JPH06105193A - Camera equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To attain the photographing of an object not contained in one picture by seaming or to attain the ease of image pick up for seaming shot in the case of photographing of still picture or animation by a camera equipment such as a still camera or a video camera. CONSTITUTION:The camera equipment 100 is provided with a picture memory 103 capable of storing a prior object picture to a current photographed object picture, a display section 107 such as a view finder and a control circuit 106 controlled by a function selection section 108. Then the function selection section 108 displays the preceding picture to the current object picture stored in the picture memory 103 and the current object picture onto a display section 107 via the control circuit 107.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera device suitable for use in a still camera, a video camera or a VTR with a built-in camera, and more particularly to a camera suitable for panoramic shooting of still cameras and continuous shooting of video cameras. Regarding the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when shooting a landscape or the like that does not fit in a single film image with a still camera or the like, either a plurality of shots are taken while increasing the overlap amount by the amount of eye separation, or a still image is taken at predetermined shooting angles. A protractor or the like will be installed on a tripod so that the camera can be moved left and right for shooting. When performing continuous shooting with a video camera or the like, re-editing was performed using an electronic editing device or the like.

[0003]

In the case of the still camera having the above-mentioned conventional structure, it is impossible to know up to which part the previously photographed image has been taken. There was a problem that the finished picture could not be completed naturally due to the large amount of the pieces and the stitched pictures were not perfect, and the lengths were different from each other.

Further, considering the case of a moving image, for example, in the case of continuous shooting, even if a subject is placed at the same position as in the previous scene and is imaged, if the subject is a person, the target will move and the continuous shooting will be successful. There was a problem such as not being able to.

The present invention provides a camera device which solves the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to obtain a camera device which can perform panoramic shooting with a still camera and continuous shooting with moving images very easily. It is what

[0006]

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the first camera device of the present invention is capable of shooting a still image or a moving image and has a display means 107 such as a viewfinder. In the camera device 100, the storage device 103 that can store at least the subject image before the current captured subject image, the control device 106 that controls the display state on the display device 107, and various functions of the camera device are selected. And a function selecting means 108 for
8 by the automatic mode selection 202a, the storage means 103 causes the control means 106 to display the subject image at least before the current subject image, and the function selection means 108 selects the current subject image. It is constructed so that it can be put out. The second camera device of the present invention is, for example, a camera device 100 capable of shooting a still image or a moving image as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4 and having a display means 107 such as a viewfinder. Storage means 10 capable of storing a subject image before the image
3, a control means 106 for controlling the display state on the display means 107, and a function selection means 108 for selecting various functions of the camera device 100, and the storage means 103 via the control means 106 according to the selection of the function selection means 108. More specifically, the display image area in which the subject image 403 before the current subject image and the current subject image 402 are displayed on the display unit 107 can be changed. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, the third camera device of the present invention is, at least in the camera device 100 capable of shooting a still image or a moving image and having a display means 107 such as a viewfinder, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. A storage unit 103 that can store a subject image before the current captured subject image, a control unit 106 that controls a display state on the display unit 107, and a camera device 100.
And a function selecting means 108 for selecting various functions of
By selecting the function selecting means 108, at least the subject image 403 before the current subject image and a part 502 of the current subject image 403 are displayed on the display means 107 in an overlapping manner from the storage means 103 via the control means 106. It consists of

[0007]

According to the camera device of the present invention, when a subject having a size that cannot be photographed by one shot is photographed, it can be projected on the viewfinder so that the position of the previously photographed subject image can be surely understood. Therefore, it is possible to easily obtain an object in which the amount of overlap can be reduced and the subject images between the images do not drop out, and it is possible to easily obtain a reliable subject image even when taking consecutive images.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The overall construction of a camera device of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. As the camera device of this example, an ordinary still camera, a video camera or a VTR with a built-in camera is used.
And so on.

In FIG. 1, a camera device 100 includes a camera section 101 for picking up a subject image and an electrical signal processing section 10.
2 to 108.

