JP2000001000A - Color printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a small color printer having little power consumption and capable of obtaining high resolution color printing and executing a simple image processing. SOLUTION: Image data obtained by imaging is written into a frame memory 66. One screen of image data is read from the frame memory 66 and is written into a buffer memory 56 by an image signal processing circuit 52. The image data is read from the buffer memory 56 by each color and a frame image of each color is indicated on a liquid crystal display panel 24, then R-LED26R, G-LED26G and B-LED26B are sequentially turned on at the background. The images sequentially indicated on the liquid crystal display panel are imaged on an instant film, thereby executing exposing of the printing. When the image data is written into the buffer memory 56, the image data is treated based on treatment data stored in an LUT 73, thereby performing the printing with the image processing.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a color printer for displaying an image on a liquid crystal display panel and optically forming an image on a photosensitive recording medium for printing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the practical use of solid-state imaging devices such as CCD image sensors, still or movie video cameras having a function of converting an optical image into an electric signal and storing it in various storage media have become widespread. I have. Recently, digital cameras have widely been used in which image signals for one frame obtained from a solid-state image sensor are subjected to appropriate signal processing, converted into digitized image signals, and stored in a built-in or detachable memory. Used. The image signal for one frame stored in the memory can be appropriately read out,
Images can be observed on the color LCD monitor built into the camera body, and the read image data can be transferred to a personal computer or printer for various image processing and hard copy creation. .

In order to obtain a hard copy of a reproduced image from an image signal, a thermal printer, a laser printer, an ink-jet printer, and the like are generally used, as well as Japanese Patent Publication No. 1-24394, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-83243, and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open As known from Japanese Patent Publication No. 8-271995,
R (red), G
It is possible to use a printer that obtains a hard copy of a full-color image by line scanning using the basic component color lights of (green) and B (blue).

[0004]

The above-described thermal printer and laser printer are very difficult to reduce in size to the extent that they can be carried, because the equipment itself is large and the power consumption is large. Further, although the printer described in the above publication can be miniaturized, scan exposure is required for each basic color light. Therefore, it is necessary to use a high-precision scanning mechanism so that a printing time becomes longer and a color shift does not occur when scanning exposure is performed for each basic color light, and an increase in cost is inevitable.

Further, a conventional color printer is capable of faithfully reproducing colors based on an input original image signal, but it is necessary to convert a full-color original image signal from a black-and-white or sepia tone according to the user's preference. The reproduced image cannot be printed in monochrome, and in order to cope with this, it was necessary to previously process the image signal using a personal computer or the like.

The present invention has been made in view of the above background, and has a high-definition printing function capable of sufficiently reducing the size and power consumption, and is capable of hard copy of a monochrome image as well as color adjustment. It is an object of the present invention to provide a color printer which can be easily obtained.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a liquid crystal display panel in which transmissive liquid crystal dot segments are two-dimensionally arranged, and sequentially transmits three types of basic color light from behind the liquid crystal display panel. And the liquid crystal display panel sequentially supplies an image signal for one screen for each basic color light to switch the transmission density of the liquid crystal dot segment for each dot, and irradiates the light from the light source in synchronization with the switching. Display driving means for switching the basic color light to be performed, a print optical system for forming an image displayed on the liquid crystal display panel on a photosensitive recording medium, and an image signal for one screen read from the storage medium. A signal level adjusting circuit for adjusting a signal level according to an external operation input, and an image signal processing circuit for inputting the adjusted image signal to the display driving means. Configure and Aru.

In adjusting the signal level of the image signal, the color tone can be adjusted by adjusting one or two of the three types of basic color light frame images constituting the full color image in frame image units. Further, by performing signal level adjustment for each frame image in dot units, it becomes possible to convert a full-color image into a monochrome image. In order to adjust the image signal according to the external operation input, a table memory in which a plurality of types of adjustment data are written in advance is used, and from this table memory, the type of adjustment data corresponding to the external operation input is selected to perform image signal processing. It is effective to perform appropriate adjustment by a circuit in order to simplify the configuration. Further, it is preferable that an optical path switching means is provided in the print optical path so that an image based on the adjusted image signal is displayed on the liquid crystal display panel, and the image can be observed in advance. It is convenient to use an instant film containing a developing solution for the photosensitive recording medium.

[0009]

1 and 2 show the appearance of a front side and a back side of a still video camera incorporating a color printer according to the present invention. An image pickup lens 3 is incorporated in the front of the camera body 2, and a CCD image sensor is provided on the image forming surface. The CCD image sensor is for obtaining an imaging signal by photoelectrically converting an optical image obtained by the imaging lens 3, and may use a MOS image sensor or the like.

On the front surface of the camera body 2, there are provided light projecting / receiving windows 4 and 5 for distance measurement and a light measuring window 6 for measuring object brightness. After turning on a power switch (not shown), when the release button 7 provided on the upper surface of the body is half-pressed, near-infrared distance measuring light is emitted from the light projecting window 4 toward the subject, and the reflected light is emitted. PSD provided behind light receiving window 5
(Position Sensitive Device), the subject distance is measured, and the brightness of the subject is measured by a phototransistor provided behind the photometric window 6.

Subsequently, when the release button 7 is fully pressed, focusing of the imaging lens 3 is performed according to the measured subject distance, and control of the charge accumulation time of the CCD image sensor is performed according to the subject brightness. It should be noted that it is of course possible to incorporate a strobe and automatically perform strobe shooting when the luminance of the subject is below a specified level.

