JP5943603B2 - Imaging apparatus and control method thereof - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus capable of registering subject characteristic data for personal authentication and a control method thereof.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, an imaging apparatus that provides a function of detecting a subject such as a person from a captured image and performing autofocus (AF) on the detected subject is known. Furthermore, an imaging apparatus capable of performing personal authentication for identifying who is a person detected from an image is also known. In an imaging apparatus that performs personal authentication, facial feature data (feature amount) of a person is registered in advance in a storage area of the camera, and facial feature data detected at the time of shooting and registered facial feature data of the person The personal authentication is performed by checking the above. Functions are provided that perform personal authentication and apply a special effect to a person's face when the person is found to be a registered person or prioritize the focus.

  In Patent Document 1, feature data is extracted from a face photographed in a face registration mode in which a face is manually registered, and the name, date of birth, and identification priority are associated and registered, and the registered face A method of performing personal authentication (personal identification) using the feature data is disclosed. In addition, if the same face with unregistered feature data is detected several times in shooting mode, a screen asking whether or not to register the face is automatically displayed. There has been proposed a method capable of registering the face of a subject to be frequently photographed.

  There is also known an imaging apparatus that immediately shifts to a shooting mode when the shutter button is half-pressed when the shooting mode is not in a shooting standby state. Patent Document 2 proposes an imaging apparatus that controls to start a shooting operation when the shutter switch 62 is pressed and a signal SW1 is output from the switch 62a while a menu screen is displayed.

JP 2010-259088 A JP 2000-165706 A

  For a user who wants to shoot in the shooting mode, as in Patent Document 2, if the camera enters the shooting standby state in response to the operation of the shutter button in a state that is not in the shooting standby state, such as a menu screen being displayed Is preferable because it allows quick shooting. However, the operation of the shutter button performed in an operation mode for registering facial feature data, such as the face registration mode of Patent Document 1, is an operation for instructing acquisition of an image including a face to be registered. There is a possibility, and shooting in the shooting mode is not necessarily intended. Therefore, if the camera shifts to the shooting standby state in the shooting mode in response to the operation of the shutter button in the face registration mode, the work content for registering the face that has been performed until then will be discarded, which is not convenient. .

  In view of the above problems, in the present invention, the shooting button is inadvertently left without being inadvertently exited by operating the shutter button during the subject registration process. An object of the present invention is to provide an imaging apparatus capable of shifting to the above.

In order to solve the above problems, the imaging apparatus of the present invention is
Identify imaging means, shutter operation means for receiving an instruction to take an image with the imaging means and record it on a recording medium, and whether or not the subject detected from the image taken by the imaging means is a registered subject Authentication means for setting, a setting means for setting a registration standby state for capturing and acquiring an image of a subject to be registered as a subject to be used for identification by the authentication means, and a shutter operation means operated in the registration standby state In response to this, an acquisition unit that acquires an image of a subject to be registered captured by the imaging unit and stores it in a temporary recording medium, and feature data extracted from the subject image acquired by the acquisition unit is stored in a nonvolatile memory. Registration means for registration, and registration means if the shutter operation means is operated after acquisition of the subject image by the acquisition means and before registration by the registration means If the shutter operation unit is operated after registering the feature data by the registration unit, the image to be recorded on the recording medium is captured by the imaging unit. And a control means for controlling to shift to the photographing standby state.
Alternatively, the imaging device of the present invention is
Identify imaging means, shutter operation means for receiving an instruction to take an image with the imaging means and record it on a recording medium, and whether or not the subject detected from the image taken by the imaging means is a registered subject A registration screen for capturing and acquiring an image of a subject to be registered as a subject to be used for identification by the authentication unit, and registering with a through image captured by the imaging unit Display control means for controlling to display a registration screen on which a guide indicating the position where the subject should be placed is displayed, and imaging according to the operation of the shutter operation means when the registration screen is displayed An acquisition means for acquiring an image of a subject to be registered imaged by the means and holding it in a temporary recording medium, and feature data extracted from the image of the subject acquired by the acquisition means in a nonvolatile memory When the shutter operation means is operated after the registration means for registration and the image of the subject by the acquisition means and before the registration by the registration means, the registration screen is displayed without registration by the registration means. And a control unit that controls to shift to a shooting standby state for capturing an image to be recorded on a recording medium when the shutter operation unit is operated after the feature data is registered by the registration unit. To do.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to immediately shift to a shooting standby state by operating the shutter button without inadvertently exiting the registration process by operating the shutter button during the process of registering the subject. Therefore, user convenience is improved.

1 is a rear external view of a digital camera to which the present invention can be applied. 1 is a configuration block diagram of a digital camera to which the present invention can be applied. It is a data structure of a database (face dictionary) of face information for personal authentication. 2 is a flowchart showing an overall flow of the digital camera 100. It is a flowchart of imaging | photography mode processing. It is an example of a through image display when a registered face is identified and displayed. It is a detailed flowchart of a personal authentication setting process. It is a flowchart of a face registration mode process. (A) It is a display example of a personal authentication setting menu screen. (B) A display example of a registration menu. It is a flowchart of additional registration setting. It is various display examples in additional registration setting. It is a flowchart of a face registration process. It is various display examples in face registration processing.

  Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows an external view of a digital camera as an example of an imaging apparatus of the present invention. The display unit 28 is a display unit that displays images and various types of information. The shutter button 61 is a shutter operation unit for issuing a shooting instruction. The mode dial 60 is an operation unit for switching various modes. The connector 112 is a connector between the connection cable and the digital camera 100. The operation unit 70 is an operation unit including operation members such as various switches and buttons for receiving various operations from the user. The controller wheel 73 is a rotatable operation member included in the operation unit 70. The power switch 72 is a power switch and switches between power on and power off. The recording medium 200 is a removable recording medium such as a memory card or a hard disk. The recording medium slot 201 is a slot for storing the recording medium 200. The recording medium 200 stored (attached) in the recording medium slot 201 can communicate with the digital camera 100. A lid 202 is a lid of the recording medium slot 201.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the digital camera 100 according to the present embodiment.

  In FIG. 2, a photographing lens 103 is a lens group including a zoom lens and a focus lens. The shutter 101 is a shutter having an aperture function. The imaging unit 22 is an imaging device configured with a CCD, a CMOS device, or the like that converts an optical image into an electrical signal. The A / D converter 23 converts an analog signal into a digital signal. The A / D converter 23 is used to convert an analog signal output from the imaging unit 22 into a digital signal. The barrier 102 covers the imaging system including the imaging lens 103 of the digital camera 100, thereby preventing the imaging system including the imaging lens 103, the shutter 101, and the imaging unit 22 from becoming dirty or damaged.

  The image processing unit 24 performs resizing processing such as predetermined pixel interpolation and reduction and color conversion processing on the data from the A / D converter 23 or the data from the memory control unit 15. The image processing unit 24 performs predetermined calculation processing using the captured image data, and the system control unit 50 performs exposure control and distance measurement control based on the obtained calculation result. Thereby, AF (autofocus) processing, AE (automatic exposure) processing, and EF (flash pre-emission) processing of the TTL (through-the-lens) method are performed. The image processing unit 24 further performs predetermined calculation processing using the captured image data, and also performs TTL AWB (auto white balance) processing based on the obtained calculation result.

  Output data from the A / D converter 23 is directly written into the memory 32 via the image processing unit 24 and the memory control unit 15 or via the memory control unit 15. The memory 32 is a temporary recording medium that stores image data obtained by the imaging unit 22 and converted into digital data by the A / D converter 23 and image data to be displayed on the display unit 28. The memory 32 has a storage capacity sufficient to store a predetermined number of still images, a moving image and sound for a predetermined time.

