JPH0784311A - Voice inputting camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To surely catch a voice from a user even though a using posture of a camera is varied by arranging plural voice inputting means. CONSTITUTION:Voice inputting microphones 20, 21 are respectively arranged in the central lower part, and in the left upper end part in the longitudinal direction. One microphone 20 is arranged so that it is situated near a mouth of a photographer in lateral posture photographing, while the other microphone 21 is arranged so that it is situated near, the mouth of the photographer in longitudinal posture photographing. Therefore, the microphone 20 is situated near the mouth of the photographer in lateral posture photographing, while the microphone 21 is situated near the mouth of the photographer in longitudinal posture photographing. In this way, a voice from the photographer is surely caught in both of lateral posture photographing and longitudinal posture photographing, so that a camera can be controlled by means of the inputted voice. In this case, the posture of the camera is detected, and the optimum voice inputting means for this posture among the plural voice inputting means is operated.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a voice input camera for controlling a camera by voice.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional camera, when a photograph is taken, a push button, an electronic dial, a lever or the like is operated to set or confirm a mode while looking into the viewfinder of the camera. There is a problem that a momentary shutter chance is missed while performing this complicated operation.
On the other hand, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 64-56428, by controlling the camera by the voice uttered by the user, it becomes unnecessary to manually operate the push button, the electronic dial, the lever, etc. Discloses a rapid method.

[0003]

By the way, the posture of the camera is not constant at the time of photographing, and it is usually used to photograph in a lateral posture as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2-b, there may be many situations where the image is taken in a vertical position. Further, it is possible to assume a state in which the image is captured in other postures. Therefore, in the case where only one voice input means is provided as in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 64-56428, it is good to take a picture in a horizontal position, but when taking a picture in a vertical position, the mouth of the user is separated from the microphone. Therefore, there is a problem that it is difficult to accurately detect the voice uttered by the user.

The present invention has been made in order to solve such a problem, and an object thereof is to obtain a voice input camera capable of reliably capturing a voice uttered by a user even if the use posture of the camera is changed. .

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a voice input camera equipped with voice input means for inputting voice, and voice analyzing means for analyzing the input voice. And a control means for controlling the photographing operation of the camera based on the result obtained by the voice analysis means, and to provide a voice input camera comprising a plurality of the voice input means. .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, there is provided a posture detecting means for detecting the posture of the camera, and the plurality of postures are detected based on the postures of the camera detected by the posture detecting means. The present invention provides a voice input camera characterized by changing an operation ratio of a voice input means.

Further, in the invention according to claim 3, in a voice input camera provided with a voice input means for inputting a voice, a voice analysis means for analyzing the input voice, and a result obtained by the voice analysis means. Control means for controlling the photographing operation of the camera based on the above, and a plurality of operation means for starting the photographing operation and a plurality of the voice input means are provided respectively, and the voice input means operates the corresponding operation means. The present invention provides a voice input camera characterized in that it operates together with it.

Further, the invention according to claim 4 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the voice input means is provided at least at a lower central portion and an end portion in a longitudinal direction in an upright state. The present invention provides a voice input camera.

[0009]

In the invention according to claim 1, when a voice for controlling the camera is input from the voice input means, the input voice is analyzed by the voice analysis means, and the control is performed based on the analysis result. The means controls the photographing operation of the camera. Here, since a plurality of the voice input means are provided, it is easy to capture the voice input by any of the voice input means even when the posture of the camera is changed from the upright state such as holding the camera in a vertical posture. Therefore,
It is possible to prevent malfunction and loss of control.

Further, in the invention of claim 2, the attitude of the camera is detected by the attitude detecting means, and the operation ratio of the voice input means is changed based on the detection signal from the attitude detecting means. In this way, in this camera, since the voice is input by the plurality of voice input means whose operation ratio is changed, the voice input means most suitable for the posture can be selected, and the voice can be reliably captured even when the posture of the camera changes. It is possible to prevent malfunction and loss of control.

Further, in the invention of claim 3,
Although the photographing operation can be started by any of the plurality of operation means, the operation means and the voice input means are associated with each other, and the voice input means corresponding to the operated operation means operates. Then, the voice is taken in by the operated voice input means. Therefore, even if the posture detection mechanism is not provided, the voice input means most suitable for the posture of the camera can be selected, and the voice can be reliably captured even if the posture of the camera changes.

