JPH02250583A - Picture communication equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To efficiently transmit a picture by collating a set transmitting mode and attribute of a received picture, automatically setting a transmitting mode in which the received picture can be transmitted in a shorter time. CONSTITUTION:When a transmitting switch included in a keyboard switch 11 is pushed, whether the picture currently displayed on a CRT 3 is the picture photographed by the camera of its own equipment or the received picture is checked. When it is the received picture, the attribute of the received picture and the transmitting mode set in its own equipment are read from a data memory 13, the transmitting mode is reset based on a transmitting mode resetting table, the transmitting mode is sent to the other side, and then the picture is transmitted according to the transmitting mode. Thus when the received picture is transferred, since the transmitting mode, in which the attribute of the received picture is collated with the set transmitting mode and the received picture can be transmitted in a shorter time, can be automatically reset, the communication time can saved.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] (b) Industrial application fields The present invention relates to an image communication device such as a videophone device.

(b) Conventional technology Conventionally, when transmitting an image in a video telephone device such as the one introduced in the September 1988 issue of the magazine "Eizo Information J," the received image is in mode A (horizontal 16 ov 4 elements
0 pixels) Transmission was performed in the mode set for the own device regardless of mode B (96 pixels horizontally x 100 pixels vertically).

(c) For this reason, K'ming tries to solve the problem.
For example, if the transmission mode of the own device is set to mode A, when transmitting a received image, the received image is sent in mode A even though it is a mode B image, so invalid image information is generated. This has the drawback that the transmission time for that fraction becomes long.

Furthermore, in high-definition color still image videophone calls,
There are many image transmission modes that can be set by the operator (mode A or mode B setting, standard, medium definition, or high definition setting),
When transmitting received images, if the transmission mode is set for the own device, the received images cannot be efficiently transferred in many cases.

(d) Means for resolving the issue of fraud The present invention provides an image communication device that transfers images received from the other party, a means for storing the attributes of the image when the image is received from the other party, and a means for transmitting the image. When transmitting, check the transmission mode set in the own device and the attribute of the received image to be transferred, and if the two differ, reset the transmission mode so that the transmission time is shorter than when transmitting in the set transmission mode. Some devices are characterized in that they include a transmission mode resetting means.

(E) Function According to the present invention, when transferring a received image, it is possible to automatically reset the transmission mode that allows the received image to be transmitted in a shorter time by comparing the attributes of the received III image with the set transmission mode,
Communication time can be saved.

(f) Example An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below based on the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a still image communication device that is used as a small high-definition color TV phone.

(1) is a color-compatible CCD camera that captures the sieved soil image, (4) is a video memory that composes the color image;
It has a memory corresponding to each color of G and B, and each color has 11ffl bits per element, and each color has 16 gradations, that is, 10
It can be expressed in 96 different colors.

(2) is an interface that digitizes the color image captured from the CCD camera (1) into a value of 1 image x @94 bits for each R, G, and B color information and outputs it to the video memory (4). , (3) are color CRTs that synthesize and display the contents of the video memory (4).

(5) is the CPU that controls the entire system, and the puffer memory (6
), luminance information and color difference information are calculated line by line from data of 4 bits per pixel for each color of RlG and B read from the video memory.

(7) is a modem for modulating or demodulating the transmitted image information consisting of luminance information and color difference information calculated by the CPU (5), and (8) is a telephone set for making calls using the telephone set (8). The input/output of audio signals and transmitted image information is performed by the network control circuit (9) connected to the telephone line (10) (subscriber line).
Controlled by (11) are a plurality of key switches that issue operational commands to the CPU (5), such as transmission of a color still image by the CCD camera (1).

That is, the voice signal from the telephone (8) is sent to the network control circuit (9).
The voice signal from the telephone line (10) is sent to the IT phone 8) via the network control circuit (9), and a call is made.

In addition, information on color still images captured by the CCD camera (1) is stored in the video memory (3) and transferred to the CRT (3).
), and the transmitted image information (brightness information and color difference information) consisting of brightness information and color difference information is inputted to the modem (7) via the network control circuit (9) by the CPU (5), and is input to the modem (7) via the network control circuit (9). The information is demodulated in 7) and transmitted to the CPU (3). Three color information for each pixel for one screen is calculated from the information, and each color information is developed on the video memory (4) and displayed on the CRT (3). be done.

Furthermore, the above-mentioned high-definition color still image videophone device has an image resolution that is twice as high vertically and horizontally as that of conventional videophones, with an image resolution of 320 pixels in the horizontal direction and 200 pixels in the vertical direction.
It is possible to display a screen made up of pixels.

The transmission modes of the device include: ■Standard screen of Mode A (160 pixels horizontally x 100 pixels vertically) ■Medium-definition screen of Mode A (160 pixels horizontally x 200 pixels vertically) ■High-definition screen of Mode A (32011 pixels horizontally x 200 pixels vertically) ■ Standard screen for mode B (96 pixels horizontally x #1100 pixels) ■ Medium-definition screen for mode B (96 pixels horizontally x 200 pixels vertically) ■ High-definition screen for mode B (192 pixels horizontally) There are six modes (see Figure 3): (pixels x 200 pixels vertically) (see Figure 3), and the operator can decide which mode to transmit using the mode setting means (included in the key switch (11)) installed in the own device. The set mode can be set arbitrarily, and the set mode is stored in the data memory (13). When an image is received from a video telephone device, attribute information indicating which mode among the above modes the image was sent in and whether it is black and white or color is also stored.

