JPH05328206A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make quick image pickup possible by detecting attitude information of the camera so as to discriminate transit from the non image pickup operating state into the image pickup operating state. CONSTITUTION:A sensor 22 has a function as an angle sensor and detects an inverting attitude of the camera and outputs turning angle information around the axes X, Y. An A/D converter 21A is built in a microcomputer 21 and converts information from the sensor 22 into a digital signal. The sensor 22 has a function as an acceleration sensor and detects and discriminates the state of the user walking with the camera carried based on the obtained acceleration information and the acceleration information from the sensor 22 converted into the digital signal is fed to the A/D converter 21A built in the microcomputer 21, and the walking state, that is, the recording operating state against the intention of the substantial purpose is discriminated based on the level. Thus, the change of the camera from the non image pickup operating state into the image pickup operating state is detected and discriminated in this way and the camera is set to the image pickup operation enable mode.

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera, and more particularly to a camera capable of detecting a transition from a non-shooting operation state to a shooting operation state to enable quick shooting. In cameras such as video tape recorders,
Normally, for the purpose of power saving, the camera operates in a lock mode in which the power to all the camera function parts is stopped, a shooting standby mode in which power is supplied to parts other than the shooting / recording part but recording is started immediately by a recording instruction. The shooting mode is configured to be selectively set. As described above, the conventional camera can selectively set three modes from the viewpoint of power saving. However, the user cannot always set the above mode accurately, and sometimes the recording stop operation is forgotten after the recording is completed, or the recording mode is continued because the operation is insufficient. ..
In such a state, the recorded image is not taken intentionally and is not only unnecessary, but the image is a meaningless screen, the playback image screen is swaying, and it is very difficult to see. It causes problems such as Technology for detecting such a non-shooting state that is not intended for shooting based on the angle information and acceleration information obtained from the angle sensor, acceleration sensor, or angular velocity sensor, and stopping the recording operation or outputting an alarm The present inventors have already proposed. By the way, in such a non-shooting state, the operation of the normal shooting section is often in the lock operation mode. In this case, the user enters the camera again to enter the shooting state. Even if it is set, recording is possible only after the recording start button is pressed through the unlock and standby operation modes, which causes a problem in quick shooting operation. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a camera capable of detecting a transition from a non-shooting operation state to a shooting operation state to enable quick recording. In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a camera according to the present invention has a sensor means for detecting the attitude of the camera, and the camera is normally operated according to the detection output of the sensor means. Discriminating means for discriminating that the first posture in the predetermined range assumed not to be adopted for the photographing of the second posture changes to the second posture in the predetermined range assumed for the photographing, and the discrimination output of the discrimination means. And means for establishing a power supply state to the circuit section for making the camera at least capable of performing a photographing operation based on the above. According to the present invention, by detecting the posture information of the camera based on, for example, the angle information and the acceleration information, it is possible to determine the transition from the non-photographing operation state to the photographing operation state, and to perform quick photographing and recording. It is possible to shift to the operation mode. Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram showing an embodiment of a camera according to the present invention. In the present embodiment, a change from the non-photographing state of the camera to the photographing state is detected and judged from the posture and acceleration information of the camera obtained by the sensor 22 attached to the camera, and the camera is set to the photographing operation possible mode. As the sensor 22, an angle sensor for obtaining posture information such as a tilt of the camera, an acceleration sensor or an angular velocity sensor for obtaining camera shake and movement information, and the like are used. In general, after the user records in a shooting posture looking through the viewfinder of the camera, and after the recording is completed and the recording operation stop button is pressed, the user normally grasps the camera as being in an inoperative state. Then, move on to the next operation. In this state, the camera is often held upside down and the lens surface faces downward or rearward. Therefore, the recording screen of the captured image is a picture turned over by 180 degrees, or the ground and feet are reflected. Moreover, when the user walks while holding the camera, the picture in the image periodically shakes. Such an image that is not intentionally captured is unnecessary and it is preferable to stop the recording operation.
The state in which the camera is turned upside down by 180 degrees can be detected by the angle sensor, and the state in which the picture periodically shakes can also be detected by the acceleration sensor, and can also be detected by the motion vector of the picture. .. The sensor 22 shown in FIG. 1 has a function as an angle sensor and detects the reverse posture of the camera.
As shown in FIG. 2, the rotation angle in the + direction and the − direction in the X-axis direction (or Y-axis direction) is detected. When the vertical posture of the camera is reversed, the rotation angle around the X axis and Y axis is approximately 1.