  The memory 32 also serves as an image display memory (video memory). The D / A converter 13 converts the image display data stored in the memory 32 into an analog signal and supplies the analog signal to the display unit 28. Thus, the display image data written in the memory 32 is displayed on the display unit 28 via the D / A converter 13. The display unit 28 performs display according to the analog signal from the D / A converter 13 on a display such as an LCD. A digital signal once A / D converted by the A / D converter 23 and stored in the memory 32 is converted into an analog signal by the D / A converter 13 and sequentially transferred to the display unit 28 for display as an electronic viewfinder. It functions and can display through images.

  The nonvolatile memory 56 is an electrically erasable / recordable memory, and for example, an EEPROM or the like is used. The nonvolatile memory 56 stores constants, programs, and the like for operating the system control unit 50. Here, the program is a program for executing various flowcharts described later in the present embodiment.

  The system control unit 50 controls the entire digital camera 100. By executing the program recorded in the non-volatile memory 56 described above, each process of the present embodiment to be described later is realized. A system memory 52 is a RAM. In the system memory 52, constants and variables for operation of the system control unit 50, programs read from the nonvolatile memory 56, and the like are expanded. The system control unit 50 also performs display control by controlling the memory 32, the D / A converter 13, the display unit 28, and the like.

  The system timer 53 is a time measuring unit that measures the time used for various controls and the time of a built-in clock.

  The mode switch 60, the first shutter switch 62, the second shutter switch 64, and the operation unit 70 are operation means for inputting various operation instructions to the system control unit 50.

  The mode switch 60 switches the operation mode of the system control unit 50 to any one of a still image recording mode, a moving image recording mode, a reproduction mode, and the like. Modes included in the still image recording mode include an auto shooting mode, an auto scene discrimination mode, a manual mode, various scene modes for shooting settings for each shooting scene, a program AE mode, a custom mode, and the like. The mode changeover switch 60 can directly switch to any of these modes included in the still image shooting mode. Alternatively, after switching to the still image shooting mode once with the mode switch 60, the mode may be switched to one of these modes included in the still image shooting mode using another operation member. Similarly, the moving image shooting mode may include a plurality of modes. The first shutter switch 62 is turned on when the shutter button 61 provided in the digital camera 100 is being operated, so-called half-press (shooting preparation instruction), and generates a first shutter switch signal SW1. In response to the first shutter switch signal SW1, operations such as AF (autofocus) processing, AE (automatic exposure) processing, AWB (auto white balance) processing, and EF (flash pre-emission) processing are started.

  The second shutter switch 64 is turned ON when the operation of the shutter button 61 is completed, that is, when it is fully pressed (shooting instruction), and generates a second shutter switch signal SW2. In response to the second shutter switch signal SW2, the system control unit 50 starts a series of shooting processing operations from reading a signal from the imaging unit 22 to writing image data on the recording medium 200.

  Each operation member of the operation unit 70 is appropriately assigned a function for each scene by selecting and operating various function icons displayed on the display unit 28, and functions as various function buttons. Examples of the function buttons include an end button, a return button, an image advance button, a jump button, a narrowing button, and an attribute change button. For example, when a menu button is pressed, various setting menu screens are displayed on the display unit 28. The user can make various settings intuitively using the menu screen displayed on the display unit 28, and the four-way button and the SET button.

  The controller wheel 73 is a rotatable operation member included in the operation unit 70, and is used when a selection item is instructed together with a direction button.

  The power control unit 80 includes a battery detection circuit, a DC-DC converter, a switch circuit that switches a block to be energized, and the like, and detects whether or not a battery is installed, the type of battery, and the remaining battery level. Further, the power control unit 80 controls the DC-DC converter based on the detection result and an instruction from the system control unit 50, and supplies a necessary voltage to each unit including the recording medium 200 for a necessary period.

  The power supply unit 30 includes 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 recording medium I / F 18 is an interface with the recording medium 200 such as a memory card or a hard disk. The recording medium 200 is a recording medium such as a memory card for recording a captured image, and includes a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, or the like.

  In the digital camera 100 described above, it is possible to perform photographing using central one-point AF or face AF. Central one-point AF is to perform AF on one central position in the shooting screen. Face AF is to perform AF on the face in the shooting screen detected by the face detection function.

  The face detection function will be described. The system control unit 50 sends the face detection target image data to the image processing unit 24. Under the control of the system control unit 50, the image processing unit 24 applies a horizontal bandpass filter to the image data. In addition, under the control of the system control unit 50, the image processing unit 24 applies a vertical bandpass filter to the processed image data. By these horizontal and vertical band pass filters, edge components are detected from the image data.

  Thereafter, the system control unit 50 performs pattern matching on the detected edge components, and extracts a candidate group of eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. Then, the system control unit 50 determines an eye pair that satisfies a preset condition (for example, distance between two eyes, inclination, etc.) from the extracted eye candidate group. Narrow down the candidate group of only those with. Then, the system control unit 50 associates the narrowed-down eye candidate group with other parts (nose, mouth, ears) that form the corresponding face, and passes a preset non-face condition filter. , Detect the face. The system control unit 50 outputs the face information according to the face detection result, and ends the process. At this time, feature quantities such as the number of faces are stored in the system memory 52.

  As described above, it is possible to analyze the image data displayed or reproduced and display the live view, extract the feature amount of the image data, and detect the subject information. In this embodiment, face information is taken as an example of subject information. However, subject information includes various information such as red-eye determination, eye detection, eye-brow detection, and smile detection.

  Note that the face AE, the face FE, and the face WB can be performed simultaneously with the face AF. The face AE is to optimize the exposure of the entire screen according to the brightness of the detected face. The face FE is to perform flash dimming around the detected face. The face WB is to optimize the WB of the entire screen according to the detected face color.

  Further, by comparing the detected face with the feature data for personal recognition stored in the nonvolatile memory 56, it is identified (personal authentication) whether or not the detected face is a personal face registered in advance. Is possible. By using personal authentication, the above-described face AF, face AE, face FE, face WB, etc. can be performed by giving priority to the registered individual face among a plurality of faces detected from the through image. When a registered individual face is detected, the name of the person who is personally authenticated can be displayed superimposed on the through image. Data recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 for personal authentication will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 3 shows the data structure of a face information database (face dictionary) for personal authentication registered in the built-in memory (nonvolatile memory 56) of the digital camera 100. Person IDs 1 to x (x is the maximum number of people that can be registered, which is 12 in this embodiment) are assigned to the highest hierarchy of data. The hierarchy under each ID stores profiles (name and birthday in this embodiment), the number of face information registered in the same person ID, and each face information (face image and face image feature data). ing. The name is an area for storing the name of a registered person, and stores an ASCII code character string. When a person is registered, at least one piece of face information about the person is stored, and in this embodiment, up to five pieces of face information can be registered (recorded) for the same person. When performing personal authentication, the system control unit 50 collates the face image acquired by imaging with the feature data of each face information registered in the nonvolatile memory 56 one by one. It is determined whether or not it is a registered person. At this time, a plurality of feature data with variations are recorded for the same person, such as feature data taken in a dark place, feature data taken obliquely, feature data taken from the front, etc. If so, personal authentication can be accurately performed in various situations.

[Overall flow]
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an overall flow from the start to the end of the digital camera 100. This process is realized by developing a program recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 in the system memory 52 and executing it by the system control unit 50.

