JP5587351B2 - Imaging apparatus and control method thereof - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus such as a digital camera, and more particularly to a technique for storing and managing image data captured by the imaging apparatus.

  JEITA (Electronic Information Technology Industries Association) has established DCF (Design rule for Camera File system) as an image format of a digital camera. The DCF defines a directory structure and a file format for recording image data captured by a digital camera in a removable memory such as a compact flash (registered trademark) memory.

  In DCF, the file structure is defined by Exif (Exchange image file format) 98. The image data is compressed by the JPEG (Joint Photographic Expert Group) method, and the thumbnail is uncompressed and the size is 160 pixels × 120 pixels. Further, the image data can be recorded with camera information at the time of photographing by an Exif tag.

  Here, the camera information includes date, camera manufacturer name, model name, software version, shutter speed, aperture, automatic exposure program, description of photo contents, and the like. Of these camera information, other than the description of the photo content, it can be automatically captured when the digital camera is manufactured or when an image is taken.

  In the above camera information, the description of the photo content is related to the subject and shooting location, such as where and what, such as “FY2007 Elementary School Entrance Ceremony” or “xx Aquarium Dolphin Show” Generally, individual specific information is described.

  It is very effective in terms of operability to automatically acquire such individual specific information regarding the contents of a photograph at the time of photographing. As means for realizing such automatic capture, for example, use of automatic GPS (Global Positioning System) information or use of image recognition can be considered.

  However, in GPS and image recognition, it is possible to recognize general geographical information such as Shinjuku in Tokyo for the location, and match / disagreement for the face, but photographs such as the names of sightseeing spots, amusement parks, museums, theme parks, etc. Individual image information required for (image data) management cannot be obtained. Therefore, conventionally, individual specific information regarding captured image data, that is, explanation data cannot be automatically attached to the image data and managed.

  In order to solve such a problem, for example, in Patent Document 1, a file storing explanatory data describing an object together with an index is stored in advance in a memory card, and the index is input before or after shooting. Have been disclosed. Specifically, the captured image data is stored in a memory card in a file format, and the file related to the explanation data and the file related to the image data are associated with each other using an index related to the input.

  Further, in Patent Document 2, a character area is extracted from recognition target objects appearing in a plurality of images having different brightnesses from a recognition target object appearing in a moving image, and written in the character area by matching processing between the character area and the dictionary image. A technique for recognizing a character is disclosed. Specifically, a pattern recognition result having a high matching degree in the matching process among the pattern recognition results of each of the plurality of images having different brightness is output as the pattern recognition result. According to this technology, a character that is too dark due to the influence of the shadow of a peripheral object in a normal image during the day can be put into an appropriate state for pattern recognition in images with different brightness. Further, in a normal image at night, characters that are too bright due to light irradiation from the periphery and are inappropriate for recognition can be made appropriate in images with different brightness. Thereby, pattern recognition performance can be improved.

JP 2003-198909 A JP 2003-242440 A JP-A-52-156624 JP-A-4-346333 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-036597

  However, in the technique of Patent Document 1, it is necessary to store in advance a description data describing the subject in a memory card, and input is not possible in a situation where information such as a shooting location is not specified. Therefore, if the information cannot be specified, it is necessary to input information from a camera or a PC. Such a task is very difficult to input characters in the case of a device with a limited input method such as a camera. There was a problem that it was bothersome.

  Patent Document 2 is for optimizing character recognition for changes in brightness caused by a shooting environment in a moving image, and automatically manages information such as a shooting location in association with image data. It is not a thing.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems, and to make it possible to easily manage images by associating individual specific information regarding captured images with images automatically using pattern recognition. To do.

The present invention includes an imaging unit that captures an image by capturing a subject, a reception unit that receives a shooting instruction by a user, and pattern recognition from an area in the image acquired by the imaging unit before receiving the shooting instruction. Pattern recognition means to perform, storage means for storing the recognition result of the pattern recognition means, and an area acquired by the imaging means after receiving the photographing instruction and subjected to pattern recognition by the pattern recognition means are not included Associating means for associating the recognition result stored in the storage means with the image, the subject of the image subjected to pattern recognition by the pattern recognizing means, and the imaging means before the accepting means accepts the photographing instruction a case where the subject in the image is repeatedly acquired does not coincide with, and the pattern If the image pattern recognized by the emission recognizing means does not contain regions made is imaged by the imaging means, having a control unit for initializing the recognition result stored in the storage means It is characterized by.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce troublesome work such as adding individual specific information about a photographed image as character information with a personal computer or a camera, and it is possible to improve operability and easily manage images. can do.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the digital camera which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the digital camera which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the digital camera which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining operation | movement of the digital camera which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the image image | photographed with the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the image image | photographed with the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the image image | photographed with the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the image image | photographed with the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the image image | photographed with the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the image image | photographed with the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the image image | photographed with the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the image image | photographed with the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed an example of the dictionary data with which the digital camera which concerns on embodiment of this invention is provided.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a digital camera (imaging device) according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, reference numeral 100 denotes a digital camera. Reference numeral 11 denotes a photographing lens, 12 denotes a shutter having a diaphragm function, 14 denotes an image sensor that converts an optical image into an electrical signal, and 16 denotes an A / D converter that converts an analog signal output from the image sensor 14 into a digital signal. A protection unit 10 is a barrier that covers the imaging unit including the photographing lens 11 to prevent the imaging unit from being soiled or damaged.

