JPH10285525A - Digital still camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To display index images with improved responsiveness while effectively utilizing the free area of an EEPROM for a program. SOLUTION: At the time of turning ON a power switch and at the time of mounting a memory card, images recorded in the memory card are read (S1), the image data of the index images for displaying respective frames in a list are edited (S2) and they are stored in the free area of the EEPROM for the program beforehand (S3). Then, when the output of the index images is requested (S5), the index images are displayed based on index image data read from the EEPROM for the program (S6 and S7).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a digital still camera, and more particularly, to a digital still camera configured to record image data and the like on a memory card detachably attached to a camera body.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, an optical image of a subject has been captured by an imaging lens,
An image is formed on a solid-state imaging device such as a CCD through an optical imaging system such as an aperture, an electric image signal photoelectrically converted and output by the imaging device is converted into digital data, and the digital image data is converted into a camera body. 2. Description of the Related Art Digital still cameras configured to record data in a semiconductor memory (for example, a flash EEPROM) built in a memory card that is removably mounted on a digital camera have been put to practical use.

[0003]

By the way, in the digital still camera as described above, the camera body has a CP.
In general, a ROM is provided together with U, and the CPU controls the operation of the camera in accordance with a program pre-recorded in the ROM. In general, the ROM has a sufficient storage capacity. Accordingly, an electrically erasable EEPROM (Electro-electric memory) is used as the program ROM.
In a camera using an Electronic Erasable Programmable ROM (Electronic Erasable Programmable ROM), an empty area not used for recording a program in the EEPROM for the program (a free area corresponding to a margin) becomes a memory area in which recorded contents can be rewritten. The free area of the program EEPROM has not been used effectively.

In the case where the memory card is provided with a write protect switch, if a photograph is taken in a state where the write protect is applied, the photographed image data is stored in the memory card unless the write protect is released. In other words, there is a problem that the image management information cannot be updated. Further, in a digital still camera, an index image for displaying a plurality of images stored in a memory card in a list may be displayed on an attached liquid crystal or the like. Conventionally, there is a request for displaying an index image. Each time, for example, an index image (small-sized image) stored in the memory card is read out along with individual image data and reconstructed in the form of an index image. There was a problem that required.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has a program EEP for a digital still camera.
An object of the present invention is to effectively use a free area of a ROM.
It is another object of the present invention to improve the usability of a digital still camera using a memory card having a write protection function when write protection is applied.

It is another object of the present invention to reduce a time lag in reproducing an index image.

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, an optical image of a subject is converted into image data, and the image data is recorded on a memory card which is detachably attached to a camera body. In the digital still camera thus configured, the recording data of the memory card other than the program code is stored in a program EEPROM provided in the camera body.

[0008] According to this configuration, an empty area not used for program recording in the program EEPROM that is originally used only for recording the program is used as a storage area for recording data of the memory card.
Specifically, when data to be recorded on the memory card cannot be recorded on the memory card, the program EEPROM is used.
In the free space of the program EEPROM together with the memory card, and furthermore, the recorded contents of the memory card can be stored in the program EEPROM.
M transfer to an empty area and use for program control and the like. Note that the recording data of the memory card is not limited to image data, but includes other code data and the like.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, when the memory card is write-protected, the data recorded on the memory card is transferred to the program EEPROM.
To be stored in According to such a configuration, when data cannot be written to the memory card because the memory card is write-protected, the data is written to an empty area of the program EEPROM instead of the memory card to hold the data. Some memory cards are provided with a write protect switch. When the write protect switch is write-protected (write protected), data cannot be written, that is, data cannot be recorded. In a memory card from the program EEPROM when the write protection is released. here,
Cannot write to memory card due to write protection,
Instead, it is preferable to warn that data is stored in the program EEPROM.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a digital still camera configured to convert an optical image of a subject into image data and record the image data on a memory card detachably attached to a camera body. When the memory card is write-protected, the recording data of the memory card is stored in the memory of the camera body.

According to this configuration, when the memory card is write-protected (write-protected) and data cannot be written to the memory card, the memory (program memory) provided in the camera body is used instead of the memory card. The data is written to the EEPROM (not limited to the EEPROM) to hold the data. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the recording data of the memory card is image data.