Further, in the invention according to claim 4, in the normally used lateral posture (upright state), the voice input means provided at the lower center of the camera is located near the mouth of the user, while When the camera is held vertically, the voice input means provided at the end of the camera in the longitudinal direction is located near the mouth of the user. Therefore, it is possible to perform reliable voice input according to the attitude of the camera.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a simple external view of a voice input camera according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the drawings, the camera body 1
1 is a two-stage release switch 1 on each side and top
2 and 13, both release switches are lightly pushed in, or touch sensor-
The type has a structure in which the first-step switch is turned on by lightly touching it (referred to as "half-press"), and the second-step switch is turned on by pressing it harder (referred to as "full-press"). The release switch 13 is for shooting in a so-called horizontal position (upright state) as shown in FIG. 2-a, and the release switch 12 is in a so-called vertical position as shown in FIG. 2-b. It is for when you do.

Mode setting switches 14, 18, 19
Are for setting automatic exposure modes such as manual mode, aperture priority or shutter speed priority, which are provided on the surface of the camera body 11, and here, the respective switches are specifically described. Although the arrangement position and the use of are not limited, a plurality of functions may be provided if necessary. The electronic dial 15 is mainly for setting the shutter speed, the diaphragm, etc., and is usually used in combination with any one of the mode setting switches 14, 18, and 19.

The eyepiece 16 is provided on the upper portion of the camera body, and looking through the eyepiece 16 adjusts the angle of view and the focus at the time of shooting. The LCD 17 is for displaying the setting mode of the camera, control values such as shutter speed and aperture value, etc., and is provided on the back surface of the camera body where the photographer can easily see it. In the figure, the shutter speed
Value of 1/2000 seconds.

Microphones 20 and 21 for voice input are provided at the lower center and the upper left end in the longitudinal direction, respectively. One microphone 20 is arranged so as to be close to the photographer's mouth particularly when photographing in a horizontal position, and the other microphone 21 is particularly close to the photographer's mouth when photographing in a vertical position. It is arranged so that.

FIG. 2 shows the posture of a camera that is normally used. FIG. 2-a shows a state of shooting in a so-called horizontal posture, and FIG. 2-b shows a state of shooting in a vertical posture.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the structure of the main part of the camera of this embodiment. In the figure, a control circuit 30 is a circuit for controlling the sequence of the entire camera, and is usually C
It is composed of PU. Reference numeral 31 is a power supply circuit, to which a battery-32 is connected, which supplies the control circuit 30 with the power required to control the camera.

The motor control circuit 33 is controlled on the basis of the control signal from the control circuit 30, and the film winding motor is controlled.
The motor 34 such as a charger and a shutter mechanism charger motor and the magnet 35 such as a shutter magnet are controlled.

The two-stage release switches 12 and 13 are composed of switches 12-a and 13-a for half-pressing operation and switches 12-b and 13-b for full-pressing operation, respectively.

The switch input (SW input) 36 is connected to the two-stage release switches 12 and 13 and various mode setting switches and electronic dials (not shown),
The state of the switch is transmitted to the control circuit.

The autofocus circuit (AF circuit) 37 is provided with a sensor 38. The lens is moved based on the output of the sensor 38 to bring the lens into focus, and the focus state is transmitted to the control circuit. .

The voice circuits 39 and 40 are respectively provided with the microphone 2
The voice inputs from 0 and 21 are amplified for voice recognition, and the results are transmitted to the control circuit 30.

The attitude detecting circuit 41 is a circuit for detecting the attitude of the camera, and detects the lateral attitude and the vertical attitude by a position sensor 42 composed of a known mercury switch or the like, and transmits the attitude state to the control circuit 30. ing.

The photometric circuit 43 is a photometric sensor such as SPD-4.
4 is provided and the exposure value is obtained.

Now, an example of controlling the camera by voice in this embodiment will be described. First, in taking a picture, when the release switch 12 or 13 is half-pressed, the switch 12-a or 13-a is turned on, the photometry circuit 43 and the AF circuit 37 start to operate, and preparation for photography is started. At this time, the control values of the shutter speed, the diaphragm, etc., which are calculated in consideration of the setting mode based on the exposure value obtained by the photometry circuit 43, are displayed on the LCD 17.