  A timing generation circuit 18 supplies a clock signal and a control signal to the image sensor 14, the A / D converter 16, and the D / A converter 26. The timing generation circuit 18 is controlled by the memory control circuit 22 and the system control circuit 50.

  An image processing circuit 20 performs predetermined pixel interpolation processing and color conversion processing on the data from the A / D converter 16 or the data from the memory control circuit 22. The image processing circuit 20 also performs predetermined arithmetic processing using the captured image data, so that TTL (through-the-lens) AF (autofocus) processing, AE (automatic exposure) processing, EF (flash) A part of the (pre-flash) process is performed. The system control circuit 50 controls the exposure control means 40 and the distance measurement control means 42 based on the calculation result of the predetermined calculation processing by the image processing circuit 20, so that the TTL AF processing, AE processing, EF processing is performed. The image processing circuit 20 also performs predetermined arithmetic processing using the captured image data, and also performs TTL AWB (auto white balance) processing based on the obtained arithmetic result.

A face detection unit 58 performs a predetermined face detection process on the data from the image processing circuit 20 or the data from the memory control circuit 22 to detect whether or not there is a face in the image. Many techniques have already been realized as face recognition techniques.
For example, Patent Document 3 proposes a method for extracting a human face from a captured image by extracting skin color data from an original image and using a cluster of photometric points determined as a skin color range as a face.
Patent Document 4 proposes a method of judging a face area by converting photometric data into hue and saturation, and creating and analyzing this two-dimensional histogram.
Patent Document 5 proposes a method of extracting a face candidate area corresponding to the shape of a human face and determining the face area from the feature amount in the area. In the present invention, any face detection method may be used.

  59 is a pattern detection unit, which uses characters such as ABC, 123, 123, Hiragana, Katakana, Kanji, and registered company logos, signs, faces, pictograms, Detects whether there are idioms etc. Many techniques have already been realized as pattern recognition techniques for such detection techniques. In the present invention, any method may be used for the character detection method, which is not mentioned here.

  A code conversion unit 57 converts the pattern detected by the pattern detection unit 59 into code data (hereinafter, code information). That is, OCR (Optical Character Reader) processing is performed.

  Reference numeral 72 denotes a subject information generating unit that generates subject information from a captured image at the time of live view. Reference numeral 71 denotes a subject comparison unit that compares information generated by the subject information generation unit 72 with a predetermined target. Details of the subject information generation unit 72 and the subject comparison unit 71 will be described later.

  A code comparison unit 73 compares the previous code information converted by the code conversion unit 57 and the new code information with reference to the dictionary data 74. Although details will be described later, during live view, pattern detection is performed at any time by the pattern detection unit 59 during image capture, and code information is updated according to sequentially captured images. Yes.

  A memory control circuit 22 controls the A / D converter 16, the timing generation circuit 18, the image processing circuit 20, the image display memory 24, the D / A converter 26, the memory 30, and the compression / decompression circuit 32. The data from the A / D converter 16 is written into the image display memory 24 or the memory 30 through the image processing circuit 20 and the memory control circuit 22 or directly through the memory control circuit 22.

  Reference numeral 24 denotes an image display memory, 26 denotes a D / A converter, and 28 denotes an image display unit including a TFT / LCD or the like. The display image data written in the image display memory 24 is displayed by the image display unit 28 via the D / A converter 26. If the image data captured using the image display unit 28 is sequentially displayed, the electronic viewfinder function can be realized. The image display unit 28 can also arbitrarily turn on / off the display according to an instruction from the system control circuit 50. When the display is turned off, the power consumption of the digital camera 100 can be greatly reduced. .

  Reference numeral 30 denotes a memory for storing captured still images and moving images, and has a storage capacity sufficient to store a predetermined number of still images and a moving image for a predetermined time. As a result, the digital camera 100 can perform high-speed and large-volume image writing to the memory 30 even in continuous shooting or panoramic shooting in which a plurality of still images are continuously shot. The memory 30 can also be used as a work area for the system control circuit 50.

  Reference numeral 32 denotes a compression / decompression circuit that compresses and decompresses image data by adaptive discrete cosine transform (ADCT) or the like. The compression / decompression circuit 32 reads an image stored in the memory 30, performs compression processing or decompression processing, and writes the processed data to the memory 30.

