KR20090104432A - Apparatus for processing digital image and method for controlling thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An apparatus for processing a digital image and a method for controlling the same are provided to increase user convenience in network connection by storing network connection information in at least one storage medium and enabling automatic network connection. CONSTITUTION: A method for controlling a digital image processing apparatus comprises the steps of: receiving the selection of a network connection function(S410); calling out at least one kind of network connection information that is stored previously(S420); and connecting to a corresponding network based on the connection information(S460).

Description

Apparatus for processing digital image and method for controlling Technical Field

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a digital image processing apparatus and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to a digital image processing apparatus and a control method capable of accessing a wireless Internet through a wireless network.

Typically, the digital image processing apparatus includes all devices that process images such as a digital camera, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a phone camera, a PC camera, or use an image recognition sensor.

The digital image processing apparatus may image an image received through an image pickup device by a digital signal processor, compress the image, generate an image file, and store the image file in a memory.

In addition, the digital image processing apparatus may display and display an image of an image file received through an imaging device or stored in a storage medium on a display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD).

Meanwhile, the digital image processing apparatus may upload or download the generated image file to a specific internet site. In this case, the digital image processing apparatus may be connected to a specific Internet site through user authentication using a user's unique username and password.

An object of the present invention is to provide a digital image processing apparatus and a method of controlling the same, which store at least one or more network connection information in a storage medium and automatically connect to a network.

The present invention includes the steps of (a) receiving a selection of a network connection function; (b) retrieving at least one network connection information as previously stored; And (c) accessing the corresponding network based on at least one connection information from among the network connection information.

The network connection information may include access site information, a user name, a password, or fingerprint identification data.

Step (c) shows a list of accessible sites when there is a plurality of network connection information stored as accessible, accessing at least one of the network connection information access sites selected from the list, and selected And logging in to the access site by the user name and password or fingerprint identification data at the selected site corresponding to the access site.

When the network access function is a file upload function, the method may further include transmitting at least one file selected in the album set by the network access information.

Another aspect of the invention, the network connection for connecting to at least one network; A storage unit storing at least one network connection information for accessing the network; And a controller configured to control access to the corresponding network by at least one connection information from among the network access information.

The apparatus may further include a user manipulation unit configured to receive a selection of the network access function by a user.

The display unit may further include a display unit displaying a list of accessible sites when the network has a plurality of access information.

The storage unit may include a nonvolatile memory device.

According to the digital image processing apparatus and the control method thereof according to the present invention, by storing at least one or more network connection information in a storage medium and automatically accessing the network, user convenience for network connection can be improved.

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

FIG. 1 is a rear view of a digital camera 100, which is an embodiment of a control apparatus of a digital image processing apparatus and a digital image processing apparatus to which the method is applied, according to the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, on the back of the digital camera 100, the direction button 21, the menu-OK button 22, the wide angle (Zoom) button (W), the telephoto (Zoom) ) Button T, the display panel 25 and the like.

The direction button 21 may include four buttons, an up button 21a, a down button 21b, a left button 21c, and a right button 21d. The direction button 21 and the menu-OK button 22 are keys for executing various menus relating to the operation of the digital image processing apparatus such as a digital camera.

The wide-angle zoom button W or the tele-zoom button T has a wider angle of view or a narrower angle of view depending on its input. In particular, it may be used to change the size of the selected exposure area. In this case, when the wide-zoom button W is input, the size of the selected exposure area is reduced, and when the tele-zoom button T is input, the size of the selected exposure area may be increased. As the display panel 25, an image display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) may be used.

The display panel 25 may be included in the display unit 350 of FIG. 3, in which an image of an image file is displayed and a list of connectable Internet sites is displayed.

Meanwhile, a shutter release button 26, a flash (not shown), a power switch 28, and a lens unit (not shown) may be provided on the front or top surface of the digital camera 100. In addition, the front and rear of the digital camera 100 may be provided with an objective lens and an eyepiece of the viewfinder 27.

The direction button 21 and the menu-OK button 22 may be included in the user manipulation unit 360 (FIG. 3) in which a user selects a network connection function, for example, an internet connection or a file upload. have.

In addition, the digital camera 100 is provided with a separate internet access button 29 for accessing the Internet, and a user may input a selection of a network access function such as an internet connection or a file upload.

