JPH10271370A - Electronic still camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently provide the performance of external device and to improve efficiency in the transmission of images to the external device by knowing the characteristics of external device through communication with that device, generating image data corresponding to the known characteristics and transmitting these data to the external device. SOLUTION: When all the switches at an operating part 14 are turned on, a control part 10 communicates with a printer 30 through a connection part 15. When the printing density of printer 30 is higher than 600 dpi, for example, the control part 10 reads image signals from a memory card, generates an image data of 640×480 pixels and outputs these data to the connection part 15. When the printing density is lower than 600 dpi, the control part 10 generates the image data of 320×240 pixels and outputs them to the connection part 15. Then, the control part 10 generates and outputs these image data in succession for all the images which are stored in the memory card.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an electronic still camera, and more particularly, to an electronic still camera for transmitting a captured image to an external device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an electronic still camera, a photographed image is stored in a flash memory, a memory card, or the like, and the stored image is reproduced and displayed on a display device provided in the camera. Generally, an electronic still camera is not provided with a printing device, and an image is transmitted to an external printing device and printed to store the image.

There are various types of printers, from simple printers having a low resolution to high-performance printers having a very high resolution. The number of printers that can be connected to an electronic still camera is not limited to one. The user can select a printing device according to the application and obtain a print image with a desired resolution. When an instruction to print an image is given, the electronic still camera
The stored image is read, image data for printing is generated according to a predetermined processing procedure, and the generated image data is sent to the connected printing apparatus.

In recent years, an image has been transmitted from an electronic still camera to a personal computer, and various processes such as printing, displaying, storing, and synthesizing the image have been performed by the personal computer. Also when transmitting an image to a personal computer, the electronic still camera generates image data according to a certain processing procedure.

[0005]

However, the conventional electronic still camera always generates print image data in a fixed processing procedure regardless of the characteristics of the connected printing apparatus. There are problems with the time required for the printing process and the quality of the printed image. The printing apparatus performs a thinning process on the image data when given high-resolution image data higher than its own printing resolution, and conversely, an image when given low-resolution image data less than its own printing resolution. The image is printed by performing an interpolation process on the data.

[0006] The thinned image data is essentially unnecessary for printing an image, and if this unnecessary data is transmitted, the time required for transmission naturally becomes longer. On the other hand, when transmitting low-resolution image data, there is no waste in transmission time, but even if interpolation processing is performed, the captured high-resolution image cannot be reproduced, and high-resolution image data can be provided. The quality of the printed image is deteriorated as compared with.

For this reason, in a conventional electronic still camera,
In the case of generating high-resolution image data, when a simple printing device is used, the printing process takes a long time for the low resolution of the print image, and in the case of generating low-resolution image data, Even if a printing apparatus having a high performance is used, there is a disadvantage that the performance cannot be sufficiently exhibited. In the case of generating image data of a medium resolution, both problems occur.

[0008] These problems also occur when transmitting an image not only to a printing apparatus but also to another apparatus such as a personal computer, and it takes an unnecessarily long time from the start of transmission to the completion of reception processing, or an external device. For example, the quality of the image reproduced and stored in the device may be deteriorated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an electronic still camera in which the efficiency of image transmission to an external device such as a printing device is high and the performance of the external device is sufficiently exhibited.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an electronic still camera for transmitting image data representing a photographed image to an external device. The characteristics are obtained, and image data corresponding to the obtained characteristics is generated and transmitted to an external device. The characteristic of the external device obtained by the communication is, for example, the resolution of the image, and the external device is, for example, a printing device that prints the image represented by the image data.

If the electronic still camera generates image data to be transmitted according to the resolution of the external device, it is possible to generate high-resolution image data that cannot be used by the external device, It is possible to avoid generating low-resolution image data that cannot make use of. When transmitting image data to a printing device, by generating and transmitting image data according to its characteristics, it is possible to obtain a print image that fully demonstrates the performance of the printing device in a reasonable time that matches the image quality. it can.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of an electronic still camera to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an appearance of an electronic still camera 1 (hereinafter, also simply referred to as a camera) according to the present embodiment as viewed obliquely from above and rearward. The camera 1 has a photographic lens 21 on the front of the body, a finder 22 on the back, and a color liquid crystal display (LCD) 2
3, a power switch SM and two switches S1, S
2, a release button 24 and a dial 25 on the upper surface, a card insertion slot 26 on the side surface, and a connector 27 for mounting a cable 31 for connecting to an external image printing printer 30 on the other side surface.

The camera 1 forms an image of light from a subject on a light receiving surface of a charge-coupled device (CCD) by a photographing lens 21, and electronically photographs by the CCD. The captured image is stored in a memory card inserted through the card insertion slot 26. The release button 24 is provided with a switch S3 (not shown).
Turns on when is pressed.