Further, when the microphones 20 and 21 are activated and the microphone detects the voice input by the photographer, the voice circuits 38 and 39 analyze the input voice and the information is transmitted to the control circuit 30 to set the mode. You can change the mode and perform shooting operations.

In addition, when it takes time to analyze the voice by the voice control at the time of shooting, or in the unlikely event that the voice input means cannot capture the voice, the voice analysis means cannot recognize the voice. It is possible to miss a momentary shutter chance. Therefore, it is advisable to enable shooting with a normal full-press switch.
When it is desired to take a picture with certainty, the full-press switch 12-b or 13-b may be pressed.

At this time, the voice of the photographer may be captured by a plurality of microphones, and the camera may be controlled if the voice analysis results are the same. In this way, when a voice other than the voice of the user is input, the camera is not controlled by the analysis result of the voice, so that a malfunction is prevented. Alternatively, some of the plurality of voice input means may be activated. For example, malfunctioning can be prevented by activating the loudest voice among the voices input by the plurality of voice inputting means.

Next, an embodiment in which the operation ratio of the voice input means is changed depending on the posture at the time of photographing will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the posture of the photographer is roughly divided into a horizontal posture shown in FIG. 2-a and a vertical posture shown in FIG. 2-b. When photographing in a horizontal position, the microphone 20 in FIG. 1 is located near the photographer's mouth. Further, when taking a picture in a vertical posture, the microphone 21 in FIG. 1 is located near the mouth of the photographer.
Therefore, even when shooting in a horizontal position or a vertical position, the voice uttered by the photographer can be reliably captured, and the camera can be controlled by the input voice.

However, when there is a voice other than the voice uttered by the user in the vicinity of the user, a plurality of microphones may catch a plurality of voices. For example, when another person is near when shooting, it is conceivable that a microphone not near the photographer's mouth catches the voice of another person, thereby causing the camera to malfunction.

Further, in the case of photographing in a strong wind, it is difficult for a plurality of microphones to capture the voices of the photographer as the same, so that the analysis results of the voice input do not match and the control instruction cannot be given. is there. Therefore, under such a circumstance, if a plurality of voice inputs are operated, it may cause a malfunction or control failure.

Therefore, it suffices to detect the attitude of the camera and operate a specific audio input means which is considered to be optimal for use in that attitude among the plurality of audio input means. For example, in the case of landscape photography as shown in FIG.
Only the microphone 21 is operated, and the operation of the microphone 21 is stopped. Figure 2-
In the case of the vertical orientation shooting as shown in b, only the microphone 21 is operated and the operation of the microphone 20 is stopped. If there are two or more microphones, all the microphones installed at the bottom of the camera are operated in landscape shooting, and all the microphones installed at the left end in the longitudinal direction of the camera are operated in portrait shooting. You may let me.

Alternatively, the operation ratios of the plurality of voice input means may be changed to operate. For example, in the case of horizontal orientation shooting as shown in FIG. 2A, the microphone 20 is operated with a weight and the microphone 21 is operated with a low weight. In the case of vertical image capturing as shown in FIG. 2B, the microphone 21 is operated with a weight, and the microphone 20 is operated with a low weight.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing the flow of this processing. It is a processing example in the case of turning on / off the voice input means based on the result of judging which posture the camera is. First, the process starts with the voice input operating. The voice input operation may be started when the main switch of the camera is turned on or when the camera is half-pressed.

First, in step 101, the attitude of the camera is determined. If the camera is in the horizontal position, the process proceeds to step 102, and if it is in the vertical position, the process proceeds to step 103.
In step 102, since the horizontal orientation shooting is performed, the microphone 20 is operated, the microphone 21 is stopped, and the process proceeds to step 104. In step 103, the microphone 21 is used because it is the vertical position shooting.
Is operated, the microphone 20 is stopped, and the routine proceeds to step 104.

In step 104, it is determined whether or not there is a full-press instruction as a result of analysis by voice input. If there is a full-press instruction, the process proceeds to step 107, and if not, the process proceeds to step 105. In step 105, it is determined whether or not the release switch has been fully pressed. If it is fully pressed, the process proceeds to step 107, and if it is not pressed, the process proceeds to step 106. Here, depending on the case, it may be determined whether or not there is a full-press instruction from the analysis results of a plurality of voice inputs.