The shutter release button 26 is opened and closed to expose the film or an image pickup device such as a charge coupled device (CCD) for a predetermined time. In addition, the shutter release button records an image on the image pickup device by properly exposing a subject in association with an aperture (not shown).

As an embodiment of a digital image processing apparatus to which the present invention can be applied, a digital camera, a control apparatus, and a control method thereof are disclosed in US Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0130650 (name: automatic using a secondary function of the camera). Method of automatically focusing using a quadratic function in camera.

Matters relating to the digital camera, the control apparatus, and the control method disclosed in the above-mentioned US application will be included in the present specification, the detailed description thereof will be omitted.

2 is a block diagram of a control device 200 of a digital image processing apparatus, which is a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The control device 200 of the digital image processing apparatus may be mounted in the digital camera 100 of FIG. 1.

Referring to the drawing, an optical system OPS including a lens unit and a filter unit optically processes light from a subject. The lens unit of the optical system OPS includes a zoom lens, a focus lens, and a compensation lens. When the user presses the wide-angle zoom button W or the tele-zoom button T included in the user input unit INP, a signal corresponding thereto is input to the microcontroller 212.

Accordingly, as the microcontroller 212 controls the lens driver 210, the zoom motor M _Z is driven to move the zoom lens. That is, when the wide-zoom button W is pressed, the focal length of the zoom lens is shortened to widen the angle of view, and when the tele-zoom button T is pressed, the focal length of the zoom lens becomes long and the angle of view is narrowed.

On the other hand, in the auto focusing mode, the main controller embedded in the digital signal processor 207 controls the lens driver 210 through the microcontroller 212, whereby the focus motor M _F is driven. do. That is, the focus lens is moved to a position where the sharpest picture is obtained by driving the focus motor M _F.

The compensation lens compensates for the overall refractive index and is not driven separately. Reference numeral M _A denotes an aperture adjusting motor M _A for driving an aperture (not shown).

In the filter section of the optical system OPS, an optical low pass filter removes optical noise of high frequency components. Infra-Red cut filter cuts the infrared component of the incident light.

The photoelectric conversion unit OEC may include an imaging device such as a charge coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS). The photoelectric conversion unit OEC converts light from the optical system OPS into an electrical analog signal.

The analog-to-digital converter may include a CDS-ADC (Correlation Double Sampler and Analog-to-Digital Converter) device 201. The analog-to-digital converter processes the analog signal from the photoelectric converter (OEC), removes the high frequency noise, adjusts the amplitude, and converts the analog signal into a digital signal. Here, the digital signal processor 207 controls the timing circuit 202 to control the operation of the photoelectric converter OEC and the analog-to-digital converter 201.

The optical system OPS, the photoelectric conversion unit OEC, the CDS-ADC element 201, and the like may be included in the image input unit 310 of FIG. 3.

The real time clock 203 provides time information to the digital signal processor 207. The digital signal processor 207 processes digital signals from the CDS-ADC element 201 to generate digital image signals classified into luminance (Y value) and chromaticity (R, G, B) signals.

The light emitting unit LAMP driven by the microcontroller 212 under the control of the main controller built in the digital signal processor 207 includes a self-timer lamp, an auto-focus lamp, a mode indicating lamp, a flash standby lamp, and the like. May be included.

The digital signal processor 207 and / or the microcontroller 212 may be included in the controller 320 of FIG. 3 according to the present invention. The digital signal processor 207 and / or the microcontroller 212 may also be equipped with cache memory as temporary storage space.

The cache memory and / or DRAM 204 may be included in the first storage unit 330 of FIG. 3 to temporarily store the captured image and / or image file. The cache memory included in the first storage unit 330 of FIG. 3 may be included in the controller 200 separately from the digital signal processor 207 and / or the micro controller 212.

Through the user input unit INP, a button or the like input from the direction button 21, the wide-angle zoom button W, the tele-zoom button T, or the like may be input. The user input unit INP may be included in the user manipulation unit 360 of FIG. 3.

The digital image signal from the digital signal processor 207 is temporarily stored in the DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) 204. The EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory) 205 stores algorithms and setting data such as a boot program and a key input program required for the operation of the digital signal processor 207. In the memory card interface 206, a user's memory card may be attached or detached.

