JP5822579B2 - Orientation acquisition apparatus, control method of orientation acquisition apparatus, and program thereof - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an azimuth acquisition device, a control method for the azimuth acquisition device, and a program thereof.

  In recent years, electronic compass technology has become widespread in mobile phones, digital cameras, peripheral devices, and the like. An electronic compass is a device that can detect a direction. The electronic compass detects geomagnetism in two dimensions (X direction, Y direction) or three dimensions (X direction, Y direction, Z direction), and provides direction information indicating which direction the electronic compass device itself is facing. Can be output. The output azimuth information can be displayed on a display provided in a mobile phone or a digital camera, or can be associated with a photographed image as a photographing direction.

  This electronic compass is generally often configured with a device that acquires position information such as GPS (Global Positioning System). For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for detecting the position of a moving body using GPS and an electronic compass and recording the position information together with an image taken by a camera unit provided on the moving body. In this technique, a GPS and an electronic compass are built in the imaging apparatus.

  However, incorporating a GPS or an electronic compass in the imaging apparatus may cause problems such as an increase in the cost of the imaging apparatus itself. In order to solve such a problem, for example, it is conceivable to configure the GPS as a peripheral device of the imaging device. Accordingly, it is possible to provide a function for acquiring a shooting position to a user who needs position information while suppressing the cost of the imaging apparatus itself. Similarly, an electronic compass may be configured as a peripheral device of the imaging device.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 07-307913

  When the GPS is configured as a peripheral device as described above, if the user carries both the GPS and the imaging device, the position indicated by the position information acquired by the GPS can often be regarded as the shooting position.

  On the other hand, regarding the direction information, when the electronic compass and the imaging device are configured separately, there is a possibility that the direction is greatly deviated from the actual shooting direction. The azimuth information acquired by the electronic compass indicates the direction in which the electronic compass is facing, and does not indicate the shooting direction of the imaging apparatus. Therefore, when the positional relationship between the electronic compass and the imaging device is not fixed, that is, when the imaging device and peripheral devices are free to face different directions, the orientation information indicated by the electronic compass indicates the shooting direction. Most likely not shown. Therefore, there is a possibility that azimuth information indicating a direction different from the actual shooting direction is associated with the image data.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and provides appropriate orientation information based on the positional relationship between the imaging device and the peripheral device when an electronic compass is mounted as the peripheral device of the imaging device. For the purpose.

In order to achieve the above object, an azimuth acquisition apparatus according to the present invention is an azimuth acquisition apparatus that can be fixed to an external device, and that obtains azimuth information indicating the direction of the azimuth acquisition apparatus, Position acquisition means for acquiring position information indicating the position of the apparatus, determination means for determining whether the azimuth acquisition apparatus is fixed to the external apparatus, and correction of the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition means The azimuth acquisition unit does not acquire the azimuth information when the determination unit determines that the azimuth acquisition device is not fixed to the external device, and the position acquisition unit , even when the azimuth acquisition device is determined not to be secured to said external device by said determining means obtains the position information, it said correction means, a plurality of stationary provided in the external device Of, and it performs a correction in which the azimuth acquisition device is based on a fixed part fixed.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide appropriate azimuth information based on the positional relationship between the imaging device and the peripheral device.

It is a block diagram of the azimuth | direction acquisition apparatus and imaging device in 1st Embodiment. It is a usage example of the azimuth | direction acquisition apparatus and imaging device in 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the general view of the azimuth | direction acquisition apparatus and imaging device in 1st Embodiment. FIG. 4A is a diagram illustrating a procedure for storing information indicating a shooting direction and information indicating a shooting position in association with image data in cooperation with the direction acquisition device and the imaging device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 7B is a diagram illustrating a procedure in which the azimuth acquisition apparatus and the imaging apparatus according to the first embodiment cooperate to store information indicating a shooting position in association with image data. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the direction acquisition apparatus in the case of the direction acquisition process in 1st Embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the imaging apparatus during a shooting process according to the first embodiment. It is a block diagram of the azimuth | direction acquisition apparatus and imaging device in 2nd Embodiment. It is a usage example of the azimuth | direction acquisition apparatus and imaging device in 2nd Embodiment. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the structure of the correction information in 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the general view of the azimuth | direction acquisition apparatus and imaging device in 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the direction acquisition apparatus in the case of the direction acquisition process in 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the direction acquisition apparatus in the case of the direction acquisition process in 3rd Embodiment.

  EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Below, the form for implementing this invention is demonstrated in detail using attached drawing.

  The embodiment described below is an example as means for realizing the present invention, and may be appropriately modified or changed depending on the configuration of the apparatus to which the present invention is applied and various conditions. Each embodiment can also be combined as appropriate.

[First Embodiment]
First, a GPS accessory including an electronic compass, which is an example of an orientation acquisition device that can be connected to an imaging device, according to the present embodiment will be described. Further, a digital camera that is an example of an imaging device to which the GPS accessory is connected will be described. FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a GPS accessory and a digital camera to which the GPS accessory is connected.

  In FIG. 1, a GPS accessory 100 includes a control unit 101, a direction acquisition unit 102, a power supply unit 103, a nonvolatile memory 104, a fixed detection unit 105, a fixed unit 106, a communication unit 107, a display unit 108, an operation unit 109, and a work memory. 110, a position acquisition unit 120, and the like.

  The digital camera 150 includes a control unit 151, an imaging unit 152, a memory 153, a nonvolatile memory 154, a recording medium 155, a power supply unit 156, a fixing unit 159, a communication unit 161, a display unit 162, an operation unit 163, and an acceleration detection unit. 164 etc.

  The GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 are fixed to each other by the fixing unit 106 and the fixing unit 159, respectively, and can exchange data with the communication unit 107 and the communication unit 161.

  First, the GPS accessory 100 will be described.

  In the GPS accessory 100, the control unit 101 controls each part of the GPS accessory 100 according to an input signal and a program described later. Note that the control performed by the control unit 101 may be performed by a single piece of hardware, or the entire apparatus may be controlled by a plurality of pieces of hardware sharing the processing.