According to this configuration, the image data is stored in the program EEPROM in the main body, and the program EEPROM or the program EEPROM is used, particularly when the memory card is write-protected. The image data is stored in a memory of the main unit other than the EEPROM. The image data may be an image obtained by editing a captured image, a template image, or the like, in addition to a normal captured image.

[0013] According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the data recorded on the memory card is photographing information. According to such a configuration, the photographing information to be stored as supplementary information of the image data is stored in the program EEPROM of the main body, and in particular, under the condition that the memory card is write-protected, The photographing information is stored in the EEPROM for the program or a memory of the main body other than the EEPROM for the program.

The photographing information is information mainly indicating photographing conditions such as photographing date and time, shutter speed, use of flash, color temperature, and the like. According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the recording data of the memory card is image management information of the memory card. According to such a configuration, the image management information is transferred to the program EEPR on the main body side.
OM, and especially when the memory card is write-protected, the program EEPROM or the program EEPROM
The image management information is stored in a memory of the main body other than M.

[0015] The image management information is information of an image file, and more specifically, is preferably a file name of the image file. According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the digital still camera configured to convert an optical image of a subject into image data and record the image data on a memory card detachably attached to a camera body,
Index image data for displaying images recorded on the memory card in a list is generated and stored in a memory provided in the camera body in advance.

According to this configuration, each time an index image is displayed, instead of editing a plurality of image data read from the memory card to create the index image, the result of reading from the memory card in advance is not used. The index image data constructed based on this is stored in the memory of the main body, and when the index image is actually displayed, the index image stored in the memory of the main body is read out and displayed on the liquid crystal display device or the like. Let it.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the memory on the main body for storing the index image data in advance is a program EEPROM. According to such a configuration, the index image data is stored in advance in an empty area of the program EEPROM (an area not used for recording the program). When displaying the index image, the index image data is read from the program EEPROM and the index image data is read out. Is displayed.

[0018]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the free area of the program EEPROM is used for storing the recording data of the memory card, the program EEPROM is used.
There is an effect that a free area in which no program is recorded in the OM can be effectively used.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when write-protection is performed and writing to the memory card cannot be performed, the program EEP is used instead of the memory card.
By storing data in the ROM, data to be written to the memory card is recorded and held on the camera body side,
Further, there is an effect that the image management information can be updated and the free area of the program EEPROM can be effectively used.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, when writing to the memory card cannot be performed due to write protection, the data is stored in the memory of the camera body instead of the memory card, so that the memory card can store the data. There is an effect that data to be written can be recorded and held on the camera body side, and image management information can be updated.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the free area of the program EEPROM can be used for storing the image data, and / or when the image data cannot be written to the memory card due to the write protection. ,
There is an effect that image data can be recorded and held on the camera body side. According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the free space of the program EEPROM can be used for storing the photographing information, and / or the camera body can be used when the photographing information cannot be written to the memory card due to write protection. There is an effect that the photographing information can be recorded and held on the side.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the program management EEPRO is used to store the image management information (image file name).
When the image management information can not be written to the memory card because the empty area of M can be utilized and / or the write protection is applied, the image management information is recorded and held on the camera body side, and the image management information is stored. This has the effect of ensuring consistency.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the index image is stored in the memory of the camera body in advance, so that the index image can be reproduced in a short time. According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the index image data is stored in advance in the free area of the program EEPROM, so that the index image can be reproduced in a short time while effectively using the free area of the program EEPROM. There is an effect that can be.

[0024]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 shows a system configuration of a digital still camera according to the embodiment. In the figure, a light image of a subject obtained through an optical system composed of a focus lens 101, an aperture 102 and the like is formed on a light receiving surface of an image sensor such as a CCD 103. At this time, focus lens 101, aperture
102 is a focus drive circuit 104 and an aperture drive circuit, respectively.
Driven by 105.

Here, the CCD 103 constituting the image pickup device
Converts an optical image formed on the light receiving surface into a charge amount and outputs an analog image signal. The analog image signal output from the CCD 103 is subjected to noise reduction processing, gain adjustment, and the like in a pre-processing circuit 106. Then, after being converted into a digital image signal by the A / D converter 107, the digital image signal is input to the signal processing circuit 108, subjected to luminance processing, color processing, compression processing, etc., and then to the memory card 110 via the card controller 109. Be recorded.

