JP5125939B2 - Imaging apparatus and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus and a program including an imaging unit having an imaging element in any of the casings while movably connecting a plurality of casings constituting the apparatus main body.

Conventionally, in a folding type mobile phone equipped with an image pickup unit, when both housings are in a specific positional relationship, a part of the case may depend on the mounting position of the image pickup unit due to design and specification restrictions. In some cases, the image appears in the imaging range. For example, when shooting from the top of a wall like an athletic meet, when the positional relationship between the two cases is changed so that the monitor screen is easy to see, a part of the case is reflected in the imaging range. Vignetting may occur.
By the way, conventionally, as a technique that can be used for such vignetting measures, for example, by calculating the depth of field and controlling the vicinity of the lens to be out of focus, the subject is focused. However, there is known a technique that enables defocusing to dust and dust near the lens (see Patent Document 1).
JP 2003-337280 A

However, as the technique of Patent Document 1 described above, even if the casing portion that has been imprinted in the imaging range can be made inconspicuous, the vignetting portion is only slightly blurred. However, since the imaging result is different from the photographer's intention, it cannot be said that the technique for preventing vignetting is sufficient.
Therefore, conventionally, in order to prevent the occurrence of vignetting, it has been necessary to restrict the mounting position of the imaging unit for mounting or to restrict the positional relationship of a plurality of housings for use.

An object of the present invention is to effectively prevent the occurrence of vignetting that a casing is reflected in a cut-out area cut out as an image pickup range of the image pickup device regardless of a position where an image pickup unit having the image pickup device is attached. It is to be able to prevent.

In order to solve the above-described problem, an invention according to claim 1 is an imaging apparatus including a plurality of casings constituting the apparatus main body movably connected and an imaging unit having an imaging element in any casing. there are, compared with the image of the segment region to be extracted as the imaging range of the housing image and the imaging device are prepared Me pre, shape, color, pattern, size, comprehensively comparing like projection condition Accordingly, the image recognition means for recognizing whether or not the housing image is included in the image of the cutout area, and the image in the cutout area based on the recognition result recognized by the image recognition means. A discriminating means for discriminating whether or not the casing is imprinted, and the discriminating unit so that the casing is not imprinted when it is determined by the discriminating means that the casing is imprinted in the cut-out area. An area adjusting means for adjusting the exit area; Characterized in that Bei was.

As an invention dependent on claim 1, before Symbol region adjusting means adjusts the cut region by changing the cutting position of the cutting-out region on the basis of the recognition result recognized by the image recognition unit, The invention according to claim 2, which is configured as described above.

As an invention dependent on claim 1, before Symbol region adjusting means adjusts the cut region by changing the size of the segment region based on the recognition result recognized by the image recognition unit, iodine The invention according to claim 3, which is characterized in that, is provided.

As an invention subordinate to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a plurality of style specifying means for specifying a style of the apparatus body by detecting the positional relationship of the housing, wherein the image recognition means, wherein When the positional relationship of the plurality of casings detected by the style detection unit is a specific style, the prepared casing image is compared with the image of the cut-out area cut out as the imaging range of the image sensor. It is possible to recognize whether or not the image of the housing is included in the image of the cutout region by comprehensively comparing the shape, color, pattern, size, appearance, etc. The invention according to claim 4 may be provided.

As an invention dependent on claim 1, a teaching means that teaches that the cutout area has been adjusted by the adjusting means when the discriminating means determines that the casing is imprinted in the cutout area. The invention according to claim 5 may be further provided.

As an invention dependent on claim 1, when the cutout area is adjusted so that the casing is not imprinted in the cutout area by the area adjusting means, an image in the cutout area after the adjustment is displayed. The invention according to claim 6 , further comprising image display means for displaying as a monitor image at the time of photographing.

As an invention dependent on claim 1, wherein the recording is stored after executing the image processing on the image in the cutout region that is adjusted by the region adjusting means, as in the claim 7, wherein the It may be an invention.

As an invention dependent on claim 7, wherein the recording is stored after returning the image cutting-out area to its original size before adjustment after adjustment, as in the thing in the invention of claim 8, wherein There may be.

In order to solve the above-described problem, the invention described in claim 9 is such that a plurality of casings constituting the apparatus main body are movably connected to a computer, and an imaging element is connected to any one of the casings. In a state in which an image pickup unit having an image sensor is provided, a case image prepared in advance is compared with an image of a cutout region cut out as an image pickup range of the image pickup device, and the shape, color, pattern, size, and image A function of recognizing whether or not the housing image is included in the image of the cut-out area by comprehensively comparing conditions and the like, and the inside of the cut-out area based on the recognized recognition result A function for determining whether or not a housing is imprinted on the image, and when it is determined that a housing is imprinted in the cutout area, the cutout area is set so that the housing is not imprinted. Adjustment function and program to realize And wherein the beam.

