KR100701052B1 - Digital Still Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a digital camera device capable of recording voice, comprising: an imaging unit (10) for capturing an external still image and converting the same into an electrical signal; A recording unit 20 which receives an external voice and converts it into an electrical signal; A memory unit 30 for storing the captured still image and the input voice; An operation unit 40 composed of keys for manipulating imaging and recording; And in accordance with the operation of the operation unit 40, the imaging unit 10 and the recording unit 20 are interlocked to perform imaging and recording, and to associate the recorded voice with the captured still image for a predetermined time before or after the imaging. It is configured to include a control unit 50 to be stored in the memory unit 30.

Digital camera, voice, recording, imaging.

Description

Digital camera device {Digital Still Camera}

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a digital camera device according to the present invention.

2 is a diagram for explaining an example of recording / imaging according to the present invention;

3 is a diagram for explaining another example of recording / imaging according to the present invention;

4 is a diagram for explaining another example of recording / imaging according to the present invention;

5 is a view for explaining another example of recording / imaging according to the present invention;

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a digital camera apparatus capable of recording audio, and more particularly, to a digital camera apparatus having a function of recording and storing a still image as well as an audio at the time of imaging.

A conventional digital camera device is provided with an imaging element (CCD), and is comprised so that a still image may be image | photographed and stored in a memory by pressing a shutter. At this time, the still image is captured one by one, and the captured image is encoded according to a predetermined format and stored in a file name according to a predetermined rule. Typically, compression and storage in the JPEG format is common.

However, in the conventional digital cameras, only images are captured and stored, and it is impossible to store audio. Therefore, a camcorder must be used to simultaneously store audio and images. However, a camcorder is mainly used for capturing and storing moving images, and a large memory is required to store audio and moving images. Therefore, the number of pixels is inevitably lower than that of a digital camera in order to increase the shooting time.

In addition, although it is possible to capture only one scene of a moving picture photographed with a camcorder, even if a scene is captured from a moving picture photographed with a camcorder, the voice corresponding to the scene is not captured together.

Recently, a digital camera capable of capturing a fixed time moving picture has appeared, but its function is almost the same as that of a camcorder, so even if some scenes are captured, the corresponding audio is not captured together.

Moreover, unlike the situation at the time of taking a picture, a camcorder is generally used to leave a daily appearance, and such a situation is different from the momentary and noisy situation that usually occurs when taking a picture.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-described circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a digital camera device capable of recording and storing a still picture, that is, a voice for a very short time when a picture is taken, together with the picture.

The present invention has been made to achieve the above object, the digital camera device according to the present invention, the digital camera device for capturing and storing a still image, the digital camera device for capturing an external still image and converting it into an electrical signal; A recording unit which receives an external voice and converts it into an electrical signal; A memory unit which stores the captured still picture and the input voice; An operation unit composed of keys for operating imaging and recording; And a control unit configured to perform imaging and recording by interlocking the imaging unit and the recording unit according to an operation of the operation unit, and to store the recorded voice in the memory unit in association with the captured still image for a predetermined time before or after imaging. Characterized in that it comprises a.

Here, the recording unit continuously records the voice for the most recent predetermined time, and when the image capturing unit captures a still image, the controller controls the voice of the most recent predetermined time recorded in the recording unit at the time of the image capturing. Can be stored in the memory unit in association with the captured still image.

According to the present invention, the operation unit includes a recording key for operating recording start / end and an imaging key for executing imaging, the recording unit executes recording according to the operation of the recording key, and the imaging unit captures the image. It is preferable to perform imaging in accordance with the operation of the key.

According to the present invention, the recording unit starts and ends the recording according to the operation of the recording key, the imaging unit executes the imaging according to the operation of the imaging key, and the control unit allows a plurality of times of imaging after the start of recording. When the recording is finished, it is also possible to correlate a plurality of still images picked up between the start of recording and the end of the recording with the recorded voice to be stored in the memory unit.

According to the present invention, the recording key and the imaging key may be formed separately from each other.

Alternatively, the recording key and the imaging key may be formed of one operation key, and may be executed in the order of recording start, imaging, and recording termination each time the operation key is operated.

According to the present invention, the control unit may continue recording for a predetermined time after capturing, and store the recorded audio in the memory unit in association with the captured still image.

Further, according to the present invention, the recorded voice and the captured still picture can be encoded according to each format and stored as each file having the same file name.

Alternatively, the recorded voice and the captured still picture may be encoded according to each format and stored as one file.

The recording and the imaging are performed by a timer provided in the operation unit.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail the present invention.

