JP5247360B2 - Recording apparatus and control method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a recording apparatus that can record the image data before the current image processing is performed on the recording medium.

  In recent years, digital cameras having a communication function using a wireless LAN or Bluetooth (registered trademark) have been commercialized. These digital cameras with a communication function have functions other than recording photographed image data on a recording medium attached to the main body. Furthermore, a function of automatically uploading a photographed image to a server on a network and a sharing function for sharing a photographed image in real time among a plurality of digital cameras as disclosed in Patent Document 1 are realized. As described above, there has been proposed a new utilization method of a captured image that is not limited to the function of recording on a recording medium attached to the main body. This is an application of a new digital camera that shares a photographed image and uses it as a means of communication.

  On the other hand, an advanced model such as a digital single lens reflex camera does not have only a recording mode for recording digital data in a general-purpose image format such as the conventional JPEG method. Further, an advanced model having a recording mode in which digital data from an image pickup device called raw data is recorded as it is without being developed has become mainstream.

  In the general-purpose image format after the development processing is performed, not all information at the time of shooting is stored. Therefore, if digital data before development processing is recorded, development processing can be performed later by software. Therefore, by performing recording according to the recording format of the RAW data format, it becomes possible to change the exposure, the hue, and the like to desired settings later.

JP 2004-172988 A

  In general, the above-mentioned RAW data format depends on the camera system, and development processing is also unique. Therefore, it is the current situation that reproduction between manufacturers and models is not guaranteed. Therefore, when executing a function of sharing image data captured with a digital camera that records image data in the RAW data format, the image data shared only by the same model is reproduced. There was a problem that could not.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to enable transmission of image data after development processing to an external device even when image data before development processing is recorded on a recording medium. It shall be the.

When the first recording mode for recording the first image data that is the image data before the development processing is selected, the recording apparatus according to the present invention stores the first image data. When the second recording mode for recording the second image data, which is the image data recorded on the recording medium and subjected to the development processing, is selected, the second image data is When recording means for recording on the recording medium, determination means for determining whether or not the external apparatus is an apparatus capable of reproducing the first image data, and when the first recording mode is selected a is, if the external device is determined not to be a device capable of reproducing the first image data, and generating means for generating the second image data based on the first image data the first When the recording mode is selected, and it is determined that the external device is not a device capable of reproducing the first image data, the first image data is transmitted to the external device. the second image data that have a transmission means for performing processing for transmitting to the external device without.

In the control method according to the present invention, when the first recording mode for recording the first image data which is the image data before the development processing is selected, the first image data is stored. When the second recording mode for recording the second image data, which is the image data recorded on the recording medium and subjected to the development processing, is selected, the second image data is When the recording step for recording on the recording medium, the determination step for determining whether or not the external device is a device capable of reproducing the first image data, and the first recording mode are selected a is, generation step of the external device when it is determined not to an apparatus capable of reproducing the first image data, to generate the second image data based on the first image data , In a case where the first recording mode is selected, when said external device is determined not a device capable of reproducing the first image data, said first image data the second image data without sending to an external device that have a transmission step of performing processing for transmitting to the external device.

One of the programs according to the present invention is configured such that when the first recording mode for recording the first image data that is image data before the development processing is selected, the first image is selected. In the case where the second recording mode for recording the second image data, which is the image data after the data is recorded on the recording medium and the development processing is performed, is selected. Recording means for recording data on the recording medium, determination means for determining whether or not the external apparatus is an apparatus capable of reproducing the first image data, and the first recording mode are selected. And generating the second image data based on the first image data when it is determined that the external device is not a device capable of reproducing the first image data. Means, When the first recording mode is selected, and it is determined that the external device is not a device capable of reproducing the first image data, the first image data is transferred to the external device. A program for causing a computer to function as a recording apparatus including a transmission unit that performs processing for transmitting the second image data to the external apparatus without transmitting to the apparatus .
One of the programs according to the present invention is configured such that when the first recording mode for recording the first image data that is image data before the development processing is selected, the first image is selected. In the case where the second recording mode for recording the second image data, which is the image data after the data is recorded on the recording medium and the development processing is performed, is selected. A recording step for recording data on the recording medium, a determination step for determining whether or not the external device is a device capable of reproducing the first image data, and the first recording mode are selected. And generating the second image data based on the first image data when it is determined that the external device is not a device capable of reproducing the first image data. And the first image data when the first recording mode is selected and the external device is determined not to be a device capable of reproducing the first image data. Is a program for causing a computer to execute a transmission step of performing processing for transmitting the second image data to the external device without transmitting the image data to the external device .

One of the storage media according to the present invention has the first recording mode when the first recording mode for recording the first image data which is the image data before the development processing is selected. In the case where the second recording mode for recording the image data on the recording medium and recording the second image data, which is the image data after the development processing is performed, is selected. Recording means for recording image data on the recording medium, determination means for determining whether or not the external apparatus is an apparatus capable of reproducing the first image data, and the first recording mode are selected. The second image data is generated based on the first image data when it is determined that the external device is not a device capable of reproducing the first image data. Generation means and before When the first recording mode is selected and it is determined that the external device is not a device capable of reproducing the first image data, the first image data is transferred to the external device. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as a recording device having a transmission unit that performs processing for transmitting the second image data to the external device without transmitting to the external device .
One of the storage media according to the present invention has the first recording mode when the first recording mode for recording the first image data which is the image data before the development processing is selected. In the case where the second recording mode for recording the image data on the recording medium and recording the second image data, which is the image data after the development processing is performed, is selected. A recording step for recording image data on the recording medium, a determination step for determining whether or not the external device is a device capable of reproducing the first image data, and the first recording mode are selected. The second image data is generated based on the first image data when it is determined that the external device is not a device capable of reproducing the first image data. Generated And the first image is selected when the first recording mode is selected and the external device is determined not to be a device capable of reproducing the first image data. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute a transmission step of performing processing for transmitting the second image data to the external device without transmitting data to the external device. .

According to the present invention, even when the image data before the developing process is performed Ru is recorded on the recording medium, it is possible to transmit the image data after the developing treatment is performed to the external device.

(First embodiment)
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration example of a video recording apparatus 100 having a function of generating a shared link with an external apparatus (device such as a camera) in the present embodiment.
In FIG. 1, reference numeral 108 denotes a system controller that controls the operation and timing of each unit. Reference numeral 101 denotes a camera optical system, which includes a lens system that captures an image of an object, an aperture mechanism for exposure control, a focusing control mechanism, and the like.

  An image from a subject photographed by the camera optical system 101 is converted into an electrical signal by the image sensor 102, and gain and the like are adjusted in the analog signal processing circuit 103. Then, it is converted into digital data by the A / D conversion circuit 104 and held in the first buffer memory 105. The digital data obtained in this way is usually a unique data format depending on the configuration of the image sensor.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a single-plate pixel arrangement example in which color filters for reproducing color information are arranged on a single sensor unit as an example of a configuration method of the image sensor 102. The example shown in FIG. 2 is a color filter arrangement method called a Bayer arrangement, in which 201 and 204 are green, 202 is red, and 203 is a blue color filter.

  A configuration in which the basic pixel arrangement composed of these three colors is two-dimensionally repeated on the entire surface of the sensor unit is a configuration method of the image pickup element based on the Bayer array. With this configuration method, a video signal having color information corresponding to each color is obtained from each pixel corresponding to green, red, and blue. As described above, the digital data (video data) output from the A / D conversion circuit 104 and held in the first buffer memory 105 has a data format unique to the image sensor corresponding to the pixel arrangement shown in FIG.

  Since this data format includes all the video information obtained at the time of photographing, the amount of information is large, and the data size is proportionally large. Further, since it cannot be handled as an image at this stage, a digital development process is required for conversion into a general image format.

