JP2011130036A - Imaging device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform an imaging operation, while attaining avoidance of competition of radio file access, preventing mixing of noise and reduction in power consumption, when a recording medium having an image transfer function is mounted. <P>SOLUTION: An imaging device that includes a transfer control means for performing communication control of image transfer, when a recording medium having image transfer functions is mounted is structured, such that when an imaging operation is started by depressing a release button, an instruction for stopping image transfer is performed; completion of transfer stop processing before imaging is started is confirmed; thereafter imaging processing is performed; and transfer is restarted, after storage of the image is completed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging control apparatus and a control method thereof when a recording medium that automatically performs file transfer processing when a file is recorded is connected to the imaging apparatus.

  An image file taken with a conventional digital still camera (hereinafter referred to as a digital camera) is generally stored in a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a PC) for the purpose of storage. For example, an image file is transferred by connecting a digital camera or a recording medium inserted in the digital camera to a PC. In recent years, digital cameras with a built-in wireless LAN function and recording media equipped with a wireless LAN function have appeared, and it is also possible to immediately transfer an image file saved by a shooting operation of the digital camera to a PC. I came.

  However, in many of the apparatuses described above, in order to prioritize the immediacy of image transfer, the photographing process and the transfer process are often performed asynchronously. For this reason, there is proposed a method for preventing file access contention by performing processing that excludes image file storage processing by image capturing and image file transfer processing.

  In Patent Document 1, when an external device including a storage unit, a transfer unit, and a communication control unit is connected, an electronic camera that stops transfer once by the communication control unit during image storage and resumes transfer after the storage is completed Is disclosed.

JP 2002-094925 A

  However, in addition to the above problems, when the shooting process and the transfer process are performed asynchronously, there is a risk that high-frequency noise emitted from the carrier wave transmitter of the wireless device is mixed as noise in the video signal or audio signal of the digital camera. is there.

  In addition, since the battery mounted on the digital camera is required to be small, the power supply is limited. If an image file transfer operation is performed during a camera operation that requires a large current, such as an image capture operation, zoom operation, or flash charging operation, the image capture operation or transfer operation is performed normally due to insufficient power. There is no fear.

In order to solve at least one of the above problems, an imaging apparatus according to the present invention is an imaging apparatus including transfer control means for performing communication control of image transfer when a recording medium having an image transfer function is loaded. ,
When the image capturing operation is started by pressing the release button, an instruction to stop the image transfer is issued, and after confirming that the transfer stop process is completed before the image capturing is started, the image capturing process is performed, The transfer is resumed after the storage is completed.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to perform a shooting operation while achieving at least one reduction among avoidance of file access competition, prevention of noise mixing, and power consumption.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the digital camera which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the digital camera which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the data structure of the image file which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the user interface of the digital camera which concerns on this Embodiment.

<First Embodiment>
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. Further, the embodiment of the present invention shows the most preferable mode of the invention, and does not limit the scope of the invention.

[Digital camera configuration]
In the following description, a case where the imaging device is a digital camera will be described as an example. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a digital camera 100 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the digital camera 100, an optical image is formed on the image sensor 103 through a photographing lens 101 and a shutter 102 having a function of adjusting the aperture amount. The image sensor 103 converts the formed optical image into an electrical signal and outputs an analog signal. As the image sensor 103, a known element such as a CCD or a CMOS image sensor may be used. The A / D converter 104 converts the analog signal output from the image sensor 103 into digital data.

  The timing generation unit 105 is controlled by the memory control unit 106 and the central control unit 107, and supplies a clock signal and a control signal to the image sensor 103, the A / D converter 104, and the D / A converter 108. The image processing unit 109 performs predetermined pixel interpolation processing and color conversion processing on the digital data from the A / D converter 104 or the data supplied from the memory control unit 106. The image processing unit 109 performs predetermined calculation processing using the captured image data, and supplies the calculation result to the central control unit 107. The image processing unit 109 performs predetermined calculation processing using the captured image data, and realizes TTL (through-the-lens) type AWB (auto white balance) processing based on the obtained calculation result. .