  Reference numeral 40 denotes an exposure control means that controls the shutter 12 having an aperture function and also has a flash light control function in cooperation with the flash 48. Reference numeral 42 denotes distance measurement control means for controlling the focusing of the photographic lens 11. A zoom control unit 44 controls zooming of the photographing lens 11. 46 is a barrier control means for controlling the operation of the protection unit 10 as a barrier. A flash 48 has an AF auxiliary light projecting function and a flash light control function.

  As described above, the exposure control means 40 and the distance measurement control means 42 are controlled using the TTL method. Based on the calculation result obtained by the image processing circuit 20 calculating the captured image data, the system control circuit 50 controls the exposure control means. 40, the distance measurement control means 42 is controlled.

  A system control circuit 50 controls the entire digital camera 100, and a memory 52 stores constants, variables, programs, and the like for operation of the system control circuit 50.

  A display unit 54 displays an operation state, a message, and the like using characters, images, sounds, and the like according to execution of the program in the system control circuit 50. The display unit 54 is installed in a single or a plurality of positions near the operation unit of the digital camera 100 so as to be easily visible, and is configured by a combination of a liquid crystal display device such as an LCD or LED, a speaker, or a sounding element. The display unit 54 is also partially installed in the optical viewfinder 104.

  Among the display contents of the display unit 54, what is displayed on the LCD or the like includes single shot / continuous shooting display, self-timer display, compression rate display, number of recorded pixels, number of recorded pixels, number of remaining images that can be captured, shutter There is a speed display etc. In addition, there are aperture value display, exposure correction display, flash display, red-eye reduction display, macro shooting display, buzzer setting display, clock battery level display, battery level display, error display, and the like. Furthermore, there are information display with a plurality of digits, display of the attachment / detachment status of the recording media 200 and 210, communication I / F operation display, date / time display, and the like.

  Among the display contents of the display unit 54, what is displayed in the optical viewfinder 104 includes in-focus display, camera shake warning display, flash charge display, shutter speed display, aperture value display, exposure correction display, and the like.

  Reference numeral 56 denotes an electrically erasable / recordable nonvolatile memory such as an EEPROM.

  Reference numerals 60, 62, 64, 66, 68, and 70 are operation means for inputting various operation instructions of the system control circuit 50, and may be a single unit such as a switch, a dial, a touch panel, pointing by line-of-sight detection, a voice recognition device, or the like. Consists of multiple combinations. Hereinafter, these operation means will be described in detail.

  Reference numeral 60 denotes a mode dial switch, which can switch and set various function modes such as power-off, automatic shooting mode, shooting mode, panoramic shooting mode, playback mode, multi-screen playback / erase mode, and PC connection mode.

  Reference numeral 62 denotes a shutter switch SW1, which is turned on during the operation of a shutter switch (not shown) and instructs to start operations such as AF processing, AE processing, AWB processing, and EF processing. Reference numeral 64 denotes a shutter switch SW2, which is turned on when an operation of a shutter switch (not shown) is completed, and instructs the start of a series of shooting and recording processes. Specifically, first, an exposure process for writing image data to the memory 30 via the A / D converter 16 and the memory control circuit 22 for the signal read from the image sensor 14 is instructed. Next, the development processing using the calculation in the image processing circuit 20 and the memory control circuit 22 is instructed. Finally, image data is read from the memory 30, compressed by the compression / decompression circuit 32, and a recording process for writing the image data to the recording medium 200 or 210 is instructed.

  Reference numeral 66 denotes an image display ON / OFF switch, which can set ON / OFF of the image display unit 28. With this function, when photographing is performed using the optical viewfinder 104, it is possible to save power by cutting off the current supply to the image display unit 28 including a TFT / LCD.

  Reference numeral 68 denotes a quick review ON / OFF switch, which sets a quick review function for automatically reproducing image data taken immediately after photographing. In the present embodiment, in particular, a function for setting a quick review function when the image display unit 28 is turned off is provided.

  An operation unit 70 includes various buttons and a touch panel, and includes a menu button, a set button, a macro button, a multi-screen playback page break button, a flash setting button, a single shooting / continuous shooting / self-timer switching button, and the like. Also, menu movement + (plus) button, menu movement-(minus) button, playback image movement + (plus) button, playback image-(minus) button, shooting image selection button, exposure compensation button, date / time setting button, etc. including.

  Reference numeral 80 denotes power supply control means, which includes a battery detection circuit, a DC-DC converter, a switch circuit for switching a block to be energized, and the like. The power supply control means 80 detects the presence / absence of a battery, the type of battery, the remaining battery level, controls the DC-DC converter based on the detection result and an instruction from the system control circuit 50, and supplies the necessary voltage for a necessary period. , And supplied to each unit including the recording medium.

  82 and 84 are connectors, and 86 is a power supply means. The power supply means 86 includes a primary battery such as an alkaline battery or a lithium battery, a secondary battery such as a NiCd battery, NiMH battery or Li battery, an AC adapter, or the like.

  Reference numerals 90 and 94 denote interfaces with recording media such as memory cards and hard disks, and reference numerals 92 and 96 denote connectors for connecting to recording media such as memory cards and hard disks. Reference numeral 98 denotes a recording medium attachment / detachment detection unit that detects whether or not the recording medium 200 or 210 is attached to the connector 92 or 96.

