KR19990054499A - High Sensitivity CD Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a high sensitivity CD camera, comprising: control means; An imaging device for converting light into an electrical signal and outputting the light; Synchronizing means for controlling an electric signal output from said image pickup device by control of said control means; Amplifying means for receiving and amplifying and outputting an electric signal output from the imaging device; An analog / digital converting means for receiving a signal output from the amplifying means, converting the signal into a digital signal, and outputting the digital signal; Image storage means for receiving, storing, and outputting some of the digital signals outputted from the analog / digital conversion means; Data processing means for receiving a signal other than the signal output to the image storage means of the digital signal output from the analog / digital conversion means, and processing and output the input signal in accordance with the determination of the illuminance state of the control means and; Signal processing means for receiving data output from the image storage means and the data processing means and outputting an image signal according to the control of the control means, wherein only the upper 8 bits of the 10-bit data pass through the image memory; For the remaining two bits of data, the processing depends on the degree of deterioration and the brightness of image quality, thereby reducing the number of image memories, reducing the overall cost, and effectively using the space on the substrate. Is also improved.

Description

High Sensitivity CD Camera

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a high sensitivity CDC (CCD) camera, and more particularly, to a high sensitivity CD camera which performs some image signal processing according to the degree of deterioration of image quality and the illuminance brightness.

Hereinafter, a conventional CD camera will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram of a conventional CD camera.

As shown in FIG. 1, the configuration of a conventional CD camera includes: an imaging device 1 for converting light into an electrical signal and outputting the light; A synchronizer 3 for controlling the output of the electrical signal from the imaging device 1; An amplifier 5 which receives an electric signal from the imaging device 1 and amplifies and outputs the electric signal; An analog / digital converter 7 which receives a signal output from the amplifier 5, converts it into a digital signal, and outputs the digital signal; An image memory section 9 for storing a digital signal output from the analog / digital converter 7; A signal processor 11 for receiving data stored in the image memory 9 and outputting an image signal; A control unit 13 connected and controlled by the synchronization unit 2, the image memory unit 9, and the signal processing unit 11; It is connected to the control unit 13 and includes a storage unit 15 for storing temporary data or source code of a program that the control unit 13 performs.

In this case, the image memory unit 9 is a high-order image which is connected to an upper 8-bit signal to store the upper 8-bit signal to store this signal because the digital signal output from the analog / digital converter 7 is a 10-bit signal. A memory 17 and a lower picture memory 19 connected to and stored in the remaining lower 2 bits of the 10 bits.

In addition, a CD is generally used as the imaging device 1.

The operation of the conventional CD camera is as follows.

First, the image pickup device 1 converts light input from the outside into an electrical signal and outputs the light. When the illuminance is brighter than about 2 lux, the time of less than 1/60 second is similar to that of a normal CD camera. Accumulate at intervals, and if it is not brighter than 2 lux, that is, in low light, accumulate at intervals of 1/60 seconds or more, and output an electric signal under the control of the synchronizer 3.

The electrical signal output from the image pickup device 1 is amplified by the amplifier 5, converted into a digital signal by the analog / digital converter 7, and output.

The digital signal output from the analog / digital converter 7 is 10 bits of data, of which the upper 8 bits of data are stored in the upper image memory 17, and the remaining lower 2 bits are stored in the lower image memory 19.

On the other hand, a monitor is usually used as an image display device, and an amount corresponding to one screen of the monitor is called a frame, and one frame is composed of two fields.

The frame or field memory is used as the memory of the upper image memory 17 and the lower image memory 19 of the image memory unit 9. When the frame memory is used, the vertical resolution is good, but the memory does not respond well to the movement of the object. It takes a lot.

On the other hand, when using field memory, the vertical resolution is reduced, but it is less sensitive to movement, and the memory is 1/2 less than the frame.

The data stored in the image memory section 9 is output by the control of the control section 13 and input to the signal processing section 11, and the signal processing section 11 generates and outputs the input data as an image signal.

If it is not low light, the data output from the analog-to-digital converter 7 may be input directly to the signal processing section 6 without being stored in the image memory section 9.