  The central control unit 107 controls the lens position of the A / D converter 104 and the aperture amount of the shutter 102 based on the calculation result obtained by the image processing unit 109, thereby enabling TTL AF (autofocus) or , AE (automatic exposure adjustment) is performed. Similarly, the central control unit 107 controls the flash 114 based on the calculation result obtained by the image processing unit 109 to realize TTL EF (flash pre-emission) processing.

  The memory control unit 106 controls the A / D converter 104, the timing generation unit 105, the image processing unit 109, the D / A converter 108, the memory 110, the compression / decompression unit 111, and the like. The digital data from the A / D converter 104 is transferred to the memory 110 (or an image display memory provided separately) via the image processing unit 109 and the memory control unit 106 or directly via the memory control unit 106. Written as

  The image data written in the memory 110 is displayed by the image display unit 112 via the D / A converter 108. The image display unit 112 is configured by, for example, an LCD using TFTs. The digital camera 100 can realize an EVF (electronic viewfinder) function by sequentially displaying captured image data from the image display unit 112. Further, the image display unit 112 can turn on / off the display according to an instruction from the central control unit 107. When the display of the image display unit 112 is turned off, the power consumption of the digital camera 100 can be greatly reduced. Therefore, when the user takes a tax using the optical viewfinder 113, it is possible to save power by turning off the display according to an operation instruction of the operation unit 120.

  The memory 110 stores still image data and moving image data acquired by shooting. The memory 110 has a sufficient storage capacity for storing a predetermined number of still image data and moving image data for a predetermined time. Accordingly, the digital camera 100 can write a large amount of image data to the memory 110 even in continuous shooting or panoramic shooting in which a plurality of still images are continuously captured. The memory 110 is also used as a work area for the central control unit 107.

  The compression / decompression unit 111 performs image data compression (data encoding) or image data expansion (data decoding) by ADCT (adaptive discrete cosine transform) or the like. For example, the compression / decompression unit 111 reads image data stored in the memory 110, performs compression processing or decompression processing, and writes the processed data in the memory 110.

  The sound control unit 135 receives sound data converted into an analog signal by the D / A converter 108 under the control of the central control unit 107, and outputs sound from the speaker 136 via an amplifier circuit (not shown). To control. Also, the voice control unit 135 controls voice input to be output to the A / D converter 104 after passing through the amplifier circuit for the voice data of the analog signal output from the microphone 137 under the control of the central control unit 107.

  An exposure control unit (not shown) controls the shutter 102 under the control of the central control unit 107. For example, the exposure control unit performs flash dimming by controlling the shutter 102 in cooperation with the flash 114. A distance measurement control unit (not shown) controls the focusing of the photographing lens 101 under the control of the central control unit 107. Specifically, the distance measurement control unit performs drive control related to the lens position of the focus lens in the photographing lens 101. For example, when the TTL method is used, the central control unit 107 controls the exposure control unit and the distance measurement control unit based on the calculation result obtained by calculating the captured image data by the image processing unit 109. A zoom control unit (not shown) controls zooming of the photographing lens 101 under the control of the central control unit 107. Specifically, the zoom control unit performs drive control related to the lens position of the zoom lens in the photographing lens 101. A barrier control unit (not shown) controls the opening and closing of the barrier in the barrier 128 that protects the photographing lens 101 with a covering member (barrier) under the control of the central control unit 107.

  The central control unit 107 centrally controls the entire digital camera 100. Specifically, the central control unit 107 reads the program data stored in the system memory 115 and expands it in the work area of the memory 110, and controls the operation of the entire digital camera 100 in cooperation with the expanded program data. To do.

  The optical viewfinder 113 projects light incident from the photographing lens 101 onto the screen using a mirror or a pentaprism that is flipped up between the photographing lens 101 and the image sensor 103 when exposed by the image sensor 103, and optically captures the subject image. Display. In the digital camera 100, by using the optical viewfinder 113, it is possible to perform shooting without using the electronic viewfinder function of the image display unit 112. In the optical viewfinder 113, a part of the image display unit 112 described above may be provided.

  The flash 114 emits light under the control of the central control unit 107 to irradiate the subject with auxiliary light. The flash 114 may have a light projecting function for irradiating the subject with auxiliary light during AF, a flash light control function for adjusting the amount of light applied to the subject, and the like.

