JPH1131377A - Data compressing recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely record compressed data and to efficiently use the capacity of a recording medium by comparing the residual capacity of a recording medium with the data quantity of compressed data, recording the compressed data on the recording medium when the data quantity is smaller than the residual capacity and generating a prescribed warning signal when the data quantity is larger than the residual capacity. SOLUTION: When compressed picture data are smaller than the residual capacity of a floppy disk 110, a first microcomputer 105 reads out the compressed data from a DRAM 24 by controlling a DRAM controller 25 to transmit them to a floppy disk controller 31 and records the compressed picture data on the floppy disk 110 by controlling it. Besides, when the compressed picture data are larger than the residual capacity of the floppy disk 11, the computer 105 transmits error information indicating that the capacity of the floppy disk 110 is deficient to a second microcomputer 106, which displays the warning of a fixed time on a display block 103.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a data compression recording apparatus for compressing various data such as image data and recording the same on a recording medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when various kinds of data such as image data are recorded on a recording medium, more data can be recorded on the recording medium by performing data compression. An example of the image data compression standard is a so-called JPEG (Joint Photographic C).
There is known a still image compression standard represented by an oding expert group. As a device for compressing image data by adopting such an image data compression standard and recording it on a recording medium, for example, a digital still camera or the like exists.

[0003]

In the case of a still image compression process represented by, for example, the JPEG system, the data size after the compression process varies greatly depending on the content of the image before compression (ie, the pattern of the original image). Therefore, when the compressed image data is recorded on a recording medium, the compressed image data may not be recorded depending on the remaining capacity (remaining recordable capacity) of the recording medium at that time. For example, when the remaining capacity of the recording medium is insufficient to record compressed image data in the digital still camera as described above, for example, an attempt is made to capture an image by pressing a shutter at a certain photo opportunity. Sometimes, the captured image cannot be recorded, and as a result, a shutter chance is missed.

[0004] For this reason, conventionally, when the remaining capacity of the recording medium becomes smaller than the maximum data size assumed when the image is compressed, for example, a warning can be issued or the image can be captured. Eliminating has been done. However, if a warning or image capture restriction based on the assumed maximum data size is performed,
For example, even if the remaining capacity is as large as the number of pieces of compressed image data that can be recorded for small-sized compressed image data, the small-sized compressed image data cannot be recorded. Since the capacity is not used up to the capacity limit, capacity waste increases.

Further, when the data size after the compression process greatly varies depending on the pattern of the original image before the compression as in the still image compression process represented by the JPEG method, the compression is not performed only once. , Compression twice,
There is also a method of reducing the variation in the data size after compression by performing the operations three times or more. However, performing the compression processing a plurality of times in this manner is not preferable because the processing time becomes long.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and it is possible to reliably record compressed data on a recording medium, to use the capacity of the recording medium without waste, and to reduce the processing time. It is an object of the present invention to provide a data compression recording device that can prevent a long time.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A data compression recording apparatus according to the present invention compresses captured data, stores captured data and compressed data before the compression, and stores the compressed data in an exchangeable recording medium. Control to compare the remaining capacity of the recording medium with the data amount of the compressed data when recording on the recording medium, and control the recording of the compressed data on the recording medium when the data amount is smaller than the remaining capacity. The above problem is solved by generating a predetermined warning display signal and / or a warning sound signal when the data amount is larger than the remaining capacity.

That is, according to the present invention, when recording on a recording medium, the remaining capacity of the recording medium is compared with the data amount of the compressed data, and when the data amount is smaller than the remaining capacity, the compressed data is stored on the recording medium. By performing recording control, the capacity of the recording medium can be used without waste, and when the data amount is larger than the remaining capacity, a predetermined warning display signal and / or a warning sound signal is generated, for example, to prompt the exchange of the recording medium. Thus, the compressed data can be reliably recorded on the recording medium, and the processing time can be prevented from becoming long.

