JPH09284619A - Image pickup processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To output an image signal obtained by compressing an NTSC signal and the monitor displaying VGA signal of a computer from one camcorder. SOLUTION: A signal picked-up in CCD 102 is processed in a camera signal processing part 103 and the NTSC is obtained. The signal is compressed by an SD standard, recorded on a magnetic tape 108 and also converted into the VGA signal in a converting part 114. The NTSC signal which is reproduced and extended from the magnetic tape 108 are converted into the VGA signal by the converting part 114 as well. The above compressed image signal and the VGA signal are transmitted to a switch 115, one of them is selected in accordance with a result which is obtained by discriminating control information inputted from an external part with a digital interface 118 by a discriminating part 120 and it is outputted through the digital interface 118.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image pickup processing apparatus which processes a picked up image and outputs the image through a digital interface.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art First, an outline of a communication system using an IEEE 1394 serial bus will be described as an example of a digital interface. This system is, for example, as shown in FIG.
R1, VTR2 and digital camcorder (hereinafter "DVC
R1 ”), and the DVCR1 and TV1, the TV1 and VTR1 and the VTR1 and VTR2 are connected by the P1394 serial bus. Each of the above-mentioned devices has a function of relaying digital data and control data on the P1394 bus. See also P139
The cable for 4 has three pairs of shielded wires, and each pair of wires is used for protocol signal transfer, data transfer, and power supply. This allows the system to operate even if any device is powered off.

In P1394, as shown in FIG. 6, communication is performed in a predetermined communication cycle (125 μsec), and data having a time axis such as video data and audio data is transferred at a constant data rate. Isochronous (synchronous) communication with a guaranteed bandwidth is performed, and control data such as control commands are asynchronously (asynchronously) communicated as needed. In such communication, there is a cycle start packet at the beginning of each communication cycle, and subsequently, a period for transmitting a packet for isochronous communication is set. Also, by attaching a channel number to each packet for isochronous communication, it is possible to simultaneously perform isochronous communication of a plurality of channels.

That is, when channel 1 is assigned to the communication to the DVCR 1, the DVCR 1 sends out the isochronous communication packet of the channel number 1 onto the bus immediately after the cycle start packet, and the VTR 1 monitors the packet on the bus and checks the channel number. Isochronous communication is executed between the DVCR1 and the VTR1 by fetching the packet to which 1 is added. Similarly, VTR2 to TV1
By assigning the channel number 2 to the packet to the VTR, the isochronous communication is executed between the VTR 2 and the TV 1, and the isochronous communication between the channel 1 and the channel 2 is performed in parallel. After the transmission of all isochronous communication packets is completed in each communication cycle, the period until the next cycle packet is used for asynchronous communication.

In the communication system as described above, when a new digital device is connected or disconnected when power is turned on, a node ID (node ID) is automatically assigned to each device (node) according to the connection form. Physical addresses) (# 0, # 1, # 2, # 3 in FIG. 5) are assigned by the following procedure based on the address program and address table stored in the memory in the microcomputer to automatically set the topology. The procedure for assigning node IDs will be briefly described below. This procedure consists of determining the hierarchical structure of the system and assigning a physical address to each node.

First, for each of the above devices, TV1 is node A, DVCR1 is node B, VTR1 is node C, VT.
If R2 is a node D, each node mutually communicates to the partner node to which it is connected that the other party is its own parent, and the system which has transmitted the other node first has priority and finally this system. The parent-child relationship among the nodes in the node, that is, the hierarchical structure of the system and the root node which is a node that is not a child with respect to other nodes are determined. Specifically, the node D transmits to the node C that it is a parent, and the node B transmits to the node A that it is a parent. Also,
When node A transmits to node C that it is a parent and node C transmits to node A that it is a parent, the node C gives priority to the other party and node C transmits If so, node A is made a parent of node C. As a result, node A does not become a child to any other node, and in this case becomes a root node. After the parent-child relationship is determined in this manner, the physical address is given. The assignment of this physical address is
Basically, the parent node permits the child nodes to assign addresses, and further, each child node sequentially permits the child nodes connected to the one having the smaller port number.

