KR20100056279A - Apparatus for processing digital image and method for controlling thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A digital image processing device and a method thereof are provided to record a video using an exposure value by adjusting an exposure value during video photographing. CONSTITUTION: An image input unit(310) inputs a video. According to input received from the outside during video photographing, an exposure controlling signal input unit generates an exposure controlling signal. A controller(320) controls automatic exposure about a video. The controller modifies exposure controlling by the exposure controlling signal. A photographing setup unit(370) sets a photographing condition by the readjusted exposure controlling.

Description

Apparatus for processing digital image and method for controlling Technical Field

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 capturing moving images for each frame by a set exposure value.

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).

In general, the digital image processing apparatus may photograph an image by an exposure value preset by a user, or may photograph an image by automatic exposure adjustment by an exposure value suitable for a photographed image.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a digital image processing apparatus and a control method thereof capable of capturing a moving image by adjusting exposure values even during moving image capture.

The present invention, the video input unit for inputting a video; An exposure adjustment signal input unit configured to generate an exposure adjustment signal according to an input from the outside during recording of the video; A controller configured to perform automatic exposure adjustment on the video and correct exposure adjustment according to the exposure adjustment signal; And a photographing setting unit configured to set photographing conditions by the modified exposure adjustment.

The control unit may generate an automatic exposure value by performing automatic exposure adjustment according to the video, generate an exposure adjustment value according to the exposure adjustment signal, and modify the automatic exposure value according to the exposure adjustment value to generate a corrected exposure value. Can be.

The shooting setting unit may set a shooting condition according to the corrected exposure value.

The corrected exposure value may be generated by adding the exposure adjustment value to the automatic exposure value.

The adjustment signal input unit may include a first button for receiving an exposure adjustment command for generating the negative exposure adjustment value, and a second button for receiving an exposure adjustment command for generating the positive exposure adjustment value. have.

The photographing setting unit may set at least one of an aperture, a shutter speed, and an ISO sensitivity according to the corrected exposure value.

Another aspect of the invention, the step of receiving a video; Generating an automatic exposure value by performing automatic exposure adjustment on the video; Receiving an exposure adjustment signal; Generating an exposure adjustment value according to the exposure adjustment signal; Generating a corrected exposure value by modifying the automatic exposure value according to the exposure adjustment value; And setting a shooting condition according to the corrected exposure value.

The corrected exposure value may be generated by adding the exposure adjustment value to the automatic exposure value.

The negative input adjustment value may be generated by a first input, and the positive exposure adjustment value may be generated by a second input.

The photographing condition may be set by setting at least one of an aperture, a shutter speed, and an ISO sensitivity according to the corrected exposure value.

According to the digital image processing apparatus and the control method thereof according to the present invention, a moving image can be captured by adjusting an exposure value even during moving image shooting.

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 digital image processing apparatus 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 increases, and when the tele-zoom button T is input, the size of the selected exposure area may decrease.

As the display panel 25, an image display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) may be used. The display panel 25 may include an input video or a stored video on the display unit 350 of FIG. 3.

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.

In addition, a first button 29 and a second button 30 may be provided on the rear surface of the outside of the main body 100a of the digital camera 100. The first button 29 and the second button 30 may be included in the user input unit (360 of FIG. 3) to receive an exposure adjustment command from the outside.

A first input may be input to reduce the exposure value by the selection of the first button 29. A second input may be input to increase the exposure value by the selection of the second button 30. In this case, a negative exposure adjustment value may be generated by the first input. A positive exposure adjustment value can be generated by the second input.

In the digital camera 100 according to the present invention, the exposure value can be adjusted even during the video recording, so that the photographer can shoot the video at the desired brightness even during the video recording. Therefore, the user convenience according to the video shooting can be improved.

The shutter release button 26 and the power switch 28 may be included in a user input unit (360 of FIG. 3) for inputting a user's external item.

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).

On the other hand, the shutter release button 26 can be pressed in two stages. When the shutter release button 26 is pressed in one end, the first signal S1 may be generated, and when the shutter release button 26 is pressed in one step, the second signal S2 may be generated. The shooting preparation setting may be performed by the first signal S1, and the shooting operation may be performed by the second signal S2.

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, and thus 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 user input unit INP may include a direction button 21, a wide-angle zoom button W, a telephoto-zoom button T, and the like. The user input unit INP may be included in the user input 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 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.

In this case, the cache memory and the DRAM 204 may be included in the first storage unit 330 of FIG. 3 that temporarily stores an input video and an exposure value. The cache memory included in the first storage unit 330 of FIG. 3 may be included separately from the digital signal processor 207 and / or the micro controller 212.