According to the present invention, the housing within the cut-out area cut out as the imaging range of the image sensor without restricting the mounting position of the imaging unit in terms of mounting or restricting the positional relationship of the plurality of housings in terms of use. It is possible to effectively prevent the occurrence of vignetting.

(Embodiment 1)
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
This embodiment exemplifies a case where the present invention is applied to a mobile phone including an imaging unit as an imaging device, and FIG. 1 is an external view of the mobile phone.
The mobile phone is a two-axis hinge type in which a plurality of cases constituting the device main body (device main body) are movably connected and can be changed into a plurality of styles according to the connected state. The body 1 and the display-side housing 2 are connected via a hinge portion 3 so that the body 1 and the display-side housing 2 can be folded and opened and rotated. The hinge portion 3 is provided with an opening / closing hinge shaft (first axis) for folding and closing the operation-side housing 1 and the display-side housing 2 and is substantially orthogonal to the opening / closing hinge shaft. Thus, a rotation hinge shaft (second axis) for rotating one housing relative to the other housing is provided. The hinge portion 3 is also one of the casings constituting the apparatus main body, like the operation-side casing 1 and the display-side casing 2.

In such a two-axis hinge type mobile phone, the mobile phone has a plurality of styles (closed style, open style, view style, etc.) depending on the connection state between the operation side case 1 and the display side case 2. FIG. 1A shows a closed style in a state where the operation-side casing 1 and the display-side casing 2 are folded and the display screen DP faces inward. FIG. 1B shows the open style in the closed style with the display-side housing 2 opened around the first axis, and FIG. 1C shows the first style in the open style. The state which rotated the display side housing | casing 2 about 90 degree | times centering on 2 axes | shafts is shown. FIG. 1D shows a view style in the open style in which the display-side housing 2 is rotated 180 degrees and then folded and the display screen DP faces outward.

A camera unit 4 is attached to the hinge unit 3 (one of the casings). The camera unit 4 is a camera module having a thickness (height) in the optical axis direction. Normally, the camera unit 4 performs photographing in a closed style or an open style in which the photographing lens faces outward. When shooting in the downward direction, shooting may be performed in the form shown in FIG. In other words, when shooting in the downward or upward direction, or when shooting from the top of a wall like an athletic meet, the display-side housing 2 is rotated so that the monitor image is easy to see. There are cases where shooting is performed by changing the angle of the display screen DP. In such a case, as shown in FIG. 1C, a phenomenon (vignetting) in which a part of the display-side housing 2 is reflected in the imaging range may occur. The occurrence of vignetting is particularly noticeable when performing wide-angle shooting.

FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating an imaging range (effective pixel number) of the imaging element.
The imaging range (number of effective pixels) BE is set to be slightly smaller than the entire pixel area AE in consideration of the influence of lens aberration and the like with respect to the entire pixel area AE of the imaging element. For example, 2560 × 1920 The pixel size. FIGS. 2B to 2D show how the state of occurrence of vignetting changes according to the rotation angle when the display-side casing 2 is rotated around the second axis in the open style. It is a figure. That is, FIG. 2B shows that vignetting occurs in the upper left corner of the figure when the rotation angle is “20 degrees”. Similarly, FIG. 2C shows that when the rotation angle is “90 degrees”, vignetting occurs in the upper center portion in the figure, and FIG. 2D shows that the rotation angle is “160 degrees”. "" Indicates that vignetting occurs in the upper right corner of the figure. As described above, in FIGS. 2B to 2D, vignetting occurs in a range including a rotation angle of “20 degrees to 160 degrees”, and in particular, when the rotation angle is “90 degrees”, vignetting occurs. It shows that the generation part becomes the maximum.

In order to prevent the occurrence of such vignetting, in this embodiment, when the number of effective pixels of the image sensor is set as the default pixel area, the default pixel area is adjusted according to the degree of vignetting. . That is, when a case is copied in an area cut out as the imaging range BE (hereinafter referred to as a cut-out area BE), a default cut-out area ( The number of effective pixels BE is adjusted. At that time, the size of the default cutout area BE is changed (smaller), or the position of the default cutout area BE is changed.

The default cutout area BE is when the rotation angle is “0 degree”, and the size of the cutout area BE (0 degree) is “100%”, for example, as shown in FIG. When the rotation angle is “20 degrees”, the cutout area BE (20 degrees) is adjusted to “95%” in the size of the cut area BE, and “2.5%” in the downward direction and the right direction in the figure. "It will be shifted. In addition, as shown in FIG. 2 (c), the cutout region BE (90 degrees) when the rotation angle is “90 degrees” is adjusted to “75%” in the size of the cut area BE. It is shifted by “12.5%” in the direction. In addition, as shown in FIG. 2D, the cutout region BE (160 degrees) when the rotation angle is “160 degrees” is adjusted to “95%” in the size of the cutout area BE. It is shifted by “2.5%” in the direction and right direction.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating basic components of a mobile phone including an imaging unit.
A mobile phone is provided with a call function, an e-mail function, an Internet connection function (Web access function), and the like. For example, when a mobile phone is connected to a wireless communication network from the nearest base station, it becomes possible to make a call with another mobile phone via this wireless communication network, and to send and receive e-mails. In addition, when connected to the Internet via a wireless communication network, the website can be accessed and browsed.