However, in low light, the time for storing light by the imaging device 1 by the control of the control unit 13 is extended to 1/60 second or more.

When the period of the signal output from the image pickup device 1 is slower than 1/60 second, if it is seen as it is, the screen blemishes cannot be generated. Therefore, once stored in the image memory unit 9, one frame or field is stored. When it is output to the signal processing unit 11 to be able to see a stable screen without chewing gum.

However, in the above-described conventional technique, the image memory section 9 of a field or frame can be stored in units of 8 bits as in a normal memory, but the data output from the analog / digital converter 7 is 10 bits of data. This requires one more field memory or frame memory to store two bits of data.

This not only doubles the cost of using the memory, but also causes a problem in the printed circuit board (PCB) board space and the increase in power consumption of the memory. In particular, an increase in power consumption is accompanied by a heat generation problem, the CD of the image pickup device 1 may cause a fatal defect in the product because the noise increases when the ambient temperature rises.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-described conventional problem, in which only the upper 8 bits of the 10 bits of data pass through the image memory, and for the remaining 2 bits of data, It is to provide a high sensitivity CD camera that varies the processing according to the brightness of the illumination.

1 is a block diagram of a conventional CD camera,

2 is a block diagram of a high sensitivity CD camera according to the first embodiment of the present invention,

3 is a block diagram of a high sensitivity CD camera according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

As a means for achieving the above object, the present invention,

Control means for determining an illuminance state;

An imaging device for converting light into an electrical signal and outputting the light;

Image storage means for receiving and storing some of the electrical signals output from the imaging device;

Data processing means for receiving the remaining signals other than the signals stored in the image storage means among the electrical signals outputted from the image pickup device, and processing the signal according to the determination of the illuminance state of the control means;

And signal processing means for receiving data output from the image storage means and the data processing means and outputting an image signal under the control of the control means.

Here, the data processing means includes a time delay means for receiving the data output from the image pickup device and time-delaying the output, and a buffer for receiving the data output from the time delay means and outputting the data under the control of the control means ( buffer) means.

Alternatively, the data processing means includes time delay means for receiving data output from the image pickup device and time-delaying the output, random number generating means for generating a random number and outputting the random number, and controlling the control means. And multiplexing means for selecting and outputting one of a data input output from the time delay means and a data input output from the random number generating means.

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

2 is a block diagram of a high sensitivity CD camera according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, the high-sensitivity CD camera according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a control unit 20 for controlling the overall operation of the camera; An imaging device 30 for converting light into an electrical signal and outputting the light; A synchronization unit 40 for controlling an electric signal output from the image pickup device 30 by the control of the control unit 20; An amplifier 50 which receives an electric signal output from the imaging device 30 and amplifies and outputs the electric signal; An analog / digital converter 60 which receives a signal output from the amplifier 50 and converts the signal into a 10-bit digital signal; An image storage unit 70 for receiving, storing, and outputting an upper 8-bit digital signal among the 10-bit digital signals output from the analog / digital converter 60; Among the 10-bit digital signals output from the analog / digital converter 60, the remaining 2-bit signals other than the signal output to the image storage unit 70 are input, and according to the determination of the illuminance state of the controller 20, A data processor 80 which processes and outputs a 2-bit signal; A signal processing unit 90 which receives data output from the image storage unit 70 and the data processing unit 80 and outputs an image signal under the control of the control unit 20; And a storage unit 100 connected to the control unit 20 to store temporary data or source code of a program executed by the control unit 20.

The data processor 80 according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a time delay line 82 for receiving a low-order 2-bit signal output from the analog / digital converter 60 and outputting the time delay, And a buffer unit 84 which receives data output from the time delay line 82 and outputs the data under the control of the controller 20.

With the above configuration, the operation of the high sensitivity CD camera according to the first embodiment of the present invention is as follows.

First, all control of this camera is controlled by the control part 20. FIG.

The imaging device 30 converts light input from the outside into an electrical signal and outputs the electrical signal.

At this time, the controller 20 controls the synchronizer 40 to cause the image pickup device 30 to output a signal in one field period.

