JP4920295B2 - camera - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a camera, and more particularly to a camera that controls display of image data by a plurality of cameras.

  Traditionally, the organization of a huge amount of photos taken and captured by a camera has been an important theme for camera users. For example, in a film camera, the photographed film is actually developed to obtain photos, and an album is created by rearranging the photos by oneself. On the other hand, since digital cameras that have been widely used in recent years acquire image data as digital data by photographing, more various album creation methods are conceivable than film cameras.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses the following technique as a technique for organizing image data acquired by photographing. That is, the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a technique for displaying clock information or calendar information and image data on a display unit in conjunction with each other. According to the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, even when there are a large number of image data within the same period, these image data can be listed, and the searchability of the image data can be improved. .
JP 2005-130275 A

  By the way, communication technology between electronic devices has been remarkably developed at present and is expected to be further developed in the future. That is, it is considered that there will be more scenes in the future in which image data such as cameras exchange image data by communication.

  In view of such facts, when a larger number of image data can be displayed in a list and the searchability is improved, image data captured by only one imaging unit is not assumed, but a plurality of image data is assumed. It is considered that a technique for integrating and organizing image data photographed by these cameras is desired. Note that this technique is not considered at all in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a camera that organizes a large number of image data from a plurality of cameras with a single camera and organizes them in consideration of viewing effects. .

In order to achieve the above object, a camera according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a display unit that displays an image, a time measuring unit that generates date and time information, and the image when the image is acquired by photographing. A shooting date and time information associating with shooting date and time information that is date and time information at the time of shooting, and when the image is acquired by shooting, the image and camera information that is information relating to the camera; , A communication unit that communicates images with a second camera that is a camera different from the camera, and the communication of the camera that is transmitted by the second camera. of the received image by parts, based the user of the camera whether it has acquired the user image data is an image of the subject, the presence or absence of the setting of the user image data in the camera A determination unit for determining Te, an image as a subject user of the second camera, on the basis of the operation of the operation member of the camera, and a specifying unit configured to specify a second camera user's image data, by the determination unit When it is determined that the image is an image having the camera user as a subject, the image is set as user image data that is an image having the camera user as a subject. Is determined not to be an image of the user of the camera as a subject, the image is rearranged separately from the user image data based on the shooting date / time information and the camera information and displayed on the display unit. it is displayed, and, of images that have been identified as the second camera user image data by the identification unit, the display position on the display unit as a reference Characterized by comprising a display control unit that performs reordering of the image received from the second camera.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the camera which performs the display control which arranged many image data acquired by image | photographing with several cameras in one camera, and considered the appreciation effect can be provided. .

  A camera according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the concept of the system configuration of the camera according to this embodiment.

  First, reference numeral 2 denotes an MPU (Micro Processing Unit) which is a control means including a microcontroller. The MPU 2 is provided with an operation member 2a connected thereto. The operation member 2a may be an operation member such as a touch panel type or a cross key. More specifically, a release button for performing a release operation, an operation member for changing the operation mode of the camera among a shooting mode, a first playback mode, a second playback mode, and an image exchange mode, various modes An operation member for performing an image selection operation, a determination operation, or the like can be considered.

  Then, the MPU 2 detects the state of the operation member 2a, and controls each component according to an operation control program (stored in the flash ROM 4) shown in a flowchart described later based on the detection result. .

  By the way, at the time of photographing, an image of the subject 8 that has entered the camera via the photographing lens 6 is converted into an electric signal by an image pickup device 10a made of, for example, a CCD or a CMOS sensor. Then, this electrical signal is read out to an AFE (Analogue Front End) circuit 10, subjected to A / D conversion and the like to become image data which is a digital image signal, and is input to the signal processing circuit 12. Thereafter, the image data is recorded in the memory 14 after being subjected to predetermined processing such as color correction and signal compression processing in the signal processing circuit 12. The signal processing circuit 12 is provided with a processing auxiliary block 12a for changing a correction method during image processing, adding a specific signal, or the like.

  Note that image data acquired by photographing as described above can be transmitted to the outside of the camera by the print signal output means 15a or the wireless communication unit 15b. The wireless communication unit 15b is a member having a communication unit that enables wireless communication with a camera or the like having a system configuration similar to or similar to the camera according to the present embodiment (system configuration including the wireless communication unit 15b). is there. Therefore, for example, the wireless communication unit 15b can transmit and receive image data and the like. Note that actual communication is performed based on, for example, a standard defined by a wireless LAN or the like.