In the case of FIG. 5, the node A permits the node B to assign an address, and as a result, the node B attaches itself to the physical address # 0 and sends this out to the bus. The other node is notified that the node # 0 has been allocated. Next, when the node A permits the address assignment to the node C, the node D, which is also a child node of the node C, permits the address assignment, and as a result, the node D
Attaches itself to # 1 which is the next physical address of # 0 as a physical address and sends this out to the bus. After that, the node C attaches itself to the physical address # 2 and sends this out on the bus, and finally the node A attaches itself to the physical address # 3 and sends out this on the bus. Details of the P1394 serial bus including the node ID allocation procedure are published as "IEEE 1394 serial bus specifications".

Next, the procedure of data transfer will be described.
Data transfer becomes possible by giving the above-mentioned address, but in the system of P1394, the bus use right is arbitrated by the root node before the data transfer. That is, in P1394, as shown in FIG. 6, since only one channel of data is transferred at a certain timing, it is necessary to arbitrate first. When each node wants to transfer, the bus use right is given to its own parent node. , And as a result, the root node arbitrates the usage right from each node. As a result, the node that has acquired the bus use right specifies the transmission speed before starting the data transfer, and
The destination node is notified of bps, 200 Mbps, 400 Mbps, or the like.

After this, in the case of isochronous transfer, the source node receives the data on the designated channel immediately after receiving the cycle start packet transmitted by the cycle master which is the root node in synchronization with the communication cycle. Start the transfer. The cycle master sends the cycle start packet to the bus and adjusts the time of each node. On the other hand, in the case of asynchronous transfer that transfers command control data, arbitration for asynchronous communication is performed after the synchronous transfer in each communication cycle is completed, and data transfer is started from the source node to the destination node. It The above is P1
1 is an outline of a communication system using a 394 serial bus.

FIG. 7 shows a conventional image capturing and processing apparatus DV.
The structural example of the system to which CR701 was connected is shown. DV
The CR 701 compresses the captured image and records it on the tape. Also, the compressed image during shooting or playback is P1
It is sent to the VTR 702 via the 394 bus. VTR7
02, dubbing records the sent compressed image on the tape. The VTR 702 decompresses the sent compressed image, performs D / A conversion, and sends it to the TV 703 connected by an analog interface.

On the other hand, the digital camera 704 is a so-called VG.
The digital image data of the square lattice called A is P139.
4 bus to computer 705. Therefore, this image can be viewed on the monitor of the computer 705. Further, an analog image signal of NTSC, for example, is sent from the DVCR 701 to the video input means of the computer 705. The sent analog NTSC signal is A / D converted by the computer 705 and can be viewed as a VGA image on the monitor of the computer 705.
When the image of the DVCR 701 is viewed on the computer 705, the DVCR 701 and the computer 705 are connected by an analog interface.

[0012]

However, in the conventional configuration, it is necessary to prepare two image pickup processing devices, that is, the DVCR 701 and the digital camera 704, for viewing the image on the TV 703 and for viewing the image on the computer 705. was there. Or computer 70
In the case where only the DVCR 701 is used as the image pickup processing device for viewing the image in 5, the DVCR 701 and the computer 70
Since 5 is connected by an analog interface as shown in FIG. 7, there is a problem that image quality deteriorates.
Alternatively, set the DVCR 701 and digital camera 704 to 1
When mixed in one node, the format of the image data to be output is different, so there is a problem in that they must be switched and used.

The present invention is intended to solve the above-mentioned problems, and a user can display an image on a TV with a single image pickup processing apparatus and an image can be displayed on a computer monitor without performing a function switching operation. The purpose is to be able to deal with both cases.

[0014]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image pickup means for picking up an image of a subject, and a first functional section having a function of processing an output of the image pickup means to obtain an image signal of a predetermined system. A second functional unit having a function of compressing the output of the image pickup means to obtain a compressed image signal, an image signal of the predetermined system obtained from the first functional unit, and the second functional unit. Via the digital interface means, selecting means for selecting one of the compressed image signals, digital interface means for sending the image signal selected by the selecting means to the transmission path and inputting control information through the transmission path. And a discrimination means for discriminating the control information inputted as described above and controlling the selection means according to the discrimination result.

According to a third aspect of the invention, an image pickup means for picking up an image of a subject, a signal processing means for processing the output of the image pickup means to output an image signal of the first method, and an image of the first method. Compression means for compressing a signal; recording processing means for recording the compressed image signal on a recording medium; reproduction processing means for reproducing the recording medium and expanding a reproduction signal; Conversion method for converting the image signal of the above method or the expanded image signal into the image signal of the second method, and selecting means for selecting one of the compressed image signal and the image signal of the second method. A digital interface means for sending out the image signal selected by the selecting means to the transmission path and inputting control information from the transmission path, and the input control information is discriminated, and the selection is made according to the discrimination result. It is provided with discriminating means for controlling the stage.