The central control unit 11 operates by supplying power from a power supply unit 12 including a secondary battery, and controls the overall operation of the mobile phone 1 according to various programs in the storage unit 13. Etc. The storage unit 13 includes a program memory M1, an image storage memory M2, a cutout area adjustment table M3, a case recognition memory M4, and the like. The program memory M1 stores a program and various applications for realizing the present embodiment in accordance with the operation procedure shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, and stores various information necessary for the program. Yes. The image storage memory M2 is a memory for recording and saving captured images. The cutout area adjustment table M3 will be described in detail later. Further, the case recognition memory M4 will be described in a second embodiment to be described later.

The radio communication unit 14 includes a radio unit, a baseband unit, a demultiplexing unit, and the like, and performs data transmission / reception with the nearest base station during a call function, an e-mail function, an Internet connection function, etc. At the time of operation of the call function, a signal is taken from the receiving side of the baseband unit and demodulated into a received baseband signal, and then the voice is output from the calling speaker SP via the voice signal processing unit 15, and the calling microphone The input voice from the MC is taken from the voice signal processing unit 15 and encoded into a transmission baseband signal, which is then given to the transmission side of the baseband unit and transmitted from the antenna.

The display unit 16 uses high-definition liquid crystal or organic EL, and displays various information such as character information, a standby image, and a camera image. The operation unit 17 inputs dial input, character input, command input, and the like. When a shooting instruction operation, shutter operation, shooting end instruction operation, or the like is performed, the central control unit 11 performs processing according to the operation. Run. The application processing related unit 18 stores information related to application processing such as an electronic mail function, an Internet connection function, a content reproduction function, and a camera function, and performs control related to the processing.

The style detection unit 19 detects the style of the mobile phone (a narrow style such as a closed style, an open style, and a view style) according to the connection state between the operation-side casing 1 and the display-side casing 2, and the operation-side casing. When the display-side housing 2 is rotated with respect to the body 1, a style (in a broad sense) corresponding to the rotation angle (rotation angle of the second axis constituting the hinge portion 3) is detected. For example, it has a configuration having a magnetic sensor, a micro switch, a mechanical switch, and the like. In other words, the style detection unit 19 detects the rotation angle of a rotation mechanism (second axis) that rotatably connects the plurality of housings 1 and 2 in addition to the detection unit that detects a narrowly-defined style. It has a configuration including a detection unit (not shown). In addition, as a style (broad sense style) according to the rotation angle of the 2nd axis | shaft which comprises the hinge part 3, a style is detected for every 5 degree | times within the range of 0 degree-180 degree | times, for example. I am doing so.

The camera unit 4 constitutes an image pickup unit having an image pickup element (for example, CCD or CMOS), and is capable of moving image shooting in addition to still image shooting, and includes a lens / mirror block such as a shooting lens and a mirror, In addition to the image sensor and its drive system, it includes a ranging sensor, light quantity sensor, analog processing circuit, signal processing circuit, compression / decompression circuit, etc., and controls optical zoom adjustment, drive control during autofocus, shutter drive control, Control exposure, white balance, etc. The camera unit 4 includes a bifocal lens and a zoom lens that can switch between telephoto and wide angle according to the subject, and operates a view angle changing mechanism that varies the focal length to perform telephoto / wide angle and zoom photography. I have to.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the cutout area adjustment table M3.
The cutout area adjustment table M3 corresponds to the “style” indicating the positional relationship between the operation-side casing 1 and the display-side casing 2 detected by the style detection unit 19, and indicates “the occurrence of vignetting”. ”And“ size of cut-out area ”and“ shift amount of cut-out area (cut-out position) ”as adjustment data for adjusting the cut-out area BE of the image sensor are stored. ing. FIG. 4A shows the contents of the cut-out area adjustment table M3 used at the standard view angle, and FIG. 4B shows the contents of the cut-out area adjustment table M3 used at the wide-angle view angle. Yes.

“Style” is data indicating the positional relationship between the operation-side casing 1 and the display-side casing 2, and indicates whether or not the first axis, which is a style related to the first axis, and whether or not the second axis is rotated. The item “second axis rotation” and the item “second axis rotation angle” indicating the rotation angle of the second axis have the items “second axis rotation” as shown in FIG. It shows that vignetting occurs when the “axis rotation angle” is in the range of “10 degrees to 170 degrees”. Further, as shown in FIG. 4B, vignetting occurs when the “second axis rotation angle” is in the range of “5 degrees to 175 degrees” at the wide angle angle of view.