  When the digital camera 100 is activated, the process first proceeds to S401. In S401, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not the current operation mode is the shooting mode. This determination is made based on the position of the mode switch 60, the current operation mode recorded in the system memory 52, and the like. If it is determined that the current operation mode is the shooting mode, the process proceeds to S402, and shooting mode processing is performed. Details of the shooting mode processing will be described later with reference to FIG. If it is determined that the shooting mode is not selected, the process proceeds to S403.

  In S403, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not the current operation mode is the playback mode. If it is determined that the playback mode is selected, the process proceeds to S404, and if not, the process proceeds to S405. In S404, the system control unit 50 performs a playback mode process. In the reproduction mode process, the captured image recorded on the recording medium 200 is reproduced and displayed. Also included are enlargement playback display, image erasing processing, and the like.

  In S405, the system control unit 50 performs other processing. Other processing includes processing in a clock display mode in which only the current time is displayed.

  In S406, the system control unit 50 determines whether there is an end event. End events include the following: An operation to turn off the power, an operation to open the battery cover 202, and an automatic power off to automatically turn off the power when there is no operation for a predetermined time. If there is no end event, the process returns to S401 to continue the process, and if there is an end event, a shutdown process is performed to end the process.

[Shooting mode processing]
FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of the shooting mode process in S402 of FIG. This process is realized by the system control unit 50 expanding and executing the program recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 in the system memory 52.

  In S501, the system control unit 50 performs shooting standby state processing. More specifically, the imaging unit 22 captures a through image and displays the through image on the display unit 28 in real time. Details of capturing a through image are as described above. In addition, various setting states and photographing conditions are displayed on the display unit 28. Further, face detection processing is performed using the captured through image.

  In step S502, if a face is detected as a result of the face detection, the system control unit 50 checks the person's feature data recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 to determine whether the face is a registered person's face. Perform personal authentication to identify When the face of a registered person can be identified, the registered face is displayed in an overlapping manner on the through image. If personal authentication is set to OFF on the personal authentication setting menu screen described later, the process of this step is not performed.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of a through image display when the registered face is identified and displayed as a result of the process of S502. On the display unit 28, a captured through image 601 is displayed. In this example, it is assumed that the faces of three persons are included in the through image, which are registered faces, and personal authentication has been performed. The names 602 to 604 registered for the persons of each face are displayed slightly below the respective positions where the authenticated face is detected. Further, face frames 605 to 607 are displayed for the respective positions where the authenticated face is detected. In this example, since the face indicated by the face frame 605 and the name 602 is determined as the main face (the subject to which the shooting conditions should be matched), the face frame 605 is displayed in white so as to be distinguished from the other face frames 606 and 607. Yes. Also, the main face name 602 is displayed superimposed on the other face names 603 and 604. The setting information 608 indicates the current setting status of the digital camera 100, shooting conditions, and the like. From left to right, an icon indicating the remaining battery capacity, an icon indicating the set compression rate and image size, the remaining number of shootable images, It is the image size of the movie and the remaining recordable time of the movie. The shooting mode icon 609 is an icon indicating the current shooting mode. Indicates that the currently set shooting mode is the auto mode among the multiple shooting modes such as manual mode, auto mode, and scene modes (portrait mode, landscape mode, etc.) that are suitable for the shooting scene. ing.

  In step S503, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not an operation for opening a screen (personal authentication setting screen) for performing settings related to personal authentication has been performed. The personal authentication setting screen can be opened by selecting a menu item for personal authentication setting from the menu opened by pressing the menu button included in the operation unit 70 in the shooting standby state and pressing the SET button. . If it is determined that an operation for opening the personal authentication setting screen has been performed, the process proceeds to S504, and if not, the process proceeds to S505. In S504, personal authentication setting processing is performed. Details of the personal authentication setting process will be described later with reference to FIG.

  In step S505, the system control unit 50 determines whether the shutter button 61 is half-pressed and SW1 is turned on. If SW1 is turned on, the process proceeds to S506, and if SW1 is not turned on, the process proceeds to S512.

  In step S <b> 506, the system control unit 50 determines whether a face (registered face) of a person registered in the nonvolatile memory 56 is detected from the through image (whether personal authentication is performed). If a registered face is detected, the process proceeds to S507, and if not, the process proceeds to S508.

  In step S <b> 507, the system control unit 50 performs shooting preparation processing according to the detected registered face (face with personal authentication). The shooting preparation process includes AF, AE, AWB, and the like. When one registered face is detected, shooting preparation processing is performed according to that face, and when a plurality of registered faces are detected, shooting preparation processing is performed based on a priority set in advance for the registered face. (For example, shooting preparation processing is performed in accordance with the registered face with the highest priority).

  In S508, since the registered face is not detected, the system control unit 50 performs shooting preparation processing under other conditions. In other conditions, for example, face-priority AF processing that focuses on a detected face (even if it is not a registered face), central one-point AF that focuses on one central point, and the camera automatically depends on the shooting situation And AiAF for selecting an AF frame and focusing.

  In step S509, the system control unit 50 determines whether SW1 is continuously ON (whether the shutter button 61 is half-pressed). If SW1 is not ON, the result of the shooting preparation processing combined in S507 or S508 is canceled and the process proceeds to S513. If SW1 is continuously ON, the process proceeds to S510.

  In S510, the system control unit 50 determines whether SW2 is turned on (whether the shutter button 61 is fully pressed). If SW2 is not ON, the process returns to S509, and if SW2 is ON, the process proceeds to S511.

  In step S511, the system control unit 50 performs a series of shooting processes from reading a signal from the imaging unit 22 to writing the image data as an image file on the recording medium 200 (referred to as main shooting to distinguish it from shooting through images). .

  In step S513, the system control unit 50 determines whether an event that ends the shooting mode process has occurred. The event for ending the shooting mode process includes an operation for shifting to another operation mode such as the playback mode process in addition to the above-described operation for turning off the power, opening the battery cover 202, and auto power off. If it is determined that there is no end event, the process returns to S501 to continue the shooting standby state, and if there is an end event, the shooting mode process ends.

[Personal authentication setting process]
FIG. 7 shows a flowchart of the personal authentication setting process described in S504 of FIG. This process is realized by the system control unit 50 expanding and executing the program recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 in the system memory 52.

  In step S <b> 701, the system control unit 50 displays a personal authentication setting menu screen on the display unit 28.

  FIG. 9A shows a display example of the personal authentication setting menu screen. The personal authentication setting menu screen includes four menu items, menu items 901 to 904. A menu item 901 is a menu item for setting on / off of personal authentication. When turned on, personal authentication is performed in the shooting standby state to display the name and the like, and if a registered face is detected, it is registered as described above in step S507 in the shooting preparation process at the time of actual shooting. Perform shooting preparations according to the face. By turning off, personal authentication is not performed, and it is possible to prevent the name display in the shooting standby state and the shooting preparation process according to the registered face in S507. A menu item 902 is a menu item for registering face information in the nonvolatile memory 56. A menu item 903 is a menu item for confirming and editing face information and profile registered (recorded) in the nonvolatile memory 56. A menu item 904 is a menu item for erasing (deleting by ID) information on face dictionaries registered (recorded) in the nonvolatile memory 56 collectively for each person. The selected menu item can be processed by operating the up / down buttons and the controller wheel 73 included in the operation unit 70 to bring the cursor 906 to an arbitrary menu item and pressing the SET button. The return icon 905 is an icon indicating that the screen can be returned to the previous screen (up one menu level) by pressing a menu button included in the operation unit 70.