  The system memory 115 stores constants, variables, program data, and the like for the operation of the central control unit 107. The system memory 115 also stores a program diagram used in the AE. Note that the program diagram is data that is referred to when the TTL method AE is performed, and control values such as an aperture amount and a shutter speed for a calculation result (for example, a luminance value) obtained by the image processing unit 109 are defined in advance. Table data.

  In the digital camera 100, the central control unit 107 controls the image display unit 112 and the voice control unit 135 according to the execution of the program data by the central control unit 107, so that the operation state is performed using characters, images, voices, and the like. And messages to the user. The configuration presented to the user (the image display unit 112 and the speaker 136) is arranged at a position where the digital camera 100 is easily visible near the operation unit 120, for example. A part of the image display unit 112 is also installed in the optical viewfinder 113, and some information is also presented from the image display unit 112 installed in the optical viewfinder 113. Further, in the digital camera 100, under the control of the central control unit 107, an operation state, a message, and the like are presented to the user from the image display unit 112 and the speaker 136, and then an operation from the operation unit 120 is accepted. For example, when designating data to be transferred from an external device, which will be described later, a screen for designating data is displayed on the image display unit 112, and a function as a designation unit is received by receiving a user designation from the operation unit 120. To realize.

  Among the display contents of the image display unit 112, what is displayed on the LCD or the like other than the screen for designating data to be transferred includes an operation state related to imaging and an operation state other than imaging. For example, the operation status related to imaging includes single shot / continuous shooting display, self-timer display, compression rate display, number of recorded pixels, number of recorded images, number of remaining shots displayed, shutter speed display, aperture value display, There are exposure correction displays. Further, a flash display, a red-eye reduction display, a macro shooting display, and the like may be included. Operation status displays other than imaging include buzzer setting display, watch battery level display, battery level display, error display, information display with multiple digits, 199 attachment / detachment status display, communication I / F operation display, There are date and time display. Among the display contents of the image display unit 112, what is displayed in the optical viewfinder 113 includes in-focus display, camera shake warning display, flash charge display, shutter speed display, aperture value display, exposure display, and the like.

  The non-volatile memory 116 is an electrically erasable and recordable memory, and may be, for example, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable ROM).

  The mode change switch 117 is a switch for the user to set switching of each function mode such as power OFF, automatic shooting mode, shooting mode, panoramic shooting mode, playback mode, multi-screen playback / erase mode, and PC connection mode. .

  The first shutter switch 118 (SW1) is a switch that is turned ON during the operation of a shutter button (not shown) (for example, half-pressed state). When the first shutter switch 118 is turned ON, the central control unit 107 starts processing operations such as AF, AE, AWB, and EF.

  The second shutter switch 119 (SW2) is a switch that is turned on when the operation of the shutter button is completed (for example, fully pressed). When the second shutter switch 119 is turned on, the central control unit 107 performs a series of operations related to photographing, that is, exposure processing, development processing, and recording processing. In the exposure process, a signal (analog signal) read from the image sensor 103 is written into the memory 110 as digital data via the A / D converter 104 and the memory control unit 106. In the development processing, the image processing unit 109 and the memory control unit 106 perform image processing on the digital data written in the memory 110, and the digital data after the image processing is written in the memory 110. In the recording process, digital data written in the memory 110 after the development process is read out, compressed by the compression / decompression unit 111, and then written in 199.

  The operation unit 120 includes various buttons and a touch panel. Specifically, there are a menu button, a menu moving button, a set button, and the like for displaying various setting menus and performing settings. For example, when specifying data to be transferred from an external device, which will be described later, data selected by a menu moving button or the like from a plurality of candidate data is specified as data to be transferred. . Further, various setting buttons at the time of imaging include a macro button, a flash setting button, a single shooting / continuous shooting / self-timer switching button, an exposure correction button, a shooting image quality selection button, and the like. In addition, there are a multi-page playback page break button for performing playback setting of a captured image and selection of an image to be output, a playback image moving button, a date / time setting button for setting a date and the like.

  The digital camera 100 includes a moving image button 138 for accepting from the user instructions for starting and ending moving image shooting. In the digital camera 100, when the moving image button 138 is pressed when the moving image is not shot, moving image shooting starts. When the moving image button 138 is pressed during moving image shooting, the moving image shooting ends. The digital camera 100 may include a user interface for setting a WB (white balance) operation in still image shooting during moving image shooting. In the WB operation setting at the time of still image shooting during moving image shooting, one of three modes of color reproducibility priority mode, moving image priority mode, and still image priority mode may be selected.

