provided for recording the image data after the image processing as an image file,
A file in a format in which information relating to the imaging condition of the image data can be confirmed in units of the image data from only the image data recorded in the predetermined directory of the recording medium by the recording circuit, A directory in which the image data of the recording medium is recorded every time one frame of the image data is recorded on the recording medium by the recording circuit or as a single management data file different from the file. An electronic camera comprising: control means for controlling the recording circuit so as to record in the same predetermined directory as that described above. The electronic camera according to claim 1,
The electronic camera is characterized in that the control means updates the recorded contents of the management data every time the image data is added to or deleted from the predetermined directory of the recording medium by the recording circuit. The electronic camera according to claim 1,
The information recorded as the management data includes the contents recorded in the image data. The electronic camera according to claim 1,
The electronic camera, wherein the management data file is a text file.

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