  In the camera according to the present embodiment, a microphone 10b is further provided, and audio data that is an audio signal acquired by the microphone 10b is also subjected to signal compression processing by the signal processing circuit 12 in the same manner as the image data. And the like are recorded in the memory 14. The memory 14 includes a transmission memory 14b (details will be described later).

  Note that data is appropriately stored in a RAM (Random Access Memory) 16 in order to perform various calculations during processing or recording of the image data and the audio data.

  As a means for displaying image data or the like, a display means 18 including an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or the like is provided. That is, the image data acquired by the image sensor 10a as described above can be sequentially reproduced and displayed on the display means 18. That is, the user can take a picture while checking the state of change of the subject 8 with reference to the display means 18. In addition, a speaker 18a for performing voice reproduction of the voice data is also provided. Furthermore, when the audio data is reproduced, the audio data recorded in the memory 14 is read out by the signal processing circuit 12 and then output from the speaker 18a to be reproduced.

  When the image data is reproduced and displayed, the image data compressed and recorded in the memory 14 is read out by the signal processing circuit 12 and further subjected to expansion processing, etc. Reproduced and displayed on the display means 18.

  Furthermore, the camera according to the present embodiment is provided with a clock means 20 having a function of acquiring date / time information indicating the shooting date / time and a timer function of time measurement. The date and time information acquired by the clock means 20 is recorded in the memory 14 in association with image data acquired by photographing, for example. Further, according to the timer function, for example, the exposure time, the moving image shooting time, and the predetermined timing interval in the shooting operation can be measured.

  Further, in order to detect position information indicating the position of the camera, position detecting means 22 comprising, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) is provided. With this position detection means 22, position information indicating the shooting position such as image data can be acquired. Further, the image data and the position information can be associated with each other and recorded in the memory 14.

  As described above, for convenience of explanation, the system configuration of the camera according to the present embodiment has been described assuming acquisition and processing of image data of still images, but moving image data is also normally performed by the above configuration. Of course, it can be obtained using Note that the moving image data and the audio data are normally handled as integral data, and in this embodiment, the audio data corresponding to the moving image data is also appropriately processed in various processes related to the moving image data. To do.

  Hereinafter, an outline of a method for organizing image data by the camera according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5 in comparison with a conventional method for organizing image data. 2 is a flowchart showing a conventional image data organizing method, and FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an actual work scene in step S104 in the flowchart. 4 is a flowchart showing an outline of a method for organizing image data by the camera according to the present embodiment. FIG. 5A is an actual work scene in step S111 in the flowchart, and FIG. 5B is image data. The concept of rearranging image data in organizing, FIG. 5C is a diagram showing an example of display after rearranging image data.

  For example, consider a case where two users (user A 30a and user B 32b) go on a trip with one camera each and take a picture at the destination. As problems that occur in this case, first, the user B 32b is reflected in the photograph taken by the user A 30a, and similarly, the user A 30a is reflected in the photograph taken by the user B 32b. The probability is high. Secondly, for example, if an album is created by arranging the photos taken by the user A 30a and the photos taken by the user B 32b into one, and arranging them according to the flow of time, It is a very time consuming work because it is necessary to rearrange the pictures sequentially while referring to the time and the like and following the memory.

  Specifically, according to the conventional method, the operation of the flowchart shown in FIG. 2 has to be performed in organizing photographs (organizing image data).

  That is, first, the user A 30a and the user B 32b print out the image data acquired by their own photography (step S101). Subsequently, exchanges are made as necessary between the photographs obtained by the printout (step S102). Next, additional printout is further performed for the image data in which the need for additional printout has occurred in step S102 (step S103). Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 3, user A 30a and user B 32b rearrange the photos (step S104) to create an album (step S105).

  On the other hand, the method of organizing image data by the camera according to the present embodiment is a method like the flowchart shown in FIG.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 5A, first, the user A 30a and the user B 32b are respectively connected to the wireless communication unit 15b (see FIG. 1) mounted on the camera A30 and the camera B32 according to the present embodiment, respectively. Is used to exchange the desired image data as digital data as it is (step S111). Thereafter, user A 30a and user B 32b delete unnecessary image data and rearrange them in a desired order (step S112). Then, the image data rearranged in step S112 is arranged in an appropriate layout, printed out, etc., to form an album (step S113).