  The azimuth acquisition unit 102 detects which direction the GPS accessory 100 is facing and outputs azimuth information. This process is an example of an orientation acquisition process. The direction acquisition unit 102 is configured by, for example, an electronic compass. The electronic compass is also called a geomagnetic sensor, a direction sensor, etc., and is a generic name for devices that can detect the earth's geomagnetism. The electronic compass detects geomagnetism in two dimensions (X direction, Y direction) or three dimensions (X direction, Y direction, Z direction), and in which direction the electronic compass device itself faces. It can be detected. In addition, the direction acquisition unit 102 is configured to include an acceleration sensor. The direction acquisition unit 102 may be configured by a motion detection sensor such as a gyro sensor instead of the electronic compass. The orientation information acquired by the orientation acquisition unit 102 can be transmitted to the digital camera 150 via the communication unit 107.

  The power supply unit 103 is controlled by the control unit 101 to supply power to each unit of the GPS accessory 100. The power supply unit 103 includes, for example, a primary battery such as an alkaline battery or a lithium battery, a secondary battery such as a NiCd battery, a NiMH battery, or a Li battery, an AC adapter, or the like. Note that the power supply unit 103 may be configured to acquire power from an external connection device such as an imaging device.

  The nonvolatile memory 104 stores a program (firmware) for controlling each part of the GPS accessory 100 and various setting information. A program for the control unit 101 to control processing shown in each flowchart described later is also recorded in the nonvolatile memory 104.

  The work memory 110 is a memory for developing and executing a program stored in the nonvolatile memory 104. The work memory 110 is used as a work area for the control unit 101.

  The fixing unit 106 is a fixing tool for fixing the GPS accessory 100 to the digital camera 150. For example, the digital camera 150 is configured by a metal fitting that can be fixed to the fixing unit 159. In this embodiment, the GPS accessory 100 is fixed by the fixing unit 106 so that the direction indicated by the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition unit 102 of the GPS accessory 100 matches the shooting direction of the digital camera 150.

  The fixing detection unit 105 is a device for detecting that the fixing unit 106 has fixed the digital camera 150. In the present embodiment, the fixed detection unit 105 is provided in the fixed unit 106. The fixing detection unit 105 may be any device as long as it can detect whether or not an external device is fixed to the digital camera 150. For example, the fixed detection unit 105 can use a physical switch using a protruding member, an electrical contact, or the like. The fixed detection unit 105 is configured to be turned on by being fixed to the digital camera 150. The control unit 101 determines that the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 when the fixing detection unit 105 is turned on.

  The communication unit 107 is a connection unit for communicating with an external device. The GPS accessory 100 can exchange data with an external device via the communication unit 107. For example, it is possible to receive a request for output of azimuth information from the digital camera 150, or to transmit the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition unit 102 to the digital camera 150 in response to the request. Communication with an external device may be performed by wire or wirelessly. When the digital camera 150 is connected to an external device via a communication unit 107 in a wired manner, for example, a connection method having a degree of freedom in the positional relationship between the external device and the digital camera 150 is used, such as a USB cable. .

  The display unit 108 is a display device for indicating the state of the GPS accessory 100, and includes an LED, an LCD, a TFT, and the like.

  The operation unit 109 is used to instruct the operation and setting of the GPS accessory 100. The operation unit 109 includes, for example, a power switch for switching on / off the power of the GPS accessory 100, a switch for switching on / off of the display unit 108, and the like.

  The position acquisition unit 120 performs a positioning process. The positioning process is a process of receiving a signal from a GPS satellite and acquiring position information indicating the position of the position acquisition unit 120 from the received signal. The position information acquired by the position acquisition unit 120 can be transmitted to the imaging apparatus via the communication unit 107. The transmitted position information is associated with image data photographed by the imaging device as a photographing position. In the present embodiment, the position information is represented by latitude / longitude coordinates. In the present embodiment, GPS is used. However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to GPS, and may be an apparatus that acquires position information from an external device such as a mobile phone base station or an acceleration sensor.

  The above is the description of the GPS accessory 100.

  Next, the imaging device 150 will be described.

  The control unit 151 controls each unit of the digital camera 150 in accordance with an input signal and a program described later. Note that the control performed by the control unit 101 may be performed by a single piece of hardware, or the entire apparatus may be controlled by a plurality of pieces of hardware sharing the processing.

  The imaging unit 152 performs a shooting process. The imaging process is a process of converting subject light imaged by a lens included in the imaging unit 152 into an electrical signal, performing noise reduction processing, and the like, and outputting digital data as image data. The captured image data is stored in the buffer memory, and then a predetermined calculation is performed by the control unit 151 and recorded on the recording medium 155.

  The memory 153 is used as a buffer memory that temporarily holds image data captured by the imaging unit 152, an image display memory of the display unit 162, and a work area of the control unit 151.

  The non-volatile memory 154 is an electrically erasable / recordable non-volatile memory, and stores a program to be described later executed by the control unit 151.

  The recording medium 155 can record image data output from the imaging unit 152 and position information and azimuth information acquired via the communication unit 161 described later. The recording medium 155 may be configured to be detachable from the digital camera 150 or may be built in the digital camera 150. In other words, the digital camera 150 may have at least means for accessing the recording medium 155.

  The power supply unit 156 acquires power supplied to each unit of the digital camera 150. The power supply unit 156 is configured to be able to acquire power from a primary battery such as an alkaline battery or a lithium battery, a secondary battery such as a NiCd battery, a NiMH battery, or a Li battery, an AC adapter, or the like.

  The fixing unit 159 is a fixing tool for fixing the GPS accessory 100 to the digital camera 150. For example, an accessory shoe or the like that can fix a peripheral device such as a strobe device corresponding to the digital camera 150. The peripheral device here includes the GPS accessory 100. The GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 by connecting the fixing unit 159 to the fixing unit 106 of the digital camera 150.

  The communication unit 161 is a connection unit for communicating with an external device. The digital camera 150 can exchange data with an external device via the communication unit 161. For example, when the communication unit 161 and the communication unit 107 of the digital camera 150 are connected by a USB cable, the digital camera 150 and the GPS accessory 100 can communicate with each other via the USB cable. The digital camera 150 transmits a request for position information and direction information to the GPS accessory 100 via the communication unit 107 and the communication unit 161, and receives position information and direction information transmitted from the GPS accessory 100. be able to. Communication with the external device may be performed by wire or wirelessly. As described above, when the digital camera 150 is connected to the GPS accessory 100 by wire, for example, a connection method is used in which the positional relationship between the GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 is not fixed, such as a USB cable. The position information and the orientation information acquired via the communication unit 161 can be associated with the image data output from the imaging unit 152 as a shooting position and a shooting direction, respectively, and can be recorded on the recording medium 155.