The camera unit 101 is an image pickup lens system, and includes a lens group 101A, a lens driving device 101E for driving and controlling the lens group 101A, a diaphragm mechanism 101B, and a diaphragm driving device 101F for driving and controlling the diaphragm mechanism 101B.
It is composed of a shutter mechanism 101C, a shutter driving device 101G for driving and controlling the shutter mechanism 101C, a single-plate or plural-plate CCD 101D, and a CCD driving device 101H for driving and controlling the CCD 101D. These lens driving device 101E and diaphragm driving The device 101F, the shutter driving device 101G, and the CCD driving device 101H are control devices (hereinafter referred to as CPU) 1 such as a computer to be described later.
Drive control is performed by 06.

An analog image pickup output signal output from the CCD 101D is an analog-digital conversion circuit (hereinafter referred to as A
/ D conversion circuit) 102.

The image pickup signal digitally converted by the A / D conversion circuit 102 is supplied to an image memory 103 such as a frame memory, a switching / combining / color changing circuit 105 and a CPU 106.

The image memory 103 is an A / D conversion circuit 102.
A semiconductor memory capable of storing the digital data output from the CPU in accordance with the speed of the digital data.
It is controlled by 06.

The switching / combining / color changing circuit 105 includes an A / D
The digital data output from the conversion circuit 102 and the image memory 103 can be selected and combined on the screen of the display device or the color of each image can be changed by a look-up table under the control of the CPU 106. It is also possible to overlay a menu, a function display, a mode display, etc., which are operated by the user. Further, in addition to the look-up table, a digital-analog converter for converting digital data into a video signal is also incorporated.

The output of the switching / combining / color changing circuit 105 is C.
It is displayed on the display unit 107 including a viewfinder 107 such as RT or LCD.

The output of the image memory 103 is the image recording apparatus 1.
Of course, digital data or the like from the image recording device 104 can be captured in the image memory 103, but the image memory can store a plurality of image data in a magnetic disk, magnetic tape, magneto-optical disk. Alternatively, it is a semiconductor memory or the like capable of holding data, and is generally constructed such that these media can be removed and reproduced.

The CPU 106 can be operated by a user from the function selection section 108 in the user interface 109 to select a menu function or move an image display position by using a switch, a button, or the like operated by the user.

The overall functional operation of the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 shows a flow chart of the function switching operation of this example. The process selection 201 is performed by the function processing unit 108 in the user interface 109. These processing selections are automatic / through mode switching 202
a, partial display 202b, overlay display 202c, overlay image movement 202d, overlay mode (I),
The switching 202e of the superposition mode (II), the selection change 202f of the display color, and the selection 202g of the display image can be operated in parallel with each other.

After each of these operations, the switching / redisplay 203 is performed, and the operation of reaching the end or returning to the start and repeating another operation again is performed.

The operation of the automatic / through mode switching 202a is to select the current subject image as it is (through mode).
The operation is to switch whether to select a subject image at least before the current subject image (automatic mode).

As one of the usage modes of such automatic / through mode switching, it is used, for example, when performing a panoramic shooting with a still camera by looking at an image already taken before the next shooting. In this case, the automatic / through mode switch 202a is operated to change the mode to a mode in which only the previous image is displayed, and the operation 202d of selecting a display image selects a predetermined previous image in a plurality of image memories to confirm. After that, the mode may be returned to the through mode by the automatic / through mode switching 202a and the next photographing may be performed. Alternatively, it may be released by pressing the shutter halfway.

FIG. 3 shows a flow chart from the confirmation of the previous image to the next photographing and display in the automatic mode of the switching operation of the automatic / through mode switching 202a. First step 30
In step 1, the previous image is checked in the viewfinder of the display unit 107, and in step 302, the shutter in the shutter mechanism 101c is half-depressed as in the focusing shutter of a still camera. By pressing the shutter halfway, the automatic / through mode switching is switched to the through mode. That is, the current subject image is displayed on the display unit 107 as shown in the third step 303.

Therefore, the next photographing is performed in the fourth step 304, and the current subject image is captured in the image memory 103 as in the fifth step 305, and the image is recorded in the image recording device 104 in the sixth step 306. It

In the seventh step 307, the switching / compositing / color changing circuit 105 is controlled by the CPU 106 to control the image memory 10.
The current subject image is captured from No. 3, the image in the image memory 103 is displayed on the viewfinder of the display unit 107 in the eighth step 308, and the process ends.

Although the above flow chart is for the still mode operation of the still camera, if the camera device is a video camera or a video recording with a camera-integrated VTR, the flow chart is as shown in FIG. In this case, it can be used, for example, for continuous shooting.