  The power supply control unit 121 includes a battery detection circuit, a DC-DC converter, a switch circuit that switches a block to be energized, and the like (all not shown). Under the control of the central control unit 107, the power control unit 121 performs connection of a battery, detection of its output voltage, etc., control of power supply to each unit of the digital camera 100, and the like. Connectors 122 and 123 connect the power supply control unit 121 and the power supply unit 124. The power supply unit 124 is a primary battery such as an alkaline battery or a lithium battery, a secondary battery such as a NiCd battery, a NiMH battery, or a Li battery, an AC adapter, or the like, and supplies power to the digital camera 100.

  The I / F 125 connects the 199 connected via the connector 126 and the internal bus so that they can communicate with each other. The connector 126 is a connector that is electrically and physically connected to the 199 and enables communication between the 199 and the I / F 125. The attachment / detachment detection unit 127 is a switch or the like that detects a physical connection between the connectors 126 and 199. The attachment / detachment detection unit 127 detects whether the connector 199 is attached to the connector 126 and outputs a detection signal to the central control unit 107. .

  In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the system has one interface and connector for attaching 199. Of course, the interface and connector to which 199 is attached may have a single or a plurality of systems and any number of systems. Moreover, it is good also as a structure provided with combining the interface and connector of a different standard. The interface and the connector may be configured using a PCMCIA card, a CF (Compact Flash (registered trademark)) card, or the like that conforms to a standard. Further, when a communication card is attached to the connector 126, it is possible to transfer image data and management information attached to the image data to and from other computers and peripheral devices such as a printer. For example, examples of the communication card include a LAN card, a modem card, a USB card, an IEEE 1394 card, a P1294 card, a SCSI card, a PHS data communication card, and the like.

  The barrier 128 covers the imaging unit including the photographing lens 101 of the digital camera 100, thereby preventing the imaging unit from being dirty or damaged.

  The communication unit 129 performs transmission / reception of data by serial / parallel communication with an external device by wired / wireless by RS232C, USB, IEEE1394, P1284, SCSI, modem, LAN, wireless communication, or the like. The connector (antenna) 130 connects the digital camera 100 and another device (external device) by the communication unit 129 using a connector if the connection form is wired, or using an antenna if the connection form is wireless.

  An RTC 134 (Real Time Clock) outputs time information under the control of the central control unit 107. The RTC 134 holds an internal power supply separately from the power supply control unit 121, and can measure time even when the power supply unit 124 is not energized.

  Reference numeral 199 denotes a memory card or a hard disk drive that can be attached to and detached from the digital camera 100 via the connector 126. Reference numeral 199 denotes a storage unit 131 configured by a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, or the like, an I / F 132 of the storage unit 131 with the digital camera 100, and an electrical and physical connection with the digital camera 100 via the connector 126. A connector 133 is provided.

  The central control unit 107 of the digital camera 100 may be a single piece of hardware, or may be composed of a plurality of pieces of hardware that function as a single central control unit 107. May be realized. In addition, it is assumed that data related to supply to an external device, such as image data captured by the image sensor 103, is stored in advance in the storage unit 131 of 199. Program data for controlling the digital camera 100 is stored in the non-volatile memory 116 and executed, and the program data is developed in the memory 110, and the program data developed in the central control unit 107 is executed. . As the program data is executed by the central control unit 107, the image data stored in the storage unit 131 is loaded and reproduced and displayed on the image display unit 112 in the digital camera 100. In the digital camera 100, image data stored in the storage unit 131 is supplied to an external device connected via the communication unit 129, or designated image data is acquired from the external device to the storage unit 131. .

  In the description of the present embodiment, a digital camera capable of taking a still image and a moving image is used. However, a digital single lens reflex camera, a digital camcorder, or the like may be used.

[Configuration of recording media with wireless LAN function]
A recording medium with a wireless LAN function, which is an example of a storage medium, is attached to 199 of the digital camera 100 that is the imaging apparatus of the present embodiment. When the image file is stored in a flash memory in a recording medium with a wireless LAN function (not shown) by the photographing process of the digital camera 100, the image file is connected to a data acquisition device such as a PC connected by the wireless LAN function. Forward.