  In step S <b> 701, the system control unit 50 determines whether a personal authentication on / off operation has been performed. The personal authentication on / off operation can be performed by moving the cursor to the menu item 901 (“personal authentication on / off”) and pressing the SET button, or by operating the left and right keys. If it is determined that the personal authentication on / off operation has been performed, the process advances to step S703; otherwise, the process advances to step S704.

  In step S <b> 703, the system control unit 50 sets personal authentication on / off according to a user operation, and records the set information in the nonvolatile memory 56.

  In step S <b> 704, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not a determination operation (an operation to move the cursor and press the SET button) has been performed on the menu item 902 (“register”). If it is determined in the menu item 902 that the determination operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S705, and if not, the process proceeds to S706. In step S705, the system control unit 50 performs face registration mode processing. Details of the face registration mode processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

  In step S <b> 706, the system control unit 50 determines whether a determination operation has been performed on the menu item 903 (“information confirmation / edit”). If it is determined in the menu item 903 that the determination operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S707, and if not, the process proceeds to S708. In step S <b> 707, the system control unit 50 acquires face information and profile registered (recorded) in the nonvolatile memory 56 in accordance with a user operation, and displays them on the display unit 28. Further, the face information and profile registered (recorded) in the nonvolatile memory 56 are edited and updated in accordance with a user operation. Here, by deleting the registered face information and photographing the face of the person again, the face information registered for the person can be replaced with new face information.

  In step S <b> 708, the system control unit 50 determines whether a determination operation has been performed on the menu item 904 (“delete”). If it is determined in the menu item 904 that the determination operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S709, and if not, the process proceeds to S710. In step S <b> 709, the system control unit 50 displays a list of registered persons, causes the user to select a person to be deleted, and deletes registration information related to the selected person from the nonvolatile memory 56 in a batch. As a result, one ID described with reference to FIG.

  In step S <b> 710, the system control unit 50 determines whether a button to which a return function is assigned (hereinafter referred to as a return button, which is a menu button in the present embodiment) has been pressed. If the return button has not been pressed, the process returns to S702 and the process is repeated. If the return button has been pressed, the personal authentication setting process is terminated and the process proceeds to S505 in FIG.

  In the state where the personal authentication setting menu screen of FIG. 9A is displayed, if the selection operation is not performed with any option and the shutter button 61 is pressed halfway and the SW1 is turned on, the switch shown in FIG. The process proceeds to S501 and enters a shooting standby state in a normal shooting mode.

[Face registration mode processing]
FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of the face registration mode process described in S705 of FIG. This process is realized by the system control unit 50 expanding and executing the program recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 in the system memory 52.

  In step S <b> 801, the system control unit 50 displays a registration menu on the display unit 28.

  FIG. 9B shows a display example of the registration menu. The registration menu includes menu items 911 (“register new person information”) and menu items 912 (“additional registration of face information”). The determination operation can be performed by moving the cursor 915 and pressing the SET button in a state where any menu item is selected. A return icon 913 is an icon indicating that the screen can be returned to the previous screen (up one menu level) by pressing a menu button included in the operation unit 70. The registered number of people 914 indicates the upper limit of the number of people that can be registered in the nonvolatile memory 56 as a person to be personally authenticated, and the number of people currently registered. In the illustrated example, eight people are currently registered, and it is displayed that a maximum of 12 people can be registered. If the registered number of people has reached the upper limit of the number of people that can be registered, new person information cannot be registered, so the menu item 911 is grayed out and the determination operation on the menu item 911 is not accepted.

  In step S <b> 802, the system control unit 50 determines whether a determination operation has been performed on the menu item 911 (“register new person information”). If the determination operation is performed in the menu item 911, the process proceeds to S803, and if not, the process proceeds to S805. Note that if the number of registered persons reaches the upper limit of 12, the determination operation in the menu item 911 is not accepted, and therefore the determination in S802 is not performed.

  In step S803, the system control unit 50 sets a new ID as the ID described in FIG. 3 and sets it as the registration destination so that the registration destination of the face information to be captured and acquired is a new person (system memory). 52).

  In step S804, the system control unit 50 performs face registration processing. The face registration process will be described later with reference to FIG.

  In step S <b> 805, the system control unit 50 determines whether a determination operation has been performed on the menu item 912 (“additional registration of face information”). If the determination operation is performed in the menu item 912, the process proceeds to S806, and if not, the process proceeds to S808.

  In step S806, the system control unit 50 performs additional registration settings. The additional registration setting will be described later with reference to FIG.

  In step S807, the system control unit 50 performs face registration processing. The face registration process is the same as S804, and will be described later with reference to FIG.

  In step S808, the system control unit 50 determines whether the return button has been pressed. If the return button has not been pressed, the process returns to S802 to repeat the process. If it is determined that the return button has been pressed, the face registration mode process is terminated, the personal authentication setting menu is displayed, and the process proceeds to S706 in FIG. .

  In the state where the registration menu of FIG. 9B is displayed, if the decision is not made by any of the options and the shutter button 61 is pressed halfway and SW1 is turned on, the process proceeds to S501 of FIG. The camera enters the shooting standby state in the normal shooting mode.

[Additional registration settings]
FIG. 10 shows a flowchart of the additional registration setting described in S806 of FIG. This process is realized by the system control unit 50 expanding and executing the program recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 in the system memory 52.

  In step S <b> 1001, the system control unit 50 displays a person selection list for selecting a person whose face information is to be additionally registered on the display unit 28.

  FIG. 11A shows a display example of the person selection list. In the person selection list, as shown in the figure, each person's face image (recorded in any face information of each person) recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 and a name are displayed in association with each other. The The user operates the direction buttons (up / down / left / right keys) included in the operation unit 70 or the controller wheel 73 to move the cursor to an arbitrary person, and presses the SET button (decision operation) to additionally register face information. You can select the person you want to do.

  In step S <b> 1002, the system control unit 50 determines whether any person has been selected (a determination operation has been performed) from the displayed person selection list. If a person has been selected, the process proceeds to S1004, and if not, the process proceeds to S1003.

  In S1003, the system control unit 50 determines whether the return button has been pressed. If the return button has not been pressed, the process returns to S1002 to wait for a person selection operation. If it is determined that the return button has been pressed, the additional registration setting process ends, and S801 in FIG. 8 (face registration mode process) Proceed to

  In S1004, the system control unit 50 refers to the non-volatile memory 56 and determines whether five pieces of face information (upper face information) have already been registered for the person selected in S1002. If five pieces of face information are not registered, the face information can be additionally registered. Therefore, the process proceeds to S1005, and the ID of the person selected in S1002 is set as a registration destination of face information to be taken and acquired from now on. (Stored in the system memory 52). On the other hand, if the five pieces of face information have already been registered, the face information cannot be registered unless the face information is replaced with one of the registered face information, and the process advances to step S1006.

  In step S <b> 1006, the system control unit 50 displays a face information replacement guide on the display unit 28. FIG. 11B shows a display example of the face information replacement guide. In the face information replacement guide, a display indicating that the upper limit number of face information has already been registered for the selected person and a display asking whether to replace the registered face information are displayed.

  In step S <b> 1007, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not face information replacement is instructed on the display screen of the face information replacement guide (whether or not a determination operation is performed with “OK” in FIG. 11B). . When the replacement of face information is instructed (when the determination operation is “OK” in FIG. 11B), the process proceeds to S1008. On the other hand, when the replacement of face information is not instructed (when the determination operation is performed with “Cancel” in FIG. 11B), the process proceeds to S1001 to accept selection of another person.