  Hereinafter, operation control in the camera according to the present embodiment for realizing the processing as shown in FIG. 4 will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 6A to 6F. The flowchart is a flowchart of operation control by the MPU 2 in FIG. The flowchart is a main flowchart of the camera according to the present embodiment, and is a flowchart of operation control that is automatically activated when a power switch (not shown) is turned on by a user. Here, the description will be made assuming a camera system using two cameras according to the present embodiment, but two cameras (the camera A used by the user A and the other camera, and the other camera). The flowcharts showing the operation control of the camera B) used by the user B are the same, and the processes of the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 6A to 6F are respectively performed by the two cameras depending on the situation. In the present embodiment, if the image data captured and acquired by the camera A is the first image data, and the image data captured and acquired by the camera B is the second image data, these first images Data and second image data are displayed on the display means 18 by the following display control.

  First, the user A operates the operation member 2a to change the camera A to any one of a shooting mode, an image exchange mode, a first playback mode (details will be described later), and a second playback mode (details will be described later). Set the mode.

  Thereafter, the MPU 2 determines whether or not the set mode is the shooting mode (step S1). If it is determined in step S1 that the set mode is the shooting mode, it is determined whether or not a release operation is performed by the operation of the operation member 2a by the user A (step S2).

  If it is determined in step S2 that the release operation has not been performed, the process branches to NO and returns to step S1. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2 that the release operation has been performed by the user A, the process branches to YES and the shooting step is started. That is, the focus and exposure are adjusted, and a predetermined normal photographing operation (details are omitted) is started (step S3).

  Then, the date and time information is acquired with reference to the clock means 20 (step S4). Subsequently, the position detection means 22 is made to acquire GPS information (step S5). Thereafter, the image data acquired by the photographing operation in step S3, the date / time information acquired in step S4 and the GPS information acquired in step S5 are associated with each other and recorded in, for example, the RAM 16 (step S6). . Then, each data is stored in the memory 14.

  After that, “Camera B user image data (second camera user image data)”, which is image data of user B who uses camera B that exchanges image data with camera A by wireless communication, is set. It is determined whether or not the user has performed an operation to do so using the operation member 2a (step S7). When step S7 is branched to YES, the image data is set as the camera B user image data (step S8).

  When step S7 is branched to NO or after step S8, it is determined whether or not an operation for ending the photographing operation is performed by the operation of the operation member 2a by the user A (step S9). If it is determined in step S9 that an operation for ending the photographing operation has not been performed, the process branches to NO and returns to step S2.

  If it is determined in step S9 that an operation for ending the shooting operation has been performed, the process branches to YES and the shooting operation is ended (step S10). After step S10, it is determined whether or not a power switch (not shown) is turned off by the user A (step S11). If it is determined in step S11 that the power switch (not shown) has been turned off, the camera A is shut down. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S11 that the power switch (not shown) is not turned off, the process branches to NO and returns to step S1.

  In the following description, it is assumed that the processing from step S1 to step S11 is also performed on the camera B side.

  By the way, if it is determined in step S1 that the camera A is not set to the shooting mode, it is determined whether or not the camera A is set to the playback mode (generally referred to here as the first playback mode and the second playback mode). Is determined (step S20). If it is determined in step S20 that the playback mode is not set, the process branches to NO and enters the image exchange mode.

  If it is determined in step S20 that the playback mode is not set, whether or not an operation for transmitting image data to the camera B is first performed by the user A operating the operation member 2a. Is determined (step S21).

  If it is determined in step S21 that an operation for transmitting image data to the camera B has been performed, the process branches to YES, and a selection screen for user A to select desired image data prior to transmission is displayed. Displayed on the display means 18, the user A selects image data to be transmitted to the camera B while referring to the selection screen displayed on the display means 18 (step S22). The process in step S22 will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  Next, various information to be transmitted together with the image data, for example, time information (current time) when actually performing wireless communication, information on the device of the camera A, and the like are set (step S23).

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not an operation for starting wireless communication has been performed by the operation of the operation member 2a by the user A (step S24). If it is determined in step S24 that an operation for starting wireless communication has not been performed, the process branches to NO, and the process returns to step S22.

  If it is determined in step S24 that an operation for starting wireless communication has been performed, the process branches to YES, wireless communication with the camera B is started by the wireless communication unit 15b, and then the communication state is established. Is determined (step S25). If it is determined in step S25 that the communication state has been established, the process branches to YES, and the image data selected in step S22 and the various data set in step S23 are transmitted to the camera by the wireless communication unit 15b. Wirelessly transmit to B (step S26).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S25 that the communication state has not been established, the process branches to NO, and it is determined whether the communication state has been established again after a predetermined time has elapsed (step S27). If it is determined in step S27 that the communication state has been established, the process branches to YES and proceeds to step S26. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S27 that the communication state has not been established, the process branches to NO, and for example, a warning display indicating that the communication state cannot be established is displayed on the display means 18 (step S28).

