JPH10304233A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To identify whether a picture of an object obtained by including a camera main body is an erect image or an image of an inclined object, and to allow a smooth shutter operation by providing a camera main body with; an angle sensor to detect a camera inclination angle; plural shutter buttons, and a means for recording the inclination angle of a photographed image. SOLUTION: A camera main body is provided with shutter buttons 2a and 2b for an erect state and an inclined state, an angle sensor 3 for detecting the inclination angle of the camera main body, a picture information recording part 4, and a picture outputting part 5. The picture information recording part 4 records the inclination angle of the picture and the picture information obtained by image pick-up, and outputs it through the picture outputting part 5 to an external outputting device. Thus, in the external outputting device, an inclined picture can be seen as an erect image by using the inclination angle information. Also, the camera main body is provided with the shutter buttons 2a and 2b so that a shutter button operation can be smoothly attained, and a satisfactory output picture can be obtained without any hand shake.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera, and more particularly, to imaging a subject in a state where the camera body is tilted, for example, by 90.degree. In this case, it is possible to identify whether the captured image is a normal image or an image in a tilted state, and when the image is output (reproduced or printed), the image can be changed to the normal image state. About the camera.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional camera, when a subject is imaged and an image obtained by the imaging is output (reproduced or printed), the output image is defined as an image tilted according to the tilt angle of the camera body. Become. That is, the output image when the image taken with the camera body in the upright state is output is
Although the image is a normal image, an output image obtained by outputting an image captured by tilting the camera body by 90 ° is an image tilted by 90 °.
If the orientation of the output image is different as described above, the state becomes extremely difficult to see, and it is necessary to rotate the orientation of the output image each time. For example, when the image output device is an output screen such as a video camera or a CRT, it is necessary to rotate the output screen.

Therefore, in recent years, in view of such a problem, “a horizontal key for setting the direction of the camera body and a vertical key are provided on the camera body, and when the camera takes an image, the horizontal key or the vertical key is used. Operate one of the arrow keys,
A camera in which the shutter is operated after setting the orientation information of the camera body "has been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 8-22).
No. 3520). In the case of this camera, there is an advantage that the captured image is rotated based on the orientation information of the camera body and the output image can always be a normal image.

[0004]

However, in the case of the above-mentioned camera, when taking an image of the camera, either the horizontal key or the vertical key of the camera body is operated to set the direction information of the camera body, and then the shutter is released. I need to do it,
There are the following issues. In other words, when capturing an image of a subject, two operations, ie, the operation of setting the orientation information of the camera body and the operation of the shutter, are always required. When an image is taken with the camera body tilted, the position of the shutter button is located on the side surface, so that the shutter operation becomes difficult. When operating the shutter, "shake" is likely to occur,
In many cases, the image is blurred. And other issues.

[0005] The present invention has been created in view of the above-described problems.
Camera body in upright position (ie in standard orientation)
Instead, it is an object of the present invention to provide a camera that can identify whether an image obtained by imaging in a tilted state is a normal image or an image in a tilted state, and that can smoothly perform a shutter operation.

[0006]

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera as a means for solving the above-mentioned problems, comprising: an angle sensor for detecting a camera tilt angle; a plurality of shutter buttons; And means for recording the inclination angle information of the image picked up in step (1).

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the camera body, two or more shutter buttons corresponding to the camera tilt angle are provided.
It is characterized in that it has means for recording tilt angle information of an image captured by the camera.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the shutter button has an upright state shutter button for photographing the camera body in an upright state, and the camera body is tilted. It is characterized by having a tilt state shutter button for shooting in a state.

The camera according to the fourth aspect is the camera according to the first aspect.
An invention according to a third aspect is characterized in that an upright state shutter button is provided on an upper surface of the camera body, and a tilt state shutter button is provided on a side surface of the camera body. A camera according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the invention of the first to fourth aspects, the camera further comprises means for changing the angle of the image according to the angle information recorded by the means for recording the angle information. .

The camera includes a general single-lens reflex camera for recording a subject image on a film, a video camera for recording on a recording medium such as a magnetic tape, a disk, or a semiconductor memory, a CCD, or the like. Electronic camera such as an image sensor. Further, the “camera tilt” refers to a tilt when the camera body is rotated or rotated along the optical axis of the camera, in other words, when the standard shooting state of the camera body is 0 °, 0 ° to ± 0 ° It refers to a state of being rotated by 180 °. The “image tilt angle information” is, for example, information on a tilt angle with respect to the normal image when an image obtained in a standard shooting state is a normal image. Further, the "shutter button" includes a key for operating an image capturing operation or a shutter operating means such as a switch.