  In S1008, the system control unit 50 refers to the face information of the person selected in S1002, and displays the registered face information list on the display unit 28 as a selection screen for selecting face information to be replaced with new face information. . FIG. 11C shows a display example of a registered face information list. In the registered face information list, face images registered as face information of the person selected in S1002 are displayed as a list. In this scene, since the upper limit of face information that can be registered by one person has been reached, five face images are displayed (upper limit). The user operates the direction button (up / down / left / right key) included in the operation unit 70 or the controller wheel 73 to move the cursor 1101 to an arbitrary face image, and presses the SET button (decision operation) to change the face to be replaced. Information can be selected. In this registered face information list, it is preferable to initially display the cursor 1101 for the face image with the oldest registered date and time. In this case, the registration date and time is also recorded in association with each face information. Alternatively, each time face information is newly registered, a new ID is assigned to the face information so that the oldest face information can be identified from the oldest ID. In this way, the user can select the oldest face information as a replacement target without moving the cursor. In the real world, even if the face of a person is the same, the face changes with the passage of time (that is, with age). Therefore, the old face information is less reliable as face information for authenticating the face of the current person who is going to take an image with the camera, and it is expected to improve the accuracy of personal authentication by replacing the old face information with new face information. it can. In view of this, the face information on which the cursor 1101 is initially displayed is the oldest face information so that the old face information can be easily replaced, and the frequency of face replacement leading to the improvement of the reliability of personal authentication is increased. .

  In step S1009, the system control unit 50 determines whether any face information is selected from the displayed registered face information list (decision operation is performed). If face information is selected, the process proceeds to S1011. Otherwise, the process proceeds to S1010.

  In step S1010, the system control unit 50 determines whether the return button has been pressed. When the return button is pressed (that is, when the replacement of face information that has reached the upper limit is canceled), the process proceeds to S1001, and a person selection list is displayed so that another person can be selected. If the return button has not been pressed, the process returns to S1009 to accept selection of face information to be replaced.

  In S1011, the system control unit 50 sets the ID of the person selected in S1002 as the person ID of the registration destination of face information to be captured and acquired (stored in the system memory 52).

  In step S1012, the system control unit 50 sets the face information to be captured and acquired from now on as a registration (overwrite registration) by replacing the face information selected in step S1009 (stored in the system memory 52).

  When the processes of S1005 and S1012 are completed, the additional registration setting process is terminated, and the process proceeds to the face registration process of FIG.

  If the shutter button 61 is pressed halfway and SW1 is turned on before finishing the additional registration setting process of FIG. 10 (before finishing the process of S1005 or S1012), the process proceeds to S501 of FIG. The camera enters the shooting standby state in the normal shooting mode.

  As described above, in the additional registration setting of the present embodiment, when there is an operation for further registering face information for a person whose number of registered face information has reached the upper limit (Yes in S1004), a registration operation is performed. Is not accepted, but prompts to replace the registered face information. In other words, the old face information is more reliably displayed without the operation of explicitly deleting the old face information (for example, the operation of deleting the face information by performing the determination operation in the menu item 903 on the personal authentication setting menu screen). Can be replaced with new face information. Therefore, the face dictionary can be set in a state where personal authentication with higher accuracy can be performed.

[Face registration process]
FIG. 12 shows a flowchart of the face registration process described above in S804 and S807 of FIG. This process is realized by the system control unit 50 expanding and executing the program recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 in the system memory 52.

  In step S <b> 1201, the system control unit 50 captures a through image with the imaging unit 22 and displays a registration screen using the through image on the display unit 28. This state is referred to as a registration standby state. FIG. 13A shows a display example of a registration screen in the registration standby state. A through image 1301 is displayed on the display unit 28. A face registration frame 1302 is displayed at the center of the screen, and the outside of the face registration frame 1302 in the through image 1301 is darkly displayed. A display item 1303 is a display item indicating a registration screen in the registration standby state. In the registration standby state, the user can register the face information of a desired face by framing the face to be registered within the face registration frame 1302 and pressing the shutter button 61 fully.

  In step S <b> 1202, the system control unit 50 performs face detection processing, and determines whether or not a face is detected in an inner portion of the face registration frame 1302 in the captured through image. If it is determined that a face has been detected inside the face registration frame 1302, the process proceeds to S1203, and if not, the process proceeds to S1204.

  In step S <b> 1203, the system control unit 50 performs display indicating that a face exists in the face registration frame 1302. Specifically, the face registration frame 1302 is changed from gray to white. By viewing this color change, the user can identify whether or not the face can be registered when the shutter button 61 is fully pressed at this time.

  In step S1204, the system control unit 50 determines whether SW1 is turned on. If SW1 is turned on, the process proceeds to S1208. Otherwise, the process proceeds to S1205.

  In step S1205, the system control unit 50 determines whether the return button has been pressed. If it is determined that the return button has been pressed, the process advances to step S1206. If not, the process returns to step S1202 to continue the face registration process.

  In step S1206, a message for confirming whether or not to cancel the face registration process is displayed on the display unit 28. Specifically, a message “Do you want to cancel?” And “Yes” / “No” options are displayed. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a situation where the face registration process is inadvertently interrupted due to an operation mistake or the like, and the face registration mode process in FIG.

  In S1207, the system control unit 50 determines whether “Yes” is selected (decision operation) or “No” is selected from the options displayed in S1206. If “No” is selected, the process returns to S1201 to display the registration screen again, and the face registration process is continued. If “Yes” is selected, the face registration process is terminated, and the process proceeds to S801 in FIG.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in S1204 that SW1 is turned on, in S1208, the system control unit 50 performs display when SW1 is turned on. Specifically, items other than the display item 1303 (character string “registration”), guidance (character string “please shoot with face in frame”), face registration frame 1302, and through image are not displayed. . That is, the return icon or the like is not displayed. If a face is detected inside the face registration frame 1302, the color of the face registration frame 1302 is green.

  In step S1209, the system control unit 50 determines whether SW2 is turned on. If it is determined that SW2 is turned on, the process proceeds to S1211. Otherwise, the process proceeds to S1210.

  In step S1210, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not the SW1 is in an on state (whether the shutter button 61 is half-pressed). If it is determined that the ON state of SW1 continues, the process returns to S1209 to wait for the SW2 signal, and if not, the process proceeds to S1205.

  When SW2 is turned on, in S1211, the system control unit 50 captures an image with a higher resolution than the through image by the imaging unit 22, and acquires the captured image in the memory 32. In the acquired image, face detection is performed within a range corresponding to the face registration frame 1302. At the time of face detection, the feature amount of the face is extracted. When a face is detected, the feature amount extracted from the detected face is recorded in the system memory 52 as feature data.

  In step S <b> 1212, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not a face satisfying the registration criteria can be detected within a range corresponding to the inside of the face registration frame 1302 among the images captured in step S <b> 1211. A face that satisfies the registration criteria is a face that is larger than a specific size with respect to the size of the face registration frame 1302 and is in focus. Even if a face corresponding to the inside of the face registration frame 1302 is detected, if the face is smaller than a specific size or not in focus, it is determined that a face that satisfies the registration criteria has not been detected, Face information is not registered. If it is determined that a face satisfying the registration criterion is not detected inside the face registration frame 1302, the process proceeds to S1213. If a face satisfying the registration criterion is detected inside the face registration frame 1302, the process proceeds to S1214.

  In step S <b> 1213, the system control unit 50 displays a message indicating that face information could not be registered on the display unit 28 for a predetermined time (about several seconds). Specifically, a character string “registration failed, please shoot again” is displayed for a predetermined time, and then the process returns to S1201 to display the registration screen again.