  The camera signal processing circuit 106 performs digital development processing including color separation, color space conversion, pixel interpolation, white balance, gamma processing, and the like on digital data, which is a data format unique to the imaging device, to obtain a general image format. Convert to image data.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a result of the digital development processing performed by the camera signal processing circuit 106. Reference numeral 301 denotes a pixel of the luminance component Y, and reference numeral 302 denotes a pixel of the color difference component Cr. Reference numeral 303 denotes a pixel of the color difference component Cb. As shown in FIG. 3, the image data after digital development processing by color space conversion and pixel interpolation has a luminance component Y that is equidistantly arranged in a lattice shape, and a resolution that is 1/2 of the luminance component Y in the vertical and horizontal directions. To the pixel arrangement of the color difference components Cr and Cb. The format of the image data in the example shown in FIG. 3 is a data format called YCrCb 4: 2: 0.

  The image data converted in this way does not depend on the configuration of the image sensor, but since the information of all the pixels is gathered, the data size is still large. For this reason, in order to efficiently record on a recording medium (recording medium), compression encoding such as JPEG is often performed.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 100 is the JPEG recording mode, the first switch 118 is turned on by the control of the recording mode control circuit 109, and the compression encoding function is enabled. In this case, the image data after the digital development processing is compressed by the compression encoding circuit 110 by, for example, JPEG encoding.

  When the recording mode is the JPEG recording mode, the second switch 119 is connected to the terminal A under the control of the recording mode control circuit 109. Then, the image data that has been subjected to JPEG encoding by the compression encoding circuit 110 is supplied to the media recording circuit 111. The media recording circuit 111 performs buffering of image data on the second buffer memory 116 and records image data encoded by the JPEG method on the recording medium 112.

  On the other hand, a digital single-lens reflex camera or the like that requires high image quality has a mode in which image data is recorded in the original data format of the image sensor before digital development processing and compression coding are performed. RAW) data recording mode. This RAW data recording mode is effective when digital development processing is performed later by software to obtain a desired image quality. The video recording apparatus 100 of the present embodiment can record image data in this RAW data recording mode.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 100 is the RAW data recording mode, the RAW data format circuit 107 reads image data in a data format unique to the image sensor that is held in the first buffer memory 105. Then, additional information necessary as a RAW data file is added to the read image data, and the image data is converted into a RAW data format.

  For image data in the RAW data format, data compression using lossless encoding may be performed. Furthermore, data obtained by reducing an image that has been digitally developed by the camera signal processing circuit 106 may be added to the RAW data file as preview / thumbnail data.

  In general, in the RAW data recording mode, encoding according to the JPEG method is not necessary. Therefore, the first switch 118 is turned off under the control of the recording mode control circuit 109, and compression encoding according to the JPEG method is stopped. This is performed for the purpose of reducing power consumption by stopping unnecessary processing circuits.

  When the recording mode is the RAW data recording mode, the second switch 119 is connected to the terminal B by the control of the recording mode control circuit 109. Then, RAW data format image data is supplied from the RAW data format circuit 107 to the media recording circuit 111. The media recording circuit 111 buffers image data in the second buffer memory 116 and records RAW data format image data on the recording medium 112.

Next, an operation when connection processing is performed in order to exchange an image with another video recording apparatus will be described.
The shared link control circuit 113 can generate a shared link from another video recording device via the wireless communication circuit 115 when an instruction to start a connection process for generating a shared link is issued by a user operation. Search for new devices. Then, a connection is made with the corresponding device to generate a shared link. Thereby, it is possible to transmit and receive the captured image data between the connected devices.

In the present embodiment, the shared link control circuit 113 takes into consideration the recording mode (recording format) of its own device and the reproducible file format of the linked device in the negotiation stage for generating the shared link. The data format of the image data for transmission is determined.
The above-described RAW data format is a special data format that is generally not guaranteed to be played back by another device, except for the same model. Therefore, the link destination device inquires about the data format that can be played back. If the external device cannot play back the RAW image data, a general-purpose data format that can be played back on the external device (eg, JPEG) instead of the RAW image data Format) image data is transmitted.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure when determining the data format of image data to be transmitted in the present embodiment.
When the process is started in step S801 in FIG. 8, in the next step S802, the shared link control circuit 113 starts negotiation for generating a shared link. Next, in step S803, it is determined whether there is a device capable of generating a shared link. If there is no device capable of generating a shared link as a result of this determination, the process proceeds to step S804 to perform link error processing.

  On the other hand, if there is a device capable of generating a shared link as a result of the determination in step S803, the process proceeds to step S805, and the system controller 108 determines whether or not its own recording mode is the RAW data recording mode. Determine. If the result of this determination is that the recording mode of the own device is not the RAW data recording mode of the data format unique to the image sensor, it is a normal mode in which image data such as the JPEG format is transmitted as it is, so the process proceeds to step S809 and the negotiation is terminated. To do.

  On the other hand, as a result of the determination in step S805, if the recording mode of the own device is the RAW data recording mode, in step S806, the connection format is inquired of the connected device. In step S807, the system controller 108 determines whether or not the image data in the RAW data format converted in the recording mode of the own device can be played back on the connection destination device. If the result of this determination is that reproduction is possible, the process proceeds to step S809 as a normal mode in which image data in the RAW data format is transmitted as it is, and the negotiation is terminated.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S807 that image data in the RAW data format cannot be reproduced in the connection destination device, the process advances to step S808, and the system controller 108 turns on the JPEG data conversion function. Details of the JPEG data conversion function will be described later. In this case, the image data recorded by the device is the RAW data format which is the first data format, but the image data to be transmitted is JPEG image data of the second data format which is the general-purpose image format.

  In addition, the transmission data may be JPEG image data in order to reduce the amount of data to be transferred regardless of whether or not the image data in the RAW data format can be reproduced by the connected device. In this case, steps S806 to S807 may be skipped, and the JPEG data conversion function in step S808 may be determined according to the recording mode of the own device in step S805.

Next, returning to the description of the schematic configuration shown in FIG. 1, the operation of each unit in a state where the shared link is generated will be described.
In the normal mode in which the JPEG data conversion function is not turned on, such as when the recording mode is the JPEG recording mode, the first switch 118 and the third switch 120 are turned off. The data sharing circuit 114 is supplied with the image data itself being recorded from the media recording circuit 111, and is transmitted by the wireless communication circuit 115 to other devices that form a shared link.

  Note that the image data being recorded is read from the second buffer memory 116 or the recording medium 112 in accordance with the recording / transmission timing / speed. The data sharing circuit 114 buffers the read image data in the third buffer memory 117 for transmission until the end of transmission.

  On the other hand, when the recording mode is the RAW data recording mode and the JPEG data conversion function is turned on, the shared link control circuit 113 functions as a conversion unit, and the first switch 118 is turned on by the control. Then, the image data is input from the camera signal processing circuit 106 to the compression encoding circuit 110, and compression encoding by the JPEG method is performed.

  When the JPEG data conversion function is ON, the third switch 120 is also ON. The data sharing circuit 114 is supplied with JPEG image data from the compression encoding circuit 110 and is transmitted by the wireless communication circuit 115 to another device that forms a shared link. Thus, in conjunction with recording of RAW data format image data, it is possible to transmit JPEG image data, which is a general-purpose image data format, to the link destination. Here, information for identifying image data in a corresponding RAW data format may be added to the converted JPEG image data. Examples of identification information include RAW data file names.

  In addition, the data sharing circuit 114 receives image data transmitted from the link destination device by the wireless communication circuit 115 and supplies the image data to the recording medium 112 by supplying the media data to the media recording circuit 111. Record.

  Next, an example will be described in which image data transmission / reception operations are performed by two cameras in a state where a shared link is generated in the above-described RAW data recording mode. Both the internal configurations of the two cameras can be realized by the configuration of the video recording apparatus 100 described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an external operation when connection processing is started to generate a shared link.
In FIG. 4, the first camera 401 and the second camera 402 are disposed at a distance that allows wireless communication. By simultaneously pressing the connection start buttons of the first camera 401 and the second camera 402, a shared link is generated between the first camera 401 and the second camera 402. At this time, it may be realized by processing such as setting a short permissible period for button presses, and mutually setting devices having two button press times within the permissible period as shared link devices.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a shooting state with two cameras in a state where a shared link is generated. In FIG. 5, it is assumed that the first camera 401 and the second camera 402 are photographing another subject within a communicable range.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an outline of transmission / reception of image data in the state of FIG. 5 in the present embodiment.
In FIG. 6, at time t <b> 1, shooting is performed by the first camera 401 and image data 601 in the RAW data format is recorded. As described above, the first camera 401 converts the image data into JPEG image data, and transmits the image data to the linked second camera 402. The transmitted JPEG image data 602 is recorded by the second camera 402.