[0009]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a data compression recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
1 shows a schematic circuit configuration of a digital still camera using No. 10;

The digital still camera 1 includes an optical system 20, an image pickup device CCD 21, a sample-and-hold and analog-to-digital conversion circuit 22 (hereinafter simply referred to as a sample-and-hold circuit 22), and a camera signal processing circuit 23 as main components. Camera block 101
, A DRAM (random write / read memory requiring a memory holding operation) 24, a DRAM controller 25,
A display block 103 comprising a CD (liquid crystal display) panel 11 and a panel signal processing circuit 26 for supplying signals of respective color components of R, G, B (red, green, blue) to the LCD panel 11; And an operation input unit 27 including various operation buttons / switches 12, a first microcomputer (hereinafter, referred to as a first microcomputer 105), a second microcomputer (hereinafter, referred to as a second microcomputer 106), and a floppy It comprises a disk controller (FDC) 31, a floppy disk drive (FDD) 32, and a buzzer 109 as sounding means. The DRAM 24, the DRAM controller 25, the first microcomputer 105, and the floppy disk controller 31 are mutually connected by a common bus.

In this digital still camera 1, a light beam from an object is transmitted through an optical system 2 comprising an objective lens or the like.
The light passes through 0 and is received by the CCD 21 and is converted into an electric signal by the CCD 21. The output signal from the CCD 21 is A / D converted to a 10-bit digital signal after being subjected to a sample-and-hold process by a sample-and-hold circuit 22. The A / D converted 10-bit digital signal is supplied to the camera signal processing circuit 23.

The camera signal processing circuit 23 performs a predetermined process on the 10-bit digital signal supplied from the sample hold circuit 22, and converts the processed signal into a DRA signal.
Output to the M controller 25. Camera signal processing circuit 2
3 generates an 8-bit luminance signal Y and a 4-bit color difference signal C from an input signal in this embodiment, and outputs these signals Y and C to the DRAM controller 25.

The DRAM controller 25 supplies the luminance signal Y and the color difference signal C from the camera signal processing circuit 23 to the panel signal processing circuit 26 of the display block 103 as they are. If the CCD 21 is not a square lattice, DR
The AM controller 25 converts the luminance signal Y and the color difference signal C from the camera signal processing circuit 23 into a square grid and supplies the squared grid to the panel signal processing circuit 26. The panel signal processing circuit 26
A signal of a red (R) component, a signal of a green (G) component, and a signal of a blue (B) component are generated from the input luminance signal Y and color difference signal C, and these R, G, B color component signals are converted to an LCD panel. 11 is output. As a result, an image obtained by photographing the subject is displayed on the LCD panel 11.

The DRAM controller 25 converts the luminance signal Y and the color difference signal C from the camera signal processing circuit 23 into a DRAM 2 based on the control of the first microcomputer 105.
4 in a predetermined area. The DRAM 24 has a total storage area of 8 megabytes by using two 4 megabytes.

The operation input unit 27 detects the operation contents of the shutter button 3 and various operation buttons / switches 12 of the digital still camera, and outputs the detected signal to the second microcomputer 106 as an operation signal.

The first microcomputer 105 and the second microcomputer 1
06 is, for example, RISC (Reduced In) capable of high-speed processing.
A struction set computer (reduction instruction set computer) type is used, and a read-only memory (ROM) in which a software program for controlling each block is stored.

The second microcomputer 106 includes an operation input unit 27
Executing a software program stored in the internal ROM based on an operation signal from the CPU to issue various commands to the first microcomputer 105, display control for the display block 103, and display control for the buzzer 109, which will be described later. Processing such as sound generation control is performed.

The first microcomputer 105, based on an operation signal from the operation input unit 27,
In response to the command issued by the control unit 6, processing such as image compression / expansion and file management during photographing, reproduction, and editing is performed.

The first microcomputer 105 converts the luminance signal Y and the color difference signal C obtained from the camera block 101 by photographing the subject into the DRAM.
The controller 25 stores the luminance signal Y and the color difference signal C in a predetermined area of the DRAM 24, and stores the stored luminance signal Y and color difference signal C in, for example, the JPEG (Joint Photographic coding Experts Group).
p) Perform the data compression process. In addition, this first
Microcomputer 105 stores the JPEG-compressed data in a different area of DRAM 24 from the JPE
A process of writing as G stream data is performed. That is, in the DRAM 24, the luminance signal Y and the color difference signal C before the data compression processing and the data after the data compression processing are stored in different areas.