The camera of the present invention captures an image by pointing a lens at a subject similarly to a normal camera. However, in the present invention, since a plurality of shutters are provided, the camera body is tilted. By operating the corresponding specific shutter button, the inclination state of the image of the subject can be recorded when the image is captured. Accordingly, when obtaining an output image (reproduction or print) of the image, the image, which is tilted based on the tilt angle information,
For example, for an image that is tilted 90 °, the output image can be obtained as a normal image by rotating the image 90 ° in the reverse direction.

[0012]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the first aspect of the present invention, an angle sensor for detecting a camera tilt angle, a plurality of shutter buttons, and Since a means for recording tilt angle information of a captured image is provided, the subject is not positioned in an upright state of the camera body (that is, in a standard orientation).
When the image is captured in a tilted state, it is possible to identify whether the captured image is a normal image or an image in a tilted state,
Since it has a plurality of shutter buttons, it is sufficient to operate the shutter button at an easy-to-operate position regardless of the inclination of the camera body, so that the operation can be performed smoothly and a good output image without camera shake or the like can be obtained. Has an effect.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the camera body includes:
Since two or more shutter buttons corresponding to the camera tilt angle and means for recording tilt angle information of an image captured by the camera are provided, the subject can be moved upright (that is, in a standard orientation). When the image is taken in an inclined state instead of the state of (2), it is possible to identify whether the image obtained by the imaging is a normal image or an image in a tilted state. Since the shutter button is provided, the user can operate the shutter button at an easy-to-operate position regardless of the inclination of the camera body, so that the operation can be performed smoothly and a good output image can be obtained without camera shake or the like. .

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the shutter button has an upright state shutter button for taking a picture with the camera body standing upright, and a shutter button for taking a picture with the camera body tilted. Since the camera has the tilt state shutter button, when the subject is imaged in a state where the camera body is not in an upright state (that is, in a standard orientation) but in an inclined state, the image obtained by the imaging is a normal image or It is possible to identify whether the image is in a tilted state, and it is possible to freely select whether to capture a captured image as a normal image or a tilted image.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, an upright shutter button is provided on the upper surface of the camera body, and a tilt shutter button is provided on the side surface of the camera body. Therefore, when the output image is captured so as to be a normal image, the shutter button located on the upper surface side of the camera body may always be operated, so that the operability is improved. According to the invention of claim 5, there is provided a means for changing the angle of the image based on the angle information recorded by the means for recording the angle information. The image in the normal image state is used as it is without using it.
This has the effect that it can be obtained on a monitor such as an RT.

[0016]

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
1 to 3 show an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a front view of a camera main body, FIG. 2 is a front view of the camera main body in a state where the camera main body is tilted by 90 °, and FIG. is there. By the way, the camera of the present embodiment is composed of a lens, a shutter, a film storage unit, a shutter button, and other components similarly to a conventional general camera, and thus a description of the general structure of the camera is omitted. Hereinafter, the characteristic portions will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the camera according to the present embodiment has a camera body 1 having a plurality of shutter buttons 2a and 2b for capturing images and a tilt angle of the camera body 1. , An image information recording unit 4, and an image output unit 5.

The shutter button 2a is provided on the upper part 1a of the camera body 1, and the shutter button 2b is
It is provided on the side 1 b of the camera body 1. That is, in the camera of the present embodiment, two shutter buttons 2a and 2b are provided on the camera body 1, and the shutter buttons 2a and 2b are configured so that the shutter can be operated by pressing any of the buttons 2a and 2b. Become. Normally, when the camera is used in the upright state, which is the standard shooting state, the shutter button 2a located on the upper portion 1a of the camera body 1 serves as an upright state shutter button, and is located on the side 1b of the camera body 1. The shutter button 2b serves as a tilt state shutter button. By operating the shutter buttons 2a and 2b, the shutter opens and closes, and image information of the subject can be recorded in the image information recording unit 4.

The angle sensor 3 is a sensor for detecting the angle of inclination of the camera body 1. The inclination of the camera body 1 in an erect state, which is a standard photographing state, is set to 0 °. It is possible to detect whether the camera is tilted by 90 ° or in the upright state. The angle sensor 3 can detect whether the image captured by the camera is a normal image or a tilted image (here, an image tilted by 90 °). It is connected to the recording unit 4 and can record tilt angle information of an image.