  Next, at time t2, shooting is performed by the second camera 402, and image data 603 in the RAW data format is recorded. Similarly, the second camera 402 performs conversion to JPEG image data and transmits the image data to the linked first camera 401. The transmitted JPEG image data 604 is recorded in the first camera 401.

FIG. 7 is a timing chart showing details of the operation example shown in FIG. 6 in the present embodiment.
First, in S701 and S702, the first camera 401 and the second camera 402 issue a connection start command for generating a shared link in response to a user operation as shown in FIG. 4, for example. In step S703, negotiation for generating a shared link between two communicable units is executed. At this time, the data format of the image data to be transmitted is determined as in the processing procedure shown in FIG. 8, and a shared link is started in S704 and S705. In FIG. 7, it is assumed that both are in the RAW data recording mode and the JPEG conversion function is set to ON.

  In S <b> 706, when shooting is performed by the first camera 401 in accordance with a user operation, the process in the first camera 401 branches into two processes. That is, the process branches to the camera signal processing in S707 which is digital development processing and the RAW data format processing for recording image data in the RAW data format in S708.

  In step S709, the camera signal-processed image data is encoded by the JPEG method, and the procedure for transmitting the image data from S710 to the link destination device is started. In S710, a request for transmitting JPEG image data as shared data is transmitted to the second camera 402 at the link destination. In S711, a shared data reception permission notification for the request is received. In S712, JPEG image data is transmitted from the second camera 402 as shared data. After the transmission of the image data is completed, a shared data transmission completion notification is transmitted from the first camera 401 in S713.

  On the other hand, in S708, image data in the RAW data format is generated, and in S714, the image data in the RAW data format is recorded on the recording medium attached to the first camera 401.

  When receiving the shared data transmission completion notification in S713, the second camera 402 that is the shared data receiving destination receives the received JPEG image data as shared data in S715, and the recording medium attached to the second camera 402 in S715. To record.

  On the contrary, the processing after S716 is processing after shooting with the second camera 402. When shooting is performed in the second camera 402 in S716, the processing in the second camera 402 includes the digital signal development processing in S717 and the raw data for recording the image data in the RAW data format in S718. Branches to format processing. In S719, image data that has undergone camera signal processing is encoded by the JPEG method, and a transmission procedure from S720 to the linked device is started.

  In S720, a request for transmitting JPEG image data as shared data is transmitted to the linked first camera 401. In S721, a shared data reception permission notification for the request is received. In S722, JPEG image data is transmitted as shared data. After the transmission of the image data is completed, a shared data transmission completion notification is transmitted in S723.

  On the other hand, in S718, image data in the RAW data format is generated, and in S724, the image data in the RAW format is recorded on a recording medium attached to the second camera 402.

  Upon receiving the shared data transmission completion notification in S723, the first camera 401, which is the shared data receiving destination, receives the JPEG image data received as the shared data in S725 and the recording medium attached to the first camera 401 in S725. To record.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when a shared link is generated and used in a camera that is shooting in the RAW data recording mode unique to the image sensor, it is converted to JPEG image data, which is a general-purpose image format. And sent it. This makes it possible to record image data in a high-quality RAW data format and share versatile JPEG image data.

(Second Embodiment)
In this embodiment, an example of uploading to a server as an external device will be described.
FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration example of a video recording apparatus having an upload function to a server in the present embodiment.
In FIG. 9, reference numeral 908 denotes a system controller that controls the operation and timing of each unit. Reference numeral 901 denotes a camera optical system, which includes a lens system that captures an image of an object, a diaphragm mechanism for exposure control, a focusing control mechanism, and the like.

  An image from a subject photographed by the camera optical system 901 is converted into an electric signal by the image sensor 902, and gain and the like are adjusted in the analog signal processing circuit 903. Then, it is converted into digital data by the A / D conversion circuit 904 and held in the first buffer memory 905. As described with reference to FIG. 2 of the first embodiment, the digital data obtained in this way is usually in a specific data format depending on the configuration method of the image sensor.

  The camera signal processing circuit 906 performs digital development processing including color separation, color space conversion, pixel interpolation, white balance, gamma processing, and the like on digital data that is a data format unique to the image sensor. Then, for example, the image is converted into a general image format as described in FIG. 3 of the first embodiment.

  The image data converted in this way does not depend on the configuration of the image sensor, but since the information of all the pixels is gathered, the data size is still large. For this reason, in order to efficiently record on a recording medium, compression coding such as JPEG is often performed.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 900 is the JPEG recording mode, the first switch 918 is turned on by the control of the recording mode control circuit 909, and the compression encoding function is enabled. In this case, the image data after the digital development processing is compressed by the compression encoding circuit 910 by, for example, JPEG encoding.

  When the recording mode is the JPEG recording mode, the second switch 919 is connected to the terminal A by the control of the recording mode control circuit 909. Then, the image data that has been subjected to JPEG encoding by the compression encoding circuit 910 is supplied to the media recording circuit 911. The media recording circuit 911 performs buffering of image data on the second buffer memory 916 and records image data encoded by the JPEG method on the recording medium 912.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 900 is the RAW data recording mode, the RAW data format circuit 907 reads out image data in a data format unique to the image sensor held in the first buffer memory 905. Then, additional information necessary as a RAW data file is added to the read image data, and the image data is converted into a RAW data format.

  For image data in the RAW data format, data compression using lossless encoding may be performed. Furthermore, data obtained by reducing an image that has been digitally developed by the camera signal processing circuit 906 may be added to the RAW data file as preview / thumbnail data.

  In general, in the RAW data recording mode, encoding by the JPEG method is not necessary, so that the first switch 918 is turned OFF by the control of the recording mode control circuit 909, and the compression encoding by the JPEG method is stopped. This is performed for the purpose of reducing power consumption by stopping unnecessary processing circuits.

  Further, when the recording mode is the RAW data recording mode, the second switch 919 is connected to the terminal B under the control of the recording mode control circuit 909. Then, RAW data format image data is supplied from the RAW data format circuit 907 to the media recording circuit 911. The media recording circuit 911 buffers image data in the second buffer memory 916 and records image data in the RAW data format on the recording medium 912.

Next, an operation in a state where uploading is possible using the server upload function will be described.
The upload link control circuit 913 searches for a wireless LAN base station capable of communication via the wireless communication circuit 915 when an instruction to start a connection process for generating an upload link is issued by a user operation. If communication is possible, a network connection is established between the wireless LAN base station and a predetermined server for uploading image data. As a result, in a state where the upload link is generated and uploading is possible, the captured image data can be transmitted to the server. An example of a wireless LAN base station is a public wireless LAN spot using a wireless LAN known as Wi-Fi.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure when determining the data format of image data to be transmitted in the present embodiment.
When the process starts in step S1401 of FIG. 14, in the next step S1402, the upload link control circuit 913 starts negotiation for generating an upload link. In step S1403, it is determined whether there is a connectable wireless LAN base station and a linkable server. If the result of this determination is that there is no wireless LAN base station and server, processing proceeds to step S1404, and link error processing is performed.

  On the other hand, if there is a connectable wireless LAN base station and server as a result of the determination in step S1403, the process proceeds to step S1405, and the system controller 908 determines whether or not its own recording mode is the RAW data recording mode. judge. As a result of this determination, if the recording mode of the own device is not the RAW data recording mode of the data format unique to the image sensor, the mode is a mode in which image data of the JPEG method or the like can be transmitted as it is, and the process proceeds to step S1407. End the negotiation.

  On the other hand, as a result of the determination in step S1405, if the recording mode of the own device is the RAW data recording mode, the JPEG data conversion function is turned on in the next step S1406. In this case, the image data recorded by the own device is in the RAW data format, but the image data to be transmitted is JPEG image data that is a general-purpose image format.