Further, the first microcomputer 105 controls the floppy disk controller 31 to reproduce the 00 track on the outermost circumference of the magnetic disk in the floppy disk 110 by the floppy disk drive 32, and reproduces the root directory area and the root directory area in this track. FAT
By reading data described in a (File Allocation Table) area, various information such as a file name and its address existing in the data area of the magnetic disk is extracted. After that, the first microcomputer 105 creates a file list table (File List Table), and lists the various information extracted earlier in this table. The first microcomputer 105 records files on the floppy disk 110 and manages the recorded files based on the file list table.

Further, the first microcomputer 105 has the D
The JPEG stream data is read from the RAM 24, and the JPEG stream data is read from a so-called PC /
MS- compatible with AT compatible personal computer
It also performs a process of converting to a DOS (Microsoft Disc Operating System: a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation) format and supplying it to a floppy disk controller (FDC) 31. Then, the first microcomputer 105 records the data converted into the MS-DOS format on the floppy disk 110 loaded in the floppy disk drive 32 (writes the data into the magnetic disk in the cartridge). Control.

The floppy disk drive 32 has a cartridge insertion opening of the floppy disk 110 as described later, and the floppy disk 101 can be inserted and ejected through the cartridge insertion opening. In the floppy disk drive 32, the magnetic disk of the inserted floppy disk 101 is rotated by a spindle motor, and data is recorded / reproduced by a magnetic head.

Next, in the digital still camera of the present embodiment having the configuration shown in FIG. 1, the flow of processing from compression to recording of an actually photographed image and the flow of the floppy disk 110 as a recording medium are described. The flow of processing for issuing a warning or the like according to the remaining capacity (the remaining capacity of the magnetic disk) will be described with reference to FIG. 1 and the flowchart of FIG.

In FIG. 2, the shutter button 3 of the operation input unit 27 is depressed (turned on) in step ST2 when the digital still camera is performing an operation necessary for normal photographing in step ST1. )When,
The second microcomputer 106 outputs an O signal from the shutter button 3
Upon receiving the N input, a command indicating that the ON input of the shutter button 3 has been received is transmitted to the first microcomputer 105.

When the first microcomputer 105 knows that the shutter button 3 has been turned on from the above command, it controls each block in step ST3 to perform an image fetching process. That is, the first microcomputer 105 is a DRAM
By controlling the controller 25, the uncompressed image signal captured by the camera block 101 is transferred to the DRAM 2
4, the image is captured.

When the capture of the uncompressed image is completed, the first microcomputer 105 controls the DRAM controller 25 to read out the uncompressed image data stored in the DRAM 24, and proceeds to step ST4. Then, the read image data is received and compressed. The compression processing method at this time is the JPEG method. When the compression process is completed, the first microcomputer 10
5 controls the DRAM controller 25 to store the compressed image data in the DRAM 2.
4 is stored in an area different from the area in which the image data before compression is stored.

At this time, the first microcomputer 105
Based on the FAT data and the file list table, the remaining capacity (remaining recordable capacity) of the magnetic disk of the floppy disk 110 is recognized. At step ST5, the compressed image data and the floppy disk are recognized. The remaining capacity of the disk 110 is compared.

In step ST5, if the compressed image data is smaller than the remaining capacity of the floppy disk 110, that is, if the remaining capacity of the floppy disk 110 is sufficient to record the compressed image data, In step ST6, the first microcomputer 105 controls the DRAM controller 25 to
Then, the compressed image data is read from the disk drive and sent to the floppy disk controller 31, and the floppy disk controller 31 is controlled to record the compressed image data on the floppy disk 110 by the floppy disk drive 32. After the process in step ST6, the process returns to step ST1. On the other hand, in step ST5, if the compressed image data is larger than the remaining capacity of the floppy disk 110, that is, if the remaining capacity of the floppy disk 110 is insufficient to record the compressed image data, The first microcomputer 105 transmits error information to the second microcomputer 106 indicating that the capacity of the floppy disk 110 is insufficient.

When the second microcomputer 106 receives error information from the first microcomputer 105 indicating that the capacity of the floppy disk 110 is insufficient, the second microcomputer 106 proceeds to step S.
At T7, the display block 103 is caused to display a warning for a certain period of time, and the buzzer 109 is made to generate a warning sound for a certain period of time. The warning display and the warning sound are a display and a sound for notifying the user that the image data cannot be recorded due to a shortage of the remaining capacity of the floppy disk.
It should be noted that the warning display and the generation of the warning sound need not always be performed at the same time, but may be performed only on one of them or at a time difference.