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a digital camera device according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the digital camera apparatus 1 for capturing and storing still images according to the present invention includes: an imaging unit 10 for capturing and converting an external still image into an electrical signal; A recording unit 20 which receives an external voice and converts it into an electrical signal; A memory unit 30 for storing the captured still image and the input voice; An operation unit 40 composed of keys for manipulating imaging and recording; And in accordance with the operation of the operation unit 40, the imaging unit 10 and the recording unit 20 are interlocked to perform imaging and recording, and to associate the recorded voice with the captured still image for a predetermined time before or after the imaging. It is configured to include a control unit 50 to be stored in the memory unit 30.

The image capturing unit 10 captures a still image drawn through the lens 12 with the image capturing device 14, converts the image into an electrical signal, digitizes it in the image encoder 16, compresses it according to a predetermined format, and encodes the encoding. Function to perform

The recording unit 20 functions to convert an external voice into an electrical signal by the microphone 22 and digitize it in the audio encoder 24 to perform encoding according to a predetermined format.

The memory unit 30 may be an internal memory fixed to the inside of the digital camera device 1 or an external memory. External memory may include a variety of memories commonly known as memory cards.

The operation unit 40 is composed of various buttons or dials including a shutter, a timer, and the like, so that the user can operate the digital camera device 1. The operation unit 40 allows the user to record and capture voice and images in various modes.

Although not shown, the digital camera device 1 is preferably provided with an interface that can be connected to a computer or the like. For example, the USB port and the like are widely used in the past, and in order to download the voice and / or image stored in the memory unit 30 to a computer or the like, it is necessary to support such an interface.

The controller 50 records / photographs the voice and the still image in the memory unit 30 according to various modes to be described later. The audio is recorded for a predetermined time before, after, or before and after the imaging of the still image, and the recorded voice is stored in the memory unit 30 in association with the still image.

Thus, by using the digital camera device 1 according to the present invention, by recording both the still picture and the surrounding voice at the time of capturing the still picture, the user can save up to the situation at the time of taking the picture.

There may be a variety of methods for recording / recording voices and still images. Hereinafter, representative examples thereof will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

2 is a diagram for explaining an example of recording / imaging according to the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 2, according to the present invention, recording continues continuously, and when an image is taken in the middle thereof, an image recorded for a predetermined period before the imaged point of time is encoded and stored together with the captured still image. do.

In other words, the recording unit 20 continuously records the voice for the most recent predetermined time, and when the image capturing unit 10 captures a still image, the controller 50 records the recording unit 20 at the time of capturing the image. The voice of the most recent predetermined time recorded in the memory is stored in the memory unit 30 in association with the captured still image.

For example, if only 10 seconds of memory space for voice recording is allocated and a new voice is input after 10 seconds in a first-in, first-out manner, the voice of 10 seconds is deleted and the voice is recorded from 10 seconds before the current time. . Then, when the image is taken, the audio recorded at the moment of the image capture is stored together with the captured still image.

In this case, there is an advantage that the user does not need to separately operate for start / end of recording. Here, the voice recording for the previous 10 seconds of the imaging is exemplified. For example, the voice recorded for 10 seconds before or after the imaging is recorded by recording 10 seconds after the imaging, or recording is continued for a certain time after the imaging. It is also possible to store the image together with the captured still image.

3 is a view for explaining another example of recording / imaging according to the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 3, according to the present invention, both recording and imaging are performed according to the user's operation. That is, the start and end of recording are performed in accordance with the user's operation, and the imaging is performed according to the user's operation. In this process, the recorded voice and the captured still image are correlated with each other and stored in the memory unit.

To this end, the operation unit 40 includes a recording key for operating the recording start / end and an imaging key for executing imaging, the recording unit executes recording in accordance with the operation of the recording key, and the imaging unit is adapted to the operation of the imaging key. Image capturing is performed according to the present invention, and the controller 50 stores the recorded voice in the memory unit 30 in association with the captured still image.

In this example, since all the operations are started and finished by the user, the user can record for a desired time, pick up at a desired time point, and store the voice and still picture together.

4 is a view for explaining another example of recording / imaging according to the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 4, according to the present invention, the user can capture a plurality of still images during the start and end of recording. At this time, the recorded voice is stored in association with all the still images.

That is, the recording unit 20 starts and ends recording according to the operation of the recording key, the imaging unit 10 performs imaging according to the operation of the imaging key, and the control unit 50 captures a plurality of images after the start of recording. When the recording is finished, the plurality of still images picked up between the start of recording and the end of the recording are correlated with each other and the recorded voices are stored in the memory unit 30.

This approach is very useful, for example, for interviews. It is possible to capture several still images while interviewing using only the digital camera device.