The memory card recognized through the memory card interface 206 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. .

3 is a block diagram of a digital image processing apparatus 300 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The digital image processing apparatus 300 may be controlled by the control method S400 of the digital image processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 4.

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 input unit 360; And a shooting setting unit 370.

The video may be input through the image input unit 310. The exposure adjustment signal input unit may generate an exposure adjustment signal according to an input from the outside during shooting of the video. The controller 320 may perform automatic exposure adjustment on the video and control to correct the exposure adjustment according to the exposure adjustment signal. The shooting setting unit 370 may set shooting conditions by corrected exposure adjustment.

When a video is input through the image input unit 310, sound may be recorded together with a continuous image. In this case, the image may be input in units of frames input at regular time intervals.

The exposure adjustment signal input unit generating the exposure adjustment signal during the capturing of the video may be included in the user input unit 360. The user input unit 360 may include a first button 29 of FIG. 1 and a second button 30 of FIG. 1.

An exposure adjustment command for generating a negative exposure adjustment value may be input by selection of the first button (29 of FIG. 1). By selecting the second button 30 of FIG. 1, an exposure adjustment command for generating a positive exposure adjustment value may be input.

The controller 320 may perform automatic exposure adjustment on the video and control to correct the exposure adjustment according to the exposure adjustment signal. At this time, the automatic exposure adjustment may be performed according to the input video first to generate the automatic exposure value. Next, an exposure adjustment value may be generated according to the exposure adjustment signal input through the exposure adjustment signal input unit.

The automatic exposure value may be modified by the exposure adjustment value thus generated to generate a corrected exposure value. In this case, the corrected exposure value may be generated by adding the exposure adjustment value to the automatic exposure value. The exposure adjustment value may be a negative exposure adjustment value when an input for reducing the exposure value is input. In addition, the exposure adjustment value may be a positive exposure adjustment value when an input for increasing the exposure value is input.

The shooting setting unit 370 may set shooting conditions by corrected exposure adjustment. In this case, the photographing condition may be set by the corrected exposure value in which the exposure adjustment value is reflected with respect to the automatic exposure value. In this case, at least one of an aperture, a shutter speed, and an ISO sensitivity may be set according to the corrected exposure value, and the exposure may be adjusted.

Even during video shooting, the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO sensitivity may be adjusted according to the corrected exposure value input by the user, thereby capturing the video at a desired brightness.

The controller 320 may include an image input unit 310; The control unit 320; Storage units 330 and 340; Display unit 350; A user input unit 360; And the photographing setting unit 370 to adjust the exposure value even during video shooting. The controller 320 may include the digital signal processor 207 and / or the microcontroller 212 illustrated in FIG. 2.

The storage 330 and 340 may store an input video, an exposure value, and a captured video file. The storage units 330 and 340 may include a first storage unit 330 and a second storage unit 340. The input video and exposure values may be temporarily stored in the first storage unit 330. The captured video file may be stored in the second storage unit 340.

The image input unit 310 receives an input image from the outside. 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. In addition, the image input unit 310 may include a microphone (MIC) and an audio processor 213 to receive a sound input with the video.

The user may input a desired command from the outside including the exposure value adjustment input through the user input unit 360. The user input unit 360 may include a first button 29 and a second button 30 of FIG. 1 and / or a user input unit INP of FIG. 2.

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.

In the conventional digital image processing apparatus, the appropriate brightness is adjusted by automatic exposure adjustment during video shooting. Therefore, it is difficult for a user to change the exposure to a desired exposure even in an environment where the user wants to take a bright picture or an environment where the user wants to take a picture.

However, according to the present invention, by adjusting the exposure value even during video shooting, the user can take a video by changing the brightness to the desired brightness during the video shooting.

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 a semiconductor chip such as firmware.

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 of the digital image processing apparatus (S400), the video input step (S420); Automatic exposure adjustment step (S430); Exposure value adjustment steps S440, S450, and S460; And a shooting condition setting step (S470).

In the video input step S420, a video may be input. In the autoexposure adjustment step (S430), an auto exposure value may be generated by performing auto exposure adjustment on the video. In the exposure value adjustment steps S440, S450, and S460, the exposure value may be adjusted by correcting the automatic exposure value. In the shooting condition setting step (S470), shooting conditions may be set according to the corrected exposure value.

The control method (S400) of the digital image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a video shooting determination step (S410), and the exposure value during video shooting according to the present invention when the video is currently being taken in the video shooting determination step (S410). Adjustments can be made.