In step 106, if the half-press hold is completed, the process proceeds to END, and if it is not completed, the process returns to step 101 and is repeated. In step 107, the photographing operation is performed by the full-press instruction, and the process ends.

However, there may be a camera without a mechanism for detecting the camera posture. In such a case, the voice input may be operated corresponding to the operated release switch. For example, when the release switch 12 is half pressed, only the microphone 21 is operated, and when the release switch 13 is half pressed, only the microphone 20 is operated. Or when the release switch 12 is pressed halfway down, the microphone 21
When weighting the microphone input corresponding to the release switch, for example, when the release switch 13 is half-pressed, the microphone 20 is operated with a weight. It should be made to operate. In addition, a mechanism for detecting the right eye and the left eye may be provided to select the voice input means.

Further, in this case, if the voice input means is operated by a half-press operation, the power consumption can be reduced, and there is no fear that it will be operated by some sound when no image is taken, although it is unnecessary. .

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of this flow. This is an example of processing in which the voice input means is turned on / off depending on which release switch is pressed halfway. This is a replacement of the steps 101, 102, and 103 in FIG.

First, in step 201, it is determined whether or not the half-push operation is performed. If it is not pushed, the loop is continued until it is pushed. If the release switch 12 is half-pushed, the operation proceeds to step 202. If the release switch 13 is half-pushed, the operation proceeds to step 203. . In step 202, the microphone 20 corresponding to the release switch 12 is operated, and the process proceeds to the next step. In step 203, the microphone 21 corresponding to the release switch 13 is operated, and the process proceeds to the next step.

By providing the voice input means at least in the lower central portion and the longitudinal end portion in the upright state of the camera, the voice input can be reliably captured at least in the normally used posture.

It is also possible to provide three or more voice input means. In other words, even when the photographer is shooting in the horizontal position, the position of the photographer's mouth differs depending on whether the eyepiece is viewed with the right eye or the left eye, so it corresponds to the position near the user's mouth in the upright state. A plurality of voice input means may be provided.
Similarly, a plurality of cameras may be provided near the mouth of the user when the camera is rotated by approximately 90 ° from the upright state.

[0045]

As described above, according to the present invention, by providing a plurality of voice input means, it becomes possible to reliably capture a voice control instruction during photographing. Further, in a special situation, by operating only part of the voice input by the posture detecting means, the voice input means most suitable for the posture can be selected, and the voice control instruction can be reliably captured. Further, by operating only a part of the voice input in response to the operation of the operating means, even a camera without a posture detecting means can select a voice input means suitable for the posture, so that a voice control instruction can be reliably captured. become.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a simple external view of a voice input camera according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2A is a diagram showing a state of the camera when photographing in a horizontal posture, and FIG. 2B is a diagram showing a state of the camera when photographing in a vertical posture.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part of a voice input camera according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a process of operating the voice inputting means by the attitude detecting means in the camera of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a process of operating the voice inputting means by the operating means in the camera of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 ... Camera body 12, 13 ... Release switch 1
4, 18, 19 ... Mode setting switch 15 ... Electronic dial 16 ... Eyepiece 17 ... LCD 20, 21
… Voice input microphone

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A voice input camera provided with voice input means for inputting voice, wherein voice analysis means for analyzing the input voice, and a photographing operation of the camera based on a result obtained by the voice analysis means. A voice input camera, comprising: a control unit for controlling; and a plurality of the voice input units. 2. A posture detecting means for detecting the posture of the camera is provided, and the operation ratios of the plurality of audio input means are changed based on the posture of the camera detected by the posture detecting means. The voice input camera described in 1. 3. A voice input camera provided with a voice input means for inputting a voice, wherein a voice analysis means for analyzing the input voice and a photographing operation of the camera based on a result obtained by the voice analysis means. A plurality of operation means for starting a photographing operation and a plurality of voice input means are provided, and the voice input means operates in accordance with the operation of the corresponding operation means. Characteristic voice input camera. 4. The voice input camera according to claim 1, wherein the voice input means is provided at least in a lower central portion and an end portion in a longitudinal direction in an upright state.