  The display unit 162 displays a viewfinder image at the time of shooting, displays shot image data, and displays characters for interactive operation. Note that the display unit 162 does not need to be included in the digital camera 150, and the digital camera 150 may be connected to the display unit 162 as long as it has at least a display control function for controlling the display of the display unit 162.

  The operation unit 163 is used by the user to instruct the operation of the digital camera 150. The operation unit 163 includes, for example, operation members such as a power button for instructing to turn on / off the power of the digital camera 150, a release switch for performing photographing processing, and a playback button for browsing image data. Is done. The release switch has SW1 and SW2. In the middle of the operation of pressing the release switch, a so-called half-pressed state is set, so that SW1 is turned on. Thus, an instruction for performing a shooting preparation operation such as AF (autofocus) processing, AE (automatic exposure) processing, AWB (auto white balance) processing, and EF (flash pre-emission) processing is accepted. Further, when the operation for pressing the release switch is completed, that is, when the release switch is fully pressed, SW2 is turned on. Thereby, an instruction for performing a photographing operation is received.

  The acceleration detection unit 164 includes a biaxial or triaxial acceleration sensor or the like, and is used for detection of the normal position and vertical position of the digital camera 150, a level, and the like.

  The above is the description of the digital camera 150.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the digital camera 150 is used together with the GPS accessory 100, and is configured to be able to associate a photographing position and a photographing direction with photographed image data. Next, a usage example when the user uses the digital camera 150 together with the GPS accessory 100 will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that the digital camera 150 and the GPS accessory 100 can perform wireless communication.

  FIG. 2A shows a state where the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the accessory shoe of the digital camera 150. In this case, the positional relationship between the GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 is fixed. Therefore, the shooting direction 203 of the digital camera 150 can be easily determined from the direction 204 indicated by the azimuth information acquired by the GPS accessory 100. Therefore, in the case as shown in FIG. 2A, the GPS accessory 100 acquires azimuth information.

  On the other hand, FIG. 2B shows a state where the GPS accessory 100 is hung on a belt loop or the like using a strap or the like. In this case, the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150. Therefore, for example, whenever the user walks, the positional relationship between the GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 changes. That is, since the relationship between the direction 202 indicated by the azimuth information acquired by the GPS accessory 100 and the shooting direction 201 of the digital camera 150 is not constant, it is difficult to determine the shooting direction 201 of the digital camera 150. Therefore, there is a possibility that azimuth information indicating a direction different from the actual shooting direction is transmitted from the GPS accessory 100 to the digital camera 150. Therefore, in this embodiment, when it is determined that the digital camera 150 and the GPS accessory 100 are not fixed as illustrated in FIG. 2B, the GPS accessory 100 does not acquire the direction information. Thereby, it is possible to prevent azimuth information indicating a direction different from the actual shooting direction from being transmitted to the digital camera 150. In either case of FIG. 2A or FIG. 2B, the position information is acquired by the position acquisition unit 120 and transmitted to the digital camera 150.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, it is determined whether or not to acquire azimuth information based on whether or not the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150. Hereinafter, an example of a fixing method when the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 and an example of a method for detecting whether or not the GPS accessory 100 is fixed will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 3A shows an example of an overview of the digital camera 150. The digital camera 150 of this embodiment includes a fixing unit 159 as shown in FIG. The fixing unit 159 is generally called an accessory shoe, and peripheral devices such as a strobe device are fixed and connected. In the present embodiment, a case where the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the fixing unit 159 will be described. In the present embodiment, the GPS accessory 100 is fixed so that the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition unit 102 matches the shooting direction of the digital camera 150.

  FIG. 3B shows an example of an overview of the GPS accessory 100. The GPS accessory 100 according to the present embodiment has a fixing unit 106. The fixing part 106 can be fixed to the fixing part 159 shown in FIG. Further, the fixing unit 106 includes a fixing detection unit 105. The fixed unit 106 and the fixed detection unit 105 are an example of the fixed unit 106 and the fixed detection unit 105 in FIG. The fixed detection part 105 is demonstrated using the enlarged view shown in FIG.3 (c). In the present embodiment, the fixed detection unit 105 is configured by a hardware switch such as a spring. When the fixing part 106 is not fixed to the fixing part 159, the fixing detection part 105 is in a raised state as shown in FIG. This state is an OFF state, and the control unit 101 determines that the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150.

  The fixing part 159 and the fixing part 106 are fitted to each other in the direction of the arrow 310 shown in FIG. At that time, the fixing detection unit 105 is pressure-bonded in the direction of the arrow 311 by the fixing unit 159, and is thus turned on. The control unit 101 determines that the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 by detecting that the fixed detection unit 105 is ON. Note that the configuration of a hardware switch such as a spring is merely an example of the fixed detection unit 105. The fixing detector 105 only needs to detect whether or not the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150. For example, an electrical contact or the like may be used.

  Next, FIGS. 3D and 3E show an overview of a state in which the digital camera 150 and the GPS accessory 100 are fixed and connected. FIG. 3 (d) shows a rear view and FIG. 3 (e) shows a side view. The GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 are connected by the connection cable 300 via the communication unit 107 and the communication unit 161, respectively, and can exchange data. In addition, although the example which wire-connects the GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 was shown in FIG. 3, the structure connected by radio | wireless may be sufficient.

  The example of the fixing method when the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 and the example of the method for detecting whether or not the GPS accessory 100 is fixed have been described above.

  Next, in this embodiment, an outline of a procedure in which the digital camera 150 and the GPS accessory 100 cooperate to associate the shooting direction with the shot image data will be described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 4B.

  4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating a procedure in which the digital camera 150 and the GPS accessory 100 cooperate to associate a photographing position and a photographing direction with photographed image data. FIG. 4A shows a procedure when it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150.

  First, in step S1101, it is detected that SW1 of the release switch included in the operation unit 163 of the digital camera 150 is ON. When it is detected that SW1 is ON, in step S1102, a request for transmitting position information and azimuth information from the GPS accessory 100 to the digital camera 150 (hereinafter referred to as an output start request for position information and azimuth information). Is transmitted to the GPS accessory 100.

  When the GPS accessory 100 receives an output start request for position information and azimuth information from the digital camera 150, the GPS accessory 100 determines whether the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 in step S1103.

  If it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150, position information and orientation information are transmitted to the digital camera 150 in step S 1104. The case where it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150 will be described later with reference to FIG. 4A.