[0016]

According to the invention of claim 1, the imaged signal is processed to obtain an image signal of a predetermined system such as a system suitable for computer monitor display from the first functional unit.
A compressed image signal is obtained from the functional unit of. One of the two image signals is selected by the discriminating means in accordance with the control information input from the digital interface means and output from the digital interface means.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the signal processing means processes the picked-up image signal to obtain an image signal of the first system such as the NTSC system. The image signal is converted by the converting means, for example, a monitor of a computer. The image signal is converted into a second type image signal suitable for display, and is compressed and recorded. An image of the second method obtained by converting the compressed image signal at the time of recording and the image signal of the second method or the image signal obtained by expanding the reproduced signal (also the image signal of the first method) by the conversion means. One of the two image signals, i.e., the signal, is selected by the discriminating means in accordance with the control information input from the digital interface means, and is output from the digital interface means.

[0018]

1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a photographing processing apparatus such as a DVCR according to the present invention. The image signal captured by the CCD 102 through the lens 101 is sent to the camera signal processing unit 103, and the digital NTSC
A signal is generated. This digital NTSC signal is input to the compression processing unit 104, the switch 105, and the switch 106. The compression processing unit 104 performs predetermined data compression (for example, SD format compression). Then, the compressed image signal is subjected to modulation processing and the like in the recording processing unit 107 and then recorded by the head 110 on the magnetic tape 108 when the switch 109 is on the REC side. At the same time, the compressed image signal is input to the switch 115.

On the other hand, when the switch 105 is on the REC side, the digital NTSC signal input to the switch 105 becomes an analog signal in the D / A converter 111, and then the cable 113 connected to the outside through the analog interface 112. Is output to. Switch 1
The digital NTSC signal input to 06 is the switch 10
When 6 is on the REC side, it is input to the switch 115 after being converted into a digital VGA signal by the NTSC / VGA conversion unit 114.

At the time of reproduction, the head 1 is read from the magnetic tape 108.
The signal reproduced by 10 is input to the reproduction processing unit 116 through the switch 109. The compressed image signal demodulated by the reproduction processing unit 116 is returned to the digital NTSC signal by the expansion processing unit 117, and the switch 105 and the switch 1
It is input to 06.

The reproduced digital NTSC signal input to the switch 105 becomes an analog signal in the D / A converter 111 when the switch 105 is on the PB side, and
It is output to the cable 113 connected to the outside through the analog interface 112. Also, switch 106
The playback digital NTSC signal input to the switch 1
When 06 is on the PB side, the NTSC / VGA conversion unit 114 converts the signal into a digital VGA signal, which is then input to the switch 115.

The compressed image signal or digital VGA signal input to the switch 115 is output to a cable 119 connected to the outside as a packet of the IEEE 1394 serial bus standard through the digital interface 118. On the other hand, the control information packet input to the digital interface 118 from the cable 119 connected to the outside is sent to the determination unit 120. Discrimination unit 120
Switches the switch 115 according to the content of the input control information.

Next, the discrimination unit 120 will be described. FIG.
The configuration of the discrimination unit 120 is shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, the destination address extraction unit 201 extracts the destination offset address of the control information packet sent from the digital interface 118.

An example of the control information packet is shown in FIG. In FIG. 3, one horizontal row is 32 bits wide. A field 301 is a destination ID, and as described in the conventional example as the IEEE 1394 serial bus standard, the node I of the destination node determined by giving a physical address to each node of the bus.
It is D. Similarly, field 302 is the node ID of the source node that sent the packet. Field 30
Reference numeral 3 is a label or code of a transaction exchanged between the sender node and the receiver node.

The field 304 is the destination node ID
Is a 48-bit destination offset address for.
The destination ID and the destination offset address form a 64-bit address, which can indicate the address of a specific register or ROM in a specific node on the bus. Details of the register standards on these buses are published as the IEEE1212 standard. And the field 305 is 6 above.
It is a data field for control information, status information, etc., which is directed to a 4-bit address.