In the present embodiment, the description has been given assuming that there are two systems of interfaces and connectors for attaching the recording medium. Of course, one or a plurality of interfaces and connectors for attaching the recording medium may be provided. Absent. Further, a configuration in which interfaces and connectors of different standards are provided in combination may be used.
As the interface and connector, for example, a PCMCIA card, a CF (compact flash) card or the like conforming to a standard can be used. When the interfaces 90 and 94 and the connectors 92 and 96 are configured using a PCMCIA card, a CF (compact flash) card, or other standard, connect various communication cards such as a LAN card and a modem card. Can do. When connected, image data and management information attached to the image data can be transferred to and from other computers and peripheral devices such as a printer. In addition to the LAN card and the modem card, for example, a communication card such as a USB card, an IEEE 1394 card, a P1284 card, a SCSI card, or a PHS can be connected.

  Reference numeral 104 denotes an optical viewfinder, which enables photographing using only the optical viewfinder 104 without using the electronic viewfinder function of the image display unit 28. In the optical viewfinder 104, some functions of the display unit 54, for example, a focus display, a camera shake warning display, a flash charge display, a shutter speed display, an aperture value display, an exposure correction display, and the like are installed.

  A communication unit 110 has various communication functions such as RS232C, USB, IEEE1394, P1284, SCSI, modem, LAN, and wireless communication. Reference numeral 112 denotes a connector or an antenna, which connects the digital camera 100 to other devices via a communication unit 110 in a wired or wireless manner.

  Reference numeral 200 denotes a recording medium such as a memory card or a hard disk. The recording medium 200 includes a recording unit 202 composed of a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, and the like, an interface 204 with the digital camera 100, and a connector 206 that connects to the digital camera 100. Reference numeral 210 denotes a recording medium such as a memory card or a hard disk. The recording medium 210 includes a recording unit 212 composed of a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, or the like, an interface 214 with the digital camera 100, and a connector 216 that connects to the digital camera 100.

  Next, operations that are the main focus of the present invention of the digital camera 100 having the above-described configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2A is a flowchart of processing executed by the digital camera 100 during the live view operation, and FIG. 2B is a flowchart of processing executed when the digital camera 100 is instructed to perform shooting / recording processing.

  First, in step S201 of FIG. 2-1, the digital camera 100 starts live view shooting and captures an image. Specifically, the optical image input from the photographic lens 11 is converted into an electrical signal by the image sensor 14, the analog signal output is converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter 16, and image data captured by the image processing circuit 20. Is used to perform a predetermined calculation process to capture an image before photographing.

  Next, in step S <b> 202, the digital camera 100 determines whether the pattern area exists by the pattern detection unit 59. As a result of the determination, if there is no pattern area, the process returns to image capture (S201), and if a pattern area exists, the process proceeds to step S203.

  In step S203, the digital camera 100 performs OCR processing on the pattern area by the code conversion unit 57 to generate code information. Note that the processing in steps S201 to S203 corresponds to an example of processing by the pattern recognition means in the present invention.

  Next, in step S204, the digital camera 100 compares the OCR result (code information, the recognition result referred to in the present invention) in step S203 with the previous code information in the code comparison unit 73, and determines the validity. . If the determination result is invalid, the previous code information is not updated. If valid, the code information is updated to the latest code information in step S205, and the process returns to image capture (S201). Note that the processing in step S204 corresponds to one processing example of the pattern comparison means in the present invention, and the processing in step S205 corresponds to one processing example in the updating means and the first storage means in the present invention.

  As described above, in the digital camera 100, during a live view operation, a pattern area is detected at a predetermined interval in an image captured for live view display, and is stored and updated as code information. Yes.

  Next, processing executed when the digital camera 100 is instructed to perform shooting and recording processing will be described with reference to FIG. The process of FIG. 2-2 is performed in parallel with the process of FIG.

  First, in step S206, the digital camera 100 monitors whether or not the shutter switch SW2 (64) has been pressed. If the button is pressed, the stored code information is read in step S207, and a captured image is generated in step S208.

  In step S209, the digital camera 100 adds (associates) the code information acquired in step S207 to the photographed image, and writes it on a recording medium such as a CF or SD card via the interfaces 90 and 94. Note that the processing in step S209 corresponds to an example of processing in association means in the present invention.

  Here, the specific operation of the processing described with reference to FIGS. 2-1 and 2-2 will be described with reference to FIGS. First, conventional problems will be described with reference to FIG.