The memory card recognized through the memory card interface 206 or a built-in separate flash memory may have non-volatile image files stored therein or non-volatile network connection information including access site information, user name, password, or fingerprint identification data. It is stored as, may be included in the second storage unit 340 of FIG.

The digital image signal from the digital signal processor 207 is input to the display panel driver 214, whereby the image is displayed on the display panel 215.

The controller 200 of the digital image processing apparatus may further include display units 214 and 215. The display units 214 and 215 may include a display panel 215 and a display panel driver 214 for driving the display panel 215. The display units 214 and 215 may be included in the display unit 350 of FIG. 3 according to the present invention.

On the other hand, the digital image signal from the digital signal processor 207 can be transmitted by serial communication via a universal serial bus (USB) connection portion 31a or an RS232C interface 208 and the connection portion 31b thereof, and a video filter ( 209 and through the video output unit 31c. Here, the digital signal processor 207 may incorporate a microcontroller therein.

The audio processor 213 outputs the audio signal from the microphone MIC to the digital signal processor 207 or the speaker SP, and outputs the audio signal from the digital signal processor 207 to the speaker SP.

The controller 200 of the digital image processing apparatus may include an internet access module 220 for allowing the digital image processing apparatus to be connected to a network. The internet access module 220 may be a wireless internet access unit (370 of FIG. 3).

At this time, the Internet access module 220 is at least one of WiBro, HSDPA (high speed downlink packet access), Wi-Fi, WiMAX, ZIGBEE, Bluetooth (Bluetooth), ultra wideband (UWB), wireless infrared communication, wireless LAN The network can be connected by a wireless network connection method.

However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the Internet access module 220 may be connected to various network environments including the Internet by various network methods including wired communication.

3 is a block diagram of a digital image processing apparatus 300 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, the digital image processing apparatus 300 includes an image input unit 310; The control unit 320; Storage units 330 and 340; Display unit 350; A user manipulation unit 360; And a wireless internet connection 370.

The digital image processing apparatus 300 may store at least one or more network connection information in a storage medium such as a memory card, and automatically connect to the network by a user name and password included in the stored network connection information.

Therefore, it is possible to conveniently connect to a network environment such as the Internet, without having to separately key in a user name, password, and the like.

In this case, even when a site accessing the Internet accesses several places instead of one place, authentication information of various sites is recorded on a storage medium such as a memory card, and the digital image processing apparatus 300 stores the information recorded on the storage medium. By reading, the user authentication information included in the information can be used to automatically connect to the Internet.

The digital image processing apparatus 300 may be controlled by the control method S400 of the digital image processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 4. Therefore, the same matters as in the control method (S400) of the digital image processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 4 may be referred to, and detailed description may be omitted.

The image input unit 310 receives an input image from the outside. The wireless internet access unit 370 may access at least one network. The storage units 330 and 340 may store at least one network connection information for accessing a network.

The storage units 330 and 340 may include a first storage unit 330 and a second storage unit 340. The first storage unit 330 may temporarily store the captured image and network access information read from the second storage unit 340. The second storage unit 340 may store the image file and the set network access information in a nonvolatile manner.

The controller 320 controls to access the corresponding network by using at least one piece of connection information from among the network connection information. The user manipulation unit 360 receives a selection of a network connection function by the user.

The display unit 350 displays a list of sites that can be accessed when there is a plurality of connection information in the network. In addition, the display unit 350 may display an image of an image file and display a list of accessible sites.

The image input unit 310 may include an optical system (OPS), a photoelectric converter (OEC), a CDS-ADC device 201, and the like illustrated in FIG. 2. The controller 320 may include the digital signal processor 207 and / or the microcontroller 212 illustrated in FIG. 2.

The first storage unit 330 may temporarily store network access information read from the second storage unit 340. Also, the digital signal processor 207 and / or the microcontroller 212 of FIG. 2 may include a cache memory or a cache memory that is separately mounted as a temporary storage space.

The second storage unit 340 stores the image file and the set network connection information in a nonvolatile manner. The second storage unit 340 may include a memory card recognized through the memory card interface 206 or a flash memory mounted separately.

The display unit 350 may include the display panel 25 shown in FIG. 1 and / or the display panel driver 214 and the display panel 215 of FIG. 2. The user manipulation unit 360 may include the user input unit INP of FIG. 2, such as the direction button 21, the menu-OK button 22, or the Internet access button 29 of FIG. 1.