  In step S <b> 1105, the digital camera 150 records the received position information and orientation information in the memory 153. If it is determined that there is already recorded position information and direction information, each is overwritten and updated. In this process, a request for stopping the output of the position information and the direction information transmitted from the digital camera 150 in step S1111 (hereinafter referred to as an output stop request for the position information and the direction information) is referred to as the GPS accessory 100. Repeatedly until received. As a result, the latest position information and direction information are recorded in the memory 153. In the example of FIG. 4A, the same processing as in steps S1104 and S1105 is repeated in steps S1106 to S1109. As a result, the position information and orientation information transmitted in step S1108 are finally recorded in the memory 153.

  If it is detected in step S1110 that SW2 is ON, in step S1111, a request to stop outputting position information and azimuth information is transmitted from the digital camera 150 to the GPS accessory 100. The GPS accessory 100 stops the process of transmitting the position information and the azimuth information to the digital camera 150 by receiving the request.

  In addition, the digital camera 150 performs shooting processing in step S1112 in parallel with the processing in step S1111 and acquires image data.

  In step S1113, position information and orientation information are read from the memory 153, and stored in the recording medium 155 in association with the image data acquired in step S1112. Here, the position information and the direction information associated with the image data are the latest position information and direction information transmitted in step S1108.

  FIG. 4B shows a procedure when it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150.

  First, in step S1121, it is detected that SW1 of the release switch included in the operation unit 163 of the digital camera 150 is ON. In response to the detection that SW1 is ON, an output start request for position information and azimuth information is transmitted to the GPS accessory 100 in step S1122.

  When the GPS accessory 100 receives an output start request for position information and azimuth information from the digital camera 150, the GPS accessory 100 determines whether or not the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 in step S1123. When it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is fixed, the process of FIG. 4B is executed as described above.

  If it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150, the position information is transmitted to the digital camera 150 in step S1124, and the azimuth information is not transmitted.

  In step S1125, the digital camera 150 records the received position information in the memory 153. If it is determined that there is position information already recorded, it is overwritten and updated. In this process, a request for stopping output of the position information and the direction information transmitted from the digital camera 150 in step S1131 (hereinafter referred to as an output stop request for position information and direction information) is referred to as the GPS accessory 100. Repeatedly until received. As a result, meticulous position information and direction information are recorded in the memory 153. In the example of FIG. 4B, the same processing as in steps S1124 and S1125 is repeated in steps S1126 to S1129. As a result, the position information transmitted in step S1128 is finally recorded in the memory 153.

  If it is detected in step S1130 that SW2 is ON, in step S1131, an output stop request for position information and azimuth information is transmitted from the digital camera 150 to the GPS accessory 100. The GPS accessory 100 stops the process of transmitting the position information and the azimuth information to the digital camera 150 by receiving the request.

  In addition, the digital camera 150 performs shooting processing in step S1132 in parallel with the processing in step S1131, and acquires image data.

  Next, in step S 1133, position information is read from the memory 153 and stored in the recording medium 155 in association with the image data acquired in step S 1132. Here, the position information associated with the image data is the latest position information transmitted in step S1128.

  If it is determined in step S1123 that the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150, the azimuth information is not acquired, and thus the azimuth information is not recorded in the memory 153. Therefore, in this case, the image data is recorded on the recording medium 155 without associating the orientation information in this step.

  The above is the description of the procedure in which the digital camera 150 and the GPS accessory 100 cooperate to associate the shooting direction with the shot image data.

  Next, the operation of the GPS accessory 100 for realizing the above-described procedure will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a position information acquisition process and a direction acquisition process of the GPS accessory 100. Each process shown in this flowchart is realized by the control unit 101 loading a program stored in the nonvolatile memory 104, developing the program in the working memory 110, and controlling each unit of the GPS accessory 100 according to the program. . The same applies to each process shown in the following flowcharts.

  The processing shown in this flowchart is started in response to the GPS accessory 100 being turned on.

  First, in step S <b> 401, the control unit 101 determines whether or not an output start request for position information and azimuth information has been received from the digital camera 150 via the communication unit 107. If the control unit 101 determines that the output start request for position information and direction information has not been received, the process proceeds to step S409. On the other hand, if the control unit 101 determines that it has not received an output start request for position information and orientation information, the process proceeds to step S402.

  In step S <b> 402, the control unit 101 determines whether the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150. Specifically, as described above with reference to FIG. 3, the control unit 101 determines whether or not the fixed detection unit 105 is ON. When the control unit 101 determines that the fixed detection unit 105 is not ON, it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150. Accordingly, it is determined that the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition unit 102 of the GPS accessory does not indicate the shooting direction of the digital camera 150. On the other hand, when the control unit 101 determines that the fixed detection unit 105 is OFF, the process proceeds to step S410. The processing after step S410 will be described later. On the other hand, when the control unit 101 determines that the fixed detection unit 105 is ON, it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150. Therefore, it is determined that the shooting direction of the digital camera 150 can be determined from the direction information acquired by the direction acquisition unit 102 of the GPS accessory, and the process proceeds to step S403. Hereinafter, a flow when it is determined in step S402 that the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 will be described.

  In step S <b> 403, the control unit 101 starts power supply from the power supply unit 103 to the position acquisition unit 120 and the direction acquisition unit 102 in order to acquire position information and direction information. If the power supply to the position acquisition unit 120 and the direction acquisition unit 102 has already been performed, the process proceeds to step S404 without performing the process of this step.

  In step S <b> 404, the control unit 101 acquires position information and direction information by the position acquisition unit 120 and the direction acquisition unit 102.

  Next, in step S405, the control unit 101 transmits the position information and orientation information acquired in step S406 to the digital camera 150 via the communication unit 107.

  Next, in step S <b> 406, the control unit 101 determines whether or not an output stop request for position information and orientation information has been received from the digital camera 150 via the communication unit 107. If the control unit 101 determines that it has not received an output stop request for position information and orientation information, the process proceeds to step S407.

  In step S407, the control unit 101 waits for a predetermined time, and the process returns to step S404. That is, the GPS accessory 100 repeats the processing of step S404 and step S405 until it receives a request to stop outputting position information and direction information.

  On the other hand, when the control unit 101 determines that the output stop request for position information and orientation information has been received, the process proceeds to step S408.

  In step S408, power supply to the position acquisition unit 120 and the direction acquisition unit 102 is stopped.

  Next, in step S409, it is determined whether an instruction to turn off the power of the GPS accessory 100 has been received. If the control unit 101 determines that an instruction to turn off the power has been received, this process ends. On the other hand, if the control unit 101 determines that it has not received a power-off instruction, the process returns to step S401, and this process is repeated.