  In step S1214, the system control unit 50 displays a registration confirmation screen for inquiring the user whether to register face information from the image captured in accordance with the SW2 signal in step S1209 and held in the memory 32. To display. A display example of the registration confirmation screen is shown in FIG. On the registration confirmation screen, a face image 1311 obtained by cutting out a range based on the face detected inside the face registration frame 1302 is displayed. When registering face information, the face image 1311 and feature data extracted from the face and recorded in the system memory 52 are registered. That is, the face image to be displayed on the registered face information list in FIG. 11C or the registered face information confirmation screen displayed in S707 in FIG. When the registration of face information is not registration of a new person but additional registration as face information of a registered person, the name 1312 of the registered person is also displayed. The name is not displayed when registering a new person. The registration confirmation screen displays a face image 1311 and options (“cancel” and “OK”) as to whether or not to register face information obtained from the face image 1311.

  In step S1215, the system control unit 50 determines whether SW1 is turned on. When SW1 is turned on, the image captured in S1211 temporarily stored in the memory 32 and the feature data recorded in the system memory are discarded, and the process returns to S1201 to display the registration screen again. Otherwise, the process proceeds to S1216. When SW1 is turned on in other operation states such as the playback mode and the menu display state, the photographing standby state in the photographing mode (the state of S501 in FIG. 5) is entered, but here the face is not returned to the photographing standby state. It returns to the information registration screen. This is because this timing is after the acquisition of the image including the face to be registered in S1211 and before the registration in S1223 described later. The intention of the user who turned on SW1 at this timing (half-pressing the shutter button 61) can be assumed not to perform the main shooting but to acquire the face information again. For users who want to redo the acquisition of face information, if they return to the shooting standby state of the shooting mode by half-pressing the shutter button 61, the above-described personal authentication setting process, face registration mode process, additional registration setting, etc. are performed again. Must be done and cumbersome. In contrast, if the registration button is returned to the registration standby state in the face registration process by half-pressing the shutter button 61, the face registration is performed while maintaining the results of the personal authentication setting process, the face registration mode process, and the additional registration setting performed so far. Since the processing can be performed, the number of operations is reduced and the usability of the photographer is improved. If the user wants to re-acquire facial information by pressing the shutter button 61 halfway at the timing of S1215, the finger that has fully pressed the shutter button 61 in S1209 is half-pressed again without moving from the shutter button 61 and waits for registration. Return to the state. When the image including the face to be registered is acquired again, framing is performed without releasing the finger from the shutter button 61, the face of the person to be registered is placed in the face registration frame 1302, and the shutter button 61 is fully pressed. . As described above, only by operating the shutter button 61, the user can cancel the registration after viewing the face image 1311 on the registration confirmation screen, return to the registration standby state, and acquire the face image again.

  In S1216, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not registration is instructed on the registration confirmation screen, that is, whether “cancel” is selected (execution operation) or “OK” is selected (execution operation) on the registration confirmation screen. Determine. If it is determined that registration is instructed ("OK" is selected), the process proceeds to S1217. If "Cancel" is selected, the process returns to S1201 to display the registration screen again.

  In step S <b> 1217, the system control unit 50 refers to face information registration destination information temporarily stored in the system memory 52 and determines whether or not the person is a new person (new person registration). If it is a new person, the process proceeds to S1218, and if not, the process proceeds to S1223.

  In S1218, the system control unit 50 displays the profile input screen shown in FIG. 13C on the display unit 28, and prompts the user to input the profile (name, birthday) of the person whose face information is to be registered.

  In step S <b> 1219, the system control unit 50 receives a profile input from the user using the operation unit 70. The input profile information is temporarily stored in the system memory 52.

  In step S1220, the system control unit 50 determines whether SW1 is turned on. When SW1 is turned on, the image captured in S1211 temporarily stored in the memory 32 and the profile and feature data in the middle of input temporarily stored in the system memory 52 are discarded, and the process returns to S1201 again. Display the registration screen. When SW1 is turned on in other operation states such as the playback mode and the menu display state, the photographing standby state in the photographing mode (the state of S501 in FIG. 5) is entered, but here the face is not returned to the photographing standby state. It returns to the information registration screen. Similar to the determination in S1215, the intention of the user who turned on SW1 at this timing (half-pressing the shutter button 61) is not to perform the main shooting but to register the face information again. Based on the assumption of deafness.

  In S1221, the system control unit 50 determines whether the return button has been pressed. If it is determined that the return button has been pressed, the process returns to S1214 to display a registration confirmation screen. If not, the process proceeds to S1222.

  In step S1222, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not a determination operation (an operation to move the cursor and press the SET button) is performed with the save button displayed on the profile input screen. If it is determined that the determination operation has been performed using the save button, the process proceeds to step S1223. If not, the process returns to step S1219, and profile input is continuously received.

  In S1223, among the images captured in S1211 temporarily stored in the memory 32, a face image 1311 obtained by cutting out a range based on the face detected inside the face registration frame 1302, and a face extracted from the face. The feature data is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56 as face information. The registration destination ID is the registration destination stored in the system memory 52 in steps S803, S1005, and S1011 described above. If the face information replacement target is set in S1012, the face information to be replaced stored in S1012 is replaced (replaced) and recorded. In addition, the profile input in S1219 and temporarily stored in the system memory 52 is recorded in the nonvolatile memory 56. Thus, when the face information is registered, the image captured in S1211 temporarily stored in the memory 32 and the facial feature data and profile temporarily stored in the system memory 52 are discarded.

  In step S1224, the system control unit 50 displays a registration completion display indicating that face information has been registered on the display unit 28 for a predetermined time (about several seconds). FIG. 13D shows a display example of a registration completion display. If SW1 is turned on while this screen is displayed, the process proceeds to the shooting standby state (S501 in FIG. 5) in the shooting mode instead of S1201 of the face registration process. This is because the registration of at least one face information has already been completed in S1223, and therefore it can be assumed that the intention of the user who pressed the shutter button 61 halfway is not the re-execution of the face registration process. Rather, it can be assumed that this operation is performed when normal shooting is desired immediately after the registration of the face information, and in this case, an effect is obtained that the mode can be quickly shifted to a shooting standby state for normal shooting.

  In step S1225, the system control unit 50 determines whether or not the face information registered for the person whose ID has registered the face information this time is less than the upper limit of five. If it is determined that the number is less than 5, the process proceeds to S1226, and if not, the process proceeds to S1229.

  In S1226, the face information that can be registered for the person whose ID has registered face information this time has not yet reached the upper limit, and the system control unit 50 displays an additional registration guide on the display unit 28. A display example of the additional registration guide is shown in FIG. In the additional registration guide, a message asking whether or not to register additional face information of the same person, and a message that the registration accuracy is improved by changing the face orientation and facial expression, prompting the user to perform additional registration . Also, “Yes” / “No” options are displayed. In this way, if the face information that can be registered does not reach the upper limit, the user is prompted to register more faces with different face orientations and facial expressions. Improve accuracy.

  In S1227, the system control unit 50 determines whether SW1 is turned on. If SW1 is turned on, the process proceeds to S501 in FIG. 5 which is a shooting standby state in the normal shooting mode, and otherwise, the process proceeds to S1228. The reason why SW1 is turned on at this timing to return to the shooting standby state is the same as the reason described above in S1224, because at least one face information has already been registered in S1223.

  In step S <b> 1228, the system control unit 50 determines whether additional registration is instructed in the additional registration guide display (that is, whether a determination operation is performed with the option “Yes”). If additional registration is instructed (decision operation is performed with “Yes”), the process proceeds to S1201, a registration screen is displayed, and further registration of face information is accepted. In this case, the face information registration destination information recorded in the system memory 52 is retained, and the face information to be registered thereafter is registered as face information for the same person as the person registered in S1223. If additional registration has not been instructed (the determination operation has been made with “No”), the process proceeds to S1229.