  In addition, the recording medium with a wireless LAN function can confirm the current communication state from the digital camera 100, and can set validity / invalidity of wireless communication. For example, when wireless communication is enabled, a wireless connection between a recording medium with a wireless LAN function and a data acquisition device is established, and an image file is transferred from the image of the recording medium with a wireless LAN function to the data acquisition device. When disabled, wireless transmission is stopped and wireless connection establishment and image file data transfer are not performed until enabled.

  Further, the recording medium with a wireless LAN function transfers only the image file that has not been transmitted to the data transmission destination among the image files stored in the flash memory in the recording medium (not shown).

[Data structure of image file]
The data structure of the image file used by the image reproduction means of this embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, Exif-JPEG is used as the format of the image file, but the present invention can also be implemented in a format such as Exif-TIFF that has a data structure capable of recording metadata in an image. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the data structure of Exif-JPEG300.

  The SOI 301 is a marker indicating the start of Exif-JPEG300. APP 1302 is an application marker corresponding to the header part of Exif-JPEG300. A data block 303 includes a quantization table (DQT), a Huffman table (DHT), a frame start marker (SOF), and a scan start marker (SOS). Compressed Data 304 is compressed data of the main body image. The EOI 305 is a marker indicating the end of the Exif-JPEG 300.

  The APP 1302 is configured as indicated by reference numerals 306 to 312 in FIG. Reference numeral 306 denotes a data block composed of APP1 Length indicating the size of the APP 1302 and Exif Identifier Code indicating the identification code of the APP 1302. The 0th IFD 307 is a data block that records attached information related to the compressed main body image. A part of 0th IFD 307 includes data blocks of Exif IFD 308 and GPS IFD 310. The Exif IFD 308 includes a tag related to the Exif version, a tag related to the characteristics and structure of image data, a tag related to date and time, and a tag related to shooting conditions in which shutter speed, lens focal distance, and the like are recorded. The GPS IFD 310 is composed of tags related to GPS information. The 1st IFD 311 is a data block that records attached information related to thumbnail images. Thumbnail 312 is thumbnail image data. Further, the Exif IFD 308 includes a MakerNote 309 data block. In MakerNote 309, information unique to the camera manufacturer is recorded. In the image file used in the present embodiment, communication control information 313 is recorded in MakerNote 309. Details of the communication control information 313 will be described later.

[Shooting procedure of digital camera when recording media with wireless LAN function is installed]
A photographing process of the digital camera 100 when a recording medium with a wireless LAN function is mounted as the digital camera 100 199 will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in step S <b> 201, the central control unit 107 performs a process of detecting whether the power button of the mode switch 117 of the digital camera 100 is operated by the user and the power is turned on. If it is detected that the power is turned on, the process proceeds to step S202 to start the digital camera 100. Otherwise, a process of waiting until the power ON is detected is performed.

  In step S202, the central control unit 107 performs input acceptance prohibition processing such as operation of the shutter buttons 118 and 119 and input from the communication unit 129 in order to prevent malfunction during activation of the digital camera 100.

  In step S <b> 203, the central control unit 107 performs processing for detecting whether or not 199 is attached to the digital camera 100. If the storage medium is loaded in 199, the process proceeds to step S205. Otherwise, the process proceeds to step S204.

  In step S <b> 204, the central control unit 107 issues a warning that 199 is not attached to the digital camera 100. As a warning means, after the image display unit 112 can be displayed, a message indicating that the image display unit 112 is not attached may be displayed, or a warning sound may be emitted from the voice control unit 135 to the speaker 136. .

  In step S205, the central control unit 107 performs a process of driving the lens barrel of the digital camera 100 so that the subject can be focused.

  In step S206, the central control unit 107 performs processing for displaying an LCD monitor. Display of the captured through image is started on the image display unit 112 corresponding to the LCD monitor. Also, a process for displaying information such as the current shooting setting is performed.

  In step S207, the central control unit 107 performs processing for permitting input reception. After this processing, the operation of the shutter buttons 118 and 119 and the input from the communication unit 129 are accepted.