  Next, a flow when it is determined in step S402 that the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150 will be described.

  In step S <b> 410, the control unit 101 supplies power to the position acquisition unit 120 without supplying power to the orientation acquisition unit 102. This is because, when the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150, the orientation information acquired by the GPS accessory 100 is likely not to indicate the shooting direction of the digital camera 150.

  In step S <b> 411, the control unit 101 acquires position information by the position acquisition unit 120.

  Next, in step S412, the control unit 101 transmits the position information acquired in step S411 to the digital camera 150.

  In step S <b> 413, the control unit 101 determines whether or not an output stop request for position information and orientation information has been received from the digital camera 150 via the communication unit 107. If the control unit 101 determines that it has not received an output stop request for position information and orientation information, the process proceeds to step S414.

  In step S414, the control unit 101 waits for a predetermined time, and the process returns to step S411. That is, the GPS accessory 100 repeats the processing of step S411 and step S412 until it receives a request to stop outputting position information and direction information.

  On the other hand, when the control unit 101 determines that the output stop request for position information and orientation information has been received, the process proceeds to step S415.

  In step S415, the power supply to the position acquisition unit 120 is stopped. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S409, and the above-described process is executed.

  The operation of the GPS accessory 100 that determines whether or not to acquire the orientation information based on whether or not the GPS accessory 100 of the present embodiment is fixed to the digital camera 150 has been described above. In addition, when the positional relationship between the GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 is changed from a fixed state to a non-fixed state while the processing shown in steps S403 to S407 of the flowchart is being executed, Interrupt processing is executed. In the interrupt process, the control unit 101 stops the operation of the direction acquisition unit 102 by stopping the power supply to the direction acquisition unit 102. In this interrupt process, the control unit 101 continues to acquire and transmit position information without stopping power supply to the position acquisition unit 120.

  Next, photographing processing of the digital camera 150 used with the GPS accessory 100 described above will be described with reference to FIG.

  The flowchart of FIG. 6 shows the operation of the digital camera 150 during the shooting process. Each process shown in this flowchart is realized by the control unit 151 loading a program stored in the nonvolatile memory 154, developing the program in the memory 153, and controlling each unit of the digital camera 150 according to the program.

  The processing shown in this flowchart is started in response to detecting that the release switch SW1 included in the operation unit 163 of the digital camera 150 is turned on.

  First, in step S <b> 1001, the control unit 151 transmits an output start request for position information and direction information to the GPS accessory 100.

  Next, in step S1002, the control unit 151 transmits the position information and direction information transmitted from the GPS accessory 100 in response to the output request for the position information and direction information transmitted in step S1001 via the communication unit 161. Receive. The position information and direction information received in this step are recorded in the memory 153 as needed. In addition, when the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150, the direction information is not transmitted as described above. In that case, only position information is received in the processing of this step. The processing in this step is executed in parallel with Step S1003 and Step S1004 described later.

  Next, in step S1003, the control unit 151 determines whether or not the release switch SW2 is ON. First, a case where it is determined that SW2 is OFF will be described. If it is determined that SW2 is OFF, the process proceeds to step S1004.

  In step S1004, the control unit 151 determines whether or not the release switch SW1 is ON. If the control unit 151 determines that SW1 is OFF, the process proceeds to step S1005. In step S1005, the control unit 151 transmits an output stop request for position information and direction information to the GPS accessory 100, and ends the process.

  On the other hand, when the control unit 151 determines that SW1 is ON, the process returns to step S1002. That is, when the user presses the release switch halfway to turn SW1 ON, the control unit 151 is positioned from the GPS accessory 100 until the SW1 is turned OFF by releasing the finger or SW2 is turned ON by fully pressing the release switch. The process of acquiring information and direction information is repeated. Thereby, the position information and the direction information recorded in the memory 153 are always the latest.

  The above is the processing when the control unit 151 determines in step S1003 that the release switch SW2 is OFF.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1003 that SW2 is ON, the process proceeds to step S1006. In step S <b> 1006, the control unit 151 transmits an output stop request for position information and direction information to the GPS accessory 100.

  Next, in step S <b> 1007, the control unit 151 performs shooting processing by the imaging unit 152 and acquires image data.

  In step S1008, the control unit 151 reads the latest position information and direction information received from the GPS accessory 100 in step S1002 and recorded in the memory 153.

  In step S1009, the control unit 151 associates the position information and orientation information read in step S1008 with the image data acquired in step S1007 as the shooting position and shooting direction. When the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150, the direction information is not transmitted from the GPS accessory 100, and therefore the direction information is not recorded in the memory 153. In this case, only the position information read in step S1008 is associated with the image data acquired in step S1007.

  In step S1010, the control unit 151 records the image data on the recording medium 155, and ends this process.

  The operation of the imaging process of the digital camera 150 that associates the azimuth information acquired by the GPS accessory 100 with the image data as the imaging direction has been described above. With this operation, the digital camera 150 can associate information indicating the photographing direction with the photographed image data in cooperation with the GPS accessory 100.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150, the direction information is not acquired. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent azimuth information that does not indicate the shooting direction from being transmitted to the digital camera 150.

  Further, in a situation where azimuth information that does not indicate the shooting direction can be obtained, power supply to the apparatus for obtaining azimuth information is stopped, so that wasteful power consumption can be suppressed.

[Second Embodiment]
In the first embodiment, an example in which the direction indicated by the direction information acquired by the direction acquisition unit 102 of the GPS accessory 100, that is, the direction in which the GPS accessory is facing, and the shooting direction of the digital camera 150 are fixed is described. It was. However, depending on the configuration of the digital camera, there may be a case where the direction in which the GPS accessory is facing and the shooting direction of the digital camera are not fixed so as to match.

  Therefore, in the second embodiment, in order to cope with the above case, the direction information is corrected so that the direction indicated by the direction information transmitted from the GPS accessory to the digital camera matches the shooting direction of the digital camera. An example of applying is described.

  Since this embodiment has many parts in common with the first embodiment, description of common parts will be omitted, and description will be made centering on parts unique to this embodiment.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a GPS accessory, which is an example of an orientation acquisition device that can be connected to the imaging device, and an example of an imaging device to which the GPS accessory is connected.

  The GPS accessory 600 includes a control unit 601, an orientation acquisition unit 602, a power supply unit 603, a nonvolatile memory 604, a first fixed detection unit 605, a second fixed detection unit 611, a fixed unit 606, a communication unit 607, a work memory 610, A position acquisition unit 620 and the like are included.