The camera 1 captures an image and stores the image in a memory card, a reproduction mode in which the image stored in the memory card is reproduced and displayed on the LCD 23, and an image stored in the memory card in the printer 30. And prints an image on a sheet by the printer 30. These modes are switched by switches S1 and S2 by manual operation of the user. The start of shooting in the shooting mode, the change of the displayed image in the reproduction mode, and the start of printing in the print mode are instructed by turning on the switch S3.

The photographing is performed in one of a macro mode suitable for photographing a subject at a short distance, a person mode suitable for normal photographing such as portrait photographing, and a sports mode suitable for photographing a fast moving subject. Can be selected, and these can be switched by the dial 25.

The printer 30 is not always connected to the camera 1, but is connected by attaching a cable 31 to the connector 27 by a user during printing. Various printers can be connected to the camera 1,
The resolution of the printed image varies depending on the performance of the printer.

FIG. 2 shows a schematic configuration of the camera 1. The configuration of the camera 1 is roughly divided into a photographing unit 11, a display unit 12, a storage unit 13, an operation unit 14, a connection unit 15, and a control unit 10.
The photographing unit 11 drives the photographing lens 21, a CCD for converting light transmitted through the photographing lens into an electric signal, an amplifier for amplifying an output signal of the CCD, an A / D converter for converting an amplified analog signal to a digital signal, and a CCD. CCD
And a display unit 12 for displaying a reproduced image.
It comprises an LCD driver for driving the CD 23 and the LCD 23.

The storage section 13 comprises a memory card and a card driver for inputting and outputting data to and from the memory card. The operation section 14 includes a switch S1, a switch S2 and a switch S3 provided on a release button 24. Connection part 1
Reference numeral 5 denotes a connector 27 for attaching the cable 31 and a transmission / reception circuit for performing transmission and reception processes.

The control unit 10 is composed of a microcomputer, and performs image processing and controls each of the above units. Specifically, in the photographing mode, a signal from the photographing unit 11 is processed to generate an image signal, and the image signal is stored in the storage unit 13. The image signal is output to the display unit 12 to display an image. In the print mode, the image signal read from the storage unit 13 is processed to generate image data for printing, which is transmitted from the connection unit 15 to the printer 30.

The control unit 10 operates the switch S of the operation unit 14
1. An operation mode is determined among a shooting mode, a reproduction mode, and a print mode according to the settings of S2. FIG. 3 shows the relationship between the switches S1 and S2 and the operation mode. Switch S1
When both S2 and S2 are OFF, the stop mode is set.
At this time, the control unit 10 does not operate each unit of the camera 1. When the switch S1 is ON and the switch S2 is OFF, the mode is the shooting mode. When the switch S1 is OFF and the switch S2 is ON, the mode is the reproduction mode. When both the switches S1 and S2 are ON, the printing mode is set.

Before printing an image in the print mode, the control unit 10 requests the printer 30 to transmit characteristics such as print density and print size, and based on the characteristic information transmitted from the printer 30, Generate image data for printing. Therefore, the image data for printing transmitted to the printer 30 is based on the characteristics of the printer 30,
If the model of the connected printer is different, the image data generated by the control unit 10 will be different.

The control unit 10 can generate two types of image data, i.e., image data having a large number of pixels and image data having a small number of pixels, and switch between them according to the printing density of the printer 30, that is, the resolution. FIG. 4 shows a specific relationship between the printing density of the printer 30 and the number of pixels of the image data generated by the control unit 10. The control unit 10 generates image data of 640 × 480 pixels when the printing density of the printer 30 is 600 dots / inch (dpi) or more, and 320 × 240 pixels when the printing density is less than 600 dpi. Generate image data.

Therefore, when a printer having a printing density of less than 600 dpi is connected, the amount of image data to be transmitted is reduced to 1/4 compared to when a printer having a printing density of 600 dpi or more is connected. Takes about 1/4.

FIG. 5 shows the flow of control processing performed by the control unit 10. First, the states of the switches S1, S2 and S3 are detected (step # 5), and both the switches S1 and S2 are turned on.
Is determined (# 10). Switches S1, S
If both are ON, it waits for the switch S3 to be turned on (# 15). When the switch S3 is turned on,
All images are read from the storage unit 13 and processed for printing (# 20).

FIG. 6 shows the flow of processing for printing. The control unit 10 communicates with the printer 30 via the connection unit 15, obtains the characteristic information (step # 105), and determines whether the printing density of the printer 30 is 600 dpi or more (# 110). When the printing density is 600 dpi or more, the image signal is read out from the memory card and 640
X480 pixel image data is generated, and
(# 115). When the printing density is less than 600 dpi, the image signal is read from the memory card and
The image data of 20 × 240 pixels is generated and output to the connection unit 15 (# 120).