  After this step S28, it is determined whether or not the POWER SW (not shown) is turned off by the user A (step S29). If it is determined in this step S29 that a power switch (not shown) has been turned off, the process branches to YES and the camera A is shut down. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S29 that the power switch (not shown) is not turned off, the process branches to NO and returns to step S1.

  By the way, when it is determined in step S21 that the operation for transmitting the image data to the camera B is not performed, or after the wireless transmission process in the step S26 is finished, the image data is transmitted to the camera B. Whether or not to transmit a request signal is determined by detecting the operation of the operation member 2a by the user A (step S30). When step S30 is branched to NO, the process proceeds to step S29.

  On the other hand, when step S30 is branched to YES, a transmission request signal is transmitted to the camera B (step S31). Then, the image data transmitted from the camera B is received (step S32).

  On the camera B side, predetermined image data is transmitted to the camera A according to the transmission request signal transmitted by the camera A in step S31. Here, it is assumed that the user B who is the user of the camera B does not particularly operate the camera B.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the reception in step S32 is successful (step S33). If it is determined in step S33 that the reception has failed, the process branches to NO, a reception process is performed after a lapse of a predetermined time, and it is determined whether or not the signal has been received again (step S34). When this step S34 is branched to NO, a warning display indicating that reception is impossible is displayed on the display means 18 (step S35), and the process proceeds to step S40 described later.

  If it is determined in step S33 or step S34 that the reception is successful, the reception time when the image data is received by the camera A and the transmission time when the image data is transmitted from the camera B are determined. It is determined whether or not they substantially match (step S36). The determination in step S36 is made by comparing and referring to the transmission time information transmitted together with the image data from the camera B and the output of the clock means 20 of the camera A.

  If it is determined in step S36 that the reception time and the transmission time do not substantially match, the process branches to NO, and the date / time information associated with the image data transmitted from the camera B is corrected (step S37). ). That is, when the reception time and the transmission time do not substantially match, there is a difference between the time measured by the clock means of camera A and the time measured by the clock means of camera B. In this case, since the date and time information in the camera A and the date and time information in the camera B are misaligned, the order of the images may be incorrect when rearranging the image data to be described later. The received date / time information is corrected by the amount of deviation between the reception time and the transmission time.

  When step S36 is branched to YES, or after the processing in step S37, the image data transmitted from the camera B is displayed on the display unit 18 (step S38). By this step S38, the user A confirms the image data transmitted from the camera B.

  Thereafter, the user A performs an operation of deleting image data that is considered unnecessary from the image data displayed in step S38 by the operation member 2a. In response to this operation, the MPU 2 deletes unnecessary image data selected by the user A from the memory 14 (step S39). After step S39, it is determined whether or not a power switch (not shown) is turned off by the user A (step S40). If it is determined in step S40 that a power switch (not shown) has been turned off, the process branches to YES and the camera A is shut down. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S40 that the power switch (not shown) is not turned off, the process returns to step S1.

  If it is determined in step S20 that the playback mode is set, the process branches to YES, and it is determined whether the first playback mode is set (step S41). If it is determined in step S41 that the first reproduction mode is set, the process branches to YES, and the image data is displayed on the display means 18 (step S42). Note that the display format of the image data in step S42 is, for example, as shown in FIG. 7B, in accordance with the time when the image data captured by the two cameras A and B are captured. Display in chronological order.

  Thereafter, whether or not to switch the display format of the image data is determined by detecting the operation of the operation member 2a by the user A (step S43). If it is determined in step S43 that the display format of the image data is to be switched, the process branches to YES, for example, to switch to a full screen display as shown in FIG. This full screen display is performed by switching the image data to be displayed one after another so as to go back to the previous time in time series, for example, every time a predetermined time elapses (step S44). After this step S44, it is determined whether or not all image data have been displayed (step S45). When step S45 is branched to NO, the process returns to step S43. On the other hand, when step S45 is branched to YES, it is determined whether or not a power switch (not shown) is turned off by the user A (step S46). If it is determined in step S46 that the POWER SW (not shown) has been turned off, the process branches to YES and the camera A is shut down. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S45 that the power switch (not shown) is not turned off, the process branches to NO and returns to step S42.

  If it is determined in step S41 that the first playback mode is not set, it is determined that the second playback mode is set, and the process branches to NO, and the setting of the camera B user image data in step S8 is performed. It is determined whether it has already been performed (step S51).