The electric signal output from the image pickup device 30 is amplified by the amplifier 50, converted into a 10-bit digital signal by the analog-to-digital converter 60, and output.

Of the 10-bit digital signals output from the analog-to-digital converter 60, the upper 8-bit digital signals are input to the image storage unit 70 in one field period, stored, and output in one field period.

On the other hand, out of the 10-bit digital signal output from the analog-to-digital converter 60, the lower two-bit digital signal is input to the time delay line 82, and is delayed and output to the buffer unit 84.

At this time, the time delayed by the time delay line 82 is a delay time for synchronizing with the upper 8-bit output output through the image storage unit 70, and substantially delayed by the image storage unit 70. The time is the sum of one field time and the read access time, but the delay is only delayed by the read access time of the image storage unit 70 in consideration of the capacity of the time delay line 82, so that the upper 8 bits and the lower 2 bits are actually one field. The difference is as much as time, but since there are pixels at the same position, there is no significant effect.

The buffer unit 84 outputs a signal input from the time delay line 82 under the control of the control unit 20.

In this way, the upper 8-bit signal output from the image storage unit 70 and the lower 2-bit signal output from the buffer unit 84 are combined to be output to the signal processing unit 90 as a 10-bit signal.

The signal processor 90 receives a 10-bit signal and outputs an image signal under the control of the controller 20.

The above is an operation of the data processor 80 which is performed when the illuminance is brighter than the specific illuminance, and when the illuminance is darker than the specific illuminance, the controller 20 controls the synchronizer 40 to cause the image pickup device 30 to operate. According to the darkness, the output is made for each specific field (2 to ∞), and this output signal is converted into a digital signal by the analog / digital converter 60 through the amplifier 50 and output.

The upper 8-bit signals of the 10-bit signals thus output are stored in the image storage unit 70 at specific field periods, and are read in one field period.

On the other hand, the lower two-bit signal is not output in one field period like the upper eight-bit signal output from the image storage unit 70, so there is no need to synchronize.

Therefore, the controller 20 blocks the buffer unit 84 so that the lower two-bit time delay signal output from the time delay line 82 is not transmitted to the signal processor 90, and as a result, the signal processor 90 is always constant. The level signal is delivered.

As a result, only the signal of the upper 8 bits is transmitted to the signal processor 90.

In addition, you may comprise the structure of the time delay line 82 and the buffer part 84 using the time delay line which the signal output is interrupted by the control of the control part 20. FIG.

In low light, the lower 2 bits are relatively dark, and the lower 2 bits are not affected. However, the lower 2 bits should also be transmitted because bright 8 levels of signal cannot reproduce clear image quality.

According to this first embodiment, the image memory constituting the image storage unit 70 can be halved.

This first embodiment is suitable for cameras that allow a slight deterioration in image quality because it blocks low-light, low-order 2-bit signals.

3 is a block diagram of a high sensitivity CD camera according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, the high-sensitivity CD camera according to the second embodiment of the present invention,

A controller 200 for controlling the overall operation of the camera; An imaging device 300 for converting light into an electrical signal and outputting the light; A synchronization unit 400 for controlling an electric signal output from the imaging device 300 under the control of the controller 200; An amplifier 500 which receives an electric signal output from the imaging device 300 and amplifies and outputs the electrical signal; An analog / digital converter 600 for receiving a signal output from the amplifier 500 and converting the signal into a 10-bit digital signal; An image storage unit 700 for receiving, storing, and outputting an upper 8-bit digital signal among the 10-bit digital signals output from the analog / digital converter 600; Among the 10-bit digital signals output from the analog / digital converter 600, the remaining 2-bit signals other than the signal output to the image storage unit 700 are input, and the lower-bit signal is determined according to the determination of the illuminance state of the controller 200. A data processor 800 for processing and outputting a 2-bit signal; A signal processing unit 900 which receives data output from the image storage unit 700 and the data processing unit 800 and outputs an image signal under the control of the control unit 200; And a storage unit 1000 connected to the control unit 200 to store temporary data or source code of a program executed by the control unit 200.