FIG. 4 shows a register base of the photographing processing apparatus of this embodiment. FIG. 4 shows a register-based "FFFFF0000" indicated by a 48-bit offset address.
000 "to" FFFFFFFFFFFF ". R
In the OM area 401, the protocol of the bus mounted by this device (node), the manufacturer's ID, and information about the unit mounted by this device (node) are written. A unit indicates a function existing in a node, and this device has two units each implementing a different control protocol. One of them is another DVCR
This is a function of the DVCR which outputs a compressed digital image signal for dubbing the compressed image data into the analog image, decompressing the compressed image data, and returning the analog data to view the image on the TV. The other is a function as a digital camera that outputs a digital VGA image for viewing the image on a computer monitor.

The register area 402 is a register for exchanging control information, status, data, etc. of each unit with other devices. Register area 402 is a DVCR
It is divided into a register area 403 used in the unit of the function of 1 and a register area 404 used in the unit of the function of the digital camera. Other devices connected to this device by a cable can know the address of the register used by each unit for exchanging control information by reading the contents of the ROM area.

In FIG. 2, the destination address extraction unit 201
The address obtained in step 1 is input to the address comparison unit 202 and compared with the address range 1.203. At the same time, it is also input to the comparison unit 204 and compared with the address range 2.205. Address range 1 · 203 indicates the address range of the area 403 of the register shown in FIG.
205 indicates the address range of the area 404 of the register shown in FIG. Then, the switch control unit 206 switches the switch 115 shown in FIG. 1 according to the result of comparison between these two. Specifically, if the address obtained by the destination address extraction unit 201 is included in the range of the address range 1.203, it is determined that the packet is directed to the unit having the function of DVCR, and shown in FIG. The switch 115 is switched to the "DVCR" side. In addition, the address obtained by the destination address extraction unit 201 is the address range 2.205.
If it is included in the range, it is determined that the packet is directed to the unit having the function of the digital camera, and the switch 115 shown in FIG. 1 is switched to the “DCAM” side.

With the configuration and operation described above, one device (node) can support both the functions of the DVCR and the functions of the digital camera, and these functions can be sent without the user having to switch between them. It is possible to determine which function the packet is destined for and to switch the format of the data to be output to the outside.

[0030]

As described above, according to the present invention, 1
One device (node) can support, for example, both the functions of the DVCR and the functions of the digital camera, and the control information sent can be directed to any function without the user having to switch between these functions. There is an effect that the format of the data to be output to the outside can be automatically switched depending on whether or not there is any.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an image pickup processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a discriminating unit.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing a packet of a digital interface.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram showing an address base of a digital interface.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing an outline of a digital interface.

FIG. 6 is a timing chart showing the operation of the digital interface.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a conventional system.

[Explanation of symbols]

 102 CCD 103 camera signal processing unit 104 compression processing unit 107 recording processing unit 108 magnetic tape 110 head 114 NTSC / VGA conversion unit 115 switch 116 reproduction processing unit 117 expansion processing unit 118 digital interface 119 cable 120 discriminating unit

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An image pickup unit for picking up an image of a subject, a first functional unit having a function of processing an output of the image pickup unit to obtain an image signal of a predetermined system, and a compressed image by compressing an output of the image pickup unit. A second functional unit having a function of obtaining a signal, a selection unit for selecting one of the image signal of the predetermined system obtained from the first functional unit and the compressed image signal obtained from the second functional unit. A digital interface means for sending out the image signal selected by the selecting means to the transmission path and inputting control information through the transmission path; and for distinguishing the control information input through the digital interface means. An image pickup processing apparatus comprising: a determination unit that controls the selection unit according to a result. 2. The image pickup processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image signal of the predetermined system is an image signal suitable for a monitor display of a computer. 3. An image pickup means for picking up an image of a subject, a signal processing means for processing an output of the image pickup means to output an image signal of a first system, and a compression means for compressing the image signal of the first system. A recording processing means for recording the compressed image signal on a recording medium; a reproduction processing means for reproducing the recording medium and expanding the reproduction signal; and an image signal of the first method or Conversion means for converting the decompressed image signal into a second type image signal, selecting means for selecting one of the compressed image signal and the second type image signal, and the selecting means A digital interface means for sending the selected image signal to the transmission path and inputting control information from the transmission path, and a discriminating means for discriminating the input control information and controlling the selecting means according to the discrimination result. Imaging processing apparatus having and. 4. The digital interface means comprises:
The image pickup processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image pickup processing apparatus is a digital interface circuit according to the IEEE 1394 standard. 5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image signal of the first system is an image signal of a predetermined television system. 6. The image pickup processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image signal of the second system is an image signal suitable for monitor display of a computer. 7. The image pickup processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image signal of the second system is a digital VGA signal.