  Note that the second reproduction mode is a reproduction mode in which, for example, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, which image data is captured and acquired by which camera and displayed. Here, the display format shown in FIG. 8A is that the image data indicating the photographer (image data obtained by capturing the user of each camera acquired by each camera) is used as the image data captured by the photographer. This is a display format displayed side by side. The display format shown in FIG. 8B is a display format in which image data indicating a photographer is arranged side by side with the image data photographed by the photographer and arranged in time series. It can be said that the display format clearly shows when the image was taken.

  Here, what is characteristic of the display formats shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B are image data (camera A user image data and camera B user image data) indicating users of the respective cameras, and the images arranged side by side. The image data is that the cameras obtained by photographing each image data are different although they are arranged in the same column. That is, in order to perform the display as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the user who is the user of the camera A by performing the operation control specific to the camera according to the present embodiment as described above. It is necessary to acquire in advance image data indicating the user A and the user B who is the user of the camera B.

  That is, if it is determined in step S51 that the setting of the camera B user image data has not yet been performed, the process branches to NO, a warning display to that effect is displayed on the display means 18, and the process returns to step S1. A screen for setting the camera B user image data may be displayed. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S51 that the setting of the camera B user image data has already been performed, the process branches to YES, and then the camera A user image data, which is image data indicating itself as the user of the camera A. It is determined whether or not (first camera user image data. That is, image data showing the user of camera A transmitted from camera B) has been acquired (step S53).

  If it is determined in step S53 that the camera A user image data has not yet been set, the process branches to NO, and camera A user image data setting performed by the user A of the camera A using the operation member 2a. Is detected (step S54), and it is determined whether or not to set the camera A user image data.

  If it is determined in step S54 that camera A user image data is set, the process branches to YES, and camera A user image data is set based on a user operation (step S56). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S54 that the setting of the camera A user image data is not performed, the process branches to NO, and a warning requesting that the camera A user image data be transmitted is sent to the camera B ( Step S55), the process returns to step S1. Thus, even if the user B forgets to set the camera A user image data, it is possible to prompt the user to set the camera A user image data.

  After setting the camera A user image data and the camera A user image data, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the camera B user image data is displayed on the upper left portion of the display screen (step S57). ), The camera A user image data is displayed in the lower left part of the display screen (step S58).

  Then, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the image data acquired by the camera B is displayed side by side on the right side of the camera B user image data (step S59). On the right side of the user image data, the image data acquired by the camera A is displayed side by side (step S60).

  After that, the user A operates the operation member 2a to input whether or not to display as shown in FIG. 8B, that is, whether or not to display the image data in chronological order. Then, the MPU 2 detects the input, and determines whether or not the image data is arranged and displayed in chronological order (step S61). If it is determined in step S61 that the image data is arranged and displayed in chronological order, the process branches to YES, and the image data is rearranged in chronological order and displayed on the display means 18 (step S62).

  When step S61 is branched to NO or after step S62, the user A operates the operation member 2a to input whether or not to switch display to the next display candidate image data. Then, the MPU 2 detects the input, and determines whether or not to switch the display to the next display candidate image data not yet displayed on the display means 18 (step S71). If it is determined in step S71 that the display is switched to the next display candidate image data, the process branches to YES, and the user A determines what image data is the next display candidate image data. Operate 2a to select. The MPU 2 detects the input and designates the next display candidate image data (step S72). After step S72, the process returns to step S59.

  If it is determined in step S71 that display switching is not performed for the next display candidate image data, the process branches to NO, and it is determined whether or not a power switch (not shown) is turned off by the user A (step S73). ). If it is determined in step S73 that a power switch (not shown) has been turned off, the process branches to YES and the camera A is shut down. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S73 that the power switch (not shown) is not turned off, the process branches to NO and returns to step S59.

  Hereinafter, the subroutine of the image selection process in step S22 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  First, as shown in FIG. 10, a list of image data is displayed on the display means 18 (step S81). At this time, as shown in FIG. 10, the display screen is divided into “candidate image data display portion 18A” and “selected image data display portion 18B”.

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not a screen switching operation has been performed by the operation of the operation member 2a by the user A (step S82). The “screen switching” is an operation performed by the user when there is no image data to be selected in the image data displayed on the candidate image data display unit 18A.

  When step S82 is branched to YES, the next candidate image data is displayed on the candidate image data display unit 18A of the display means 18 (step S83). The next candidate image data may be selected by any criteria. On the other hand, when the step S82 is branched to NO, the process proceeds to the following step S85.

  While referring to the list display of the candidate image data display unit 18A on the display unit 18 as described above, the user A operates the operation member 2a to display a frame (for example, as shown in FIG. 10). The image data to be transmitted to the camera B is selected by superimposing the uppermost image and the leftmost display image in the lower image in FIG. Then, the MPU 2 determines whether or not an operation for selecting image data has been performed by the user A (step S85).