When the automatic / through mode switching 202a is operated in FIG. 7 to enter the automatic mode, the photographer looks at the last image of the previous scene in the first step 701 and the display unit 107 which is a viewfinder. Check the subject position on the screen.

In the next second step 702, when the standby key of the video camera is pressed to enter the standby mode, the subject image currently being photographed is displayed as a through image on the display unit 107 as shown in the third step 703.

At this stage, when photographing is started in the next fourth step 704 and photographing is stopped in the fifth step 705, the last photographed image is fetched and stored in the image memory 103 in the sixth step 706. Where the 7th
In step 707, the CPU 106 controls the switching / combining / color changing circuit 105, reads the last captured image from the image memory 103, displays it on the display unit 107, and reaches the end. Image memory 1 like the first shooting in the above operation
If there is no previous memory image in 03, the first step 30
It is natural that steps 1 and 701 are not performed. Further, in the example of FIG. 7, the last image of the series of shootings is displayed, but the display image selection 202g may be operated during shooting to select the image to be displayed after the shooting is temporarily stopped.

As described above, in shooting a still image by a still camera and a moving image by a video camera, in panoramic shooting, it is possible to completely eliminate the adverse effect such as the gap between the joined images. In addition, it is possible to reliably align the moving subject even during continuous shooting in moving image shooting, and obtain a natural moving image.

Next, the partial display 202b of FIG. 2 will be described in detail. This partial display 202b is performed by a predetermined switch or button of the function selection unit 108. When the button operation of the partial display 202b is performed, the partial display mode is set. Display 1
In the viewfinder field 401 of 07, a reduced current subject image 402 shown by P2 and a subject image 403 before the current subject image shown by P1 are projected as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B.

The reduction rate of the screens P1 and P2 is a predetermined constant value, but the reduction rate may be changed. Next, if one of the superposing mode (I) and the superposing mode (II) 202e of FIG. 2 is selected, the P1 screen is displayed in front of the display unit 107 as shown in FIG. 4A, and the current subject image of the overlapping portion 403 is displayed. The 402 side disappears. If the other is selected, the P ₂ screen is displayed on the display unit 1 as shown in FIG. 4B.
It is displayed in front of 07, and the side of the subject image 403 before the current subject image of the overlapping portion 404 becomes invisible. The one-dot chain line in FIG. 4A shows the degree of overlap between the P1 and P2 screens when the reduction ratio is changed.

Even in such an operation, the comparison between the previous image and the image to be photographed next can be made very easily, and the function is suitable for panoramic photographing and continuous photographing.

Further, when the switch or button of the function selection section 108 is operated in the overlay display 202c of FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, the subject image 403 before the current subject image shown on the screen P1 and the current subject image 402 shown on the screen P2 are displayed in the viewfinder field 401 so as to partially overlap each other as shown in FIG. 5B.

In FIG. 5B, a part 501 of the P2 screen is a part in which only the current screen is displayed, a part 502 is a part in which the previously captured screen P1 and the current screen P2 are overlapped, and a part 503 is displayed. Indicates a portion deviated from the viewfinder field of view 401 and displaced in display.

When the mode button of the display color selection / change 202f of FIG. 2 is selected to make it easy to distinguish the overlapping portions 502, the display colors of the P1 screen and the P2 screen can be changed. . For example, the P1 screen of the previous image may be displayed in black and white, and the current P2 screen may be left as the primary color, or both screens P1 and P2 may be monochromatic to different colors.

FIG. 6 shows such an overlay display mode 20.
2C is a flowchart showing a case where the display color is selected / changed 202f mode is selected after 2c.

In the flow chart of FIG. 6, the start is the superimposition mode, and the CPU 106 performing the superimposition display operation with the button of the function selection unit 108 determines whether or not the color of the previous screen P1 is changed in the first step 601. If NO, the process proceeds to a sixth step 606 to see if the color of the current image P2 is changed. If NO here, the process ends. First step 60
If YES in 1 for changing the color of the P1 screen of the previous image, it is checked in the second step 602 whether or not the monochrome mode is set. If NO in the non-monochromatic mode, the process proceeds to the fourth step 604. If YES in the second step 602, which is the monochromatic mode, the process proceeds to the third step 603.