Since the angle is 80 degrees, this angle state is detected. In reality, when the user is holding the camera, the rotation angle is slightly deviated from 180 degrees, so in this example, the rotation angle of ± 120 degrees or more is detected to determine the inverted posture of the camera. is doing. In FIG. 3A, a rotation angle region of ± 120 degrees or more from the standard direction of the X-axis or the Y-axis as the determination reference is shown by the shaded portion. Sensor 22
Is output at a voltage level corresponding to the rotation angle. In this example, for example, as shown in FIG. 3B, 0 V in the standard direction, 3 V in the ± 180 ° rotation direction, ± 1
It is configured to output a level of 2V in the rotation direction of 20 degrees. In FIG. 1, an image formed on a CCD (image pickup means) 12 through an optical system 11 such as a lens is CC
Converted to electrical signal by D12, A / D converter 1
At 3, it is converted to a digital signal. The digital signal is subjected to well-known predetermined signal processing in the imaging process unit 14, separated into a Y signal and a C signal, and written in the Y field memory and the C field memory of the field memory 15. The Y signal and the C signal read from the field memory 15 are subjected to the Y interpolation processing and the C interpolation processing in the interpolation processing unit 16 and output to the recording system. Various synchronizing signals are generated from the SG unit 17, and the trigger unit 18 is driven to control the operation of the CCD 12 to control the operation timing of the imaging process unit 14 and the writing timing of the field memory 15. The sensor 22 outputs rotation angle information about the X and Y axes. The A / D converter 21A is built in the microcomputer 21 and converts the information from the sensor 22 into a digital signal. Therefore, the microcomputer 21 not only controls the read control unit 20 based on these information, and controls the address signal Add and the interpolation coefficient k supplied to the field memory 15 and the interpolation processing unit 16 to compensate for the hand shake. It is also possible to perform the above-described recording control by receiving the rotation angle information supplied from the A / D converter 21A and determining the inverted state of the camera. The sensor 22 also has a function as an acceleration sensor, and uses the obtained acceleration information to detect and judge the walking state in which the user is walking while holding the camera.
The sensor 22 is disposed in the front-back direction (Z
Direction) (the camera shakes in the front-back direction while walking while holding the camera). In FIG. 4 (A),
The camera 100 has a lens 110 and a finder 120, and swings in the Z direction when walking. This sway is detected by the sensor 22 as a swaying motion having a period of, for example, 3 seconds. The acceleration g from the sensor 22 is output at a voltage level, and as shown in FIG. 4 (B), it is 2.5 when stationary (g = 0).
When the level is increased from V by ± 1 V in the ± directions, that is, when the + direction is 3.5 V and the − direction is 1.5 V, it can be determined that the walking state. The microcomputer 21 is supplied with acceleration information from the sensor 22 converted into a digital signal by the built-in A / D converter 21A, and the walking state, that is, the recording operation state contrary to the intention is determined by the level thereof. Angle information from the sensor 22 as described above,
Alternatively, it is detected from the acceleration information that the camera is in the non-shooting operation state, and the change to the shooting and recording operation state is also determined. In other words, the shooting condition is that the camera is upright, and the correct posture is to face the subject.
It is possible to judge the motion to raise and hold from the acceleration information and the correct posture from the angle information. FIG. 5 is a flow chart for explaining the operation processing procedure of this embodiment. In addition, FIG. 6 shows the circuit section, AF, EVF, and
It is a figure which shows the ON / OFF operation state of a ZOOM function part, a loading part, a recording part, a microcomputer part, and a sensor part.
In the lock mode, all are "OFF". In the power off mode, all except the microcomputer and the sensor are "OF".
F ", in standby mode, everything except" O "is" O "
N ", all are set to" ON "in the recording mode. Referring to Fig. 5, first, in step S1, the lock operation is released (power-on), and the standby mode is set (step S2). When the start button is pressed, recording starts (step S3), and when the recording stop button is pressed (step S4), recording stops (step S6). Then, the posture of the camera is detected, that is, the 180-degree inverted state of the camera and the periodic shake state while the camera is gripped and walking are detected, and it is determined whether or not the camera is clearly in the inoperative state. (Step S5).