  If it is determined in step S85 that the user A has performed an image data selection operation, step S85 is branched to YES, and the image data selected in step S85 is transmitted to the camera B. Is recorded in the transmission memory 14b for recording only (step S86). In step S85, the image data selected by the user A is displayed on the selected image data display unit 18B (step S87).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S85 that the operation for selecting image data is not performed by the user A, the process branches to NO, and whether or not the operation for ending the selection operation is performed by the user A. The operation state of the operation member 2a is detected and determined (step S88). If it is determined not to end the selection operation, step S88 is branched to NO, and the process returns to step S81. If it is determined in step S88 that the selection operation is to be terminated, the process branches to YES, and the image data selected so far is displayed as a list on the display means 18 (step S89), and then shown in FIG. 6B. Return to the flowchart.

  For example, when recording in the transmission memory 14b, which records only the image data to be transmitted to the camera B in the step S86, the compression rate of the image data is increased or a thinning process is performed to reduce the communication load. Of course, measures to reduce this may be taken. Furthermore, it is possible to insert information indicating that the image data is not original image data into the image data using a digital watermark technique or the like. In any case, since the image data to be transmitted to the camera B is recorded in the transmission memory 14b in the step S86, if the transmission processing fails, the image data recorded in the transmission memory 14b is transmitted. There is no need to perform the processing from step S81 to step S89 again.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to provide a camera that organizes a large number of image data obtained by a plurality of cameras by the camera A and considering the viewing effect.

  For example, it is possible to organize and display a list of image data obtained by photographing when two persons travel with a camera according to the present embodiment.

  That is, for example, when a plurality of users go on a group trip, the image data acquired by each user during the return trip can be organized as one electronic album. Therefore, as is currently done, it is not necessary to organize the album into an album considering the order while looking at the image data printed out after returning from the trip.

  In addition, since image data acquired by a plurality of users is displayed for each user as described above, it is possible to know who the image data was captured when displaying the image data. You can work hard to improve your expressive power, and you can also check the differences between each other's viewpoints. As a result, for example, when a father and his mother photograph each camera according to the present embodiment at a children's athletic meet, they know the difference in the viewpoint of viewing their children when playing back and displaying image data. Can enjoy.

  For convenience of explanation, the case where two cameras according to this embodiment are used has been described as an example, but it is needless to say that three or more cameras according to this embodiment may be used. Needless to say, the operation control and the like in that case can be easily estimated from the operation control and the like when two cameras according to the present embodiment are used.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated based on one Embodiment, this invention is not limited to embodiment mentioned above, Of course, a various deformation | transformation and application are possible within the range of the summary of this invention. is there. For example, in the above-described example, rearrangement of image data is performed in the order of shooting date and time information. However, rearrangement may be performed using GPS information detected by the position detection unit 22.

[First modification]
For example, by inserting the flowchart shown in FIG. 11 (steps S91 to S99 described later) before the step S1 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 6A, the camera A user image data and the camera B user image data are surely obtained. Can be set.

  First, it is determined whether the camera A user image data and the camera B user image data have been set (step S91). If it is determined in step S91 that the camera A user image data and the camera B user image data have been set, the process branches to YES, and the process returns to step S1 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 6A.

  If it is determined in step S91 that the camera A user image data and the camera B user image data have not been set, the process branches to NO, and the wireless communication unit 15b starts wireless communication with the camera B ( Step S92).

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not a communication state has been established (step S93). If it is determined in step S93 that the communication state has been established, the process branches to YES, and "shooting & transmission / reception processing" is performed (step S96). In this “photographing & transmission / reception process”, as shown in FIG. 12, user A 30a and user B 32b shoot each other. Then, the camera A30 records the image data acquired by the shooting in the transmission memory 14b, and then transmits the image data to the camera B32. Further, the camera B32 transmits the camera A user image data of the camera A30 taken by the camera B32 to the camera A30, and the camera A30 receives the camera A user image data.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S93 that the communication state has not been established, the process branches to NO, and it is determined whether the communication state has been established again after a predetermined time has elapsed (step S94). If it is determined in step S94 that the communication state has been established, the process branches to YES and proceeds to step S96. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S94 that the communication state is not established, the process branches to NO, and a warning display indicating that the communication state cannot be established is displayed on the display unit 18 (step S95). And it returns to step S1 in the flowchart of FIG. 6A.