The “size of the cutout area” indicates the size of the cutout area BE after the change when the size of the default cutout area BE is changed. For example, as shown in FIG. When the default cutout area BE is set to “100%” and the “second axis rotation angle” at the standard angle of view is “10 degrees to 30 degrees”, the size is adjusted to “95%”. In addition, in the case of “80 degrees to 100 degrees”, the size is adjusted to “75%”. When the “second axis rotation angle” at the wide angle of view is “5 to 25 degrees”, it is adjusted to “90%”, and when it is “80 to 100 degrees”. It shows that the size is adjusted to “80%”.

The “shift amount of the cutout area” is the direction in which the position of the cutout area BE after the change is relative to the position of the cutout area BE before the change when the position of the default cutout area BE is changed. It is data indicating how much to shift. That is, as shown in FIG. 2A, when the center point (center) of the default cut-out area BE is cut out as a reference, how much is shifted in any of the upper, lower, left and right directions with respect to the center (default). This “cutout area shift amount” has items of “vertical direction” and “horizontal direction”. For example, when the “second axis rotation angle” at the standard angle of view is “10 degrees to 30 degrees”, the shift amount of “vertical direction” is “2.5% downward” and “horizontal direction”. The amount indicates “2.5% to the right”, and in the case of “80 degrees to 100 degrees”, the shift amount of “vertical direction” is “12.5% downward” and “left and right direction”. The shift amount “” indicates “center (default)”, that is, the shift amount is “0”.

Note that the contents (specific numerical values) of the cutout area adjustment table M3 differ depending on how the vignetting occurs and the housing settings. Further, the “second axis rotation angle” is not limited to the range of “0 to 180 degrees”, and if the rotation is possible by “180 degrees” or more, the range of rotation can be changed accordingly. It may be changed according to the manner in which vignetting occurs. The contents of the cutout area adjustment table M3 may be arbitrarily set by the user. The “size of the cutout area” may be a standard size. Further, in the illustrated example, the cutout area adjustment table M3 used at the standard view angle and the cutout area adjustment table M3 used at the wide angle view angle are illustrated, but of course, the cutout area adjustment corresponding to the optical zoom is performed. A table M3 may be prepared, and various cutout region adjustment tables M3 may be provided in association with the optical zoom magnification.

Next, the operation concept of the mobile phone according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. Here, each function described in these flowcharts is stored in the form of a readable program code, and operations according to the program code are sequentially executed. In addition, the operation according to the above-described program code transmitted via the transmission medium can be sequentially executed. This also applies to other embodiments described later, and in addition to the recording medium, an operation specific to this embodiment can be executed using a program / data supplied externally via a transmission medium.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an outline of the overall operation of the mobile phone that is started to be executed when the power is turned on.
First, the central control unit 11 responds to the ON operation of the power switch (YES in step A1), drives the power source unit 12 to supply power to each part of the mobile phone 1, and initializes a predetermined memory and the like. A power-on process is performed (step A2). Then, in a standby state in which a predetermined standby image is read and displayed (step A3), the presence / absence of an incoming call from the wireless communication unit 14 is checked (step A4).

Now, when an incoming call is detected (YES in step A4), in response to an off-hook operation for line connection (YES in step A5), a call process for making a call ready is started (step A6). Thereafter, in response to an on-hook operation for disconnecting the line (YES in step A7), the process returns to the standby state described above (step A3). Even when the incoming call ends when the line is blocked from the other party (YES in step A8), the process returns to the standby state described above (step A3).

If any user operation is detected while waiting for an incoming call (YES in step A9), it is checked whether it is a photographing instruction operation (step A10), a power-off operation, or another operation (step A14). ). Now, when a shooting instruction operation for activating the camera unit 4 is performed (YES in step A10), it is checked whether the still image mode is specified as the shooting mode (step A11), and if the still image mode is specified. Then, a still image photographing process described later is executed (step A12). If the still image mode is not designated (NO in step A11), a moving image shooting process described later is executed (step A13). In addition, when an operation other than a shooting start instruction operation or a power-off operation is performed (NO in step A14), application processing such as transmission processing and music playback processing is executed (step A16), but power-off operation is performed. Is performed (YES in step A14), a power OFF process is executed (step A15).

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining in detail the still image shooting process (step A12 in FIG. 5).
First, the central control unit 11 activates the camera unit 4 in the still image mode (step B1), executes a process for initializing each part of the camera unit 4 (step B2), and then performs photoelectric processing on the image sensor. The converted image signal is captured and displayed on the display unit 16 as a through image (monitor image) (step B3). In this state, the style detection unit 19 is accessed to detect the current style (in the narrow sense and broad sense) (step B4), and it is checked whether the detected narrow sense style is a specific style (for example, open style). (Step B5).