  The digital camera 650 includes a control unit 651, an imaging unit 652, a memory 653, a nonvolatile memory 654, a recording medium 655, a power supply unit 656, a first fixing unit 659, a second fixing unit 660, a communication unit 661, and a display unit 662. , An operation unit 663, an acceleration detection unit 664, and the like.

  In the present embodiment, the digital camera 650 includes two fixing parts, a first fixing part 659 and a second fixing part 660. Here, the first fixing portion 659 is a fixing portion provided on the upper portion of the main body of the digital camera 650, for example, an accessory shoe, and the second fixing portion 660 is a fixing portion provided on the side surface of the main body of the digital camera 650. Further, the fixing unit 606 of the GPS accessory 600 is configured to be fixed to either the first fixing unit 659 or the second fixing unit 660.

  The GPS accessory 600 includes two fixed detection units, a first fixed detection unit 605 and a second fixed detection unit 611. The GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the digital camera 650 by the first fixed detection unit 605 and the second fixed detection unit 611, and whether the fixed unit is the first fixed unit 659 or the second fixed unit. Whether it is a part 660 can be determined.

  Next, a usage example of the digital camera 650 and the GPS accessory 600 described above is shown in FIG. The usage examples shown in FIGS. 8A and 8C are usage examples in which the direction indicated by the azimuth information acquired by the GPS accessory 600 matches the shooting direction of the digital camera 650. FIG. 8A is an overview of specific usage examples of the digital camera 650 and the GPS accessory 600. Here, as in the example of use shown in FIG. 2A, the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the accessory shoe. In this case, the direction 504 indicated by the direction information acquired by the direction acquisition unit 602 of the GPS accessory 600 and the shooting direction 503 of the digital camera 650 are fixed to coincide with each other. FIG. 8C shows the axial directions of the digital camera 650 and the GPS accessory 600 used as shown in FIG. In FIG. 8C, the axis parallel to the front direction with the front direction of the digital camera 650 as positive is X, the axis parallel to the side direction with the side direction as positive is Y, and the upper direction is with the upper direction as positive. Let Z be the parallel axis. Similarly, an axis parallel to the front direction with the front direction of the GPS accessory 600 being positive is x, an axis parallel to the side direction with the side direction being positive is y, and an axis parallel to the upper direction with the upper direction being positive. z. In the usage example of FIG. 8A, the axes of the digital camera 650 and the GPS accessory 600 are oriented in the same direction for each axis, and the difference is 0. That is, the direction indicated by the azimuth information acquired by the GPS accessory 600 matches the shooting direction of the digital camera 650. Accordingly, the azimuth information indicates the shooting direction without correcting the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition unit 602.

  On the other hand, the usage examples shown in FIGS. 8B and 8D are usage examples in which the direction indicated by the azimuth information acquired by the GPS accessory 600 does not match the shooting direction of the digital camera 650. FIG. 8B is an overview of specific usage examples of the digital camera 650 and the GPS accessory 600. Here, an external strobe is fixed to the accessory shoe. In this case, since the GPS accessory 600 cannot be fixed to the accessory shoe, the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the second fixing portion 660 provided on the side surface of the digital camera 650. Here, the direction 505 indicated by the direction information acquired by the direction acquisition unit 602 of the GPS accessory 600 is fixed so as to be orthogonal to the shooting direction 506 of the digital camera 650. Moreover, FIG.8 (d) shows each axial direction of the digital camera 650 and the GPS accessory 600 used like FIG.8 (b). In FIG. 8D, unlike in FIG. 8C, the axes of the digital camera 650 and the axes of the GPS accessory 600 do not face the same direction. That is, the direction indicated by the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition unit 602 of the GPS accessory 600 does not match the shooting direction of the digital camera 650. Therefore, if the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition unit 602 is transmitted to the digital camera 650 as it is, there is a possibility that azimuth information indicating a direction different from the actual shooting direction is associated with the shot image. .

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, when the direction 505 indicated by the azimuth information and the shooting direction 506 are fixed in a manner that does not match as shown in FIG. Correction is performed so that the direction 505 indicated by the information coincides with the shooting direction 506. In the example of FIG. 8D, it is necessary to rotate 90 degrees with respect to any two of the three axes of the GPS accessory 600 in order to match the direction indicated by the azimuth information with the shooting direction.

  On the other hand, in the case of FIG. 8A, the direction 504 indicated by the azimuth information is fixed to coincide with the shooting direction 503. Therefore, in the case of FIG. 8A, unlike the case of FIG. 8B, the GPS accessory 600 does not correct the direction information.

  In the nonvolatile memory 604 of the GPS accessory 600, correction information in which information indicating each fixed portion is associated with a correction value corresponding to each fixed portion and information indicating whether correction is necessary is recorded in advance. Has been.

  For example, information shown in a table as shown in FIG. 9 is recorded as correction information. The information indicated by the fixed part of the correction information item is information indicating which fixed part of the plurality of fixed parts the digital camera 650 has. Here, the fixing portion “1” indicates the first fixing portion 659 provided on the top of the digital camera 650, and the fixing portion “2” indicates the second fixing portion 660 provided on the side surface of the digital camera 650. . The correction is information indicating whether correction is necessary. The correction value is a difference between the direction of each axis of the GPS accessory 600 and the direction of each axis of the digital camera 650 when being fixed to the fixing unit. Such information is predetermined for each fixed part.

  By referring to the correction information, the GPS accessory 600 according to the present embodiment determines whether or not to correct, depending on whether the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the first fixing unit 659 or the second fixing unit 660. The orientation information is corrected with a value corresponding to the fixed portion. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the digital camera 650 from receiving azimuth information indicating a direction different from the actual shooting direction. That is, it is possible to prevent image data captured by the digital camera 650 from being associated with azimuth information indicating a direction different from the actual shooting direction.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the orientation information is corrected according to the fixed portion to which the GPS accessory 600 is fixed among the plurality of fixed portions provided in the digital camera 650. Next, an example of a configuration for detecting which fixed part is fixed when the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the digital camera 650 having a plurality of fixed parts will be described with reference to FIG. To do. In FIG. 10, the same apparatus as in FIG. 7 is assigned the same number as in FIG.

  FIG. 10A is an example of an overview of a state in which the digital camera 650 and the GPS accessory 600 are fixed to each other. As shown in FIG. 10A, the digital camera 650 according to the present embodiment includes a first fixing portion 659 at the top of the main body of the digital camera 650 and a second fixing portion 660 at the side of the main body. Here, the strobe device is fixed to the first fixing portion 659, and the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the second fixing portion 660. In the present embodiment, when the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the second fixing unit 660, the direction indicated by the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquiring unit 602 is fixed so as to be orthogonal to the shooting direction of the digital camera 650.