Next, returning to the description of the schematic configuration shown in FIG. 9, the operation of each part in a state where the upload link is generated will be described.
In the normal mode in which the JPEG data conversion function is not turned on, such as when the recording mode is the JPEG recording mode, the first switch 918 and the third switch 920 are turned off. The data upload circuit 914 is supplied with the image data itself being recorded from the media recording circuit 911 and is transmitted by the wireless communication circuit 915 to the upload link destination server via the wireless LAN base station and the network.

  Note that the image data being recorded is read from the second buffer memory 916 or the recording medium 912 in accordance with the recording / transmission timing / speed. The data upload circuit 914 buffers the read image data in the third transmission buffer memory 917 until the transmission is completed.

  On the other hand, when the recording mode is the RAW data recording mode and the JPEG data conversion function is turned on, the first switch 918 is turned on under the control of the upload link control circuit 913. Then, compression encoding by the JPEG method is performed by the compression encoding circuit 910.

  When the JPEG data conversion function is ON, the third switch 920 is also ON. The data upload circuit 914 is supplied with JPEG image data from the compression encoding circuit 910. Then, the data is transmitted by the wireless communication circuit 915 to the linked server via the wireless LAN base station and the network. Thus, in conjunction with the recording of the image data in the RAW data format, it is possible to transmit JPEG image data, which is a general-purpose image data format, to the linked server. Here, information for identifying image data in a corresponding RAW data format may be added to the converted JPEG image data. Examples of identification information include RAW data file names.

  Next, an example in which the image data transmission / reception operation in the RAW data recording mode is performed between the camera and the server will be described in detail.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of an external operation when starting a network connection. The internal configuration of the camera 1001 shown in FIG. 10 is the configuration of the video recording apparatus 900 described with reference to FIG.
In FIG. 10, when a connection start button for generating an upload link of the camera 1001 is pressed, the camera 1001 searches for a wireless LAN spot 1003 that can be communicated, and performs a wireless LAN connection. After the connection with the wireless LAN spot 1003 is completed, the camera 1001 connects to the server 1002 via the network.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a shooting state with the camera 1001 in a state where an upload link is generated with the server 1002. Note that in FIG. 11, the camera 1001 captures two different subjects at different times.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an outline of transmission / reception of image data in the state of FIG.
In FIG. 12, at time t1, photographing is performed by the camera 1001, and image data 1201 in the RAW data format is recorded. As described above, the camera 1001 converts the image data into JPEG image data, and transmits the image data to the link destination server 1002. The transmitted JPEG image data 1202 is recorded in the server 1002.

  Next, at time t2, the camera 1001 takes a second image, and image data 1203 in the RAW data format is recorded. Similarly, the camera 1001 performs conversion to JPEG image data and transmits the image data to the link destination server 1002. The transmitted JPEG image data 1204 is recorded in the server 1002.

FIG. 13 is a timing chart showing details of the operation example shown in FIG.
First, in step S1301, the camera 1001 issues a connection start command for generating an upload link in accordance with, for example, a user operation as illustrated in FIG. In step S1302, a negotiation for generating an upload link is executed between the camera 1001 and the server 1002 that can communicate with each other. At this time, the data format of the image data transmitted in a state where the upload link is generated is determined as in the processing procedure shown in FIG. 14, and the upload link is started in S1303. In FIG. 13, the camera 1001 is in the RAW data recording mode, and the JPEG conversion function is set to ON.

  In S1304, when shooting is performed by the camera 1001 in accordance with a user operation, the processing in the camera 1001 branches into two processes. That is, the process branches to the camera signal processing in S1305 which is digital development processing and the RAW data format processing for recording image data in the RAW data format in S1306.

  In step S1307, the image data subjected to the camera signal processing is encoded by the JPEG method, and the transmission procedure from the link server 1002 to the link destination server 1002 is started. In step S1308, a request for transmitting JPEG image data as upload data is transmitted to the link destination server 1002. In step S1309, an upload data reception permission notification for the request is received. In step S1310, JPEG image data is transmitted as upload data. After the transmission of the image data is completed, an upload data transmission completion notification is transmitted in S1311.

  On the other hand, in S1306, image data in the RAW data format is generated, and in S1312, the image data in the RAW data format is recorded on the recording medium attached to the camera 1001.

  Upon receiving the upload data transmission completion notification in S1311, the server 1002 that is the reception destination of the upload data stores the received JPEG image data in the storage in the server 1002 in S1313.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, in a camera that is shooting in the RAW data recording mode unique to the image sensor, when the server and the upload link are generated and used, the JPEG image data that is a general-purpose image format is used. Converted to and sent. As a result, it is possible to record image data in a high-quality RAW data format and upload it to a server using versatile JPEG image data.

(Third embodiment)
In the first embodiment, image data in the RAW data format is converted into JPEG image data and transmitted to the link destination device. In the present embodiment, an example will be described in which a simultaneous recording mode for simultaneously recording RAW data format image data and JPEG image data is provided, and the JPEG image data is transmitted to a link destination device.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration example of a video recording apparatus 1100 having a function of generating a shared link with a plurality of devices in the present embodiment.
In FIG. 15, reference numeral 1108 denotes a system controller that controls the operation and timing of each unit. Reference numeral 1101 denotes a camera optical system, which includes a lens system for imaging a subject, an aperture mechanism for exposure control, a focusing control mechanism, and the like.

  An image from a subject photographed by the camera optical system 1101 is converted into an electric signal by the image sensor 1102, and gain and the like are adjusted in the analog signal processing circuit 1103. Then, it is converted into digital data by the A / D conversion circuit 1104 and held in the first buffer memory 1105. The digital data obtained in this way is usually a unique data format depending on the configuration method of the image sensor.

  The camera signal processing circuit 1106 performs digital development processing including color separation, color space conversion, pixel interpolation, white balance, gamma processing, and the like on digital data that is a data format unique to the image sensor. Then, for example, the image is converted into a general image format as described in FIG. 3 of the first embodiment.

  The image data converted in this way does not depend on the configuration of the image sensor, but the size of the data is still large because information on all the pixels is available. For this reason, in order to record efficiently on a recording medium, compression encoding such as JPEG is often performed.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 1100 is the JPEG recording mode, the first switch 1118 is turned on by the control of the recording mode control circuit 1109, and the compression encoding function is enabled. In this case, the image data after the digital development processing is subjected to data compression by, for example, JPEG encoding by the compression encoding circuit 1110.

  When the recording mode is the JPEG recording mode, the second switch 1119 is connected to the terminal A under the control of the recording mode control circuit 1109. Then, the image data that has been subjected to JPEG encoding by the compression encoding circuit 1110 is supplied to the media recording circuit 1111. The media recording circuit 1111 performs buffering of image data on the second buffer memory 1116 and records image data encoded by the JPEG method on the recording medium 1112.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 1100 is the RAW data recording mode, the RAW data format circuit 1107 reads image data in a data format unique to the image sensor that is held in the first buffer memory 1105. Then, additional information necessary as a RAW data file is added to the read image data, and the image data is converted into a RAW data format.

  For image data in the RAW data format, data compression using lossless encoding may be performed. Furthermore, data obtained by reducing an image that has been digitally developed by the camera signal processing circuit 1106 may be added to the RAW data file as preview / thumbnail data.

  In general, in the RAW data recording mode, encoding by the JPEG method is not necessary, and therefore, the first switch 1118 is turned OFF by the control of the recording mode control circuit 1109, and the compression encoding by the JPEG method is stopped. This is performed for the purpose of reducing power consumption by stopping unnecessary processing circuits.

  When the recording mode is the RAW data recording mode, the second switch 1119 is connected to the terminal C by the control of the recording mode control circuit 1109. Then, RAW data format image data is supplied from the RAW data format circuit 1107 to the media recording circuit 1111. The media recording circuit 1111 performs buffering of image data on the second buffer memory 1116 and records image data in the RAW data format on the recording medium 1112.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 1100 includes a simultaneous recording mode in which image data in the RAW data format and JPEG image data are simultaneously recorded. In the simultaneous recording mode, the first switch 1118 is turned on under the control of the recording mode control circuit 1109 in order to validate the JPEG encoding. Then, the compression encoding circuit 1110 performs data compression by, for example, JPEG encoding. The simultaneous recording mode is a mode that exists as a recording mode selected by a user operation.