As shown in FIG. 3, a liquid crystal display unit 10 is built in the camera body 2 as image display means. The imaging lens 3 is turned on by turning on the power switch.
The CCD image sensor 12 incorporated behind the camera starts imaging, and the optical image is photoelectrically converted for each pixel to obtain an imaging signal. The subject image is displayed in full color on the liquid crystal display unit 10 based on the image pickup signal thus obtained. This display image passes through a convex lens 13 for magnifying observation and passes through an eyepiece window 14 provided on the back of the camera body.
From the viewfinder image. CC
The D image sensor 12 continuously captures the subject image,
Therefore, the finder image is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 in real time.

When the release button 7 is fully pressed, an image signal for one screen obtained from the CCD image sensor 10 at that time is converted into a digitized image signal, and the image is stored in a frame memory built in the camera body 2. Written as data. In addition, as a recording medium for image data, a memory card detachably mounted on the camera body 2 can be used. In this case, the memory card can be selected by operating the operation input unit 15. .

The operation input unit 15 is also used for selecting other functions. For example, select the self-timer mode /
In addition to items related to shooting modes such as canceling, continuous shooting, and setting / cancelling the number of continuous shots, you can select printer functions, shift to the color selection mode for whether to print in full color when printing, and adjust color tone It can be used for shifting to the mode. These operating situations are:
Confirmation can be made on the display unit 16 made of a reflective liquid crystal.

In the print mode, a selection operation such as reading image data to be printed from a built-in frame memory or a removable memory card is also performed through the operation input unit 15. Reference numeral 16 denotes a protective glass covering the eyepiece window 14, and reference numeral 17 denotes a cover that covers various input / output terminal groups for making an electrical connection to an external device. Reference numeral 19 denotes a composite output terminal, which converts an image signal picked up by the CCD image sensor 12 into a composite signal and outputs the composite signal.

Unlike the conventional color liquid crystal monitor, the liquid crystal display unit 10 does not include a fluorescent lamp for illuminating the liquid crystal display panel with white light from the rear side. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the liquid crystal display unit 10 has a box-shaped housing 20 in which a circuit board 21, a diffusion plate 22, a liquid crystal display panel 24, and a transparent protective glass 25 are sequentially assembled. A red light emitting diode 26R, a green light emitting diode 26G, and a blue light emitting diode 26B (hereinafter, referred to as R-LEDs) that emit red, green, and blue light as three types of basic color light for obtaining a full-color image are provided substantially at the center of the substrate 21. , G-LED, B-LED) are mounted, and these are used as light sources for illuminating the liquid crystal display panel 24 from the back side.

The circuit board 21 is electrically connected to the connector 27 through an opening formed behind the housing 20.
A liquid crystal display panel 24 is further connected to the circuit board 21 via a flexible printed board (not shown). Then, in response to the display drive signal supplied from the connector 27, the blinking control of the R-LED, the G-LED, and the B-LED is performed, and the drive control of the liquid crystal display panel 24 is performed.

The liquid crystal display panel 24 has, for example, 4.8 ×
This is a matrix in which 320 × 240 liquid crystal dot segments are two-dimensionally arranged in a matrix in a 3.6 mm rectangular size. Unlike a conventional color liquid crystal monitor, it is not combined with a color microfilter, and is active. High-speed driving is performed for each dot segment by the driving method. For such a liquid crystal display panel 24, for example, "Cyber Display" (trade name) manufactured by Kopin, USA can be used.

The diffusion plate 22 is composed of R-LED, G-LED,
The color light from the B-LED is diffused, so that the back surface of the liquid crystal display panel 24 is uniformly illuminated by each color light. Such a diffusion plate 22 may be, for example, a milky white plastic plate or a transparent plastic plate such as an acrylic resin mixed with a large number of fine beads having a high light diffusing property.

When a full-color finder image is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 constructed as described above, the liquid crystal display panel 24 and the R-LED, G-LED, and B-LED are connected as shown in FIG. Driven synchronously. After the image pickup signal obtained from the CCD image sensor is separated for each basic color light and converted into a digital signal to obtain an image signal for each basic color light, these image signals are sequentially supplied to the liquid crystal display panel 24 for each basic color light. . When the image signals for red, green, and blue are sequentially supplied to the liquid crystal display panel 24, all the liquid crystal dot segments constituting the liquid crystal display panel 24 form the respective frames for red, green, and blue. The image is displayed as a density distribution pattern for each dot.

In synchronism with the sequential switching and display of the frame images for each color on the liquid crystal display panel 24, a light emission trigger signal of the LED is obtained, and the display period t of each frame image is obtained.
During 1, the corresponding basic color light LED is turned on for a predetermined time. Thus, when a red frame image is displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 24, illumination by the R-LED is performed, and the liquid crystal display unit 10 displays a red image. Similarly, when a green frame image and a blue frame image are displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 24, G
The -LED and the B-LED are turned on, and a green image and a blue image are displayed, respectively.

Thus, the red image, the green image,
The blue images are repeatedly displayed in order. If the switching frequency is sufficiently high, when the switching frequency is observed, the images for each color overlap on the retina due to the afterimage effect and are recognized as a full-color image. Of course, L
The switching of the frame image for each color may be performed in synchronization with the blinking switching signal of the ED.