The data processor 800 according to the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention receives a low-order 2-bit signal output from the analog / digital converter 600 and generates a time delay line 820 for delaying and outputting a random number. A multiplexing unit 860 which selects and outputs one of a random number generator 840 to be output and a signal output from the time delay line 820 and a signal output from the random number generator 840 under the control of the controller 200. ).

With the above configuration, the operation of the high sensitivity CD camera according to the second embodiment of the present invention is as follows.

First, since operations except for the data processor 800 are described in the first embodiment, only operations related to the data processor 800 will be described here.

Of the 10-bit digital signals output from the analog / digital converter 600, the upper 8-bit digital signals are input to the image storage unit 700 in one field period and stored, and are output in one field period.

On the other hand, of the 10-bit digital signal output from the analog-to-digital converter 600, the lower two-bit digital signal is input to the time delay line 820 is output with time delay.

At this time, the time delayed by the time delay line 820 is as described in the first embodiment.

The multiplexer 860 outputs the time delayed signal output from the time delay line 820 to the signal processor 900 under the control of the controller.

The signal processor 900 receives a 10-bit signal from the image storage unit 700 and the multiplexing unit 860 and outputs an image signal under the control of the controller 20.

The above is an operation of the data processor 80 performed when the illuminance is brighter than the specific illuminance, and when the illuminance is darker than the specific illuminance, multiplexing the 2-bit signal output from the random number generator 840 that generates 2-bit random numbers. By receiving the input from the unit 860 and outputting the signal to the signal processing unit 900 under the control of the controller 200, the deterioration of image quality can be minimized.

As a result, the controller 200 controls the multiplexing unit 860 to select and output the signal output from the time delay line 820 and the signal output from the difficulty generator 840 according to the brightness of illuminance. That is, when the illuminance is darker than the specific illuminance, the first embodiment is suitable for a camera that allows a slight deterioration in image quality by blocking the lower 2 bit signal output, while the second embodiment generates a random number to correspond to the lower 2 bit signal. It is suitable for a camera for minimizing deterioration of image quality.

According to this second embodiment, the image memory constituting the image storage unit 700 can be halved.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention, only the upper 8-bit data of the 10-bit data passes through the image memory, and for the remaining 2 bits of data, the processing is performed according to the degree of deterioration of image quality and the illuminance brightness. By differently reducing the total number of image memories to reduce the overall cost, it is possible to provide a high-sensitivity CD camera that can effectively use the space on the substrate, thereby improving the quality of the product.

Claims (6)

Control means for determining an illuminance state; An imaging device for converting light into an electrical signal and outputting the light; Image storage means for receiving and storing some of the electrical signals output from the imaging device; Data processing means for receiving the remaining signals other than the signals stored in the image storage means among the electrical signals outputted from the image pickup device, and processing the signal according to the determination of the illuminance state of the control means; And a signal processing means for receiving data output from the image storage means and the data processing means and outputting an image signal under the control of the control means. The method of claim 1, The data processing means includes time delay means for receiving data output from the image pickup device and time-delaying the output data, and buffer means for receiving data output from the time delay means and outputting the data outputted under the control of the control means. High sensitivity CD camera. The method of claim 2, And said control means blocks said buffer means to prevent time delay data output from said time delay means from being transmitted to said signal processing means when illuminance is darker than a specific illuminance. The method of claim 1, The data processing means includes time delay means for receiving data output from the image pickup device and time-delaying the output, random number generating means for generating and outputting a random number, and outputting from the time delay means under the control of the control means. And a multiplexing means for selecting and outputting one of data input and data input output from the random number generating means. The method of claim 4, wherein The control means controls the multiplexing means to select a data input output from the time delay means when the illuminance is lighter than a specific illuminance, and selects a data input output from the random number generating means when the illuminance is darker than a specific illuminance. High sensitivity CD camera, characterized in that for controlling the multiplexing means. The method according to claim 2 or 4, The signal output from the image pickup device is converted into a digital signal through analog / digital conversion means, the digital signal is 10 bits, and the upper 8 bit digital signal of the 10 bit digital signals is stored in the image storage means. High sensitivity CD camera, characterized in that.