  In S1229, the system control unit 50 displays a registration end guide (registration end screen). A display example of the registration end guide is shown in FIG. In this way, by performing display that prompts the user to update the face information periodically, the update of the face information is promoted and the accuracy of personal authentication is improved. Even when SW1 is turned on during display of this screen, the process proceeds to the shooting standby state (S501 in FIG. 5) in the shooting mode instead of S1201 of the face registration process. The reason why SW1 is turned on at this timing to return to the shooting standby state is the same as the reason described above in S1224, because at least one face information has already been registered in S1223.

  In S1230, it is determined whether or not a determination operation has been performed with the “OK” button displayed in the registration end guide. When the determination operation is not performed with the “OK” button, it waits for the determination operation with the “OK” button. If a determination operation is performed with the “OK” button, the ID of the registration destination person temporarily stored in the system memory 52 is discarded, the face registration process is terminated, and step S801 of the face registration mode process described with reference to FIG. Then, the registration menu is displayed on the display unit 28.

  In the face registration processing of the present embodiment described above, the face is registered in S1226 every time face information is registered until the number of face information registered for the same person reaches the upper limit (less than a predetermined number). You are prompted to register additional information. Therefore, even a user unfamiliar with the operation can smoothly register a plurality of pieces of face information for the same subject in a series of registration operations. As a result, the authentication accuracy can be improved as compared with the case where only one or less face information is registered for the same subject.

  Further, in the face registration process according to the present embodiment, control is performed so as to shift to a registration standby state when the shutter button 61 is half-pressed after acquisition of an image including a face to be registered in S1211 and before registration in S1223. To do. Thereby, when it is desired to redo acquisition of an image including a face to be registered, acquisition can be quickly redone. On the other hand, when the shutter button 61 is half-pressed after registration in S1223, control is performed so as to shift to a shooting standby state. Thereby, after the registration of the face information is completed, the next image can be taken promptly.

  Note that, in S1006 of FIG. 10, the example in which the cursor 1101 is initially displayed (initially selected) for the face image registered the oldest in the registered face information list has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and face information whose feature data is similar to other face information may be initially selected from a plurality of registered face information. For example, in the example of FIG. 11C, among the face information registered for the same person ID, both the face image 1102 and the face image 1103 are images taken with a bright background, front, and smile. The feature data is similar. Even if two pieces of face information whose feature data are similar to each other are registered, there is little contribution to improving the accuracy of personal authentication. Therefore, the face information similar to each other (face information of the face image 1102 and face information of the face image 1103). ) Is initially selected and displayed. By doing so, it is possible to promote the replacement of face information similar to other face information selected at the initial stage, and to give variations to the registered face information, thereby improving the accuracy of personal authentication. It is even better to initially select older face information from a plurality of similar face information.

  Further, in the profile input acceptance state of S1219 in FIG. 12, the power saving mode (display off) is entered when there is no operation from the user for a predetermined time, and when there is a return operation thereafter, the process may proceed to S1201. This is because once the screen becomes dark, it is easy for the user to know which state it was in before the display was turned off when it returned again.

  Furthermore, in S1225 of FIG. 12, an example has been described in which the registered face information has reached the upper limit (when it is determined that it is not less than the predetermined number), the process proceeds to S1229 and the registration is terminated. It is not a thing. After a guide including a message different from the additional guide displayed in S1226 is displayed, if additional registration is instructed, the process may proceed to S1001 of additional registration setting in FIG. That is, in this case, the user is prompted to register (or replace) any registered face information with new face information. For example, the message displayed in the guide is “You have reached the upper limit, but are you sure you want to continue registration?” Or “You have reached the upper limit, but replaced with other registered face information. "Do you want to register?" This makes it possible to obtain characteristic face information that is different from the face information registered so far (for example, when only face information taken in a bright outdoor condition is registered and it happens to be dark) Etc.) can be prevented from being interrupted. As another message other than the additional guide displayed in S1226, a message that prompts the user to replace face information with a registered time or a message that is somewhat similar to registered feature data is displayed. It may be a message that prompts you to replace it. When these messages are displayed and additional registration is instructed (when face information replacement is instructed), the process proceeds to S1001 for additional registration setting in FIG. By doing in this way, the registered face information can be varied, and improvement in the accuracy of personal authentication can be expected.

  Even if the registered face information is less than the upper limit, if there is a sufficient variation for performing personal authentication in the feature data included in the registered face information, the additional registration guide in S1226 is displayed. It may not be possible. Specifically, after determining Yes in S1225, a step of determining whether or not there is similar feature data between the feature data of registered face information is added. The process proceeds to S1226, and if not, the process proceeds to S1229. By doing this, even if the number of registered face information has not reached the upper limit, if a feature data group that is easy to perform personal authentication has already been registered, no further registration is performed. In this way, the time required for registration can be saved.

  Also, an example has been described in which when SW1 is turned on in S1227 in FIG. 12, the process shifts to the shooting standby state in S501 in FIG. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and when SW1 is turned on in S1227, if the recording medium 200 is not loaded, the face registration process is continued instead of the shooting standby state (S501 in FIG. 5). Also good. In this case, the process proceeds to S1001 in the additional registration setting in FIG. 10 (when the registered face information has reached the upper limit) or proceeds to 1201 in FIG. 12 (when the registered face information has not reached the upper limit). To. When the recording medium 200 is not attached, since it is not possible to record the captured image on the recording medium 200 by performing the actual photographing, there is little user merit to transition to the photographing standby state, and it is more effective to continue the face registration process. This is because.

  Furthermore, when a registered face is detected in S502 of FIG. 5, following S502, whether or not the detected face information of the registered face is old (registered more than a predetermined time before the current date and time). If it is determined that there is an old one, update of face information may be prompted. In more detail, following S502, the update date and time recorded in association with each face information registered in the person ID of the detected registered face is referred to, and the face information registered more than a predetermined time before the current date and time It is determined whether or not there is. If there is no face information registered more than a predetermined time before the current date and time, the process proceeds to S503. If there is face information registered more than a predetermined time before the current date and time, the face information is registered by the following method. Encourage additional registration. First, a message indicating that it is better to replace face information because there is old face information is displayed on the display unit 28 as to whether or not to replace face information. For example, an option “Yes” / “No” is displayed together with a message “There is an old image. Do you want to replace face information?”. If “No” is selected (decision operation), the process advances to step S503. Thereafter, even if the registered face of this person ID is detected again before exiting the shooting mode process, no display prompting the replacement of face information is performed. . When “Yes” is selected (decision operation), the face information to be replaced in the system memory 52 by the ID of the registered face detected in S502 and the face information to be acquired in S502 is stored in the system memory 52. Is temporarily stored as the person ID of the oldest update date and time for that person ID. Then, the process proceeds to S1201 of the face registration process described above with reference to FIG. 12, and the face registration process illustrated in FIG. In this case, when the face registration process is completed, the process proceeds to S501 in FIG. 5 instead of S801 to enter a shooting standby state so that the shooting mode process can be continued. In this way, even if the user does not intentionally move to the registration menu, the facial information can be updated when the facial feature data is outdated and the reliability is reduced. . Therefore, the feature data registered in the face dictionary can be kept reliable.