One full-color image is composed of one set of a red frame image, a green frame image, and a blue frame image. When the display period is S1, the period S1 is 1 /.
If the time is set to 16 seconds or less, 16 or more full-color images are displayed per second, and a display without discomfort can be performed. Note that it is simple to set the lighting time of each LED to be shorter than the display period t1 of the frame image, and to determine the timing of turning on / off so as to fall within the display period t1 of the frame image. If the liquid crystal display panel 24 has a certain light blocking period between the times t1, the switching of the lighting of each LED may be performed within this light blocking period.

The brightness of the finder image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 is R-LED, G-LE
In addition to increasing the lighting time of the D and B-LEDs, adjustment can be performed by increasing the drive current of each LED. In addition, since each LED generally has different luminous efficiency (luminance / drive current) for each luminescent color,
Correspondingly, the lighting time and the drive current of each LED can be set to adjust the color balance. In addition,
It is also possible to correct the transmission density of the liquid crystal dot segment according to the luminous efficiency of the LED.

According to the liquid crystal display unit 10, since each liquid crystal dot segment constituting the liquid crystal display panel 24 is used as a pixel of a frame image of each color, a conventional color color filter using a micro color filter is used. A full-color image can be displayed with higher definition than a liquid crystal monitor. In addition, since a fluorescent lamp that consumes a large amount of power is not used as a light source for illuminating the liquid crystal display panel 25, it can be used for a long time with only the built-in battery pack.

If the display screen size of the liquid crystal display panel 24 is about 4.8.times.3.6 mm as described above, the image is too small for the naked eye to observe, and the convex lens 13 is used as an eyepiece optical system. Can be Then, the image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 is magnified and observed from the eyepiece window 14 as an erect virtual image by the convex lens 13. It is of course possible to use a real image type as the eyepiece optical system. In this case, it is necessary to reverse the image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 in all directions.

Next, the configuration of a printer built in the above-mentioned still video camera will be described. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a slit-shaped outlet 28 is formed on the upper surface of the camera body 2, from which the printed instant film 30 is discharged. Approximately ten instant films 30 are stored in the film pack 31 so as to be stacked, and the film pack 31 is loaded and the empty film pack 31 is taken out by the pack loading lid 32 provided on the back of the camera body 2 so as to be openable and closable. Is performed.

A pack pressing spring 33 is provided on the inner wall of the pack loading lid 32, and presses the film pack 31 to a predetermined position in the pack loading chamber for positioning. A film pressing plate 35 urged forward by a spring is provided on the inner wall of the pack loading lid 32. The film pressing plate 35 enters the pack through an opening formed in the back wall of the film pack 31 and is turned into an instant film unit. 30 is pressed against the inner front wall of the film pack 31. As a result, the uppermost instant film unit 30 is positioned at the exposure position regulated by the front wall of the pack. In addition, the film pressing plate 35 is provided in the film pack so that the unused film pack 31 can be handled even under bright light.
Although a sheet is provided for shielding the opening through which the sheet enters, it is not shown.

A movable mirror 36 for switching the optical path is provided behind the convex lens 13 constituting the eyepiece optical system, and is provided between a finder observation position indicated by a solid line and a print position indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. It is rotatable. Movable mirror 3
When 6 is in the viewfinder observation position, the image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 is enlarged and observed from the eyepiece window 14 through the convex lens 13. When the mirror switching solenoid 37 is turned on, the movable mirror 36 moves to the print position, and the image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 is instantly filmed by the print optical system including the convex lens 13, the movable mirror 36, the print lens 39, and the mirror 40. The image is enlarged and formed on the unit 30.

A known instant camera or an exposed instant film unit 30 is connected to a film pack 3 as disclosed in JP-A-7-248533.
In order to develop the developing solution while discharging the developing solution from the printer 1, the digital still camera has a built-in developing mechanism including a developing motor, a scraping claw, and a pair of developing rollers 42. When the unfolding motor starts, the scraper claw is engaged with the lower end of the uppermost film unit 30 in the film pack 31, and the instant film unit 30 is lifted upward with the movement of the scraper claw.

A slit is formed in the film pack 31 and the upper wall of the pack loading chamber, and the upper end of the instant film unit 30 lifted by the scraping claw enters between the pair of developing rollers 42 which are already rotating. Thereafter, the instant film unit 30 is sent out by the developing roller 42. At this time, the developer pod 30a built in the instant film unit 30 is crushed by the developing roller 42, and the photosensitive sheet on the exposure surface side of the instant film unit 30 and the back The developing solution is spread with a uniform thickness between the surface and the image receiving sheet.

The instant film unit 30 in which the developing solution has been spread passes through the discharge port 28 to the camera body 2.
It is discharged outside. After one to several minutes of development and fixing time, the latent image formed by exposing the photosensitive sheet is transferred and developed on the image receiving sheet, and the printed image can be observed from the back surface side. Since the instant film unit 30 has a fixed size and the amount of rotation of the developing motor required for one developing process is constant, the developing motor stops automatically when the developing mechanism completes one cycle of operation. It is supposed to.

An adjustment data input unit is provided on the back of the camera body 2 for selecting and adjusting a color mode at the time of printing. The adjustment data input unit includes three types of operation knobs 45a, 45b, and 45c. The mode knob 45a is used to select a print color mode, and the color tone of the print is set to one of "full color", "sepia color", and "black and white" depending on the set position. The operation of the color adjustment knob 45b is enabled when the “full color” mode is selected, and is used for color adjustment by adjusting the balance between red and blue. The light / dark adjustment knob 45c is used for light / dark gradation adjustment.