The image information recording section 4 stores information on whether the camera body 1 detected by the angle sensor 3 is in a state of 0 ° or 90 °, and image information obtained by imaging. A portion for recording includes a CPU 6 and a recording unit 7. The CPU 6 is a control unit for controlling capture of an image by operating the shutter buttons 2a and 2b, and causes the recording unit 7 to record the captured image information and the tilt angle information detected by the angle sensor 3. The information is output to the image output unit 5. The image output unit 5 is a unit for outputting image information recorded in the image information recording unit 4 and tilt angle information to an external output device such as a CRT. Here, it is configured by an I / O port connected to the CPU 6.

The camera of this embodiment can capture the subject as an image by pointing the lens of the camera body at the subject and pressing the shutter button in the same manner as a normal camera. In the present embodiment, when the photographer attempts to shoot with the camera body 1 tilted (90 ° tilted), the angle sensor 3 provided on the camera body 1 sets the captured image to 90 ° tilted. It detects that there is, and inputs this tilt angle information to the image information recording unit 4. Here, since the shutter button 2b provided on the side of the camera body 1 is located at the upper position of the camera body 1, by operating the shutter button 2b, image information is obtained in the same manner as a normal camera. Image information is input to the recording unit 4. That is, in addition to the image information, the tilt angle information is always recorded in the camera body 1. The output image of the image recorded in the image information recording unit 4 is transmitted to the C
It can be obtained from an external output device such as an RT. Since this output image includes tilt angle information in addition to the image information, the tilted image is changed to a normal image state by using the tilt angle information by computer software, and all output images are output. Images can be rearranged and viewed as normal images.

As described above, in the camera of the present embodiment, since the angle sensor and the plurality of shutter buttons are provided, the subject is not in the upright state (ie, in the standard orientation) with the camera body. If the image is taken in a tilted state, it is possible to identify whether the image obtained by the shooting is a normal image or an image in a tilted state. There is no need to operate the shutter button where it is easy to operate.
This operation can be performed smoothly, and a good output image can be obtained without camera shake or the like.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but includes a configuration that can be modified and implemented without departing from the gist of the present invention. In the embodiment described above, the configuration in which two shutter buttons are provided has been described. However, a configuration in which three or more shutter buttons are provided may be employed. A plurality of shutter buttons may be provided on the same plane (side) of the camera body, or may be provided on different surfaces (sides). For example, when three are provided, it is preferable that the camera body is provided on each of the upper side, the right side, and the left side in the standard shooting state. The arrangement of the shutter button may be different depending on the external shape of the camera body. For example, in the case of a front pentagon, five shutter buttons may be provided.

Further, the camera body may be provided with two or more shutter buttons corresponding to the camera tilt angle and means for recording tilt angle information of an image picked up by the camera. In this configuration, since two or more shutter buttons are provided and each shutter button corresponds to the camera tilt angle in advance, it is not necessary to separately provide the angle sensor in the above-described embodiment. It's easy. That is, for example, when the shutter button is an upright state shutter button for shooting with the camera body standing upright, and an inclined state shutter button for shooting with the camera body tilted, When the upright state shutter button is operated, the fact that the camera tilt is 0 °, that is, the camera is in the upright (standard shooting state) state is input to the image information recording unit 4, and the tilt state shutter button is operated. Camera tilt is ±
90 °, that is, the image information recording unit 4 is input to the image information recording unit 4 that the camera is tilted by 90 ° with respect to the upright (standard shooting state) state. Since the tilt angle is defined, it is not necessary to separately provide an angle sensor, so that the configuration can be simplified.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a camera body showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a state where the camera body is tilted by 90 °.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Camera body, 2 ... Shutter button, 2a
... Shutter button for upright state, 2b ... Shutter button for tilt state, 3 ... Angle sensor, 4 ...
・ Image information recording unit, 5 ・ ・ ・ Image output unit, 6 ・ ・ ・ CP
U, 7: recording unit, 8: lens

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI H04N 5/781

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A camera body comprising: an angle sensor for detecting a camera tilt angle; a plurality of shutter buttons; and means for recording tilt angle information of an image captured by the camera. camera. 2. A camera characterized in that the camera body is provided with two or more shutter buttons corresponding to the camera tilt angle and means for recording tilt angle information of an image captured by the camera. 3. The shutter button has an upright shutter button for taking an image with the camera body standing upright, and a tilting shutter button for taking a picture with the camera body tilted. The camera according to claim 2. 4. The camera according to claim 1, wherein an upright shutter button is provided on an upper surface of the camera body, and a tilt shutter button is provided on a side surface of the camera body. 5. The camera according to claim 1, further comprising: means for changing an angle of the image based on angle information recorded by means for recording the angle information.