If the image 401 shown in FIG. 4A is taken, it can be seen that it was taken at the entrance ceremony of “FY2007” just by looking at the picture. However, if you take the image 402 shown in Fig. 4-2, you may barely know that it was taken at the entrance ceremony of "2007" just by looking at the picture. Is insufficient. Furthermore, if an image 403 shown in FIG. 4-3 is taken, it is not possible to know that it is “the entrance ceremony for the year 2007” simply by looking at the photograph.
Therefore, even when the image 403 as shown in FIG. 4-3 is taken, if the code information (408a in the figure) is made visible at the time of printing or image display as shown in FIG. Just by looking at the photos, you will be able to understand that it is the “FY2007 Entrance Ceremony”.
However, in a conventional imaging device, in order to perform a character string search, or to obtain a print image or a display image such as the image 408, character information is added by a personal computer or a camera, or character information is registered in advance and an image and a character are registered. A very troublesome work such as associating with information was necessary.
The digital camera 100 according to the present invention eliminates such troublesome work. Hereinafter, the operation of the digital camera 100 will be specifically described with reference to FIGS.

  First, when the image shown in FIG. 4A is captured for live view display (step S201), in the case of the image 401 shown here, the pattern detection unit 59 determines that a pattern area exists (step S202). . Here, it is assumed that the area indicated by 401a is detected as a pattern area.

  Then, OCR processing (step S203) is performed by the code conversion unit 57, and the code comparison unit 73 compares it with the previous code information (step S204) using the result of the OCR processing. Here, since the code information that is the result of the OCR process is new, the code information is updated (step S205), and the process returns to image capture (step S201).

  Next, the user changes the composition, focus position, exposure, and the like while looking at the display unit 54, and searches for an image 403 as shown in FIG. Suppose. In this case, the image 402 shown in FIG. 4B in the middle of the process is captured for live view display (step S201), and the image 402 has a pattern region indicated by 402a by the pattern detection unit 59. (Step S202). Then, the OCR process (step S203) is performed by the code conversion unit 57, and the result of the OCR process is used to compare with the previous code information by the code comparison unit 73 (step S204). In this comparison, since the current code information is less than the previous code information (effectiveness is low), the code information is not updated. Therefore, the previous code information is not updated, and the previous “2007 entrance ceremony” remains. The comparison of the validity of the code information is performed with reference to the dictionary data 74. For example, the determination is made based on the clarity of the characters.

  Next, an image 403 shown in FIG. 4C is also captured for live view display (step S201). In the case of the image 403, the pattern detection unit 59 determines that the pattern area does not exist (S202), so the previous code information is not updated, and the “2007 entrance ceremony” remains here as well. become.

  Here, when the shutter switch 64 is pressed (step S206), the information for “FY2007 entrance ceremony” stored in step S205 is read (step S207). Then, a captured image is generated according to the shooting parameters set in the digital camera 100 (step S208). Then, the code information of “FY2007 entrance ceremony” is added to the photographed image and is written to a recording medium such as CF or SD via the interfaces 90 and 94 (step S209). By performing the processing as described above, the code information of the “FY2007 Entrance Ceremony” and the photographed image are automatically associated so that the code information can be used for character composition such as search, image display, and printing. become.

As described above, in the digital camera 100 according to the first embodiment, the pattern area is detected during the live view operation, stored as individual specific code information regarding the captured image, and the captured captured image is recorded. The association was managed. In such a digital camera 100, since it is possible to reduce troublesome work such as adding individual specific code information relating to a photographed image as character information with a personal computer or a camera, operability can be improved. In particular, in a device that has some restrictions on the input method, such as a camera, the frequency of extremely troublesome character input can be reduced, and the effect of improving operability is high.
Further, even when individual specific code information cannot be recognized in the photographed image, the stored code information can be managed in association with the photographed image, so that not only the task of adding character information is reduced, but also related It is also possible to support good management of a series of captured images.

(Second Embodiment)
Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the present embodiment, subject information is taken into consideration for determination of update of code information after detection of a pattern area. Since the digital camera according to the present embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, the same reference numerals are used and the description thereof is omitted.

  The main operation of the digital camera 100 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3-1 and 3-2. FIG. 3A is a flowchart of processing executed by the digital camera 100 during the live view operation, and FIG. 3B is a flowchart of processing executed when the digital camera 100 is instructed to perform shooting / recording processing.

  First, in step S301 in FIG. 3A, the digital camera 100 starts live view shooting and captures an image. Specifically, the optical image input from the photographic lens 11 is converted into an electrical signal by the image sensor 14, the analog signal output is converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter 16, and image data captured by the image processing circuit 20. Is used to perform a predetermined calculation process and capture an image.

  In step S <b> 302, the digital camera 100 uses the subject information generation unit 72 to generate subject information. Details of the subject information will be described later. Note that the processing in step S302 corresponds to an example of processing of the subject information generation means in the present invention.

  In step S <b> 303, the digital camera 100 determines whether the relevance with the previous subject information matches by the subject comparison unit 71. If they do not match, the process proceeds to step S313, and if they do not match, the process proceeds to step S304. Note that the processing in step S303 corresponds to a processing example of the subject information comparison means in the present invention.