  In the simultaneous recording mode, processing for recording image data in the RAW data format is also performed in parallel. The RAW data format circuit 1107 adds additional information necessary as a RAW data file to the image data having a data format unique to the imaging device held in the first buffer memory 1105, and converts the image data into a RAW data format. .

  For image data in the RAW data format, data compression using lossless encoding may be performed. In some cases, data obtained by reducing the image that has been digitally developed by the camera signal processing circuit 1106 is added to the RAW data file as preview / thumbnail data.

  The JPEG image data encoded by the compression encoding circuit 1110 and the image data converted into the RAW data format by the RAW data format circuit 1107 are supplied to the simultaneous recording control circuit 1120. The simultaneous recording control circuit 1120 is for performing write timing control and data buffering necessary for simultaneously recording RAW data format image data and JPEG image data.

  In the simultaneous recording mode, the second switch 1119 is connected to the terminal B under the control of the recording mode control circuit 1109. Then, the image data output from the simultaneous recording control circuit 1120 is supplied to the media recording circuit 1111. The media recording circuit 1111 performs buffering of image data on the second buffer memory 1116 and records both RAW data format image data and image data encoded by the JPEG method on the recording medium 1112. .

Next, an operation when connection processing is performed in order to exchange an image with another video recording apparatus will be described.
The shared link control circuit 1113 can generate a shared link from another video recording device via the wireless communication circuit 1115 when the start of a connection process for generating a shared link is instructed by a user operation. Search for new devices. Then, a shared link with the corresponding device is generated. Thereby, it is possible to transmit and receive the captured image data between the connected devices.

  In the present embodiment, the shared link control circuit 1113 considers the recording mode of the own device and the reproducible file format of the link destination device in the negotiation stage for generating the shared link, and transmits the image for transmission. Determine the data format of the data.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure when determining the data format of image data to be transmitted in the present embodiment.
When the process is started in step S1801 in FIG. 18, the shared link control circuit 1113 starts negotiation for generating a shared link in step S1802. Next, in step S1803, it is determined whether there is a device that can generate a shared link. As a result of this determination, if there is no device capable of generating a shared link, the process proceeds to step S1804, and link error processing is performed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1803 that there is a device that can generate a shared link, the process advances to step S1805, and the system controller 1108 determines whether or not the recording mode of the own device is the RAW data recording mode. Determine. If the result of this determination is that the recording mode of the device is not a RAW data recording mode that records only image data in the RAW data format unique to the image sensor, there is image data that can be transmitted, such as JPEG image data. Will be. For this reason, the process proceeds to step S1809 and the negotiation is terminated.

  On the other hand, if the result of determination in step S1805 is that the recording mode of the own device is the RAW data recording mode, in step S1806, the playback format is inquired of the connected device. In step S1807, it is determined whether or not the image data in the RAW data format converted in the recording mode of the own device can be reproduced in the connection destination device. If the result of this determination is that playback is possible, the process proceeds to step S1809 as a normal mode in which image data in the RAW data format is transmitted as it is, and the negotiation is terminated.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1807 that image data in the RAW data format cannot be reproduced in the connection destination device, the process advances to step S1808. Then, the system controller 1108 changes its own recording mode to a simultaneous recording mode in which RAW image data and JPEG image data are simultaneously recorded. In this case, the image data recorded by the device is both RAW data format image data and JPEG format image data, but the transmitted image data is JPEG format image data, which is a general-purpose image format.

  In addition, the transmission data may be JPEG image data in order to reduce the amount of data to be transferred regardless of whether or not the image data in the RAW data format can be reproduced by the connected device. In this case, steps S1806 to S1807 may be skipped and it may be determined to change to the simultaneous recording mode of step S1808 according to the recording mode of the own device in step S1805.

  In this embodiment, in order to distinguish from the simultaneous recording mode set by the above-described user operation, the simultaneous recording mode changed in the connection process will be referred to as a linked simultaneous recording mode in the following description.

Next, returning to the description of the schematic configuration shown in FIG. 15, the operation of each unit in a state where the shared link is generated will be described.
The data sharing circuit 1114 reads image data in a data format that can be transmitted from the recording medium 1112 via the media recording circuit 1111, triggered by the completion of recording of each image data on the recording medium 1112. Then, the wireless communication circuit 1115 transmits the data to other linked devices. In addition, the data sharing circuit 1114 buffers the read image data in the third buffer memory 1117 for transmission until the end of transmission.

  When the recording mode is the RAW data recording mode and the link simultaneous recording mode is changed in step S1808 in FIG. 18, the recording mode control circuit 1109 is controlled by the control of the shared link control circuit 1113. The recording mode control circuit 1109 functions as control means, connects the second switch 1119 to the terminal B, and changes to the simultaneous recording mode during linking.

  Note that the processing from the imaging to the recording on the recording medium 1112 in the linked simultaneous recording mode after the change is the same as that in the simultaneous recording mode set by the user described above, and thus the description thereof is omitted. Further, in the simultaneous recording mode during link, when the compression encoding circuit 1110 performs encoding by the JPEG method, information for identifying image data in the RAW data format to be recorded simultaneously may be added. Examples of identification information include RAW data file names.

  Further, identification information indicating JPEG image data may be recorded simultaneously in the simultaneous recording mode during linking. By using this identification information, it is possible to realize a function such as searching for JPEG image data recorded in the simultaneous recording mode during linking and deleting it collectively. As a recording method of the identification information, management information of the recording medium 1112, additional information of individual JPEG image data, identification by a file name, and the like can be considered.

  In the simultaneous recording mode during linking, the data sharing circuit 1114 performs processing for transmitting to other devices at the link destination, triggered by the completion of recording of each image data on the recording medium 1112. First, JPEG image data out of RAW data format image data and JPEG image data recorded simultaneously is read from the recording medium 1112 via the media recording circuit 1111. Then, the wireless communication circuit 1115 transmits the data to other linked devices. At this time, image data in the RAW data format recorded at the same time is not transmitted. In addition, the data sharing circuit 1114 buffers the read image data in the third buffer memory 1117 for transmission until the end of transmission.

  The transmitted data erasure circuit 1121 deletes the corresponding transmitted JPEG image data from the recording medium 1112 after completing the transmission of the JPEG image data in the linked simultaneous recording mode. As a result, the image data in the RAW data format is recorded on the recording medium attached to the own device without making the user aware that the recording mode has changed due to the generation of the shared link, and the JPEG method for sharing Image data can be sent. The function for deleting the transmitted image data may be canceled by user settings.

  In addition, the data sharing circuit 1114 receives image data transmitted from the link destination by the wireless communication circuit 1115 and supplies it to the media recording circuit 1111 to record the image data held by the link destination device on the recording medium 1112. To do.

  When ending the state in which the shared link is generated, the shared link control circuit 1113 controls the recording mode control circuit 1109 to end the simultaneous recording mode during link and to return to the recording mode before generating the shared link. .

  Next, an example will be described in which image data transmission / reception operations are performed by two cameras when a shared link is generated in the RAW data recording mode. Note that the internal configuration of the two cameras can be realized by the configuration of the video recording apparatus 1100 described with reference to FIG. In addition, an example of an external appearance when connection processing is started to generate a shared link and a shooting situation with two cameras in a state where the shared link is generated are the same as those in FIGS. 4 and 5, respectively. The description is omitted.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an outline of transmission / reception of image data in the state of FIG. 5 in the present embodiment.
As described above, it is assumed that the recording mode of the first camera 1401 has been changed to the in-link simultaneous recording mode by the start of the connection process for generating the shared link. At time t1, shooting is performed by the first camera 1401, and RAW data format image data 1601 and JPEG image data 1602 are recorded.

  The JPEG image data 1602 is transmitted to the linked second camera 1402, and is recorded as JPEG image data 1603 in the second camera 1402. On the other hand, in the first camera 1401, the JPEG image data 1602 is deleted after the transmission is completed.