The memory controller 111 causes the signal processing circuit 108 to perform signal processing using the frame memory 112. The memory card 110 has a built-in flash memory (flash type EEPROM).
It is detachably attached to the camera body. The main microcomputer 114 controls the operations of the focus drive circuit 104, the aperture drive circuit 105, the pre-processing circuit 106, the signal processing circuit 108, etc. The control program (program code) in the main microcomputer 114 is a program E
It is stored in the EPROM 113 in advance.

The sub microcomputer 115 controls the liquid crystal panel 117 and the like. The photographed image signal can be output as an NTSC video signal via a video amplifier 119. Further, an image signal can be transmitted to a personal computer or the like via an external serial port via a serial driver 118 controlled by the main microcomputer 114.

As shown in FIG. 2, the memory card 110 is provided with a write protect switch 110a. When the switch is slid rightward in FIG. card
It becomes a state where writing to 110 cannot be performed (a state where only reading is possible). A connector (not shown) for electrical connection with the camera body is provided on the surface opposite to the end surface where the write protect switch 110a is provided.

The digital still camera having the above structure has a function of displaying an index image showing a list of images recorded on the memory card 110 on the liquid crystal panel 117. More specifically, FIG. The index image is displayed as shown in the flowchart of FIG. The flowchart of FIG. 3 is started when the main switch is turned on and when the memory card 110 is inserted. At S1, the image data of each frame recorded on the memory card 110 is read.

Here, the normal image data may be read out as it is, but for each frame, image data having a small image size for an index image is stored together with image data having a normal image size. It is preferable to adopt a configuration in which image data for use is read out, or a configuration in which normal image data is read out with appropriate thinning. S
In step 2, the image of the plurality of frames is edited to generate index image data, that is, image data in which each reduced frame is arranged on one image.

In S3, the index image data is stored in a free area of the program EEPROM 113. The program EEPROM 113 is originally
Although the program code is stored, usually, a space is expected to be sufficient, so that an empty area (an area in which no program code is recorded) often exists. The index image data is stored as described above.

Here, the memory for storing the index image data is stored in the EEPROM 113 for the program.
The configuration is not limited to this, and any configuration may be used as long as a memory (memory area) provided on the main body side and not used for image processing or the like is used. However, as described above, the program EEPR
The use of the free area of the OM 113 does not require a dedicated memory or erode the memory area used for storing other data, and furthermore, the free area of the program EEPROM 113 which is not normally used. Can be used effectively.

In S4, it is determined whether or not a new image has been taken. If a new image has been taken, it is necessary to add a new image to the index image. Let it rebuild. If the shooting has not been performed, the process proceeds to S5, and it is determined whether or not there is an index image output request. If there is an output request, the process proceeds to S6, and the program EEP in which the index image data is stored in advance as described above.
Reads the index image data from the ROM 113,
In S7, the liquid crystal panel 117 is read based on the read data.
To display the index image.

According to this configuration, since the data of the index image is stored in the memory of the main body in advance, every time the index image is output, the memory card 110 is output.
Thus, the index image can be displayed with a higher response than when the image data of each frame is read out from the image and edited and displayed in the form of an index image. Further, if the free space of the program EEPROM 113 is used as the memory of the main body for storing the index image data, the free space of the program EEPROM 113 can be effectively used.

In the above description, the program EEP
By storing index image data in a free area of the ROM 113, the free area was effectively used.
In addition, a configuration may be employed in which image data other than index images, shooting information, image management information, and the like are stored.
For example, the latest captured image data is stored in the memory card 110
And the program EEPROM 11
3 in the free space, and the liquid crystal display or the like of the latest photographed image is performed based on the image data stored in the program EEPROM 113 without accessing the memory card 110, or stored in the memory card 110. EEPR for the program
It is also possible to accumulate the data in a free area of the OM 113.

It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which image data is transferred from the memory card 110 to an empty area of the program EEPROM 113 and stored. In this case, for example, a template image (for example, a background image) is stored in advance in the memory card 11 in addition to the data of the normal captured image.
0, the template image is transferred to and stored in the program EEPROM 113, and the photographed image is combined with the template image read from the program EEPROM 113 to form a memory card 11
It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which it is stored in 0.