FIG. 6 schematically shows the electrical configuration of the digital still camera. The system controller 47 is configured by a microcomputer, and controls the overall operation of the digital still camera in accordance with an operation input from the input operation unit 15 or the release button 7. As shown in the main flow of FIG. 11, a mode check is performed after the power switch is turned on, and when the imaging mode is set, imaging by the CCD image sensor 12 is started by driving the CCD driver 48. Various sequence processing programs executed by the system controller 47 are written in the program memory 49.

On the photoelectric surface of the CCD image sensor 12,
Micro color filters of R, G, and B are arranged in a matrix for each pixel, and signal charges are accumulated for each pixel by incident light passing through them. A serial imaging signal is obtained by reading out the signal charge, amplified to an appropriate level by the amplifier 50, and then converted to digital by the A / D converter 51.

The digitally converted image signal is input to an image signal processing circuit 52. The image signal processing circuit 52 performs known signal processing such as matrix operation, white balance adjustment, and gamma correction on the input image signal, and further converts the processed image data into an NTSC composite signal. A corresponding image signal is generated and output to a composite output terminal 19 via a D / A converter 53 and an amplifier 54. Therefore, if a home television monitor is connected to the composite output terminal 19, the CCD image sensor 1 is passed through the imaging lens 3.
2 can be observed in real time the full-color image picked up.

The image signal output from the image signal processing circuit 52 is also input to the display controller 55. The display controller 55 includes a buffer memory 56,
Together with the D / A converter 57, the LCD driver 58, and the LED driver 59, a display driving unit 60 for driving the liquid crystal display unit 10 is configured. The display controller 55 receives the image signal from the image signal processing circuit 52, develops the image signal into frame images for red, green, and blue, and stores the image signals for each color in the buffer memory 56.
Is written as image data for each dot. The image data for each dot constituting each frame image is quantized data representing the signal level, and represents the degree of shading of the frame image of each color at the dot position.

The image data written in the buffer memory 56 is sequentially read out for each color by the display controller 55, and is supplied to the LCD driver 59 at a period S1 after analog conversion by the D / A converter 57. As a result, red, green, and blue frame images are sequentially displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 24 as shown in FIG. Further, in synchronization with the switching of the frame image display, L
The LED blinking switching signal is input to the ED driver 58, and the R-LED 26R, G-LED 26G, B-LED
26B blinks sequentially to display a finder image.

The image signal written into the buffer memory 56 for each color is newly output from the CCD image sensor 12.
An image signal for a screen is obtained, and is sequentially updated each time it is input to the image signal processing circuit 52 via the A / D converter 51. The buffer memory 56 includes a first frame memory 56a and a second frame memory 56b for storing image signals as shown in FIG.
Areas a and 56b are provided for storing image signals corresponding to three color frame images for each dot. These frame memories 56a and 56b are CCD
Even if the operating frequency of the imaging system such as the image sensor 12, the A / D converter 51, and the image signal processing circuit 52 does not match the operating frequency for driving the liquid crystal display unit, real-time finder image display without a sense of incongruity is achieved. Used to do.

The image signal SGNL1 sequentially supplied for each color from the image signal processing circuit 52 is supplied to one of the first frame memory 56a and the second frame memory 56b selected by the changeover switch 62 for the operating frequency of the imaging system. Is written under a write clock pulse CLK1 having The image signal SGNL2 supplied to the LCD driver 59 via the D / A converter 57 is transmitted to any one of the frame memories 56 selected by the changeover switch 63.
a and 56b are read under a clock pulse CLK2 having an operating frequency for driving the liquid crystal display unit.

The state shown is the first frame memory 56a
, The image signal for one full-color image is read out, and at the same time, the image signal for the next one full-color image is written in the second frame memory 56b. Clock pulses CLK1, CLK
When the frequency of the second image signal coincides with the frequency of the second image signal, the second image signal is read out from the first frame memory 56a when the second image signal is completely read.
Since the writing of the image signal to the frame memory 56b is completed, the changeover switches 62 and 63 may be switched from the state shown in the drawing to select the other frame memory, and the reading and writing of the image signal may be performed continuously.

When the frequency of the write clock pulse CLK1 and the frequency of the read clock pulse CLK2 do not match, the timing for switching the changeover switches 62 and 63 is controlled, or the changeover switch 62 is set to the first and second positions.
By retracting to a neutral position that is not connected to any of the second frame memories 56a and 56b, adjustment can be made.

For example, when the frequency of the write clock pulse CLK1 is high, the writing of the image signal to the second frame memory 56b is completed while the image signal is being read from the first frame memory 56a in the illustrated state. Therefore, in this case, when the writing of the image signal to the second frame memory 56b is completed, the changeover switch 62 is retracted to the neutral position, and the process waits until the reading of the image signal from the first frame memory 56a is completed. When the reading of the image signal from the first frame memory 56a is completed, the changeover switch 63 is connected to the second frame memory 56b to read out the image signal of the next display image, and the changeover switch 6
2 may be switched from the neutral position to the first frame memory 56a, and the next new image signal may be written.

On the contrary, when the frequency of the read clock pulse CLK2 is high, in the state shown in the figure, the changeover switch 62 is kept as it is until the image signal is completely written into the second frame memory 56b, and the image is continuously transferred from the first frame memory 56a. The signal is continuously read out, thereby displaying an image. Then, when the writing of the image signal to the second frame memory 56b is completed, the changeover switches 62 and 63 are simultaneously connected to the other frame memory side, and a new image signal is read from the second frame memory 56b. In addition, a new image signal may be written in the first frame memory 56a.