Further, after or simultaneously with the generation of the above-mentioned warning display and warning sound, the second microcomputer 106 replaces the floppy disk with another one in step ST8, and transfers the image data to the other floppy disk. The display block 103 displays that recording is possible.

Thereafter, the second microcomputer 106 waits for a user's instruction from the operation input unit 27, and controls each unit according to the instruction input from the user. That is, the second
The microcomputer 106 determines in step ST9 whether or not the floppy disk has been replaced by another floppy disk by the user, for example, and returns to step ST5 when the floppy disk has been replaced. When returning to step ST5, the first microcomputer 105 determines the remaining capacity of the replaced floppy disk in the same manner as described above, and according to the remaining capacity of the replaced floppy disk, the first microcomputer 105 performs steps ST6 or ST7 onward. Perform processing. Further, in the case of the above-mentioned step ST9, in response to the user's selection, that is, the user's instruction input from the operation input unit 27, the step ST1 is performed.
It is also possible to return to the normal processing of.

As described above, according to the digital still camera of the embodiment of the present invention, the capacity of the recording medium can be used without waste. Since image data can be recorded, there is no need to miss a photo opportunity, and there is no need to perform new data capture and compression processing when the recording medium is replaced due to insufficient storage capacity. Time can also be reduced.

In the above-described embodiment, a floppy disk is used as an example of a recording medium. However, the recording medium handled in the present invention is not limited to this, and may be, for example, a memory, a so-called mini disk (MD, a trademark of Sony Corporation) ), A hard disk or the like can be used.

In the present embodiment, a digital still camera has been described as an example, but the present invention is applicable to all image capture devices. That is, for example, the present invention is applicable to any of a personal computer with a capture board, a capture deck, and the like. At this time, any recording medium may be used.

Further, the data used in the present invention is not limited to the above-described image data, but various data can be used. For example, a compressed data file is used as in the case of compressing a data file on a personal computer. You can also.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show the appearance of the digital still camera 1 according to the embodiment described above. FIG. 3 shows the appearance of the digital still camera 1 of the present embodiment from the front side, and FIG. 4 shows the appearance from the side.

Digital still camera 1 of the present embodiment
As shown in FIG. 3, has a portable rectangular shape having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped overall shape. In the digital still camera 1, a shutter button 3, an objective lens 4, and a flash 5 are attached to an upper part on the front side of a housing 2, respectively, so that the shutter button 3 can be pressed by a user's right index finger.

The digital still camera 1 has an open / close lid 7 attached to one side surface 6 of the housing 2.
A floppy disk cartridge 8 containing a 3.5-inch magnetic disk 9 therein can be loaded into the housing 2 from the side 6. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 4 showing the external appearance of the digital still camera 1 from the back side, the floppy disk drive 32 is provided inside the housing 2. A floppy disk cartridge 8 (hereinafter, simply referred to as a cartridge 8) is inserted from the shutter 8a side through the cartridge insertion opening 32a.

Further, the digital still camera 1
The LCD (Liquid Crystal Dis
play) panel 11 is attached, and a subject is displayed on the LCD panel 11 during shooting. Then, in the digital still camera 1,
When the subject is photographed by pressing the shutter button 3, the compressed image data (hereinafter referred to as main body image data) and the main body image data of the subject are stored on the magnetic disk 9 in the cartridge 8 loaded in the floppy disk drive 32. Is recorded in a file format.

When reproducing the main body image data after photographing the subject, the digital still camera 1 displays six thumbnail images of the thumbnail image data recorded on the magnetic disk 9 on the LCD panel 11. By designating a specific thumbnail image, the main image data corresponding to the thumbnail image is read from the magnetic disk 9, expanded, and displayed on the LCD panel 11.

Further, the digital still camera 1 deletes unnecessary data from the main body image data and the thumbnail image data recorded on the magnetic disk 9,
Various editing such as changing the arrangement of the thumbnail images displayed on the CD panel 11 can be performed.

That is, in the digital still camera 1, various operation buttons / buttons are provided around the LCD panel 11.
Switches 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d, 12e, 1
2f, 12g and the like are provided, and by operating these various operation buttons and the like, operations such as zooming at the time of shooting, designation of a specific thumbnail image at the time of reproduction, and editing such as data deletion can be performed. I have.