In the case where shooting information such as shooting date and time, shutter speed, use of flash, use of color temperature and the like are stored in the memory card 110 together with the image data, the shooting information is also stored in the memory card 110 in association with the image data. It is preferable to store it in the EEPROM 113 for use. Further, the image management information of the memory card 110, specifically, the file name of the image file may be read from the memory card 110 and stored in a free area of the program EEPROM 113.

For example, when a file with a file name as shown in FIG. 4 is recorded on the memory card 110, an identifier (extension) indicating image data is included in the file names. Only the attached file names (information of files that can be handled by the camera) are picked up, and the program EEPR is used in the order of frame numbers.
Store it in the OM113. When performing various processes (output, deletion, editing, etc.) of image data and processes such as counting the number of shots, the program EE is used.
This is performed based on the file names in the order of frame numbers developed in the empty area of the PROM 113.

In FIG. 4, "JPG" is image data (compressed image data), "TXT" is text data, and "EXE" is an identifier (extension) indicating non-image data such as an executable file. It is. Further, when a write protect switch is provided as in the memory card 110 in the present embodiment, the image data, the photographing information, and the image management information are limited only when the write protect switch is set to the write protect. (Image file name), etc.
It may be stored in the OM 113.

For example, when a new photograph is taken and image data is to be stored in the memory card 110, if the memory card 110 is write-protected, generally, the storage of the image data is canceled or the write protection is performed. At this time, if the image data is temporarily stored in the program EEPROM 113, the image data can be recorded and held without releasing the write protection. Therefore, it is possible to turn off the power once and then insert another memory card 110 to store image data, thereby improving usability.

The storage of the image data in the program EEPROM 113 is executed for an emergency such as when the memory card 110 is not mounted or when the capacity of the memory card 110 is full. You can also. When image data is stored in the program EEPROM 113 without being stored in the memory card 110, it is preferable to warn that unprocessed image data remains in the main body.

When image data is stored in the program EEPROM 113 because of write protection, it is preferable to store shooting information such as shooting date and time together with the image data.
It is preferable to construct on the program EEPROM 113. For image management information, see Memory Card 110
The image file name recorded in the program EEPROM 113 is transferred to the program EEPROM 113 as shown in FIG.
The file name of the image data stored in the PROM 113 is added, and the regular image file information is constructed on the EEPROM 113 for the program. When the write protection is released, the information of the image file is stored together with the image data and the like. It is preferable to transfer the data to the memory card 110.
With this configuration, it is possible to match the recorded content of the memory card 110 with the information of the image file.

In the above description, the memory card 110 having the write protect switch is used. However, the write protect may be controlled by software processing.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a still video camera according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the memory card in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing how index image output is controlled in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a state of transfer of image management information in the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 101 Focus lens 102 Aperture 103 CCD 106 Pre-processing circuit 107 A / D converter 108 Signal processing circuit 109 Card controller 110 Memory card 110a Write protect switch 111 Memory controller 113 Program EEPROM 114 Main microcomputer

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A digital still camera configured to convert an optical image of a subject into image data and record the image data on a memory card detachably attached to the camera body. Program EEPROM,
A digital still camera storing data recorded on the memory card other than a program code. 2. The digital still camera according to claim 1, wherein when the memory card is write-protected, data recorded on the memory card is stored in the program EEPROM. 3. A digital still camera configured to convert an optical image of a subject into image data and record the image data on a memory card removably mounted on a camera body, wherein a write operation is performed on the memory card. A digital still camera, wherein data recorded on the memory card is stored in a memory of the camera body when protected. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording data of said memory card is image data.
The digital still camera described in any one of the above. 5. The digital still camera according to claim 1, wherein the data recorded on the memory card is shooting information. 6. The digital still camera according to claim 1, wherein the data recorded on the memory card is image management information of the memory card. 7. A digital still camera configured to convert an optical image of a subject into image data and record the image data on a memory card detachably attached to a camera body, wherein the image data is recorded on the memory card. A digital still camera characterized by generating index image data for displaying a selected image in a list and storing it in a memory provided in the camera body in advance. 8. The digital still camera according to claim 7, wherein the memory on the main body for storing the index image data in advance is a program EEPROM.