The system controller 47 further performs EE
Data is exchanged between the PROM 65 and the frame memory 66. Various correction data,
The control data is written and read out at an appropriate timing when the digital still camera is operated according to a prescribed sequence program. The frame memory 66 is a high-speed accessible DRAM (Dynami
c) and stores, for each screen, an image signal obtained from the image signal processing circuit 52 when an image is taken by operating the release button 7, for example, storing an image signal for 50 screens. It has enough storage capacity.

The system controller 47 controls the input operation unit 15 and the adjustment data input unit 4 via the I / O port 68.
The operation of each part is controlled in accordance with the operation input from the color mode knob 45a, the color adjustment knob 45b, and the light / dark adjustment knob 45c constituting the fifth unit 5. The I / O port 68 is further connected to an AF device 69, an operation display unit 16, a data input / output terminal group 70 provided inside the cover 17, a mirror switching solenoid 37, and a developing motor 71. Drive control is performed according to the above command.

In order to enhance the printing function of a color printer built in the still video camera, a look-up table memory (hereinafter, referred to as LUT) 73 is used. The LUT 73 stores adjustment data that is referred to when the image signal processing circuit 52 writes an image signal into the buffer memory 56 during printing. The adjustment data is, for example, conceptually as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, and the mode knob 4 constituting the adjustment data input unit 45.
5a, color adjustment knob 45b, light / dark adjustment knob 45c
Of the characteristics corresponding to the set position of are selected.

The characteristic curve of FIG. 8 shows the adjustment data of the light / dark density, one of which is selected according to the set position of the light / dark adjustment knob 45c. When the light / dark adjustment knob 45c is set at the standard position (click is applied) set at the center of the index “bright ← → dark”, the characteristic S is selected.
The original signal level of the image data for each dot read from the frame memory 66 is written to the buffer memory 56 after standard level conversion.

When the light / dark adjustment knob 45c is moved in the "bright" direction, the conversion characteristics are switched in the order of "L1" and "L2", and when it is moved in the "dark" direction, the conversion characteristics are switched in the order of "D1" and "D2". . By this characteristic switching, the original signal level of the image data read for each dot from the frame memory 66 is level-converted according to the selected characteristic curve, and the frame image of each color is written to the buffer memory 56 by the converted image data. . The signal level conversion at this time is performed commonly for the frame images of each color. Thereby, the liquid crystal display unit 10
The brightness of the image displayed is adjusted, and the brightness of the print can be adjusted.

The characteristic curve of FIG. 9 shows color adjustment data by changing the level ratio between red and blue, and one of them is selected according to the set position of the color adjustment knob 45b. When the color adjustment knob 45b is kept set at the standard position (clicked) set at the center of the index “R ← → B”, the characteristic N is selected and the frame memory 66 is set.
Are written to the buffer memory 56 so that the ratio between the original signal level of each dot of the red frame image and the original signal level of each dot of the blue frame image in the image data read from the image data is maintained.

As the color adjustment knob 45b is moved in the “R” direction, “R1” → “R2” → “R3”, and as the color adjustment knob 45b is moved in the “B” direction, “B” is displayed.
The conversion characteristics are switched in the order of “1” → “B2” → “B3”. The characteristic curve “R3” emphasizes red while suppressing blue, and the characteristic curve “B3” emphasizes blue while suppressing red. As a result, by operating the color adjustment knob 45b, it is possible to adjust the color tone while relatively emphasizing and suppressing the red and blue colors of the full-color image.

In the characteristic curves shown in FIG. 9, since all the characteristic curves except the characteristic N are nonlinear, the R / R
When the signal level ratio of B is different for each dot position, an output signal level converted at a different ratio is obtained. However, all of the image signals constituting the red frame image and the blue frame image have the selected characteristic curve. , The signal level is adjusted for each frame image. Then, the adjusted image signal is written to the buffer memory 56. Note that three knobs for color adjustment may be provided, each of which may have a function of individually enhancing and suppressing red, green, and blue in units of frame images. In this case, the signal levels of the image signals of the frame images of the corresponding colors may be increased or decreased according to the operation of the knob.

The color adjustment knob 45b is the mode knob 4
Effective only when 5a is set to the index "color",
Invalid when set to "W / B" or "Sepia". When the color adjustment knob 45b is set to the index “W / B”, the image data for each dot constituting the frame image of each color read from the frame memory 66 is converted into image data of luminance for each corresponding dot position. These are converted and written uniformly in the frame memory for each color in the buffer memory 56. red,
To convert each of the green and blue image data into luminance image data, the following equation is used when R, G, and B are signal levels of image data for each dot position. Y = 0.3R + 0.59G + 0.11B

The conversion of the image data by the above equation is different from the case where the color tone is adjusted in units of the frame images of each color, and the image data constituting the frame images of each color is evaluated in units of dots. Done. The luminance image data thus obtained is commonly written to the frame memories for the three colors in the buffer memory 56. When these are sequentially read and supplied to the LCD driver 59, the R-LED, G-LED, B-LED
Are driven at the common lighting time t1, so that the liquid crystal display unit 10 displays a white / black image without a color tone. Note that, in order to easily obtain the luminance image data, the image data for each dot position constituting the green frame image may be used as it is as the luminance image data for each color.