  In step S304, the digital camera 100 determines whether or not the pattern area exists by the pattern detection unit 59, and if not, returns to image capture (S301). If it exists, the OCR process is performed by the code conversion unit 57 in step S305. Note that the processing in steps S304 and S305 corresponds to a processing example of the pattern recognition means in the present invention.

  In step S306, the digital camera 100 compares the result of the OCR with the previous code information by the code comparison unit 73, and determines the validity. As a result of the determination, if the validity is low, the previous code information is not updated, and the process returns to image capture (S301). On the other hand, if the effectiveness is high, the subject information generated in step S302 is saved in step S307, the code information is updated in step S308, and the process returns to image capture (S301). Note that the processing in step S306 corresponds to one processing example of the pattern comparison means in the present invention, the processing in step S307 corresponds to one processing example in the second storage means, and the processing in step S308 corresponds to the present invention. Corresponds to an example of processing of the first storage means.

  On the other hand, in step S <b> 313, when the subject comparison unit 71 determines that the relevance with the previous subject information does not match, first, in step S <b> 313, the digital camera 100 first determines whether the pattern detection unit 59 has a pattern area. Judge whether or not. If it does not exist, code information is initialized in step S317, and the process returns to image capture (S301). If a pattern area exists, the process proceeds to step S314.

  In step S314, the digital camera 100 performs OCR processing on the pattern area in step S313 by the code conversion unit 57. In step S315, the subject information generated in step S302 is saved, the code information is updated in step S316, and the process returns to image capture (S301).

  Next, processing executed when the digital camera 100 is instructed to perform shooting and recording processing will be described with reference to FIG. The process of FIG. 3-2 is performed in parallel with the process of FIG.

  First, in step S309, the digital camera 100 monitors whether or not the shutter switch SW2 (64) has been pressed. If pressed, the stored code information is read out in step S310, and a captured image is generated in step S311.

  In step S312, the digital camera 100 adds the code information acquired in step S310 to the photographed image, and writes it on a recording medium such as a CF or SD card via the interfaces 90 and 94.

  Next, specific operations of the processing described with reference to FIGS. 3-1 and 3-2 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  First, the image shown in FIG. 4A is captured for live view display (step S301), and subject information as shown in FIG. 4B is generated by the subject information generation unit 72 (S302). ). Next, the subject comparison unit 71 determines whether or not the information matches the previous subject information (S303). Here, since the subject information is new subject information, the determination does not match, and the pattern detection unit 59 determines the presence of the pattern region. Performed (S304). Here, since the pattern region indicated by 401a exists in the image 401, the code conversion unit 57 performs OCR processing (S305). Then, the result of the OCR process is used to compare with the previous code information (S306). However, the determination result is considered to be highly effective because it is new, and the subject information generated in step S302 is stored (S307). Are stored (S308), and the process returns to image capture (S301).

Here, the subject information is information as shown in FIG. 4B. In this example, the subject information includes a contour image 415, character information, focal length information, lens distance information, number information, and the like. . Such subject information can be obtained by extracting the contour portion of the image, extracting code information, specifying the number of people information by face recognition technology, obtaining distance information to the subject and lens focal length information. obtain. Alternatively, although not shown in the drawing, subject information is generally used by using a plurality of methods such as zone division that divides an image into several parts, object identification by a technique such as object recognition, and the like.
As a further method, it can be used for determination of subject information by monitoring whether an image is continuously enlarged / reduced / moved from an image subjected to pattern recognition. However, the continuous monitoring method has problems such as shooting interrupted due to auto power off, an image of only the sky or the ground, a lens exchange, a lens cap being used, etc. . For this reason, it is possible to improve accuracy by using the method and time information together, but the method is not mentioned here.

  Next, the user changes the composition, focus position, exposure, and the like while looking at the display unit 54, and searches for an image 403 as shown in FIG. Suppose. In this case, an image 402 shown in FIG. 4B in the middle of the process is captured for live view display (S301), and subject information is generated from the image 402 by the subject information generation unit 72 ( S302). Then, it is determined by the subject comparison unit 71 whether the information matches the previous subject information (S303). Here, since a part of the images match, the determination result is matched. Then, the pattern detection unit 59 determines the presence of the pattern area (S304). Since the pattern area indicated by 402a exists in the image 402, the code conversion unit 57 performs OCR processing (S305). Then, the result of the OCR process is used for comparison with the previous code information (S306). Since the previous code information is more effective, the code information is not updated and the image is captured (S301). Return to.

  Next, also in the image 403 shown in FIG. 4C, image capture for live view display is performed (step S301), and subject information is generated from the image 403 by the subject information generation unit 72 (S302). Then, the subject comparison unit 71 determines whether or not the information matches the previous subject information (S303). Here, since a part of the image matches, the determination result is matched, and the pattern detection unit 59 determines the presence of the pattern region. (S304). Since there is no pattern area in the image 403, the OCR processing by the code conversion unit 57 is not performed, the code information is not updated, the code information of “FY2007 entrance ceremony” remains, and the image is captured (S301). Return to.