The opening and closing of the opening and closing cover 7 is performed by the opening and closing operation section 13.
Is moved up and down so that the engagement claws 14a and 14b interlocked with the opening / closing operation section 13 and the engagement sections 7a and
7b by releasing or holding the engaged state.

[0045]

As described in detail above, the data compression and recording apparatus of the present invention compresses the captured data, stores the captured data and the compressed data before compression, and records the compressed data. When recording on a possible recording medium, the remaining capacity of the recording medium is compared with the data amount of the compressed data, and when the data amount is smaller than the remaining capacity, control is performed to record the compressed data on the recording medium. By generating a predetermined warning display signal and / or a warning sound signal when the data amount is large, the compressed data can be reliably recorded on the recording medium, the capacity of the recording medium can be used without waste, and the processing time can be reduced. Can be prevented from becoming longer.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block circuit diagram showing a circuit configuration of a digital still camera according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a flow of processing from compression to recording of an actually photographed image, and a flow of processing for issuing a warning or the like according to the remaining capacity of a recording medium, in the digital still camera of the present embodiment. It is a flowchart for explaining.

FIG. 3 is an external perspective view of the digital still camera according to the embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the front.

FIG. 4 is an external perspective view of the digital still camera according to the embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the rear side.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 1 digital still camera, 2 housing, 3 shutter button, 8 cartridge, 9 magnetic disk, 11 LCD panel, 12 operation button / switch, 20 optical system, 24 DRAM, 25 D
RAM controller, 27 operation input unit, 31 floppy disk controller, 32 floppy disk drive, 101 camera block, 103
Display block, 105 first microcomputer, 106
2nd microcomputer, 109 buzzer, 110 floppy disk

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Koji Okumoto 6-35, Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Inside Sony Corporation (72) Katsuhiko Watanabe 6-7 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo No. 35 Inside Sony Corporation (72) Kunihiko Yamatani Inventor 6-7-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Inside Sony Corporation (72) Masanori Kimura 6-35, Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo No. Sony Corporation

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. A data capturing means for capturing data, a data compressing means for compressing data captured from the data capturing means, a data storing means for storing the captured data and compressed data from the data compressing means, An exchangeable recording medium for recording compressed data, comparing the remaining capacity of the recording medium with the data amount of the compressed data, and when the data amount is smaller than the remaining capacity, recording the compressed data on the recording medium And a control means for controlling the generation of a predetermined warning display signal and / or a warning sound signal when the data amount is larger than the remaining capacity. 2. The control means, when the data amount is larger than the remaining capacity, controls the generation of a display signal and / or a sound signal for instructing replacement of the recording medium, and performs the replacement in response to the replacement instruction. The remaining capacity of the replaced recording medium and the data amount are compared, and when the data amount is smaller than the remaining capacity of the exchanged recording medium, control is performed to record the compressed data on the exchanged recording medium. 2. The data compression recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the data amount is larger than the remaining capacity of the exchanged recording medium, the predetermined warning display signal and / or the warning sound signal are again controlled to be generated. 3. The data compression / recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit capable of displaying at least characters and / or a sound generation unit capable of generating a sound. 4. The data compression recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means controls generation of said predetermined warning display signal and / or warning sound signal for a predetermined time. 5. The data compression method according to claim 1, further comprising an operation input unit for inputting a selection instruction, wherein said control unit performs control in accordance with the selection instruction input from said operation input unit. Recording device. 6. An image pickup device for converting incident light into an electric signal, an optical system for forming an image of light from a subject on the image pickup device, and an electric signal from the image pickup device. A / D to convert to image data
A digital still camera comprising: a conversion unit; and a data conversion unit that converts compressed data from the data compression unit into data of a predetermined format that can be recorded on the recording medium. 2. The data compression recording device according to 1. 7. The data capturing means includes: an image signal input terminal for inputting an analog image signal; and an A / D converter for converting the analog image signal input to the image signal input terminal into digital image data. 2. The data compression recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 8. The data compression recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said data capturing means has an image data input terminal for inputting digital image data. 9. The data compression / recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said data capturing means has a data input terminal for inputting a digital data file. 10. The data compression recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said recording medium is a magnetic disk. 11. The data compression recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said recording medium is a magneto-optical disk. 12. The data compression recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said recording medium is a semiconductor memory.