If it is not in the non-operating state, no special processing is performed as "OK", and if it is clearly in the non-operating state, "NG" is set and the recording stop processing in step S6 is performed. After the recording is stopped in step S6, it is determined whether or not the camera is in the lock mode operation (step S7). If the operation is in the lock mode, the process is terminated. If not, the user is again in step S8. Determines whether to photograph the subject, that is, whether the camera has swung up to reach a correct posture based on the acceleration information or the angle information. If it is determined that the player is in the correct posture and is in the shooting state, "OK" is entered and the process proceeds to the standby operation mode of step S2. Also,
If it is determined that the camera is not still in the shooting state, “NG” is set and the power-off mode is set to save power (step S
9) and returns to the process of step S7. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the configuration of another embodiment of the camera according to the present invention. In the present embodiment, similarly to the previous embodiment, the acceleration information in the front-rear direction of the camera is detected to determine the walking state, but a single Z-axis direction (front-rear direction) acceleration sensor is not used as the acceleration sensor. ,
The difference is that the accelerations 23 and 24 in the horizontal direction (X-axis direction) and the vertical direction (Y-axis direction) used for camera shake correction detect acceleration in the front-rear direction. That is, the horizontal and vertical acceleration sensors 23 and 24 are indispensable sensors for correcting camera shake, whereas the front and rear sensors do not show a great improvement in image quality even if they are used. For example, the displacement of the camera in the front-back direction is such that the angle of view and the focus are slightly affected. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, in order to obtain acceleration information in the front-rear direction, a horizontal (X-axis direction) acceleration sensor 25 is installed in the X'-axis direction inclined by θ from the X-axis. There is. C of the output of the acceleration sensor installed in the X'direction
Since the os θ component indicates the X-axis direction acceleration and the sin θ component indicates the Z-axis direction acceleration, the front-back direction (Z-axis direction) acceleration information can be obtained by using the sin θ component. Similarly, it is obvious that the acceleration for the Y-axis direction may be set in the axial direction inclined by θ with respect to the Y-axis. In the embodiment of FIG. 7, the outputs from the horizontal (X) direction acceleration sensor 23 and the vertical (Y) direction acceleration sensor 24 are supplied to the A / D converter 21A.
The microcomputer 21 determines the walking state based on the acceleration data obtained by converting the digital signal into a digital signal, corrects the camera shake, and controls the recording as described above. FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing the configuration of still another embodiment of the camera according to the present invention, which is an example for performing more reliable and highly accurate recording control. In FIG. 9, components designated by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 7 indicate components having the same function. In the present embodiment, in addition to the horizontal acceleration sensor 23 and the vertical acceleration sensor 24, an angle sensor 25 that outputs four pieces of rotation angle information about the X axis and the Y axis is provided, and the microcomputer based on the obtained sensor outputs. Performs the recording control as described above. Further, the microcomputer 21 is supplied with a select signal for selecting the output of each of the above-mentioned sensors used for recording control from the select switch 26 and for controlling the camera operation. As shown in FIG. 10, the select switch 26 turns off the recording control operation of the present invention every switch operation.
F mode # 1, mode # 2 using only the acceleration information from the acceleration sensors 23 and 24, mode # 3 using only the angle information from the angle sensor 25, mode # 4 using both the above-mentioned acceleration information and angle information. Each mode changes sequentially in the order of. In the mode # 1, it is possible to prevent the recording from being stopped by the operation of the present invention when the user intentionally performs the recording while the camera is turned over or while walking. Further, if other modes # 2 to # 4 are used, it is possible to perform fine recording control that is optimal for each mode. FIG. 11 shows another embodiment of the camera according to the present invention. Normally, the judgment of the camera reversal state or the walking state by the microcomputer 21 does not use the information from the angle sensor or the acceleration sensor, but is a standard for the shake correction. This is performed using the output from the motion vector detection unit 27 that detects data. When forgetting to stop recording, power is supplied to the video system,
Since it is in the operating state, the motion vector detection unit 27 can detect the motion vector based on the image data read from the Y field memory of the field memory 15. In the present embodiment, based on this motion vector information, the periodical movement and inversion of the entire image (screen) are detected, and the microcomputer 21
The above-mentioned recording control is performed by. As described above, the camera according to the present invention changes from the non-photographing operation state to the photographing operation state by detecting the posture information of the camera based on, for example, angle information and acceleration information. Since the shift is determined, it is possible to quickly shift to the shooting and recording operation states, and power saving and usability are significantly improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram showing an embodiment of a camera according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the angle sensor of the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the angle sensor of the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an acceleration sensor operation in the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in an embodiment of the camera of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing operating conditions in each operating mode of the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 7 is a configuration block diagram showing another embodiment of the camera according to the present invention. FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 9 is a configuration block diagram showing still another embodiment of the camera according to the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing modes sequentially selected by the select switch in the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 11 is a configuration block diagram showing still another embodiment of a camera according to the present invention. [Explanation of Codes] 11 Optical System 12 CCD 13, 21A A / D Converter 14 Imaging Process Section 15 Field Memory 16 Interpolation Processing Section 17 SG Section 18 TG Section 19 Write Control Section 20 Read Control Section 21 Microcomputer 22 Sensor 23 Horizontal Acceleration Sensor 24 Vertical acceleration sensor 25 Angle sensor 26 Select switch 27 Motion vector detector

Claims (1)

What is claimed is: 1. A sensor means for detecting a posture of the camera, and a camera according to a detection output of the sensor means, when the camera is photographed from a first posture in a predetermined range which is assumed not to be adopted for normal photographing. Discrimination means for discriminating the transition to the second posture in a predetermined range assumed to be adopted, and power supply to a circuit portion for making at least the camera operable for photographing on the basis of the discrimination output of the discrimination means. A camera provided with means for establishing a state.