  Here, when the shutter switch 64 is pressed (step S309), the “2007 year entrance ceremony” information stored in step S308 is read (step S310). Then, a photographic image is generated according to the photographic parameters set in the digital camera 100 (step S311). Then, code information of “FY2007 entrance ceremony” is added to the photographed image, and is written to a recording medium such as CF or SD via the interfaces 90 and 94 (step S312). By performing the processing as described above, the code information of the “FY2007 Entrance Ceremony” and the photographed image are automatically associated so that the code information can be used for character composition such as search, image display, and printing. become.

Furthermore, the case where the image 404 shown to FIGS. 4-4 is image | photographed is demonstrated.
When the image shown in FIG. 4-4 is taken, the image 404 is captured for live view display (S301), and subject information as shown in FIG. 4-4 (b) is generated by the subject information generation unit 72. Is done. Then, it is determined whether or not the subject comparison unit 71 matches the previous subject information (S303). Here, since a part of the images match, the determination results match, and the pattern detection unit 59 determines the presence of the pattern area (S304). Since there is no pattern area in the image 404, the OCR processing by the code conversion unit 57 is not performed, and the code information is not updated, so that the code information of “FY2007 entrance ceremony” remains and the image is captured (S301). Return to.

  Here, when the shutter switch 64 is pressed (step S309), the “2007 year entrance ceremony” information stored in step S308 is read (step S310). Then, a captured image is generated according to the shooting parameters set in the digital camera 100 (step S311). Then, code information of “FY2007 entrance ceremony” is added to the photographed image, and is written to a recording medium such as CF or SD via the interfaces 90 and 94 (step S312). By performing the processing as described above, even when the image 404 shown in FIG. 4-4 is captured, the code information of the “2007 entrance ceremony” and the captured image are automatically associated with each other. Can be used for character composition such as search, image display, and printing.

Further, a case where an image 405 shown in FIG.
When the image shown in FIG. 4-5 is taken, the image 405 is captured for live view display (S301), and subject information as shown in FIG. 4-5 (b) is generated by the subject information generation unit 72. Is done. Then, it is determined whether or not the subject comparison unit 71 matches the previous subject information (S303). Here, since a part of the images match, the determination results match, and the pattern detection unit 59 determines the presence of the pattern area (S304). Since there is no pattern area in the image 405, the OCR processing by the code conversion unit 57 is not performed, and the code information is not updated. Therefore, the code information of “FY2007 entrance ceremony” remains and the image is captured (S301). Return to.

  Here, when the shutter switch 64 is pressed (step S309), the “2007 year entrance ceremony” information stored in step S308 is read (step S310). Then, a captured image is generated according to the shooting parameters set in the digital camera 100 (step S311). Then, the code information of “FY2007 entrance ceremony” is added to the photographed image, and is written in a recording medium such as CF or SD through the interfaces 90 and 94 (step S312). By performing the processing as described above, even when the image 405 shown in FIG. 4-5 is captured, the code information of the “2007 entrance ceremony” and the captured image are automatically associated with each other. Can be used for character composition such as search, image display, and printing.

Further, a case where an image 406 shown in FIG.
When the image shown in FIG. 4-6 is taken, the image 406 is captured for live view display (S301), and subject information as shown in FIG. 4-6 (b) is generated by the subject information generation unit 72. Is done. Then, it is determined whether or not the subject comparison unit 71 matches the previous subject information (S303). Here, since part of the images also does not match, the determination result is inconsistent, and the pattern detection unit 59 determines the presence of the pattern area (S313). Since there is a pattern area (406a) in the image 406, the code conversion unit 57 performs OCR processing (S314), updates the code information to “◯ △ elementary school entrance ceremony”, and returns to image capture (S301). .

  When the shutter switch 64 is pressed here (step S309), the “◯ △ elementary school entrance ceremony” information stored in step S316 is read (step S310). Then, a captured image is generated according to the shooting parameters set in the digital camera 100 (step S311). Then, code information is added to the photographed image and written to a recording medium such as CF or SD via the interfaces 90 and 94 (step S312). By processing as described above, when the image 406 shown in FIG. 4-6 is photographed, the code information of “○ △ Elementary School Entrance Ceremony” and the photographed image are automatically associated, and the code information is searched. It can be used for character composition such as image display and printing.

Further, a case where an image 407 shown in FIG.
When the image shown in FIG. 4-7 is taken, the image 407 is captured for live view display (S301), and subject information as shown in FIG. 4-7 (b) is generated by the subject information generation unit 72. Is done. Then, it is determined whether or not the subject comparison unit 71 matches the previous subject information (S303). Here, since part of the images also does not match, the determination result is inconsistent, and the pattern detection unit 59 determines the presence of the pattern area (S313). Since there is no pattern area in the image 407, the OCR processing by the code conversion unit 57 is not performed, the code information is initialized (S317), and the process returns to the image capture (S301).