In the above-described example, the recording key and the imaging key can be formed separately from each other. Alternatively, the recording key and the imaging key may be formed of one operation key, and may be executed in the order of recording start, imaging, and recording termination each time the operation key is operated. In the case where the recording key and the imaging key are formed of one operation key, for example, it is possible to press a button operation key once to start recording, then press to execute imaging, and then press to end recording. .

In addition, in the storage format, each media format that is used can be used to separately store a picture and a voice. Therefore, a voice file format mp3 for voice and an image file format gif for pictures are used. Save it. In the case of storing the photo and the voice as one, the image file format and the audio file format currently being used can be simply connected on the file and combined into a single file by a header containing the connection information.

5 is a view for explaining another example of recording / imaging according to the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 5, according to the present invention, it is possible to continue recording for a predetermined time and automatically end after the imaging.

That is, the controller 50 continues recording for a predetermined time after the imaging, and stores the recorded voice in the memory unit 30 in association with the captured still image.

Referring to the operation of the controller 50 in more detail, first recording is started (S10). Then, imaging is performed (S20). After the imaging is completed, it is determined whether a predetermined time has elapsed (S30). If the predetermined time has not elapsed, it is determined whether there is a user input (S40). If the user inputs the end of recording, the recording ends (S50). Otherwise, the process proceeds to step S30 again. In step S30, it is determined whether a predetermined time has elapsed, and when a predetermined time has elapsed, recording is automatically terminated regardless of the user's input (S50).

According to the present invention, the recorded voice and the captured still picture can be encoded according to each format and stored as each file having the same file name. That is, for example, it is possible to generate and store a voice file of xxx.wms and a still picture file of xxx.jpg with the same file name. This is to ensure that voices and still images associated with each other are subsequently executed together or not separated from each other in case of copying, transmitting, or the like.

Alternatively, the recorded voice and the captured still picture can be encoded according to each format and stored as one file. In this case, it is desirable to provide an application that can separate it again, but by grouping it as one file, the risk of losing either file is reduced.

Through the above examples, various methods of recording and imaging have been described, and various examples of file storage have been described, but it is also possible to select any one of these methods and to execute the user. It is more desirable to be able to set and determine any of a number of ways.

As described above, by using the digital camera device according to the present invention, it is possible to record and store the audio at the time of capturing the still image together with the still image. It can be preserved together, and you will be able to bring the feeling back to life later.

Further, according to the present invention, since recording of voice and imaging of still images can be performed in various modes, recording / imaging can be performed according to an appropriate method as necessary.

In addition, by storing the recorded audio file and the captured still image file together, the risk of losing one of them when copying, transmitting, or reproducing them can be reduced.

Claims (10)

A digital camera apparatus for photographing and storing still images, An imaging unit which picks up an external still image and converts it into an electrical signal; A recording unit which receives an external voice and converts it into an electrical signal; A memory unit which stores the captured still picture and the input voice; An operation unit composed of keys for operating imaging and recording; And According to the operation of the operation unit, the imaging unit and the recording unit are interlocked to perform recording for a predetermined time before or after imaging based on imaging and the imaging time, and to record sound recorded for a predetermined time before or after imaging. A control unit which stores the memory unit in association with the captured still image; Digital camera device comprising a. The method of claim 1, The recording unit continuously records the voice for the most recent predetermined time, and when the image capturing unit captures a still image, the control unit captures the voice of the predetermined time recorded in the recording unit at the image capturing time point. And store in the memory unit in association with a still image. The method of claim 1, The operation unit includes a recording key for operating recording start / end and an imaging key for executing imaging; And the recording unit executes recording in accordance with the operation of the recording key, and the imaging unit executes imaging in accordance with the operation of the imaging key. The method of claim 1, The recording unit starts and ends recording according to the operation of the recording key, the imaging unit executes imaging according to the operation of the imaging key, and the control unit allows a plurality of imaging operations after the start of recording, and recording ends. And a plurality of still images picked up between the start of recording and the end of recording, and stored in the memory unit in association with each other. The method according to claim 3 or 4, And the recording key and the imaging key are formed separately from each other. The method according to claim 3 or 4, And the recording key and the imaging key are formed of one operation key, and are executed in the order of recording start, imaging, and recording termination each time the operation key is operated. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 4, And the control unit continues recording for a predetermined time after capturing, and stores the recorded sound in the memory unit in association with the captured still image. The method of claim 1, And the recorded voice and the captured still picture are encoded according to each format and stored as each file having the same file name. The method of claim 1, And the recorded voice and the captured still picture are encoded according to respective formats and stored as one file. The method of claim 1, The recording and the imaging are digital camera device, characterized in that executed by a timer installed in the operation unit (40).

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