  Next, at time t2, shooting is performed by the second camera 1402, and image data 1604 in the RAW data format and image data 1605 in the JPEG format are similarly recorded. The JPEG image data 1605 is transmitted to the linked first camera 1401, and is recorded as JPEG image data 1606 in the first camera 1401. On the other hand, in the second camera 1402, the JPEG image data 1605 is deleted after the transmission is completed.

FIG. 17 is a timing chart showing details of the operation example shown in FIG. 16 in the present embodiment.
First, in S1701 and S1702, the first camera 1401 and the second camera 1402 issue a connection start command for generating a shared link in response to a user operation as shown in FIG. 4, for example. In step S <b> 1703, negotiation for generating a shared link between the two communicable units is executed. At this time, the data format of the image data to be transmitted is determined as in the processing procedure shown in FIG. 18, and a shared link is started in S1704 and S1705. In FIG. 17, both are originally in the RAW data recording mode, and are changed to the simultaneous recording mode in link by the start of the connection process.

  In S1706, when shooting is performed by the first camera 1401 in response to a user operation, the process in the first camera 1401 branches into two processes. That is, the process branches to the camera signal processing in S1707, which is digital development processing due to the change to the simultaneous recording mode during link, and the RAW data format processing for recording image data in the RAW data format in S1708.

  The image data subjected to the camera signal processing is encoded in JPEG format in S1709, and in S1710, both RAW data format image data and JPEG format image data are recorded in the linked simultaneous recording mode.

  The procedure for transmitting the image data from S1711 to the linked device is started. In step S 1711, a request for transmitting JPEG image data as shared data is transmitted to the second camera 1402 at the link destination. In S1712, the shared data reception permission notification for the request is received, and in S1713, the JPEG image data recorded in the linked simultaneous recording mode is transmitted from the first camera 1401 as shared data. After the transmission of the image data is completed, a shared data transmission completion notification is transmitted from the first camera 1401 in S1714.

  On the other hand, in S1715 after the transmission of the JPEG image data is completed, the JPEG image data recorded in the linked simultaneous recording mode is deleted.

  When the second camera 1402 that is the reception destination of the shared data receives the shared data transmission completion notification in S1714, in S1716, the received JPEG image data is used as the shared data in the recording medium attached to the second camera 1402 To record.

  The processing after S1717 is processing after photographing with the second camera 1402 on the contrary. When shooting is performed in the second camera 1402 in S1717, the processing in the second camera 1402 branches to two processing in the same manner. That is, the process branches to the camera signal processing in S1718 of digital development processing due to the change to the simultaneous recording mode during link and the RAW data format processing for recording image data in the RAW data format in S1719.

  The image data subjected to camera signal processing is encoded in JPEG format in S1720, and in S1721, both RAW data format image data and JPEG format image data are recorded in the simultaneous recording mode during link.

  The procedure for transmission from S1722 to the linked device is started. In S1722, a request for transmitting JPEG image data as shared data is transmitted to the linked first camera 1401. In S1723, a shared data reception permission notification for the request is received, and in S1724, the JPEG image data recorded in the linked simultaneous recording mode is transmitted from the second camera 1402 as shared data. After the transmission of the image data is completed, a shared data transmission completion notification is transmitted from the second camera 1402 in S1725.

On the other hand, in S1726 after the transmission of the JPEG image data is completed, the JPEG image data recorded in the linked simultaneous recording mode is deleted.
When the first camera 1401 that is the shared data receiving destination receives the shared data transmission completion notification in S1725, in S1727, the received JPEG format image data is used as the shared data in the recording medium attached to the first camera 1401. To record.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when a shared link is generated and used in a camera that is shooting in the RAW data recording mode unique to the image sensor, JPEG image data that is a general-purpose image format is also simultaneously used. Recorded. As a result, it is possible to record image data in a high-quality RAW data format, and to share image data by transmitting versatile JPEG image data. In addition, by deleting the JPEG image data recorded in the linked simultaneous recording mode after the transmission of the image data is completed, it is possible to prevent the user from being aware of the change to the linked simultaneous recording mode. .

(Fourth embodiment)
In the present embodiment, an example will be described in which a simultaneous recording mode for simultaneously recording RAW data format image data and JPEG image data is provided, and the JPEG image data is transmitted to the link destination server.

FIG. 19 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration example of a video recording apparatus 1900 having an upload function to a server in the present embodiment.
In FIG. 19, reference numeral 1908 denotes a system controller that controls the operation and timing of each unit. Reference numeral 1901 denotes a camera optical system, which includes a lens system for imaging a subject, an aperture mechanism for exposure control, a focusing control mechanism, and the like.

  An image from a subject photographed by the camera optical system 1901 is converted into an electric signal by the image sensor 1902, and gain and the like are adjusted by the analog signal processing circuit 1903. Then, it is converted into digital data by the A / D conversion circuit 1904 and held in the first buffer memory 1905. As described with reference to FIG. 2 of the first embodiment, the digital data obtained in this way is usually in a specific data format depending on the configuration method of the image sensor.

  The camera signal processing circuit 1906 performs digital development processing including color separation, color space conversion, pixel interpolation, white balance, gamma processing, and the like on digital data that is a data format unique to the image sensor. Then, for example, the image is converted into a general image format as described in FIG. 3 of the first embodiment.

  The image data converted in this way does not depend on the configuration of the image sensor, but since the information of all the pixels is gathered, the data size is still large. For this reason, in order to efficiently record on a recording medium, compression coding such as JPEG is often performed.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 1900 is the JPEG recording mode, the first switch 1918 is turned on by the control of the recording mode control circuit 1909, and the compression encoding function is enabled. In this case, the image data after the digital development processing is compressed by the compression encoding circuit 1910 by, for example, JPEG encoding.

  When the recording mode is the JPEG recording mode, the second switch 1919 is connected to the terminal A under the control of the recording mode control circuit 1909. Then, the image data encoded by the JPEG method by the compression encoding circuit 1910 is supplied to the media recording circuit 1911. The media recording circuit 1911 performs buffering of image data on the second buffer memory 1916 and records image data encoded by the JPEG method on the recording medium 1912.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 1900 is the RAW data recording mode, the RAW data format circuit 1907 reads out image data in a data format specific to the image sensor held in the first buffer memory 1905. Then, additional information necessary as a RAW data file is added to the read image data, and the image data is converted into a RAW data format.

  For image data in the RAW data format, data compression using lossless encoding may be performed. In some cases, data obtained by reducing the image that has been digitally developed by the camera signal processing circuit 1906 is added to the RAW data file as preview / thumbnail data.

  In general, in the RAW data recording mode, encoding by the JPEG method is not necessary, and therefore, the first switch 1918 is turned OFF by the control of the recording mode control circuit 1909, and the compression encoding by the JPEG method is stopped. This is performed for the purpose of reducing power consumption by stopping unnecessary processing circuits.

  When the recording mode is the RAW data recording mode, the second switch 1919 is connected to the terminal C under the control of the recording mode control circuit 1909. RAW data format image data is supplied from the RAW data format circuit 1907 to the media recording circuit 1911. The media recording circuit 911 performs buffering of the image data on the second buffer memory 1916 and records RAW data format image data on the recording medium 1912.

  When the recording mode of the video recording apparatus 1900 is the simultaneous recording mode, the first switch 1918 is turned on under the control of the recording mode control circuit 1909 in order to validate the JPEG encoding. Then, the compression encoding circuit 1910 performs data compression by, for example, JPEG encoding. The simultaneous recording mode is a mode that exists as a recording mode selected by a user operation.

  In the simultaneous recording mode, processing for recording image data in the RAW data format is also performed. The RAW data format circuit 1907 adds additional information necessary as a RAW data file to the image data in the data format unique to the image sensor stored in the first buffer memory 1905, and converts the image data into a RAW data format. .

  For RAW format image data, data compression using lossless encoding may be performed. In some cases, data obtained by reducing the image that has been digitally developed by the camera signal processing circuit 1906 is added to the RAW data file as preview / thumbnail data.