  When the shutter switch 64 is pressed (step S309), the information stored in steps S308 and S316 is read (step S310). Then, a captured image is generated according to the shooting parameters set in the digital camera 100 (step S311). Then, code information is added to the photographed image and written to a recording medium such as CF or SD via the interfaces 90 and 94 (step S312). Processing is performed as described above, and when the image 407 shown in FIG. 4-7 is captured, the absence of code information is automatically associated with the captured image. The code information is not erroneously used for character composition such as search, image display, and printing.

  As described above, in the digital camera 100 according to the second embodiment, the pattern area is detected and stored as individual specific code information during the live view operation, the subject information is specified, and the subject information is considered. And the code information was updated. The code information is managed in association with the photographed image. In such a digital camera 100, since it is possible to reduce troublesome work such as adding individual specific code information relating to a photographed image as character information with a personal computer or a camera, operability can be improved. In particular, in a device that has some restrictions on the input method, such as a camera, the frequency of extremely troublesome character input can be reduced, and the operability improvement effect is high. Also, by comparing the code information with the subject information of the previous time and the current time and managing according to the comparison result, the incorrect code information is not associated with the photographed image, and further operability can be improved.

  Here, FIGS. 5A to 5D are examples of a part of the dictionary data 74 shown in FIG. 1, and show data and the like for converting “Bitmap” into characters. By including the dictionary data as shown in FIG. 5 for the pattern detection unit 59 and the code conversion unit 57, it is possible to specify the person name from the face, the sign name from the sign, and the company name from the company logo.

  In the embodiment described above, the pattern detection unit 59 detects a pattern area composed of characters and uses it as code information. However, the present invention is limited to this mode. It is not a thing. For example, a company logo, a sign, a face or the like may be detected as a pattern area, which may be used as code information, and further converted into a character string corresponding to the code information and added to a print image or display image.

  In order to realize the present invention, a recording medium in which a program code (computer program) of software that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments may be used. In this case, the object of the present invention is achieved by supplying the recording medium to the system or apparatus and reading and executing the program code stored in the recording medium by the computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the recording medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the program code itself and the recording medium storing the program code constitute the present invention.

  As a recording medium for supplying the program code, for example, a flexible disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, or the like can be used.

  Needless to say, the OS (basic system or operating system) running on the computer performs part or all of the actual processing based on the instruction of the program code.

  Furthermore, the program code read from the recording medium may be written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer. In this case, based on the instruction of the written program code, the CPU or the like provided in the function expansion board or function expansion unit may perform part or all of the actual processing.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 14 Image sensor 50 System control circuit 57 Code conversion part 59 Pattern detection part 71 Subject comparison part 72 Subject information generation part 73 Code comparison part 74 Dictionary data 100 Digital camera

Claims (5)

Imaging means for capturing an image by photographing a subject;
Receiving means for receiving a shooting instruction by a user;
Pattern recognition means for performing pattern recognition from an area in the image acquired by the imaging means before receiving the shooting instruction;
Storage means for storing a recognition result of the pattern recognition means;
An association unit that associates the recognition result stored in the storage unit with an image that is acquired by the imaging unit after receiving the photographing instruction and does not include an area in which pattern recognition is performed by the pattern recognition unit; ,
The subject of the image that has been pattern-recognized by the pattern recognition means and the subject in the image that is repeatedly acquired by the imaging means before the acceptance means accepts a shooting instruction; and A control unit that initializes the recognition result stored in the storage unit when an image that does not include an area in which pattern recognition is performed by the pattern recognition unit is captured by the imaging unit. An imaging apparatus characterized by the above. Further, when it is determined that the recognition result obtained by pattern recognition from the newly acquired image is more effective than the recognition result stored in the storage unit, the recognition result stored in the storage unit is updated. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising an updating unit configured to perform updating.   The image acquired by the imaging unit before accepting the shooting instruction and the image acquired by the imaging unit after the image coincide with each other, and from the image The recognition result stored in the storage means when it is determined that the recognition result obtained by pattern recognition from the image acquired by the imaging means is more effective than the recognition result stored in the storage means. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an updating unit that updates the data. The imaging instruction image acquired by the imaging unit before accepting the imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the images acquired for the live view display . Imaging means for capturing an image by photographing a subject;
A control method for an imaging apparatus having a receiving means for receiving a shooting instruction by a user,
A pattern recognition step of performing pattern recognition from an area in the image acquired by the imaging means before receiving the shooting instruction;
A storage step of storing a recognition result of the pattern recognition step in a memory;
An associating step of associating the recognition result stored in the memory in the storing step with an image acquired by the imaging means after receiving the photographing instruction and not including an area where pattern recognition is performed in the pattern recognizing step. and,
A case where a subject of an image subjected to pattern recognition in the pattern recognition step and a subject in an image repeatedly acquired by the imaging unit before the receiving unit receives a shooting instruction; and A control step of initializing the recognition result stored in the storage step when an image that does not include an area where pattern recognition is performed in the pattern recognition step is captured by the imaging unit. A control method characterized by the above.

Images