In the third step 603, the mode is changed to the single color mode, the color is selected / changed in the fourth step 604, and in the fifth step 605, the process is repeated until a predetermined color is obtained. The fourth if NO if the given color is not achieved
Returning to step 604, when the predetermined color is in the OK state, the color of the P2 screen of the current image is changed in the sixth step 606.

In the sixth step 606, if the color of the current image is not changed to NO, the end is reached, and if the color of the P2 screen is changed to YES, the process proceeds to the seventh step 607. In the seventh step 607, as in the P1 screen, it is checked whether the mode is the single color mode,
If NO in the monochrome mode, the process proceeds to the ninth step 609. If it is the single color mode, the change to the single color mode is performed in the eighth step 608, and the color is selected / selected in the ninth step 609.
After changing the color, it is checked whether or not the color is the predetermined color in the tenth step 610. If the color is the predetermined color, if the color is not the predetermined color at the end, the selection / change of the color is repeated to select / change the predetermined color become.

In this way, the color of the overlapped portion 502 shown in FIG. 5B is different from that of the current image displayed portion 501, so that it is extremely easy to perform the joint photographing or the panoramic photographing.

Further, if the moving mode 202d of the superposed image shown in FIG. 2 is performed, the portion 502 where the images shown in FIG. 5B are overlapped and displayed can be changed, which is also convenient for the joint photographing and the panoramic photographing.

Since the camera device of the present invention is configured and operated as described above, when shooting a subject of a size that is too large for one still image in a still camera, which portion is previously photographed? Since it is possible to know up to the point, there is no gap between the subject to be photographed next time and the overlap does not unnecessarily increase, and it is possible to photograph efficiently. Further, since the user can arbitrarily move the display position of the previous image, it is possible to easily determine how much the previous image is overlapped. In the case of a moving image, even if the target is a person, the subject can be placed in exactly the same position as in the previous scene to successfully perform continuous shooting. Further, even when the scene is changed, since the previous shooting angle can be known, it is easy to make the intended expression effect.

In the above embodiments, the P1 screen and the P2 screen are displayed on the display unit at the same time, but the P1 and P2 screens may be alternately displayed by time sharing. In this case, it is necessary to provide the function selection device with functions such as selection of the switching time and selection of the display method on the finder so that which image is the previous image can be known. Good.

[0044]

According to the camera device of the present invention, it is possible to obtain a still image with a still camera, which is suitable for consecutively shooting subject images that do not fit on one screen. In image capturing, it is possible to capture images suitable for continuous shooting.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a camera device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart of a function switching operation of the camera device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart from confirmation of the previous image to the next shooting and display in the automatic mode of the camera device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing an example of a partial display image of the camera device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a superimposition display example of the camera device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a display color selection / change operation of the camera device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a moving image automatic mode of the camera device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 100 camera device 101 camera unit 103 image memory 104 image recording device 105 switching / combining / color changing circuit 106 CPU 107 display unit 108 function selecting unit

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A camera device capable of photographing a still image or a moving image and having a display means such as a viewfinder, at least storage means capable of storing a subject image before a current photographed subject image, and the display means. And a function selection means for selecting various functions of the camera device, and a storage means is stored in the display means via the control means by the first selection of the function selection means. A camera device, wherein a subject image before at least the current subject image is projected, and the current subject image is projected by the second selection of the function selecting means. 2. In a camera device capable of shooting a still image or a moving image and having a display means such as a viewfinder, at least a storage means capable of storing a subject image before a current captured subject image, and the display means. And a function selecting means for selecting various functions of the camera device. By selecting the function selecting means, at least the current subject image is stored in the storage means via the control means. A camera device, wherein a display image area for displaying the previous subject image and the current subject image on the display means can be changed. 3. A camera device capable of shooting a still image or a moving image and having a display means such as a viewfinder, at least storage means capable of storing a subject image before a current photographed subject image, and the display means. And a function selecting means for selecting various functions of the camera device, and by selecting the function selecting means through the control means, at least the current subject image from the storage means. A camera device, wherein a previous subject image and a part of the current subject image are superimposed and displayed on the display means. 4. A display color selection unit that can change the display color of one or both of the subject image before the current subject image and the current subject image displayed on the display unit. The camera device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the camera device comprises: 5. A change means for selectively changing a display area of a part of the subject image before the current subject image displayed on the display means. Camera device.