  After the processing in step S96, a “multi-display screen” as shown in FIG. 13 is displayed on the display means 18 (step S97). The “multi-display screen” is a display means for displaying the camera B user image data acquired by photographing in step S96 and the camera A user image data transmitted and acquired from the camera B32 as shown in FIG. 18 is a display screen that is simultaneously displayed on the screen.

  Here, for example, when the user A 30a performs a release operation at an appropriate timing while the “multi-display screen” is displayed in step S97, the camera B user image data captured and acquired in step S96 is captured by the camera B. “Camera A user image data and camera B user image data setting process”, which is a process for setting and recording camera A user image data acquired as a user image data and transmitted from camera B 32 as camera A user image data, Be started.

  Therefore, after the process in step S97, it is determined whether or not the release operation has been performed by the user (step S98). If it is determined that the release operation has been performed, the process branches to YES, and the “camera A” "User image data and camera B user image data setting process" is performed (step S99).

  If it is determined in step S98 that the release operation is not performed by the user, the process branches to NO, and after performing the “camera A user image data and camera B user image data setting process” in step S99. Then, it is determined whether or not the operation for causing the wireless communication unit 15b to end the wireless communication with the camera B32 is performed by the operation of the operation member 2a by the user (step S100). If it is determined in step S100 that an operation for ending wireless communication with the camera B32 has been performed, the process returns to step S1 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 6A. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S100 that the operation for ending the wireless communication with the camera B32 has not been performed, the process returns to step S96.

  As described above, according to the first modification, in addition to the same effects as those of the camera according to the one embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. That is, in this modified example, since the camera A user image data and the camera B user image data are reliably set in advance, the subsequent operation control can be performed more smoothly. Further, as described above, the camera A user image data and the camera B user image data can be set together by a very easy operation.

[Second modification]
In this modification, for example, as shown in FIG. 15, the user 100 can write a comment or the like on the desired image data displayed on the display unit 18 in a touch panel format, for example. This can be achieved by modifying the image selection processing subroutine in step S22 shown in FIG. 9 as shown in the flowchart of FIG.

  Of the processes in the flowchart shown in FIG. 9, steps S81 to S85 are the same processes as steps S81 to S85 in the flowchart shown in FIG.

  First, in step S85, if it is determined that the operation for selecting image data is not performed by the user A, the process branches to NO, and whether or not the operation for ending the selection operation is performed by the user A. The operation state of the operation member 2a is detected and determined (step S206). If it is determined not to end the selection operation, the process returns to step S81. If it is determined in step S206 that the selection operation is to be terminated, the process branches to YES and returns to the flowchart shown in FIG. 6B.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S85 that the user A has performed an image data selection operation, the process branches to YES, and the image data selected in step S85 is enlarged and displayed on the display unit 18 (step S207). ).

  Thereafter, for example, as shown in FIG. 15, the comment written by the user A 30a in the touch panel format is combined with the image data enlarged and displayed in step S207 (step S208). As the touch panel, for example, a format that is already widely used and written on the display means 18 having a light detection panel in which a large number of light receiving elements are embedded using the touch pen 50 that emits light from the pen tip can be used.

  Then, the image data synthesized in step S208 is recorded in the transmission memory 14b (step S209). Thereafter, the process returns to the flowchart shown in FIG. 6B.

  As described above, according to this modification, in addition to the same effects as the camera according to the above-described embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. That is, according to the present modification, the comment by the user A is added to the image data, so that viewing of the image data can be made more enjoyable. In addition, the comment can be an index for determining who imaged the image data.

  Furthermore, in the above step S208, when the user A writes the name of the person to whom the image data is transmitted (for example, the user B) as a comment, the MPU 2 identifies it and selects a candidate transmission destination. It may be possible to simplify the transmission destination setting at the time of image data transmission.

  Note that the input of the comment in step S208 does not take the touch panel format as described above, and the camera 110 captures the comment 110 handwritten by the user A on paper or the like as shown in FIG. You may carry out by combining the handwritten comment input by this imaging | photography with image data.

  In the above-described embodiment, communication between cameras is performed by the wireless communication unit 15b using the signal processing circuit 12 which is a circuit for performing shooting and reproduction processing. The circuit 12 is not limited. That is, a circuit for performing communication processing may be provided separately so that communication processing and other processing can be executed in parallel. In such a configuration, the circuit scale increases, but it is possible to have a configuration that responds to a constant communication request at a higher speed and irrespective of the usage status.

  Furthermore, the memory 14 may be a memory card configured to be detachable from the camera, or may be a memory built in the camera. In the above-described embodiment, the image data acquired by reception is stored in the memory 14, but may be stored in the SDRAM. In this case, the storage period is limited, but there is no problem when transmission / reception is performed immediately after shooting, and the memory access time can be increased.