  FIG. 10B and FIG. 10C show an overview of the GPS accessory 600 and an enlarged view of the fixing portion 606. FIG. 10D shows an enlarged view of the second fixing portion 660 of the digital camera 650. The GPS accessory 600 of this embodiment has a fixed part 606. The fixing portion 606 can be fixed to the first fixing portion 659 or the second fixing portion 660 shown in FIG. The fixing unit 606 includes a first fixing detection unit 605 and a second fixing detection unit 611. The first fixed detection unit 605 is the same as the fixed detection unit 105 in FIG. Further, the second fixed detection unit 611 is configured by a hardware switch having a mode illustrated in FIG. 10C, for example, and is provided in the fixed unit 606. The state of the second fixed detection unit 611 shown in FIG. 10C is an OFF state. The fixing portion 606 is fitted to the second fixing portion 660 shown in FIG. At that time, the second fixing detection unit 611 is pushed in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 10C by the protrusion 710 provided on the second fixing unit 660, and thereby becomes ON. The control unit 101 determines that the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the second fixing unit 660 by detecting that the second fixing detection unit 611 is ON.

  The example of the configuration for detecting which fixing part is fixed when the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the digital camera 650 has been described above.

  Next, the operation of the GPS accessory 600 that corrects the azimuth information based on the determination of which fixed part of the plurality of fixed parts of the digital camera 650 is fixed to the GPS accessory 600 of the present embodiment. Will be described.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the direction acquisition processing of the GPS accessory 600.

  The processing shown in this flowchart is started in response to the GPS accessory 600 being turned on.

  Steps S801 to S804 are the same as steps S401 to S404 in FIG.

  In step S805, the control unit 601 determines whether the azimuth information acquired by the azimuth acquisition unit 602 indicates a shooting direction. Specifically, the control unit 601 determines that the GPS accessory 600 includes a plurality of digital cameras 650 based on whether the first fixed detection unit 605 is ON and whether the second fixed detection unit 611 is ON. It is determined which fixed part of the fixed parts is fixed. If the control unit 601 determines in step S805 that the second fixing detection unit 611 is not ON, it determines that the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the first fixing unit 659 of the digital camera 650. That is, it is determined that the direction information acquired by the direction acquisition unit 602 matches the shooting direction of the digital camera 650. In this case, since correction is not necessary, the process proceeds to step S807. About step S807-step S817, since it is the same as that of step S405-step S415, description is abbreviate | omitted.

  On the other hand, when the control unit 601 determines in step S805 that the second fixing detection unit 611 is ON, it determines that the GPS accessory 600 is fixed to the second fixing unit 660 of the digital camera 650. That is, it is determined that the direction information acquired by the direction acquisition unit 602 does not match the shooting direction of the digital camera 650. In this case, the process proceeds to step S806.

  In step S806, the control unit 601 corrects the azimuth information acquired in step S804. Here, the azimuth information acquired in step S804 is corrected to indicate the shooting direction of the digital camera 650 based on the table recorded in the nonvolatile memory 604.

  Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S807, and the corrected azimuth information is transmitted to the digital camera 650.

  In addition, when the positional relationship between the GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 is changed from a fixed state to a non-fixed state while the processing shown in steps S803 to S809 of the flowchart is being executed, Interrupt processing is executed. In the interrupt process, the control unit 101 stops the operation of the direction acquisition unit 102 by stopping the power supply to the direction acquisition unit 102. In this interrupt process, the control unit 101 continues to acquire and transmit position information without stopping power supply to the position acquisition unit 120.

  As described above, the GPS accessory 600 according to the present embodiment is configured to correct the azimuth information according to which fixed portion of the plurality of fixed portions provided in the digital camera 650 is fixed. Thus, unlike the first embodiment, even when the GPS accessory 600 is fixed in a positional relationship that acquires orientation information indicating a direction different from the shooting direction of the digital camera 650, the GPS accessory 600 indicates a direction different from the actual shooting direction. Transmission of azimuth information can be prevented.

[Third Embodiment]
In the above-described embodiment, a hardware switch is provided as a fixed detection unit in the fixed unit of the azimuth acquisition device, and it is determined whether the azimuth acquisition device is fixed to the imaging device according to the state of the hardware switch. It was.

  On the other hand, in this embodiment, the acceleration of the azimuth acquisition device acquired using the acceleration sensor included in the azimuth acquisition unit is compared with the acceleration of the imaging device, and if the difference is within a certain threshold, the azimuth acquisition device Is determined to be fixed to the imaging device. Thereby, it is possible to determine whether or not the orientation acquisition device is fixed to the imaging device without using a hardware switch.

  Since this embodiment has many parts in common with the first embodiment, description of common parts will be omitted, and description will be made centering on parts unique to this embodiment.

  A GPS accessory that is an example of an orientation acquisition device that can be connected to an imaging apparatus and a digital camera that is an example of an imaging apparatus to which the GPS accessory is connected are the same as those in FIG.

  Note that the control unit 101 of the GPS accessory 100 according to the present embodiment is configured to be able to determine whether the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 based on the acceleration of the digital camera 150 and the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100. Is done. For example, in the usage example as shown in FIG. 2A, the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100 and the acceleration of the digital camera 150 change substantially equally. That is, if the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100 and the acceleration of the digital camera 150 substantially match, it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is used as shown in FIG. Can be regarded as being.

  On the other hand, in the usage example as shown in FIG. 2B, the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100 and the acceleration of the digital camera 150 change randomly regardless of each other. That is, the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100 and the acceleration of the digital camera 150 are different from each other. Therefore, if the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100 and the acceleration of the digital camera 150 are different, it is determined that the GPS accessory 100 is used as shown in FIG. 2B, and the GPS accessory 100 is not fixed to the digital camera 150. It is considered.

  In the GPS accessory 100 of this embodiment, it is determined whether the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 as described above. This will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the direction acquisition processing of the GPS accessory 100. The processing shown in this flowchart is started in response to the GPS accessory 100 being turned on.

  The processing in step S901 is the same as the processing in step S401 shown in FIG.

  In step S <b> 902, the control unit 101 acquires the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100 from the acceleration sensor of the azimuth acquisition unit 102.