The control unit 10 generates and outputs the above image data in order for all the images stored in the memory card. Therefore, all the stored images are printed by one print command in step # 15 of FIG. After outputting the last image data to the connection unit 15, the process returns to step # 5 in FIG.

If it is determined in step # 10 that one or both of the switches S1 and S2 are OFF, it is determined whether the switch S1 is ON (# 25). If the switch S1 is ON, it is further determined whether or not the switch S3 is ON (# 30). If the switch S3 is ON, shooting is performed (# 35). That is, an image signal is generated from the output of the photographing unit 11 and stored in the storage unit 13. After shooting and when the switch S3 is OFF, the process proceeds to step # 5.
Return to

If the switch S1 is OFF in the determination of # 25, it is determined whether or not the switch S2 is ON (# 4).
0), if the switch S2 is OFF, the process returns to step # 5. If the switch S2 is ON, the first image is read from the storage unit 13, displayed on the display unit 12, and the image is reproduced (# 45). Next, it is determined whether the switch S3 is ON (# 50). If the switch S3 is turned on within a predetermined time, the next image is read from the storage unit 13 and displayed on the display unit 12, thereby changing the display image (# 5).
5). Then, the process returns to step # 50. If the switch S3 is not turned on within a predetermined time in # 50, step # 5
Return to

After each of the photographing, reproducing, and printing processes, the control unit 10 detects the states of the switches S1, S2, and S3 again in step # 5, and performs photographing, reproducing, or printing in accordance with the settings of the switches S1, S2. Is performed.

In the present embodiment, an example has been described in which the number of pixels of the image data for printing is set in two steps according to the level of the printing density of the printer. However, the printing density is more finely determined and the pixels of the image data are determined. The number may be set in three or more stages. By doing so, it is possible to make full use of the performance of the printer regardless of the printing density of the connected printer, and to effectively use low-resolution printers to extremely high-resolution printers. it can. Further, the time required for the print processing can be finely changed according to the resolution of the print image.

An external display device may be connected to the electronic still camera of the present invention to display an image on the external display device. Also in this case, by generating image data for display in accordance with the display resolution of the display device, unnecessary data transmission can be avoided, and the performance of the display device can be fully utilized. Alternatively, a personal computer may be connected to the electronic still camera to transmit image data, and the personal computer may perform processing such as printing, displaying, and synthesizing an image, or may store the image in its storage device. Also in this case, unnecessary image data transmission can be avoided by generating image data according to the characteristics of the processing performed by the personal computer.

[0032]

According to the electronic still camera of the first aspect, since the performance of the external device can be sufficiently exhibited, the high-performance external device is not wasted. In addition, since unnecessary transmission of image data exceeding the performance of the external device can be avoided, the overall processing efficiency is improved.

In the electronic still camera according to the second aspect, it is possible to avoid unnecessary transmission of image data that does not contribute to the improvement of the resolution of an image, and to transmit image data necessary for preventing the resolution of the image from being reduced. Therefore, the processing time can be shortened to match the image quality while maintaining the quality of the image obtained by the processing of the external device high.

In the electronic still camera according to the third aspect of the present invention, the performance of the printing apparatus can be sufficiently exhibited regardless of the connection of the printing apparatus, so that a print image of a quality corresponding to the performance of the apparatus can be obtained. it can. Further, printing is a process that requires time, but by avoiding unnecessary transmission of image data, the time required for printing can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exemplary perspective view showing the appearance of an electronic still camera according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the electronic still camera.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a relationship between switch settings and operation modes of the electronic still camera.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the relationship between the printing density of a printing device connected to the electronic still camera and the number of pixels of print image data generated by the electronic still camera.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of shooting, playback, and printing processes of the electronic still camera.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing printing processing of the electronic still camera.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 electronic still camera 10 control unit 11 imaging unit 12 display unit 13 storage unit 14 operation unit 15 connection unit 21 imaging lens 22 finder 23 LCD 24 release button 25 dial 26 card insertion slot 27 connector 30 printer 31 cable SM power switch S1 switch S2 Switch S3 switch

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Yoko Sogabe 2-3-13 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi Inside the Osaka International Building Minolta Co., Ltd. (72) Katsuyuki Namba 2-3-3 Azuchicho, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi No. 13 Osaka International Building Minolta Co., Ltd.

Claims (3)

[Claims] An electronic still camera for transmitting image data representing a photographed image to an external device, wherein the electronic camera communicates with an external device to obtain the characteristics of the device and transmits the image data according to the obtained characteristics. An electronic still camera for generating data. 2. The electronic still camera according to claim 1, wherein the characteristic is an image resolution. 3. The electronic still camera according to claim 1, wherein the external device is a printing device that prints an image represented by image data.