  Note that the confirmation of whether or not the communication state has been established may be only a simple confirmation of the communication protocol, or a known communication technique may be used so as to make a determination according to the identification information and security information of each model.

  Further, the above-described embodiments include inventions at various stages, and various inventions can be extracted by appropriately combining a plurality of disclosed constituent elements. For example, even if some constituent requirements are deleted from all the constituent requirements shown in the embodiment, the problem described in the column of the problem to be solved by the invention can be solved, and the effect described in the column of the effect of the invention Can be extracted as an invention.

1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a camera according to an embodiment of the present invention. The flowchart which shows the method of the conventional image data rearrangement. The figure which shows the one scene in the flowchart shown in FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an outline of a technique for organizing image data by a camera according to an embodiment of the present invention. (A) is one scene in the flowchart shown in FIG. 4, (b) is a concept of image data rearrangement in image data arrangement, and (c) is a diagram showing an example of display after image data rearrangement. The 1st part of the main flowchart of the camera which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The 2nd part of the main flowchart of the camera which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The 3rd part of the main flowchart of the camera which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The 4th part of the main flowchart of the camera which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The 5th part of the main flowchart of the camera which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The 6th part of the main flowchart of the camera which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. (A) is a figure which shows the display means which displays image data by a full screen display. (B) is a figure which shows the display means which arranges and displays the image data image | photographed with the two cameras of the said camera and camera B32 in order in time series according to the image | photographed time. (A) is a figure which shows the display means which displays the image data which shows a photographer in the display format displayed alongside the image data which this photographer imaged. FIG. 6B is a diagram showing display means for displaying image data indicating a photographer in a display format that is arranged side by side with the image data photographed by the photographer and arranged in time series. The flowchart which shows the subroutine of the process of an image selection. The figure which shows the display means which displays a list of image data. The flowchart which shows the operation control for setting camera A user image data and camera B user image data reliably. The figure which shows a mode that mutually image | photographs each other. The figure which shows an example of the display means at the time of a multi display screen. The flowchart which shows the subroutine of the modification of the process of an image selection. The figure which shows a mode that it writes in on a display means in a touchscreen format. The figure which shows a mode that the comment which the user wrote on paper etc. by handwriting is image | photographed with the said camera.

Explanation of symbols

    DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 ... MPU, 4 ... Operation control program, 6 ... Shooting lens, 8 ... Subject, 10 ... AFE circuit, 10a ... Image sensor, 10b ... Microphone, 12 ... Signal processing circuit, 12a ... Processing auxiliary block, 14 ... Memory, 14b ... Memory for transmission, 15a ... Print signal output means, 15b ... Wireless communication section, 16 ... RAM, 18 ... Display means, 18a ... Speaker, 18A, 18B ... Image data display section, 20 ... Clock means, 22 ... Position detection means .

Claims (3)

A display for displaying an image;
A timekeeping unit that generates date and time information;
A shooting date and time information associating unit that associates the image with shooting date and time information that is date and time information at the time of shooting when the image is acquired by shooting;
A camera information associating unit for associating the image with camera information that is information related to the camera when the image is acquired by photographing;
A communication unit that transmits and receives images by communication with a second camera that is a camera different from the camera;
The user image data in the camera is acquired from the image transmitted by the second camera and received by the communication unit of the camera. A determination unit that makes a determination based on the presence or absence of the setting ,
A specifying unit that specifies an image of a user of the second camera as a subject based on an operation of an operation member of the camera as second camera user image data;
When the determination unit determines that the image is an image having the user of the camera as a subject, the image is set as user image data that is an image having the user of the camera as a subject. If the image is determined not to be an image having the user of the camera as the subject, the image is rearranged separately from the user image data based on the shooting date / time information and the camera information. The image received from the second camera on the basis of the display position on the display unit of the image displayed on the display unit and specified by the specifying unit as the second camera user image data. A display control unit for sorting,
A camera comprising: The second camera transmits date and time information of the transmission time together with the image during the transmission,
The display control unit determines whether the date and time information of the transmission time and the date and time information at the time of reception substantially match when the image is received by the communication unit. The camera according to claim 1, further comprising a date / time information correction unit that corrects a deviation of the date / time information . The date and time information correction unit is configured to transmit the image transmitted from the second camera based on a difference between the date and time information of the transmission time and the date and time information of the reception when the image is received by the communication unit. The camera according to claim 2 , wherein date and time information associated with the camera is corrected .

Images