  Next, in step S <b> 903, the control unit 101 acquires the acceleration of the digital camera 150 acquired by the acceleration detection unit 164 via the communication unit 107 and the communication unit 161. Specifically, the control unit 101 transmits a request for transmitting the acceleration of the digital camera 150 to the GPS accessory 100 to the digital camera 150. In response to this request, the control unit 151 of the digital camera 150 acquires the acceleration of the digital camera 150 from the acceleration detection unit 164 and transmits the acceleration of the digital camera 150 to the GPS accessory 100 via the communication unit 161. Then, the GPS accessory 100 acquires the acceleration of the digital camera 150 by receiving the transmitted acceleration of the digital camera 150.

  In step S <b> 904, the control unit 101 determines whether the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150. Specifically, the control unit 101 calculates a difference between the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100 acquired in step S902 and the acceleration of the digital camera 150 acquired in step S903, and whether the difference is equal to or less than a certain threshold value. Judge whether or not.

  If the control unit 101 determines in step S904 that the difference is not equal to or less than a certain threshold value, the process proceeds to step S912. On the other hand, when the control unit 101 determines in step S904 that the difference is equal to or less than a certain threshold value, the process proceeds to step S905.

  The processing from step S905 to step S917 is the same as the processing from step S403 to step S415 in FIG.

  In addition, when the positional relationship between the GPS accessory 100 and the digital camera 150 is changed from the fixed state to the non-fixed state while the processing shown in Step S905 to Step S909 of the flowchart is being executed, Interrupt processing is executed. In the interrupt process, the control unit 101 stops the operation of the direction acquisition unit 102 by stopping the power supply to the direction acquisition unit 102. In this interrupt process, the control unit 101 continues to acquire and transmit position information without stopping power supply to the position acquisition unit 120.

  The example in which it is determined whether the GPS accessory 100 is fixed to the digital camera 150 based on the acceleration of the GPS accessory 100 and the acceleration of the digital camera 150 has been described above. This eliminates the need to provide a hardware switch in the fixed part.

[Other Embodiments]
In the above-described embodiment, an example of a digital camera has been described. This digital camera includes, for example, a so-called mobile phone with a camera. The device to which the present invention can be applied is not limited to a digital camera, and can be applied to any device that can connect a GPS accessory. For example, the present invention can also be applied to a device not equipped with a camera, such as an image viewer that displays position information and orientation information on a screen.

  The above-described embodiment can also be realized by executing the following processing. That is, software (program) for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or apparatus via a network or various recording media, and a computer (or CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or apparatus reads the program. It is a process to be executed.

Claims (13)

An orientation acquisition device that can be fixed to an external device,
Bearing acquisition means for acquiring bearing information indicating the direction of the bearing acquisition device;
Position acquisition means for acquiring position information indicating the position of the azimuth acquisition device;
Determining means for determining whether or not the azimuth acquisition device is fixed to the external device ;
Correction means for correcting the orientation information acquired by the orientation acquisition means ,
The azimuth acquisition unit does not acquire the azimuth information when the determination unit determines that the azimuth acquisition device is not fixed to the external device,
The position acquisition means acquires the position information even when the determination means determines that the azimuth acquisition device is not fixed to the external device ,
The azimuth acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the correction unit performs correction based on a fixed part to which the azimuth acquisition apparatus is fixed among a plurality of fixed parts provided in the external device.   The azimuth acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the azimuth acquisition unit stops the operation when the determination unit determines that the azimuth acquisition apparatus is not fixed to the external device. Further comprising control means for controlling power supply to the bearing acquisition means;
2. The direction acquisition according to claim 1, wherein when the determination unit determines that the direction acquisition device is not fixed to the external device, the control unit does not supply power to the direction acquisition unit. 3. apparatus. A communication means for communicating with the external device;
The azimuth acquisition apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the communication unit is capable of transmitting the azimuth information and the position information to the external apparatus. Acceleration detecting means for detecting the acceleration of the azimuth acquisition device, and the communication means acquires the acceleration of the external device from the external device,
The determination means determines whether or not the azimuth acquisition device is fixed to the external device based on the acceleration detected by the acceleration detection means and the acceleration acquired by the communication means. The direction acquisition device according to claim 4.   When the difference between the acceleration detected by the acceleration detection unit and the acceleration acquired by the communication unit is within a certain threshold, the direction acquisition device is fixed to the external device. If the difference between the acceleration detected by the acceleration detection means and the acceleration acquired by the communication means is not within a certain threshold, the direction acquisition device is not fixed to the external device. The azimuth acquisition apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the azimuth acquisition apparatus determines. Wherein the information for the correction corresponding to each of the plurality of fixing portions which external device has, together with information indicating each of the plurality of fixing portions, has a holding means to hold the correction information, the judgment unit may, Determining which fixed part of the plurality of fixed parts the fixed direction acquisition device is fixed;
The azimuth acquisition apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the correction unit performs correction based on the result determined by the determination unit and the correction information. Said correcting means, the orientation obtaining apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 7, characterized in that corrected before the orientation information is transmitted by said communication means. 9. The determination unit according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines whether or not the direction acquisition device is fixed to the external device in response to receiving a request for the direction information from the external device. The azimuth | direction acquisition apparatus of any one of. The external device has a photographing means for photographing a subject and acquiring an image,
The azimuth acquisition apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9 , wherein the azimuth information transmitted to the external apparatus is received by the external apparatus as information indicating a shooting direction of the image. In response to the external device accepting an instruction to perform shooting by the imaging unit of the external device, the determination unit determines whether the orientation acquisition device is fixed to the external device. The azimuth acquisition apparatus according to claim 10, wherein A method of controlling an orientation acquisition device that can be fixed to an external device,
An azimuth acquisition step of acquiring azimuth information indicating the direction of the azimuth acquisition device;
A position acquisition step of acquiring position information indicating the position of the orientation acquisition device;
A determination step of determining whether the azimuth acquisition device is fixed to the external device ;
A correction step of correcting the azimuth information acquired in the azimuth acquisition step ,
In the azimuth acquisition step, if it is determined in the determination step that the azimuth acquisition device is not fixed to the external device, the azimuth information is not acquired,
In the position acquisition step, when it is determined in the determination step that the azimuth acquisition device is not fixed to the external device, the position information is acquired ,
In the correction step, a correction method based on a fixed unit to which the azimuth acquisition device is fixed among a plurality of fixed units provided in the external device is performed .   The program for operating a computer as an azimuth | direction acquisition apparatus of any one of Claims 1 thru | or 11.

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