Set the color adjustment knob 45b to the index "Sepia".
Is set, image data of a common luminance is written in the frame memory for each color in the buffer memory 56, as in the case of setting the index “W / B”. At the same time, the image signal processing circuit 52 reads the LED lighting time adjustment data written in a predetermined address area in the LUT 73, and outputs the R-LED, G-LE via the LED driver 58.
The lighting times of the D and B-LEDs are individually adjusted. With this adjustment, when the R-LED, the G-LED, and the B-LED are repeatedly turned on, a light emitting color of sepia can be obtained. Therefore, a white / black image is observed under sepia illumination, and a sepia image is obtained.

Instead of adjusting the lighting time, each L
The light emission amount of the ED can be adjusted to obtain a sepia light emission color. Further, when writing the luminance image data into the buffer memory 56, it is possible to adjust the level of the luminance image data for each color with a coefficient that can obtain a sepia display color. The LED lighting time and the light emission amount may be exactly the same as in the case of performing full-color display.

Next, the operation of the digital still camera incorporating a color printer will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. After the power switch is turned on, a mode check is performed, and the operation branches to one of an imaging mode and a reproduction mode in accordance with an operation input from the input operation unit 15. In the imaging mode, the subject image is continuously imaged by the CCD image sensor 12, and the imaging signal is
The image data is input to the image signal processing circuit 52 as digitized image data via the A / D converter 51.

After the signal processing by the image signal processing circuit 44, the image signal is written into the buffer memory 56 by the display controller 55. The image signal for one full-color image written in the buffer memory 56 is read out in units of red, green, and blue frame images as shown in FIG. It is input to the driver 59.

In synchronization with this, the display controller 55 inputs an LED blink switching signal to the LED driver 58, and the R-LED, G-LED, and B-LED repeat blinking sequentially. As a result, a full-color image is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 in a color-sequential manner, and the photographer can observe the viewfinder image enlarged by the convex lens 13 through the eyepiece window 14.

When the release button 7 is half-pressed, the AF device 69 operates to measure the subject distance, and the subject brightness is measured through the photometry window 6. Subsequently, when the release button 7 is fully pressed, the still image is captured after the focusing of the imaging lens 3 is performed in accordance with the measured subject distance. An image signal for one screen obtained immediately after the release button 7 is fully pressed is processed by the image signal processing circuit 52 and then processed by the system controller 34.
Is written into the frame memory 66 as an image signal for one screen.

The image signal written in the frame memory 66 can be read arbitrarily in one screen unit after the mode is shifted to the reproduction mode by the key operation of the operation input unit 15. In the reproduction mode, if an image signal of an arbitrary frame is selected from the frame memory 66 by a key input from the input operation unit 15, the image signal is transmitted to the image signal processing circuit 5
2 and is input to the display controller 55 and stored in the buffer memory 56. Therefore, by repeatedly reading the image signal written in the buffer memory 56 and inputting it to the display driving means 60, a full-color still image based on the image signal can be continuously displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10.

When the print mode is set by a key input from the input operation unit 15, a hard copy can be created based on the image signal written in the frame memory 66. When the print mode is selected, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, a standby state for selection input of a frame to be printed is entered. When a frame number is selected and input, the image signal of the frame number is read by the system controller 47, processed by the image signal processing circuit 52, and then written into the buffer memory 56 by the display controller 55. The image signal written in the buffer memory 56 is read out by the display controller 55 in the same manner as in the reproduction mode, and displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 as a full-color image. Note that the processing up to this point is completely the same as the reproduction mode shown in FIG.
It is also possible to make it possible to shift to the print mode following the reproduction mode in FIG.

After confirming the image of the frame to be printed through the eyepiece window 14, the color mode knob 45a can be used to select the color tone of the print image between full color, black and white, and sepia, and the color adjustment knob. The color tone and the density of the printed image can be appropriately changed by operating the light-dark adjustment knob 45b and the light-dark adjustment knob 45c. Each time these knobs 45a, 45b, 45c are operated, the system controller 47 causes the frame memory 66 to operate.
, The image signal of the selected frame is read out and input to the image signal processing circuit 52, and the image signal processing circuit 52
The image signal after the adjustment is input to the buffer memory 56 with reference to the table data in 3. Therefore, the user can check the image after the adjustment on the display image of the liquid crystal display unit 10.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart for the color mode selection and adjustment processing. When the full color mode is selected, the level of the image data of each dot constituting the red and blue frame images in the image signals written to the buffer memory 56 is adjusted according to the set position of the color adjustment knob 45b. When the light / dark adjustment knob 45c is further operated, the density of the frame image of each color is adjusted according to the amount of adjustment. The density adjustment of the frame image is performed by increasing or decreasing the signal level of the image data of each color in the buffer memory 56 as a whole according to one of the characteristic curves shown in FIG. It is also possible to deal with it.

When the color mode knob 45a is set to "W / B" or "Sepia", the image signal processing circuit 52 evaluates the image signal for each color read from the frame memory 56 for each dot position, This is converted into luminance image data and written uniformly to the frame memory for each color in the buffer memory 56. Further, in the case of “sepia”, the lighting time of each of the R-LED, G-LED, and B-LED is adjusted so as to generate a sepia color light. When the light / dark adjustment knob 45c is further operated, the level of the image signal is adjusted according to the characteristic curve shown in FIG. 8 as described above.