  In the above-described embodiment, an example of performing personal authentication by registering a person's face and profile has been described. However, if the subject detected from the image can be identified as a registered subject, It does not have to be limited to a person's face and profile. For example, it is possible to register an animal image, its feature data (feature amount), and a profile so that the animal image detected from the image can be identified as a registered animal such as a pet. The invention can also be applied. Also, an image of a landmark (a building that can be used as a landmark or symbol of the land) and its characteristic data, name, and related information are registered, and the image of the building detected from the image is registered. It is also possible to apply the present invention to a device that can identify whether or not it is a mark.

  Note that although the control of the system control unit 50 has been described as being performed by one piece of hardware, a plurality of pieces of hardware may share the processing to control the entire apparatus.

  Although the present invention has been described in detail based on the preferred embodiments thereof, the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and various forms without departing from the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention. included. Furthermore, each embodiment mentioned above shows only one embodiment of this invention, and it is also possible to combine each embodiment suitably.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a digital camera has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this example, and may be an imaging apparatus capable of registering face information for personal authentication. If applicable. That is, the present invention is applicable to personal computers and PDAs with cameras, mobile phone terminals with cameras, music players with cameras, game machines with cameras, electronic book readers with cameras, tablet terminals with cameras, and the like.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention is also realized by executing the following processing. That is, software (program) that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or apparatus via a network or various storage media, and a computer (or CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or apparatus reads the program code. It is a process to be executed. In this case, the program and the storage medium storing the program constitute the present invention.

Claims (16)

Imaging means;
Shutter operating means for receiving an instruction to take an image with the imaging means and record it on a recording medium;
Authentication means for identifying whether or not the subject detected from the image captured by the imaging means is a registered subject;
A setting unit that sets a registration standby state for capturing and acquiring an image of a subject to be registered as a subject to be used for identification by the authentication unit;
An acquisition means for acquiring an image of a subject to be registered imaged by the imaging means in response to the operation of the shutter operation means in the registration standby state , and holding the acquired image on a temporary recording medium;
Registration means for registering feature data extracted from the image of the subject acquired by the acquisition means in a nonvolatile memory;
When the shutter operation unit is operated after the acquisition of the subject image by the acquisition unit and before the registration by the registration unit , control is performed so that the registration unit is not registered and the registration standby state is entered. and, as when the shutter operating means is operated after registering the feature data by the registration means shifts the image to be recorded on the recording medium in the shooting standby state for imaging by the imaging means An image pickup apparatus comprising a control means for controlling.   The display control unit further includes a display control unit configured to control the display unit to display a through image captured by the imaging unit and a display item indicating the registration standby state in the registration standby state. Item 2. The imaging device according to Item 1.   The display control means includes a profile input screen including at least a name of the subject for recording in association with feature data extracted from the acquired subject image after the acquisition of the subject image by the acquisition means. The imaging apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the imaging device is controlled to display on the display unit. The display control means controls to display the profile input screen when the subject of the image acquired by the acquisition means is a subject to be newly registered,
The imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control unit controls to shift to the registration standby state when the shutter operation unit is operated while the profile input screen is displayed.   The control means enters a power saving mode when there is no operation from the user for a predetermined time during the display of the profile input screen, and when there is a return operation thereafter, the control means shifts to the registration standby state. The imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the imaging apparatus is controlled as follows. The display control unit displays a confirmation screen on the display unit for allowing the user to select whether or not to register the feature data extracted from the acquired subject image after the acquisition unit acquires the subject image. To control and
6. The control unit according to claim 2, wherein the control unit performs control to shift to the registration standby state when the shutter operation unit is operated while the confirmation screen is displayed. Imaging device. The display control unit controls the display unit to display a registration completion display indicating that the registration has been performed after the registration by the registration unit,
The control means performs control so as to shift to a shooting standby state for taking an image to be recorded on the recording medium when the shutter operation means is operated during display of the registration completion display. The imaging device according to any one of claims 2 to 6.   The control unit acquires the temporary recording medium by the acquisition unit when the shutter operation unit is operated and shifts to the registration standby state after the acquisition by the acquisition unit and before the registration by the registration unit. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control is performed so as to discard the image of the subject that has been processed.   The acquisition unit acquires an image of a subject to be registered in a temporary recording medium according to an instruction received in response to an operation of the shutter operation unit in the registration standby state. The imaging device according to any one of 8. The recording medium is a detachable recording medium,
When the recording medium is not loaded, the control means controls to shift to the registration standby state when the shutter operation means is operated even after the feature data is registered by the registration means. The imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the subject is a human face. Imaging means;
Shutter operating means for receiving an instruction to take an image with the imaging means and record it on a recording medium;
Authentication means for identifying whether or not the subject detected from the image captured by the imaging means is a registered subject;
A registration screen for capturing and acquiring an image of a subject to be registered as a subject to be used for identification in the authentication unit by the imaging unit, and a through image captured by the imaging unit and a subject to be registered Display control means for controlling to display a registration screen on which a guide indicating a position to be stored is displayed;
In response to the shutter operation means while displaying the registration screen is operated, obtaining means for holding the temporary recording medium to obtain an image of an object to be registered imaged by the imaging unit,
Registration means for registering feature data extracted from the image of the subject acquired by the acquisition means in a nonvolatile memory;
When the shutter operation unit is operated after acquisition of the image of the subject by the acquisition unit and before registration by the registration unit , control is performed to display the registration screen without performing registration by the registration unit ; And a control unit that controls to shift to a shooting standby state for capturing an image to be recorded on the recording medium when the shutter operation unit is operated after the feature data is registered by the registration unit. An imaging apparatus characterized by the above. Imaging means;
A control method of an imaging apparatus, comprising: a shutter operation unit that receives an instruction to capture an image with the imaging unit and record it on a recording medium;
An authentication step for identifying whether or not a subject detected from an image captured by the imaging means is a registered subject;
A setting step for setting a registration standby state for capturing and acquiring an image of a subject to be registered as a subject to be used for identification in the authentication step;
An acquisition step of acquiring an image of a subject to be registered imaged by the imaging unit and holding it in a temporary recording medium in response to the operation of the shutter operation unit in the registration standby state;
A registration step of registering feature data extracted from the image of the subject acquired in the acquisition step in a nonvolatile memory;
When the shutter operation means is operated after the acquisition of the image of the subject in the acquisition step and before the registration in the registration step, the registration step is not performed and the registration standby state is entered. controls on the when the shutter operating means after registering the feature data in the registration step is operated, shifts the image to be recorded on the recording medium in the shooting standby state for imaging by the imaging means And a control step for controlling the imaging apparatus to control the imaging apparatus. An imaging apparatus control method comprising: an imaging unit; and a shutter operation unit that receives an instruction to capture an image with the imaging unit and record the image on a recording medium,
An authentication step for identifying whether or not a subject detected from an image captured by the imaging means is a registered subject;
A registration screen for capturing and acquiring an image of a subject to be registered as a subject to be used for identification in the authentication step by the imaging means, and a through image captured by the imaging means and a subject to be registered A display control step for controlling to display a registration screen on which a guide indicating a position to be stored is displayed;
An acquisition step of acquiring an image of a subject to be registered imaged by the imaging unit and holding it in a temporary recording medium in response to an operation of the shutter operation unit when the registration screen is displayed;
A registration step of registering feature data extracted from the image of the subject acquired in the acquisition step in a nonvolatile memory;
When the shutter operation means is operated after acquisition in the acquisition step and before registration in the registration step, control is performed so that the registration screen is displayed without performing registration in the registration step. And a control step for controlling to shift to a shooting standby state for capturing an image to be recorded on the recording medium when the shutter operating means is operated after the feature data is registered in the step. A method for controlling the imaging apparatus.   A program that causes a computer to function as each unit of the imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12.   A computer-readable storage medium storing a program that causes a computer to function as each unit of the imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

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