In other words, the attributes of the received image may be black and white or color depending on the mode from ■ to ■ above, so there is a total of 1
There are two types of attributes (see Figure 3), and when transferring the received image to another videophone device, it may be transmitted using the transmission mode set on the own device.
For example, when transmitting an image received in black and white on a standard screen in mode B, the device itself is set to high-definition transmission mode in mode A.

Therefore, this device determines the transfer time of the received image based on the transmission mode set in the device itself and the stored attributes of the received 1iii image, taking into account the setting state of the mode setting switch, according to the table shown in FIG. The transmission mode is reset so as to be the shortest, and the received image is transmitted in the set transmission mode.

The operation of the apparatus of this embodiment will be explained below according to the flowchart shown in FIG.

Under normal conditions, the CPU program that controls the operation of the device runs through the main loop shown in Fig. 1, and in step Sl, it is loaded into the video memory (4) and starts the operation of transmitting @false information displayed on the CRT. It also checks whether the transmitter switch (keyboard switch (included in 11)) that instructs is pressed, whether a received signal from the other party is detected in step S2, and whether any other switch, etc. is pressed in step S5. I'm constantly checking.

Now, when a reception signal from the other party is detected in step S2, a reception operation begins, and in step S3, the attributes of the image sent before the image are received, and the contents are stored in the memory (13
), the image is received in step S4. If it is determined in step S5 that no other switch is pressed, the process returns to step Sl.

When it is determined in step Sl that the transmission switch has been pressed, it is checked in step S7 whether the image currently displayed on the CRT (4) is an image taken by the camera of the own device or a received image, and if it is the former, For example, in step S8, the transmission mode set by the transmission mode setting switch of the own device is sent to the other party, and then in step S9, the image is transmitted according to the transmission mode.

If it is the latter, the process moves to step 510, where the attributes of the received image displayed on the CRT and the transmission mode set for the own device are read from the data memory (13), and the transmission mode is set as shown in FIG. 93. After resetting the mode using the mode resetting table and sending the transmission mode to the other party, step S
9, the image is transmitted according to the transmission mode.

If there is a conflict between the setting mode set by the operator and the attributes of the received image, select one of the two and reset the transmission mode. (not shown) and set according to this table, or according to a program that implements the next algorithm. The above algorithm is as follows.

Regarding mode A or B, if the attribute of the received image is A, the setting mode is followed, and if the attribute of the received image is B, it is set to B.

Regarding the definition, if it is the definition of the attributes of the received image and the definition of the setting mode, it is according to the definition of the attributes of the received image, and if the definition of the attributes of the received image is > the definition of the setting mode, it is the M of the setting mode. Fineness.

Whether the image is in color or black and white is transmitted according to the attributes of the received image. That is, if the attribute of the received image is black and white, only the brightness information is transmitted even if the device itself is a color device.

If it is determined in step S5 that another switch has been pressed, the operation and processing corresponding to that switch are performed in step S6. For example, when a screen switching switch is pressed, the image from the camera and the received image are switched each time the switch is pressed. When the still image switch is pressed, the moving image from the camera becomes the still image.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the second embodiment,
For example, the configuration may be as follows.

That is, in the above embodiment, when the setting mode and the attribute of the received image are different, the mode is reset by selecting one of them so that the transmission time is the shortest, but even if the transmission time is not the shortest, the setting mode It is only necessary to configure the transmission so that the length of time is shorter than that of the actual transmission. For example, in FIG. 3, when the setting mode is 1 and the attribute of the received image is 6, the image is sent not in the standard format but in the detailed format.

Furthermore, as a mode resetting algorithm, an algorithm that prioritizes the attributes of the received image regardless of the setting mode may be added to the above algorithm. In this case, a mode resetting algorithm changeover switch (not shown) is provided, and a step for determining the switching state of this switch is provided between step S7 and SIO in FIG. 3 to switch the mode resetting algorithm. Let's do it.

Further, the destination of the received image includes a video telephone other than the own device including the device that sent the received image, and a recording device such as a tape recorder attached to the own device.

(G) Effects of the Invention According to the present invention, it is possible to automatically set the received image to a transmission mode that allows transmission in a shorter time by comparing the attributes of the received image with the set transmission mode, and to perform efficient transmission. It is very effective as it can be done.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 3 each show an embodiment of the present invention,
Figure 1 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure performed by the CPU, Figure 2 is an electrical block circuit diagram, and 3rA is resetting the optimal transmission mode based on the transmission mode set for the own device and the attributes of the received image. FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a table for (5)...CPU, (11)...Key switch, (
13)...Data memory.

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In an image communication device that transfers an image received from the other party, there is a means for storing the attributes of the image when it is received from the other party, and a transmission mode set in the own device when transferring the image. The apparatus further comprises a transmission mode resetting means for checking the attributes of the received image to be transferred and resetting the transmission mode so that the transmission time is shorter than that for transmission in the set transmission mode if the two differ. image communication device.