  The JPEG image data encoded by the compression encoding circuit 1910 and the image data converted into the RAW data format by the RAW data format circuit 1907 are supplied to the simultaneous recording control circuit 1920. The simultaneous recording control circuit 1920 is for controlling writing timing and data buffering necessary for simultaneous recording of RAW data format image data and JPEG image data.

  In the simultaneous recording mode, the second switch 1919 is connected to the terminal B under the control of the recording mode control circuit 1909. Then, the image data output from the simultaneous recording control circuit 1920 is supplied to the media recording circuit 1911. The media recording circuit 1911 buffers image data in the second buffer memory 1916, and records both RAW data format image data and JPEG encoded image data on the recording medium 1912. .

Next, an operation in a state where uploading is possible using the server upload function will be described.
The upload link control circuit 1913 searches for a wireless LAN base station capable of communication via the wireless communication circuit 1915 when the start of connection processing for generating an upload link is instructed by a user operation. If communication is possible, a network connection is established between the wireless LAN base station and a predetermined server for uploading image data. As a result, in a state where the upload link is generated and uploading is possible, the captured image data can be transmitted to the server. An example of a wireless LAN base station is a public wireless LAN spot using a wireless LAN known as Wi-Fi.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure when determining the data format of the image data to be transmitted in the present embodiment.
When the process is started in step S2201 in FIG. 22, in the next step S2202, the upload link control circuit 1913 starts negotiation for generating an upload link. Next, in S2203, it is determined whether there is a connectable wireless LAN base station and a linkable server. If the result of this determination is that there is no wireless LAN base station and server, processing proceeds to step S2204, and link error processing is performed.

  On the other hand, if there is a connectable wireless LAN base station and server as a result of the determination in step S2203, the process proceeds to step S2205, and the system controller 1908 determines whether or not its own recording mode is the RAW data recording mode. judge. As a result of this determination, if the recording mode of the own device is not the RAW data recording mode of the data format specific to the image sensor, the mode is a mode in which image data of the JPEG format or the like can be transmitted as it is, so the process proceeds to step S2207, End the negotiation.

  On the other hand, if the result of determination in step S2205 is that the recording mode of the own device is the RAW data recording mode, the recording mode of the own device is changed to the simultaneous recording mode (simultaneous recording mode during linking) in the next step S2206. In this case, the image data recorded by the device is both RAW data format image data and JPEG format image data, but the transmitted image data is JPEG format image data, which is a general-purpose image format.

Next, returning to the description of the schematic configuration shown in FIG. 19, the operation of each unit in a state where the upload link is generated will be described.
The data upload circuit 1914 reads out image data in a data format that can be transmitted from the recording medium 1912 via the media recording circuit 1911 with the completion of recording of each image data on the recording medium 1912 as a trigger. Then, the wireless communication circuit 1915 transmits the data to the linked server via the wireless LAN base station and the network. Further, the data upload circuit 1914 buffers the read image data for a period until the transmission is completed, in the third buffer memory 1917 for transmission.

  When the recording mode is the RAW data recording mode and the mode is changed to the simultaneous recording mode during link in step S2206 in FIG. 22, the recording mode control circuit 909 is controlled by the control of the upload link control circuit 1913. Then, the second switch 1919 is connected to the terminal B to change to the simultaneous recording mode during linking.

  The processing from the imaging in the linked simultaneous recording mode after the change to the recording on the recording medium 1912 is the same as that in the simultaneous recording mode set by the user described above, and thus the description thereof is omitted. In the simultaneous recording mode during link, when the compression encoding circuit 1910 performs encoding by the JPEG method, information for identifying image data in the RAW data format to be recorded at the same time may be added. Examples of identification information include RAW data file names.

  Further, identification information indicating JPEG image data may be recorded simultaneously in the simultaneous recording mode during linking. By using this identification information, it is possible to realize a function such as searching for JPEG image data recorded in the simultaneous recording mode during linking and deleting it collectively. As a recording method of the identification information, management information of the recording medium 1912, additional information of individual JPEG image data, identification by a file name, and the like can be considered.

  In the simultaneous recording mode during link, the data upload circuit 1914 is used to transmit to the linked server via the wireless LAN base station and the network, triggered by the completion of recording of each image data on the recording medium 1912. Process. First, JPEG image data out of RAW data format image data and JPEG image data recorded simultaneously is read from the recording medium 1912 via the media recording circuit 1911. Then, the wireless communication circuit 1915 transmits the data to the linked server via the wireless LAN base station and the network. At this time, image data in the RAW data format recorded at the same time is not transmitted. Further, the read image data is buffered in the third buffer memory 1916 for transmission for a period until the end of transmission.

  The transmitted data erasure circuit 1921 deletes the corresponding transmitted JPEG image data from the recording medium 1912 after completing the transmission of the JPEG image data in the linked simultaneous recording mode. This makes it possible to record image data in the RAW data format and transmit JPEG image data for upload without making the user aware that the recording mode has changed due to the generation of the upload link. The function for deleting the transmitted image data may be canceled by user settings.

  When ending the state where the upload link is generated, the upload link control circuit 1913 controls the recording mode control circuit 1909 to end the simultaneous recording mode during link and return to the recording mode before generating the upload link. .

  Next, an example will be described in which image data transmission / reception operation is performed between the camera and the server in a state where the upload link is generated in the RAW data recording mode. Note that the operation example of the appearance when starting the network connection and the shooting situation with the camera in a state where the upload link is generated with the server are the same as those in FIGS. To do.

FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an outline of transmission / reception of image data in the state of FIG. 11 in the present embodiment.
As described above, it is assumed that the recording mode of the camera 1501 is changed to the in-link simultaneous recording mode by the start of the connection process for generating the upload link. At time t1, shooting is performed by the camera 1501, and RAW data format image data 2001 and JPEG image data 2002 are recorded.

  The JPEG image data 2002 is transmitted to the link destination server 1502 and stored in the server 1502 as JPEG image data 2003. On the other hand, in the camera 1501, the JPEG image data 2002 is deleted after the transmission is completed.

  Next, at time t2, the camera 1501 takes a second image, and similarly, RAW data format image data 2004 and JPEG format image data 2005 are recorded. The JPEG image data 2005 is transmitted to the link destination server 1502, and is stored in the server 1502 as JPEG image data 2006. On the other hand, in the camera 1501, the JPEG image data 2005 is deleted after the transmission is completed.

FIG. 21 is a timing chart showing details of the operation example shown in FIG. 20 in the present embodiment.
In step S2101, the camera 1501 issues a connection start command for generating an upload link in response to a user operation as illustrated in FIG. In step S2102, a negotiation for generating an upload link is executed between the camera 1501 and the server 1502 that can communicate with each other. At this time, the data format of the image data transmitted in a state where the upload link is generated is determined as in the processing procedure shown in FIG. 22, and the upload link is started in S2103. In FIG. 13, it is assumed that the camera 1501 is originally in the RAW data recording mode, and is changed to the linked simultaneous recording mode by the start of the connection process.

  In S2104, when shooting is performed by the camera 1501 in accordance with a user operation, the processing in the camera 1501 branches into two processes. That is, the process branches to the camera signal processing in S2105 which is digital development processing due to the change to the simultaneous recording mode during linking, and the RAW data format processing for recording image data in the RAW data format in S2106.

  The image data subjected to the camera signal processing is encoded by the JPEG method in S2107, and in S2108, both the RAW data format image data and the JPEG image data are recorded in the simultaneous recording mode during link.

  A transmission procedure from S2109 to the linked server 1502 is started. In step S2109, a request for transmitting JPEG image data as upload data is transmitted to the link destination server 1502. In S2110, an upload data reception permission notification for the request is received. In S2111, JPEG image data recorded in the linked simultaneous recording mode is transmitted as upload data. After the transmission of the image data is completed, an upload data transmission completion notification is transmitted in S2112.

  On the other hand, in S2113 after the transmission of the JPEG image data is completed, the JPEG image data recorded in the linked simultaneous recording mode is deleted.