Wireless Internet access unit 370 is a digital image processing apparatus 300 is WiBro, HSDPA (high speed downlink packet access), Wi-Fi, WiMAX, ZIGBEE, Bluetooth (Bluetooth), UWB (ultra wideband), wireless infrared communication, It may include a wireless communication module for connecting to the Internet 400 by a wireless network connection method of at least one of the wireless LAN.

The wireless internet access unit 370 is for connecting the digital image processing apparatus 300 to various network environments including the Internet 400. Therefore, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various network connection modules including wired communication may be applied instead of the wireless Internet access unit 370.

Meanwhile, the network connection information may include connection site information, a user name, and a password or fingerprint identification data. In this case, the access site information may include address information of an internet site for accessing. The user name can be a name for logging in to the site from the configured access site. The password may correspond to a password set to log in to the set access site by the corresponding user name.

In this case, the network access information in the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be necessary information for logging in by a user authentication system for logging in to a corresponding site by various methods including a public certificate. In addition, authentication information including a user name and fingerprint identification data corresponding to the user name may be used as the user authentication system.

By input of the network connection function selection by the user, the stored network connection information can be retrieved and connected to the network by the connection information in the network connection information. In this case, a plurality of network connection information preset and stored in the second storage unit 340 may be provided. In this case, a plurality of Internet sites can be connected.

When the Internet access function is selected by the user, the Internet site accessible from the current location may be searched to display a list of Internet sites accessible to the display unit 350.

In the present embodiment, when there is a plurality of access information in the accessible network, a list of accessible sites can be displayed. In this case, when there is only one connection information in the accessible network, displaying of the accessible sites in the display unit as a list may be omitted.

When the accessible sites are displayed in a list, the connection site of the network connection information selected from the list can be connected. In addition, the selected site corresponding to the selected access site may log in to the access site by a user name and password or fingerprint identification data.

In this case, when there is one accessible network connection site or one previously stored network connection information, the access site of one network connection information may be a selection site.

Further, even when there is a plurality of connection information in a connectable network, there may be a plurality of selected sites. That is, each site can be accessed by a user name and a password stored in the plurality of sites corresponding to each site.

Meanwhile, when the network access function is a file upload function, at least one file selected by the album set by the access information may be transmitted.

According to the present invention, by storing at least one or more network connection information in a storage medium and automatically accessing the network, user convenience for network connection or file upload / download can be improved.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a control method (S400) of a digital image processing apparatus as a preferred embodiment according to the present invention.

The control method S400 of the digital image processing apparatus may be implemented in the digital image processing apparatus of FIGS. 2 and / or 3 and the control apparatuses 200 and 300 thereof. To this end, the control method S400 of the digital image processing apparatus according to the present invention may be a program or algorithm stored in the storage means of FIG. 2 or implemented in the form of firmware or a semiconductor chip.

Therefore, in the method S400 of controlling the digital image processing apparatus, the same matters as those described for the digital image processing apparatus and the control apparatuses 200 and 300 will be referred to, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Referring to the drawings, the control method (S400) of the digital image processing apparatus includes a network connection selection step (S410); Retrieving network access information (S420); And a connection step (S430 to S470).

In the network connection selection step (S410), a selection of a network connection function is received. In step S420 of retrieving network access information, at least one or more network access information is retrieved as previously stored.

In the access steps (S430 to S470) is connected to the network by at least one or more of the network access information. In this case, the network access function may be an internet access function, and the network access information may be internet access information.

In addition, the Internet access information may include access site information, user name, and password or fingerprint identification data. In this case, the access site information may include address information of an internet site for accessing. The user name can be a name for logging in to the site from the configured access site. The password may correspond to a password set for logging in to the set access site by the corresponding user name.

In this case, the Internet access information in the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be necessary information for logging in by a user authentication system for logging in to the corresponding Internet site by various methods including a public certificate. In addition, authentication information including a user name and fingerprint identification data corresponding to the user name may be used as the user authentication system.

By input of the Internet connection function selection by the user, previously generated and stored Internet connection information can be retrieved, and the Internet site can be connected by the connection site information in the Internet connection information. In this case, a plurality of preset Internet access information may be stored.

The access steps S430 to S470 may include a site information determination step S430, a list display step S440, an internet site selection step S450, a site access step S460, and a login step S470. .