If the current style is a close style or a view style and is not a specific style (NO in step B5), a default cut-out area (2560 × 1920 pixels) BE is specified as the imaging range of the image sensor (step B16). If it is a specific style (YES in step B5), the current angle of view (telephoto / wide angle or zoomed image) is detected based on the focal length of the camera unit 4 (step B6). Then, after specifying the cutout area adjustment table M3 corresponding to this angle of view, based on the above-described detection style, the item “occurrence of vignetting” of the cutout area adjustment table M3 is referred to and the presence / absence of vignetting is checked. (Step B7).

For example, in the case of a standard angle of view, the cut-out area adjustment table M3 shown in FIG. 4A is referred to, and the second axis rotation angle is “0 to 10 degrees” and 170 to 180 degrees in the open style. In this case, “None” is set in the item “occurrence of vignetting”, but “Yes” is set in the case of “10 degrees to 170 degrees”. Whether or not vignetting has occurred is determined from the item contents. As a result, if the second axis rotation angle is an angle at which vignetting does not occur (NO in step B7), a default cutout region BE is specified (step B16), but if the angle is vignetting (step B16). YES in B7), the amount of change of the cutout area BE is derived (step B8). For example, when the detected style is the open style and the second axis rotation angle is “10 degrees to 30 degrees”, “95%” is read as the “size of the cutout area” from the cutout area adjustment table M3. Then, “2.5% downward” is read out as “vertical direction” and “2.5% rightward” is read out as “horizontal direction” of “shift amount of cutout area”.

Then, the size and the cutout position of the cutout area BE are changed (adjusted) based on the change amount of the cutout area (Step B9), and after changing to the through image (monitor image) displayed on the display unit 16. By displaying an image frame indicating the cutout area BE, the user is informed that the cutout area BE has been changed (step B10). Thereafter, until the shutter operation is performed (step B11), the process returns to the above-described step B3 and the above-described operation is repeated. As a result, the style detection is performed at any time from the start of the still image mode until the shutter operation is performed, and the angle of view detection is performed at any time during the detection of the specific style, and according to the detection result. The cutout area BE is changed. Here, when a shutter operation is performed (YES in step B11), an image in the cutout region BE is captured and image processing is performed (step B12).

As this image processing, for example, the image in the cut-out area BE is compression-encoded or converted into a format corresponding to the storage format, but digital zoom processing or the like may be further performed. For example, digital zoom processing is performed on the image so that the image in the cutout area BE after the change has the same size as the default cutout area BE when no vignetting occurs. The still image after such image processing is recorded and saved in the image storage memory M2 as an image file (step B13). Hereinafter, the operation returns to the above-described step B3 and repeats the above-described operation until an instruction to end the photographing (an instruction to end the still image mode) is performed (step B14). YES), the camera unit 4 is stopped, and still image mode end processing is performed (step B15).

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the moving image shooting process (step A13 in FIG. 5) in detail.
First, the central control unit 11 activates the camera unit 4 in the moving image mode (step C1), executes an initialization process (step C2), and thereafter performs basically the same processing as in the still image mode described above. I do. In other words, a through image is displayed on the display unit 16 (step C3), the current style (narrow sense and broad sense) is detected (step C4), and if the narrow sense style is not a specific style (open style) (step C4). If NO in C5), the default cutout region BE is specified (Step C17), but if it is a specific style (YES in Step C5), the angle of view is detected based on the focal length of the camera unit 4 (Step C6). .

Then, with reference to the cutout area adjustment table M3 corresponding to the detected angle of view, the presence / absence of vignetting is checked (step C7). If no vignetting occurs, the default cutout area BE is identified ( If vignetting occurs (YES in step C17), the amount of change in the cutout area is derived (step C8). Based on the change amount of the cutout area, the size and cutout position of the cutout area BE are changed (step C9), and the change of the cutout area BE is taught (step C10).

Thereafter, the process returns to the above-described step C3 and repeats the above-described operation until a moving image shooting start operation is performed (step C11). As a result, from the start of the video mode until the shooting start operation is performed, style detection is performed at any time, and while detecting a specific style, angle of view detection is performed at any time, and depending on the detection result Change the cutting area. Here, when a shooting start operation is performed (YES in step C11), the image processing of the cutout area is executed. For example, the image in the cutout area BE after the change is the default area when no vignetting occurs. Digital zoom processing may be performed on the image so as to have the same size (step C12). Hereinafter, until a shooting end instruction operation (moving image mode end instruction operation) is performed (step C13), image processing of the cut-out area is performed (step C12). When an end instruction operation is performed (YES in step C13), the camera unit 4 is stopped and a moving image mode end process is performed (step C16).

As described above, in the first embodiment, the central control unit 11 determines whether or not its own casing is imprinted in the cut-out area BE cut out as the imaging range of the image sensor that constitutes the camera unit 4. In the case of copying, the cutout area is adjusted so that the casing is not copied, so that the mounting position of the camera unit 4 is restricted in mounting, or a plurality of casings 1 and 2 are mounted. Therefore, the occurrence of vignetting can be effectively prevented that the casing is reflected in the cutout area BE cut out as the imaging range of the image sensor without restricting the positional relationship of the above.