  Upon receiving the upload data transmission completion notification in S2112, the server 1502, which is the upload data reception destination, stores the received JPEG image data in the storage in the server 1502 in S2114.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when a camera that is shooting in the RAW data recording mode unique to the image sensor is used by generating an upload link with the server, it is a JPEG image that is a general-purpose image format. Data was recorded at the same time. As a result, it is possible to record image data in a high-quality RAW data format and to transmit versatile JPEG image data to the server. The JPEG data recorded in the simultaneous recording mode during linking can be executed without making the user aware of the change to the simultaneous recording mode during linking by deleting the data when transmission is completed.

(Other embodiments according to the present invention)
Each means constituting the image communication apparatus and each step of the image communication method in the embodiment of the present invention described above can be realized by operating a program stored in a RAM or ROM of a computer. This program and a computer-readable storage medium storing the program are included in the present invention.

  In addition, the present invention can be implemented as, for example, a system, apparatus, method, program, storage medium, or the like. Specifically, the present invention may be applied to a system including a plurality of devices. The present invention may be applied to an apparatus composed of a single device.

  In the present invention, a software program for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments (in the embodiment, a program corresponding to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 8, 14, 18 and 22) is directly or remotely supplied to the system or apparatus. This includes cases where This includes the case where the system or the computer of the apparatus is also achieved by reading and executing the supplied program code.

  Accordingly, since the functions of the present invention are implemented by computer, the program code installed in the computer also implements the present invention. In other words, the present invention includes a computer program itself for realizing the functional processing of the present invention.

  In that case, as long as it has the function of a program, it may be in the form of object code, a program executed by an interpreter, script data supplied to the OS, and the like.

  Examples of the storage medium for supplying the program include a flexible disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, and a magneto-optical disk. Further, there are MO, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card, ROM, DVD (DVD-ROM, DVD-R) and the like.

  As another program supply method, there is a method of connecting to a homepage on the Internet using a browser of a client computer. It can also be supplied by downloading the computer program itself of the present invention or a compressed file including an automatic installation function from a homepage to a storage medium such as a hard disk.

  It can also be realized by dividing the program code constituting the program of the present invention into a plurality of files and downloading each file from a different homepage. That is, the present invention includes a WWW server that allows a plurality of users to download a program file for realizing the functional processing of the present invention on a computer.

  As another method, the program of the present invention is encrypted, stored in a storage medium such as a CD-ROM, distributed to users, and encrypted from a homepage via the Internet to users who have cleared predetermined conditions. Download the key information to be solved. It is also possible to execute the encrypted program by using the key information and install the program on a computer.

  Further, the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the computer executing the read program. Furthermore, based on the instructions of the program, an OS or the like running on the computer performs part or all of the actual processing, and the functions of the above-described embodiments can be realized by the processing.

  As another method, a program read from a storage medium is first written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer. Then, based on the instructions of the program, the CPU or the like provided in the function expansion board or function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are also realized by the processing.

It is a block diagram which shows the schematic structural example of the video recording apparatus provided with the shared link function in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the pixel arrangement example of the single plate system which arranged the color filter for reproducing color information on the sensor unit of 1 sheet. It is a figure which shows the result of the digital development process by a camera signal processing circuit. It is a figure which shows the operation example of the external appearance when starting a connection process in order to produce | generate a shared link in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the imaging | photography condition with two cameras of the state in which the shared link was produced | generated. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an outline of transmission / reception of image data in the state of FIG. 5 in the first embodiment of the present invention. 7 is a timing chart showing details of the operation example shown in FIG. 6 in the first embodiment of the present invention. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure when determining a data format of image data to be transmitted in the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the example of schematic structure of the video recording apparatus provided with the upload function to a server in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the operation example of an external appearance when starting a network connection. It is a figure which shows the imaging | photography condition with a camera in the state in which the upload link was produced | generated between the servers. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an outline of transmission / reception of image data in the state of FIG. 11 in the second embodiment of the present invention. 13 is a timing chart showing details of the operation example shown in FIG. 12 in the second embodiment of the present invention. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure when determining a data format of image data to be transmitted in the second embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the example of schematic structure of the video recording apparatus provided with the shared link function in the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an outline of transmission / reception of image data in the state of FIG. 5 in the third embodiment of the present invention. 17 is a timing chart showing details of the operation example shown in FIG. 16 in the third embodiment of the present invention. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure when determining a data format of image data to be transmitted in the third embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the schematic structural example of the video recording apparatus provided with the upload function to a server in the 4th Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an outline of transmission / reception of image data in the state of FIG. 11 in the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 21 is a timing chart showing details of the operation example shown in FIG. 20 in the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process sequence at the time of determining the data format of the image data to transmit in the 4th Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Video recording apparatus 101 Camera optical system 102 Image pick-up element 103 Analog signal processing circuit 104 A / D conversion circuit 105 1st buffer memory 106 Camera signal processing circuit 107 RAW data format circuit 108 System controller 109 Recording mode control circuit 110 Compression encoding Circuit 111 Media recording circuit 112 Recording medium 113 Shared link control circuit 114 Data sharing circuit 115 Wireless communication circuit 116 Second buffer memory 117 Third buffer memory 118 First switch 119 Second switch 120 Third switch

Claims (14)

When the first recording mode for recording the first image data which is the image data before the development processing is selected, the first image data is recorded on a recording medium, and the development is performed. in the case where processing second recording mode for recording the second image data is image data after performed is selected, recording means for recording the second image data on the recording medium When,
Determination means for determining whether or not an external device is a device capable of reproducing the first image data;
In a case where the first recording mode is selected, when said external device is determined not a device capable of reproducing the first image data, based on said first image data Generating means for generating the second image data ;
When the first recording mode is selected and the external device is determined not to be a device capable of reproducing the first image data, the first image data is transferred to the external device. A recording apparatus comprising: a transmission unit configured to perform processing for transmitting the second image data to the external apparatus without transmitting to the apparatus. When the first recording mode is selected and the external device is determined to be a device capable of reproducing the first image data, the transmission means includes the first recording mode. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein processing for transmitting image data to the external apparatus is performed. When the first recording mode is selected and it is determined that the external device is not a device capable of reproducing the first image data, the recording unit is configured to display the first image. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein data and the second image data are recorded on the recording medium. When the first recording mode is selected, and when it is determined that the external device is not a device that can reproduce the first image data, the second image data is The recording apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a deleting unit that deletes the second image data from the recording medium when the second image data is transmitted to the external apparatus. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first image data is image data in a RAW data format. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the development process includes a process for color space conversion. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the development process includes a process for white balance. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the development processing includes gamma processing. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an encoding unit configured to encode the second image data before the second image data is recorded on the recording medium. A program for causing a computer to function as the recording apparatus according to claim 1. A computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to claim 10. When the first recording mode for recording the first image data which is the image data before the development processing is selected, the first image data is recorded on a recording medium, and the development is performed. in the case where processing second recording mode for recording the second image data is image data after performed is selected, a recording step of recording the second image data on the recording medium When,
A determination step of determining whether or not an external device is a device capable of reproducing the first image data;
In a case where the first recording mode is selected, when said external device is determined not a device capable of reproducing the first image data, based on said first image data Generating step for generating the second image data ;
When the first recording mode is selected and the external device is determined not to be a device capable of reproducing the first image data, the first image data is transferred to the external device. control method of the second image data without sending apparatus and a transmission step of performing processing for transmission to the external device. When the first recording mode for recording the first image data which is the image data before the development processing is selected, the first image data is recorded on a recording medium, and the development is performed. in the case where processing second recording mode for recording the second image data is image data after performed is selected, a recording step of recording the second image data on the recording medium When,
A determination step of determining whether or not an external device is a device capable of reproducing the first image data;
In a case where the first recording mode is selected, when said external device is determined not a device capable of reproducing the first image data, based on said first image data Generating step for generating the second image data ;
When the first recording mode is selected and the external device is determined not to be a device capable of reproducing the first image data, the first image data is transferred to the external device. A program for causing a computer to execute a transmission step of performing processing for transmitting the second image data to the external device without transmitting to the device. Computer-readable storage medium storing a program according to claim 13.

Images