In the site information determination step (S430), it is determined whether there are a plurality of accessible Internet site information. The list display step S440 shows a list of accessible sites when there are a plurality of Internet access information stored as accessible.

In the step of selecting an internet site (S450), a user selects an internet site to be selected for access. At this time, when there is only one Internet access information stored in advance, the access site of one Internet access information may be the selected site.

In the site access step (S460), the access site of the Internet access information selected from the list is accessed. In the log-in step S470, the selected site corresponding to the selected access site is logged in to the access site by a user name and password or fingerprint identification data.

In addition, the Internet access information selected in the Internet site selection step (S450) may be a plurality, in this case, the site access step (S460) and the login step (S470) may be performed for each site.

On the other hand, if none of the stored Internet access information or there is no accessible Internet site among the sites of the stored Internet access information, an error message may be output and the control method (S400) of the digital image processing apparatus according to the present invention may be terminated. .

The file upload function is selected as the function selected in the network connection selection step S410, and for this purpose, a network may be connected to, for example, the Internet. In this case, it is determined whether the file upload function is selected (S480), and when the file upload function is selected, at least one or more files selected for the album set by the Internet access information may be transmitted (S490).

Therefore, by storing at least one network connection information in a storage medium and automatically accessing the network, user convenience for network connection or file upload / download can be improved.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to one embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings, it is merely an example, and those skilled in the art may realize various modifications and equivalent other embodiments therefrom. I can understand. Accordingly, the true scope of protection of the invention should be defined only by the appended claims.

1 is a diagram illustrating a rear surface of a digital camera as an embodiment of a digital image processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a control apparatus that may be included in the digital camera of FIG. 1.

3 is a block diagram schematically showing a digital image processing apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a control method of a digital image processing apparatus according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (19)

(a) receiving a selection of a network access function; (b) retrieving at least one network connection information as previously stored; And and (c) connecting to a corresponding network by at least one connection information from among the network connection information. The method of claim 1, WiBro, HSDPA (high speed downlink packet access), Wi-Fi, WiMAX, ZIGBEE (Bluetooth), UWB (ultra wideband), wireless infrared communication, wireless LAN at least any one of the wireless network to connect to the network Control method of digital image processing apparatus. The method of claim 1, A control method of a digital image processing apparatus for accessing an internet site by the network. The method of claim 1, And the network connection information includes access site information, a user name, a password, or fingerprint identification data. The method of claim 4, wherein In step (c), Displaying a list of accessible sites when there is a plurality of network connection information stored as accessible; Accessing an access site of at least one of said network access information selected from said list, and And logging in to the access site by the user name and password or fingerprint identification data at the selected site corresponding to the selected access site. The method of claim 5, And a single access site of the network access information becomes the selected site when the previously stored network access information is one. The method of claim 5, And a control method of the digital image processing apparatus having a plurality of selected network access information. The method of claim 1, And transmitting the at least one file selected in the album set by the network access information when the network access function is a file upload function. A network connection for connecting to at least one network; A storage unit storing at least one network connection information for accessing the network; And And a controller configured to control access to a corresponding network by at least one of the network access information. The method of claim 9, And a user manipulation unit configured to receive a selection of the network connection function by a user. The method of claim 10, And retrieving the stored network connection information by inputting the network connection function selection by a user, and connecting to the network by at least one of the network connection information. The method of claim 9, And the network connection information includes access site information, a user name, a password, or fingerprint identification data. The method of claim 12, And a display unit for displaying a list of accessible sites when there is a plurality of access information in the network. The method of claim 13, And accessing the access site of the network access information selected from the list, and logging in to the access site by the user name and password or fingerprint identification data to the selected site corresponding to the selected access site. The method of claim 13, And a single access site of the network access information becomes the selected site when the previously stored network access information is one. The method of claim 13, And a plurality of the selected network access information. The method of claim 13, And transmitting the at least one file selected in the album set by the access information when the network access function is a file upload function. The method of claim 9, The network connection unit is at least one of wireless network connection of WiBro, high speed downlink packet access (HSDPA), Wi-Fi, WiMAX, ZIGBEE, Bluetooth, Ultra wideband (UWB), wireless infrared communication, and wireless LAN. A digital image processing apparatus, which is a wireless Internet connection for accessing the Internet by a method. The method of claim 9, And the storage unit comprises a nonvolatile memory device.

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