When the selection and adjustment processing of the color mode is performed in this manner, the image after the selection and adjustment is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10. After confirming this, the user performs a print start operation. The print start operation is performed by the input operation unit 15 in accordance with the guidance display on the operation display unit 16. For the print start operation, a dedicated print button may be provided or the release button 7 may be used.

When a print start input is detected by the system controller 47, as shown in FIG.
All of the R-LED, G-LED, and B-LED are turned off once, and the image display on the liquid crystal display unit 10 is interrupted. Subsequently, the mirror switching solenoid 37 is turned on, and the movable mirror 36 is rotated from the finder observation position to the print position. When it is confirmed by the photo sensor or the micro switch or the like that the movable mirror 36 has been switched to the printing position, the display controller 55 performs a printing process.

In the printing process, an appropriate exposure amount is obtained in consideration of the ISO sensitivity of the instant film unit 30 and the F value of the printing optical system including the convex lens 13, the movable mirror 36, the print lens 39, and the mirror 40. This is performed by controlling the lighting time of the R-LED, G-LED, and B-LED as described above.

In controlling the lighting of each LED in the printing process, the red, green, and blue frame images are sequentially displayed in the liquid crystal display panel 25 in the display period t1 as shown in FIG.
, R-LED, G-LED, B
When the LED is turned on, the number of repetitions of the basic cycle S1 may be determined according to the appropriate exposure amount. Further, the R-LED is continuously turned on while displaying the red frame image until the proper exposure amount of red is reached, and then the G-LED and the B-LE are displayed while sequentially displaying the green and blue frame images.
D may be lit continuously for a required time.

The print image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 is enlarged and formed on the instant film unit 30.
Is used as one pixel for each of the basic color lights, so that even when printing in full color, a sufficiently high-resolution printed image is displayed on the instant film unit 30. Can be obtained.

The print image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 includes the movable mirror 36 and the mirror 4.
0, the light is reflected twice to form an image on the instant film unit 30, and the print image obtained on the instant film unit 30 is observed from the base surface side.
, The print image may be displayed in a normal posture.
Further, it is preferable to close the eyepiece shutter in conjunction with the switching of the movable mirror 36 so that external light does not enter the print optical path from the eyepiece window 14 during printing.

When the exposure by the liquid crystal display unit 10 is completed, the driving of the developing motor 71 is started, the exposed instant film unit 30 is lifted upward by the scraping claw, and the upper end thereof is fed between the developing rollers 42. Since the developing roller 42 rotates in the feeding direction together with the driving of the developing motor 71,
When the upper end of the instant film unit 30 is fed in between, it is sent out toward the outlet 28.

When passing between the developing rollers 42, the developing solution pod 30a is crushed, and the developing solution sealed therein is developed uniformly between the photosensitive sheet and the image receiving sheet. When the developing motor 71 reaches a predetermined rotation amount, the instant film unit 30
At this point, the drive of the expansion motor 71 is stopped and one cycle of expansion processing is completed. The latent image formed on the photosensitive sheet is transferred to the image receiving sheet by the developed developing solution, and after a predetermined time required for the developing and fixing processes has elapsed, the printed image is observed from the base surface side of the instant film unit 30. Will be able to do it.

When the developing process is completed, the mirror switching solenoid 37 is turned off, and the movable mirror 36 returns from the print position to the finder observation position. When the movable mirror 36 returns to the viewfinder observation position, the display control controller 55 reads out image data from the buffer memory 56, and the print image is displayed again on the liquid crystal display unit 10. Here, when the print start input is performed again, the second print of the image of the same frame can be performed. Of course, when the frame to be printed is selected again, the print can be obtained in the same procedure.

As the instant film unit, unlike the above-mentioned transmission observation type instant film unit 30, a reflection observation type one in which the finally obtained image is observed from the exposure surface side is commercially available. ing. When such a reflection observation type is used for the color printer of the above-described embodiment, the image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 10 after the printing is started may be reversed only in the left-right direction.

Further, the printer can be used by connecting to an external device such as a personal computer through a data input / output terminal group 70, and a CD-ROM, a floppy disk or the like is used as a recording medium for image data. It is also possible. In order to efficiently capture image data from these external devices, a connector for an ISDN line or a port for infrared communication such as IRDA is provided in the data input / output terminal group 70, and the program memory 49 is provided with each communication device. It is convenient to prepare a program. The antenna 78 is attached to the camera body 2.
Is built in, it is also possible to wirelessly receive image data and use it for printing.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. 14 to 16 is different from the previous embodiment in that the imaging function is omitted, and a printed image can be projected on a screen for observation.
The components having the same functions as those of the embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals. The image signal for printing is input from an external device connected to the data input / output terminal group 70 provided inside the cover 17. External devices include personal computer and CD-ROM
There are a reading device, a floppy disk reading device, and the like, and image data written in each storage medium is read into this printer in units of one screen.

The basic print function is performed according to the flowchart of FIG.
The selection and adjustment processing of the color mode shown in FIG. 13 can be performed in exactly the same manner in accordance with the input from. However, in this embodiment, image confirmation before printing can be performed using the screen 80. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 16, the display image of the liquid crystal display unit 10 is reflected by a fixed mirror 81, then enters a projection lens 82, is reflected by a movable mirror 83 at an observation position, and is The image is enlarged and formed. Therefore, the user can easily observe the image to be printed from the front side of the screen 80.