The exposure value adjustment steps S440, S450, and S460 may include an exposure adjustment signal input step S440, an exposure adjustment value generation step S450, and a corrected exposure value generation step S460.

The exposure adjustment signal input step S440 receives an exposure adjustment signal. In the exposure adjustment value generating step (S450), an exposure adjustment value is generated according to the exposure adjustment signal. In the corrected exposure value generation step (S460), the corrected exposure value is generated by correcting the automatic exposure value based on the exposure adjustment value.

In the exposure adjustment signal input step S440, an exposure adjustment signal may be input to determine whether the exposure adjustment signal is input. In this case, when it is determined whether the exposure adjustment signal is input, when it is determined that the exposure adjustment signal is input, the exposure adjustment value generation step S450 and the corrected exposure value generation step S460 may be performed.

That is, when it is determined that the exposure adjustment signal is input, the exposure adjustment value is generated in the exposure adjustment value generation step S450 and the corrected exposure value is corrected by reflecting the exposure adjustment value in the correction exposure value generation step S460. Can be generated.

Therefore, in the shooting condition setting step (S470), the shooting condition may be set according to the corrected exposure value.

In this case, the corrected exposure value may be generated by adding the exposure adjustment value to the automatic exposure value. The exposure adjustment value may be a negative exposure adjustment value when an input for reducing the exposure value is input. In addition, the exposure adjustment value may be a positive exposure adjustment value when an input for increasing the exposure value is input.

To this end, a first input, which is an exposure adjustment command for generating a negative exposure adjustment value, may be input by selection of the first button 29 of FIG. 1. By selecting the second button 30 of FIG. 1, a second input, which is an exposure adjustment command for generating a positive exposure adjustment value, may be input. A negative exposure adjustment value may be generated according to the first input, and a positive exposure adjustment value may be generated by the second input.

In the shooting condition setting step (S470), the shooting conditions may be set by setting at least one of an aperture, a shutter speed, and an ISO sensitivity according to the corrected exposure value. That is, even during video shooting, the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO sensitivity may be adjusted according to the corrected exposure value input by the user, thereby capturing the video with the desired brightness.

Next, the video can be taken according to the shooting conditions according to the exposure value modified in the video shooting step (S480). Next, it is determined whether to end the video recording (S490), and when the video recording is finished, a video file may be generated and stored (S495). At this time, if it is determined that the video shooting is not finished, it starts again from the video input step (S420).

According to the present invention, a video can be captured by adjusting an exposure value even during video recording.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to one embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings, this is merely exemplary, and various modifications and equivalent other embodiments may be made by those skilled in the art. You will 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 as a preferred embodiment according to the present invention.

Claims (10)

An image input unit to which a video is input; An exposure adjustment signal input unit configured to generate an exposure adjustment signal in response to an input from the outside during recording of the video; A controller configured to perform automatic exposure adjustment on the video and correct exposure adjustment according to the exposure adjustment signal; And And a shooting setting unit for setting shooting conditions by the adjusted exposure adjustment. The method of claim 1, The control unit may generate an automatic exposure value by performing automatic exposure adjustment according to the video, generate an exposure adjustment value according to the exposure adjustment signal, and modify the automatic exposure value according to the exposure adjustment value to generate a corrected exposure value. Digital image processing device. The method of claim 2, And a photographing condition setting unit in the photographing setting unit according to the corrected exposure value. The method of claim 2, And the corrected exposure value is generated by adding the exposure adjustment value to the automatic exposure value. The method of claim 2, The adjustment signal input unit, A first button for receiving an exposure adjustment command for generating the negative exposure adjustment value, and And a second button for receiving an exposure adjustment command for generating a positive exposure adjustment value. The method of claim 2, And the photographing setting unit sets at least one of an aperture, a shutter speed, and an ISO sensitivity according to the corrected exposure value. Receiving a video; Generating an automatic exposure value by performing automatic exposure adjustment on the video; Receiving an exposure adjustment signal; Generating an exposure adjustment value according to the exposure adjustment signal; Generating a corrected exposure value by modifying the automatic exposure value according to the exposure adjustment value; And And setting a shooting condition according to the corrected exposure value. The method of claim 7, wherein And the corrected exposure value is generated by adding the exposure adjustment value to the automatic exposure value. The method of claim 7, wherein And generating a negative exposure adjustment value by a first input and generating a positive exposure adjustment value by a second input. The method of claim 7, wherein And controlling the shooting conditions by setting at least one of an aperture, a shutter speed, and an ISO sensitivity according to the corrected exposure value.

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