The central control unit 11 determines whether or not the casing is imprinted in the cutout area BE based on the positional relationship between the plurality of casings 1 and 2 detected by the style detection unit 19. The presence or absence of occurrence can be easily determined by detecting the style, and it can be easily determined whether or not the cutout region BE needs to be changed.

The style detection unit 19 includes an angle detection unit that detects a rotation angle of a rotation mechanism that connects the plurality of housings 1 and 2 in a rotatable manner, and according to the rotation angle detected by the angle detection unit. Since it is determined whether or not the housing is imprinted in the cut-out area BE, for example, shooting down or up, or shooting from the top of a fence like an athletic meet In this case, vignetting can be prevented even if the display-side housing 2 is rotated and the angle of the display screen is changed so that the monitor image is easy to see.

The central control unit 11 determines whether or not the casing is imprinted in the cutout area BE based on the stored contents of the cutout area adjustment table M3. In addition to being able to easily determine by referring to the table M3, the mounting position of the camera unit 4 is not restricted in terms of mounting, and the positional relationship between the multiple cases 1 and 2 is not restricted in terms of use. It is only necessary to create the exit area adjustment table M3.

Further, since the cut area BE is changed according to the “size of the cut area” and the “shift amount of the cut area” stored in the cut area adjustment table M3, the cut area adjustment table M3 is stored in the cut area adjustment table M3. In addition to being able to adjust the cutout area BE reliably and easily by referring to it, by changing the cutout area BE by both the “size of the cutout area” and the “shift amount of the cutout area”, More reliable adjustment is possible.

In addition, since it is determined whether or not the casing is imprinted in the cutout area BE based on the style detection by the style detection unit 19 and the angle of view according to the focal length of the camera unit 4, the telephoto / wide angle and zoom Even if the manner of occurrence of vignetting differs depending on the shooting, it is possible to cope with it.

Further, since the cutout region BE is changed according to the style searched by the style detection unit 19 and the angle of view detected according to the focal length of the camera unit 4, the cutout region BE is surely and easily changed. Can be adjusted.

In addition, when it is determined that the housing is imprinted in the cutout area BE, the fact that the cutout area BE has been changed is taught, so that the user can set the composition at the time of shooting. It is possible to take a picture after recognizing the difference in composition between the (framing) and the recorded image.

Further, if image processing is executed on an image in the cutout area BE that has been changed and then recorded and saved, even if the cutout area BE is changed, the save format and image size are unified and saved. be able to.

Further, if the cut-out area BE after the change is returned to the original size before the change (after digital zoom processing) and then recorded and saved, the same image size can be recorded and saved.

In the first embodiment described above, the style detection is performed at any time and the specific style is detected from when the still image mode / moving image mode is activated until the shutter operation / shooting start operation is performed. Although the angle of view is detected at any time, it may be periodically detected, such as every few seconds, and when there is a change in the narrowly-defined style, the hinge unit responds to an interrupt signal that notifies the change. Alternatively, the cutout region BE may be changed by detecting a style (a broad style) corresponding to the rotation angle of the second axis that configures 3 or detecting the angle of view.

In the first embodiment described above, the cutout area BE is not changed during moving image shooting. However, the cutout area BE is detected while detecting the style and the angle of view even during moving image shooting. It may be changed.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, the cutout area adjustment table M3 is accessed based on the detection result of the rotation angle and the angle of view of the second shaft that constitutes the hinge part 3, and the change amount of the cutout area is set. The “size of the cut-out area” and “shift amount of the cut-out area” are read out, but the cut-out area adjustment table M3 is not used and the detection result of the rotation angle and the angle of view of the second axis is used. Thus, the “size of the cutout area” and the “shift amount of the cutout area” may be calculated.

In the first embodiment described above, both the shift amount and the size of the cutout region BE are changed at the same time. However, either the shift amount or the size may be changed. . In addition, if the change by simply shifting the position of the cut-out area BE cannot prevent the occurrence of vignetting, the size of the cut-out area BE may be changed. Conversely, the size of the cut-out area BE may be changed. If vignetting cannot be prevented by only this change, a change of shifting the position of the cutout area BE may be performed.

(Embodiment 2)
A second embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG.
In the first embodiment described above, the presence or absence of vignetting is determined by referring to the cut-out area adjustment table M3 according to the detection result of the style and the angle of view. In the second embodiment, The image recognition is performed to determine whether or not the casing has been transferred into the image (through image) of the default cutout region BE, and the presence or absence of vignetting is determined based on the recognition result. Here, in both the embodiments, the same or the same names are denoted by the same reference numerals, the description thereof will be omitted, and the following description will focus on the features of the second embodiment. .

FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining in detail the still image shooting process (step A12 in FIG. 5) in the second embodiment. The still image shooting process of the second embodiment is basically the same as the still image shooting process of the first embodiment described above, except that the presence or absence of vignetting is determined based on the recognition result of the through image. Since there is, it will be explained briefly.
First, the central control unit 11 activates the camera unit 4 in the still image mode (step D1), executes an initialization process (step D2), and then accesses the style detection unit 19 to detect the current style. If (step D3) is not a specific style (open style) (NO in step D4), a default cutout region BE is specified (step D15).

If it is a specific style (YES in step D4), the image in the default area is captured as a through image, and image recognition is performed while analyzing the image (step D5). In this case, a case image (reference image for comparison) stored in advance in the case recognition memory M4 for image recognition is read, and this case image is compared with the peripheral portion in the through image to obtain the shape, color Then, by comprehensively comparing the pattern, size, image quality, etc., it is determined whether or not the housing is imaged in the through image (step D6).

As a result, if the case image is not imprinted in the through image (NO in step D6), since no vignetting has occurred, the default cutout region BE is specified (step D15), but the case is not If the image has been imprinted and vignetting has occurred (YES in step D6), the position and the size thereof are detected in order to identify the housing image included in the through image, and this detection is performed. Based on the result, the change amount of the cutout region BE is calculated (step D7). That is, in order to detect in which part in the through image the casing is imprinted and to what extent the casing image is not included in the cutout region BE, It is determined how much the cutout area BE should be shifted and how large it should be. Then, the cutout area BE is changed based on the shift amount and its size (step D8), and the image in the cutout area BE after the change is displayed on the display unit 16 as a through image (monitor image). An image in which no vignetting occurs teaches the user (step D9).

Thereafter, as in the first embodiment, the above-described operation is repeated by returning to the above-described step D3 until the shutter operation is performed (step D10). If a shutter operation is performed (YES in step D10), the image in the cutout area BE is captured and subjected to image processing (step D11), and the still image after this image processing is recorded in the image storage memory M2. Save (step D12). Hereinafter, until the photographing end instruction operation (still image mode end instruction operation) is performed (step D13), the process returns to step D3 and repeats the above-described operation. When an end instruction operation is performed (YES in step D13), the camera unit 4 is stopped and a still image mode end process is performed (step D14).

Although a detailed flowchart of the moving image shooting process (step A13 in FIG. 5) in the second embodiment is omitted, it is basically the same as the still image shooting process in the second embodiment described above, and is included in the through image. Whether or not the housing has been transferred to the image is recognized, and the cutout area BE is changed by determining the presence or absence of vignetting based on the recognition result. Others are basically the same as the moving image shooting process of the first embodiment, and therefore the description of the moving image shooting process of the second embodiment will be omitted.

As described above, in the second embodiment, the central control unit 11 recognizes whether or not the image of the housing is included in the image (through image) of the default cutout region BE, and the recognition result. Since it is determined whether or not the casing is imprinted in the cutout area BE based on the above, it is possible to reliably determine whether or not vignetting has occurred.

Since the central control unit 11 changes the shift amount when changing the cutout region BE based on the image recognition result, the central control unit 11 does not change the size of the image in the cutout region BE. The exit area BE can be easily adjusted.

Since the central control unit 11 changes the size when changing the cutout region BE based on the image recognition result, the central control unit 11 does not change the image center portion in the cutout region BE. The region BE can be easily adjusted.

In addition, when the image is in a specific style, image recognition is performed to determine whether the image of the housing is included, so that image recognition can be minimized and low power consumption can be achieved. Is possible.

Further, when the cutout area BE is adjusted so that the casing is not imprinted in the cutout area BE, the image in the cutout area BE after adjustment is displayed as a monitor image at the time of shooting. The monitor image matches the recorded and saved image, and it can be confirmed from the monitor image what kind of image is recorded.

In the second embodiment described above, the “size of the cut-out area” and the “shift amount of the cut-out area” are calculated at the time of image recognition. However, as in the first embodiment described above, The “extraction area size” and “extraction area shift amount” may be read with reference to the extraction area adjustment table M3. In this case, in the cutout area adjustment table M3, “size of cutout area” and “cutout area” are set as the adjustment data in association with the approximate position and size of the housing image copied in the through image. It is only necessary to store the “shift amount of the exit area”.

In the second embodiment described above, both the shift amount and the size of the cutout region BE are changed at the same time. However, either one of the shift amount and the size may be changed, If vignetting cannot be prevented by changing the position of the cutout area BE, the size of the cutout area BE may be changed. Conversely, the size of the cutout area BE may be changed. If the vignetting cannot be prevented only by changing the position, the position of the cutout area BE may be changed.