When the print start button 84 is pressed, the liquid crystal display unit 10 is temporarily turned off to interrupt the image display, and then the movable mirror 83 moves to the print position indicated by the two-dot chain line. And the liquid crystal display unit 1
After focusing is performed by moving the projection lens 82 in the optical axis direction so that the display image of 0 is formed on the instant film 30, the image of the frame to be printed is displayed again on the liquid crystal display unit 10 and printed. Exposure is performed. Thereafter, the exposed instant film 30 is discharged by driving the developing motor 71, and a hard copy can be obtained.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the illustrated embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. For example, when displaying images on the liquid crystal display unit 10, the display order of the frame images of each color and the lighting order of the LEDs are red, green,
The order is not limited to blue and can be changed as appropriate. Also, three types of basic color light for full-color image display can be used, for example, cyan and cyan by using appropriate light sources.
A combination of magenta and yellow is also possible. Further, as a photosensitive recording medium for printing, not only an instant film unit, but also various photosensitive materials can be used in addition to a general silver salt photosensitive material such as a photographic film and a photographic film sheet.

It is also possible to incorporate a memory in which the image data of the decorative frame is stored, and to add a decorative frame to a print image based on the image signal when creating a hard copy based on the input image signal. In this case, the input image signal and the image data of the decorative frame may be combined and written into the buffer memory 56. In addition, by appropriately adding a function of editing print image data to be written to the buffer memory 56, the color tone and light / dark density of the print image can be blurred toward the periphery of the screen, and zoom printing by partial enlargement can be performed. It is also possible.

[0082]

As described above, according to the present invention, the frame images of the basic color lights are sequentially displayed on the liquid crystal display panel, and in synchronization with this, the illumination is given by the corresponding basic color lights to color-sequentially color. Since the image is printed and exposed on the photosensitive recording medium, the size of the liquid crystal display panel can be reduced and the power consumption can be greatly reduced, so that a color printer excellent in portability can be obtained. In addition, since all of the liquid crystal dot segments constituting the liquid crystal display panel can be used for displaying images of each color, a high-definition color print can be obtained. Further, the color printer of the present invention has a function of adjusting an image signal to be provided for printing by a simple operation of a user, so that appropriate image processing can be performed on the spot where printing is performed. Thus, it is possible to obtain not only a full-color print but also a print according to preference, such as black and white or sepia tone.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front external view of a still video camera in which a color printer of the present invention is incorporated.

FIG. 2 is a rear side external view of the still video camera shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view of a main part of the still video camera shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the liquid crystal display unit.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a main part of the liquid crystal display unit shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the still video camera shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a time chart showing the operation of the liquid crystal display unit.

FIG. 8 is a characteristic curve showing an example of light-dark density adjustment data.

FIG. 9 is a characteristic curve showing an example of color adjustment data.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of a buffer memory and its operation.

11 is a flowchart showing the operation of the still video camera shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of a print process.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of color mode selection and adjustment processing.

FIG. 14 is a front external view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a rear side external view of the color printer shown in FIG.

16 is a schematic sectional view of a main part of the color printer shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Camera Body 3 Imaging Lens 10 Liquid Crystal Display Unit 14 Eyepiece Window 21 Circuit Board 22 Diffuser 24 Liquid Crystal Display Panel 26R R-LED 26G G-LED 26B B-LED 30 Instant Film Unit 31 Film Pack 36 Movable Mirror 39 Print Lens 40 Mirror 42 deployment roller 80 screen 83 movable mirror

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Kazuyuki Nishijima 3-13-45 Izumi, Asaka-shi, Saitama Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hiroshi Omura 3-13-45 Fuji, Izumi, Asaka-shi, Saitama F-term (reference) in Photo Film Co., Ltd. (reference)

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A liquid crystal display panel in which transmissive liquid crystal dot segments are two-dimensionally arranged, a light source for sequentially irradiating three kinds of basic color lights from behind the liquid crystal display panel, and a liquid crystal display panel for each of the basic color lights. Display driving means for sequentially supplying image signals for one screen and switching the transmission density of the liquid crystal dot segment for each dot, and switching the basic color light emitted from the light source in synchronization with the switching; A print optical system for forming an image displayed on a liquid crystal display panel on a photosensitive recording medium, and a signal level adjustment for an image signal for one screen read from the storage medium in accordance with an external operation input. And an image signal processing circuit for inputting the adjusted image signal to the display drive means. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the adjustment of the signal level is performed for at least one of three types of frame images of basic color light constituting the full-color image in frame image units, and is used for adjusting the color tone of a print image. Claim 1
A color printer as described. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the adjustment of the signal level is performed on a dot-by-dot basis for all three types of frame images of the basic color light constituting the full-color image, and is used to convert the full-color image into a monochrome image. The color printer according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 4. The image signal processing circuit accesses a table memory in which a plurality of types of adjustment data are written,
4. The color printer according to claim 1, wherein an adjustment is performed on an image signal for one screen read from the storage medium based on adjustment data of a type corresponding to an external operation input. 5. A printing position in the printing optical system for guiding an image displayed on a liquid crystal display panel onto a photosensitive recording medium, and an observation position for guiding an image displayed on the liquid crystal display panel to an optical path observable from outside. 5. A color printer according to claim 4, further comprising an optical path switching means movable between the first and second optical paths. 6. A color printer according to claim 5, wherein said photosensitive recording medium is an instant film containing a developing solution.