In each of the above-described embodiments, the biaxial hinge type mobile phone has been described. However, for example, a reversible type or a slide type mobile phone may be used, or a so-called two-way open type may be used. FIG. 9 shows the two-way open type mobile phone, which can be opened in the side-open state as shown in FIG. 9 in addition to the normal open state (vertical open state) shown in FIG. In this laterally open state, even if a part of the housing enters the angle of view of the camera unit 4 attached to the hinge unit 3, the same method as in the first or second embodiment described above, It is possible to prevent the occurrence of vignetting.

In each of the embodiments described above, the case where the camera unit 4 is attached to the hinge unit 3 is exemplified, but the camera unit 4 may be provided on the display side housing, the back side of the operation side housing, or the like. In which case the camera unit 4 is attached is arbitrary.
In addition, the imaging device is not limited to a mobile phone including an imaging unit, and may be a music player, a personal computer, a PDA (personal portable information terminal) including an imaging unit, or a digital camera itself.

2A and 2B are external views of a mobile phone including an imaging unit applied as an imaging device, in which FIG. 1A shows a closed style in a folded state, FIG. 2B shows an open style in an opened state, and FIG. The figure which showed the state which rotated the display side housing | casing 2 about 90 degree | times centering on the 2nd axis | shaft in the style. (A) is the figure which showed the imaging range (effective pixel number) of an image sensor, (b) is the rotation when the display side housing | casing 2 is rotated centering on the 2nd axis | shaft in an open style. The figure which showed a mode that the condition of vignetting changes according to an angle. The block diagram which showed the basic component of a mobile telephone provided with an imaging part. The figure for demonstrating the cutting area adjustment table M3. The flowchart which showed the outline | summary of the whole operation | movement of the mobile telephone started execution with power activation. 6 is a flowchart for explaining in detail a still image shooting process (step A12 in FIG. 5). 6 is a flowchart for explaining in detail the moving image shooting process (step A13 in FIG. 5). 6 is a flowchart for explaining in detail a still image shooting process (step A12 in FIG. 5) according to the second embodiment. The figure which showed the 2 way open type mobile telephone as a modification application example of 1st and 2nd embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Operation side housing | casing 2 Display side housing | casing 3 Hinge part 4 Camera part 11 Central control part 16 Display part 17 Operation part 19 Style detection part M1 Program memory M2 Image storage memory M3 Cutting area adjustment table

Claims (9)

An imaging apparatus comprising a plurality of casings constituting the apparatus main body movably connected and an imaging unit having an imaging element in any of the casings,
By comparing the housing image prepared in advance with the image of the cutout area cut out as the imaging range of the image pickup device, and comprehensively comparing the shape, color, pattern, size, appearance, etc. Image recognition means for recognizing whether or not the housing image is included in the image of the cutout area;
A discriminating unit for discriminating whether or not the casing is imprinted in the cutout region based on a recognition result recognized by the image recognition unit ;
An area adjusting means for adjusting the cutout area so that the case is not copied when it is determined that the case is copied in the cutout area by the determining means;
An imaging apparatus comprising: Before SL region adjusting means adjusts the cut region by changing the cutting position of the segment region based on the recognized recognition result by the image recognition unit,
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, which is configured as described above. Before SL region adjusting means adjusts the cut region by changing the size of the segment region of said segment region based on the recognition result recognized by the image recognition unit,
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, which is configured as described above. Further comprising style specifying means for detecting the positional relationship of the plurality of casings and specifying the style of the apparatus main body,
The image recognition means is a cutout that is cut out as a case image prepared in advance and an imaging range of the image sensor when the positional relationship between the plurality of cases detected by the style detection unit is a specific style. Whether or not the image of the housing is included in the image of the cutout region by comparing the image of the region and comprehensively comparing the shape, color, pattern, size, appearance, etc. recognize,
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the imaging apparatus is configured as described above. When it is determined by the determining means that the casing is imprinted in the cutout area, it further comprises teaching means for teaching that the cutout area has been adjusted by the adjusting means.
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, which is configured as described above. An image for displaying an image in the cut-out area after adjustment as a monitor image at the time of shooting when the cut-out area is adjusted so that the housing is not imprinted in the cut-out area by the area adjusting unit A display means,
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, which is configured as described above. Performing image processing on the image in the cut-out area adjusted by the area adjusting means, and then recording and saving the image.
The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, which is configured as described above. The image in the cropped area after the adjustment is recorded and saved after returning to the original size before the adjustment,
The imaging apparatus according to claim 7, which is configured as described above. Against the computer,
In a state where a plurality of casings constituting the apparatus main body are movably connected and an imaging unit having an imaging element is provided in any casing,
By comparing the housing image prepared in advance with the image of the cutout area cut out as the imaging range of the image pickup device, and comprehensively comparing the shape, color, pattern, size, appearance, etc. A function of recognizing whether or not the housing image is included in the image of the cutout area;
A function of determining whether or not the casing is imprinted in the cutout region based on the recognized recognition result ;
A function of adjusting the cutout area so that the case is not copied when it is determined that the case is copied in the cutout area;
A program to realize

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