  In step S208, the central control unit 107 performs processing to detect whether or not the shutter button (SW1) 118 has been pressed. When the release button (SW1) 118 is pressed by a user operation and the imaging operation is started, the process proceeds to step S209. Otherwise, a process of waiting until the release button (SW1) 118 is pressed is performed.

  In step S <b> 209, the central control unit 107 performs processing to detect whether a recording medium with a wireless LAN function is attached to the digital camera 100 199. If it is detected that a recording medium with a wireless LAN function is attached, the process proceeds to step S210. Otherwise, the process proceeds to step S212.

  In step S210, the central control unit 107 confirms the current communication state of the recording medium with a wireless LAN function installed in 199, and determines whether the communication setting is valid. If the communication setting is valid, the process proceeds to step S211. If the communication setting is invalid, the process proceeds to step S212.

  In step S <b> 211, the central control unit 107 performs processing for instructing invalidation of communication settings for a recording medium with a wireless LAN function. The recording medium with the wireless LAN function that has received the instruction performs communication invalidation processing.

  In step S212, the central control unit 107 performs AE (auto exposure) / AF (auto focus) processing. Since the AE / AF processing is a self-evident technique, a detailed description is omitted.

  In step S213, the central control unit 107 performs processing for detecting whether or not the communication setting invalidation processing for the recording medium with the wireless LAN function has been completed. When the process beyond the communication setting is completed, the process proceeds to step S216. When the communication setting invalidation process is completed, the wireless communication between the recording medium with the wireless LAN function and the communication destination is disconnected, and the image file is not transferred. If the completion of the communication setting invalidation process cannot be detected, the process proceeds to step S214.

  In step S214, the central control unit 107 counts the time from the start of detecting whether or not the communication setting invalidation processing of the recording medium with the wireless LAN function has been completed, and the threshold value M seconds set in the present embodiment. The process of detecting whether or not is exceeded is performed. If M seconds are exceeded, the process proceeds to step S215. Otherwise, the process returns to step S213, and a process of detecting whether or not the invalidation process of the communication setting of the recording medium with the wireless LAN function is completed is performed.

  In step S215, the central control unit 107 performs processing for displaying a warning indicating that communication control is impossible. If it is determined in step S214 that the communication setting of the recording medium with the wireless LAN function cannot be invalidated within a certain period during the shooting operation, it is determined that the control has failed, and a message indicating that is displayed on the image display unit 112. Process. The display method will be described later.

  In step S216, the central control unit 107 performs display processing of a focus frame indicating the AF result processed in step S212. FIG. 4A illustrates the image display unit 112 of the digital camera 100 in which the focus frame shown in step S212 and the warning message shown in step S214 are displayed. The focus frame is displayed on the subject, and a message indicating that the wireless setting invalidation process has failed is displayed together with a warning icon at the bottom of the image display unit. Of course, if the completion of the communication setting invalidation process can be normally detected in the process of step S213, no message is displayed. If the shutter button (SW2) 119 is pressed all at once in step S208, the focus frame and the warning message are not displayed, and the imaging process in step S218 is continued.

  In step S217, the central control unit 107 determines whether or not the shutter button (SW2) 119 has been pressed. If it is determined that the shutter button (SW2) 119 has been pressed, the process proceeds to step S218. Otherwise, a process of waiting until the shutter button (SW2) 119 is pressed is performed. If the completion of the communication setting invalidation process cannot be detected in step S213, and the user cancels the shooting action and stops pressing the shutter button, the process returns to step S208, and the shutter button (SW1) 118 is returned. Wait for the operation.

  In step S218, the central control unit 107 performs an image capturing process. The details of the imaging are as described with reference to FIG. 1, and thus the description thereof is omitted here.

  In step S219, the central control unit 107 performs processing for saving the image file. The captured image data is stored in the memory 110, subjected to compression processing by the compression / expansion unit 111, and stored as an image file in the recording unit 131 of 199 together with the image information. When the image information is added to the image data, if the photographing action is performed in a state where the completion of the communication setting invalidation process cannot be detected, the wireless communication control information 313 shown in step S213 indicates that effect. Is recorded as image information. As an example, the recording method is 0 when the communication setting invalidation process is normally performed, and 1 otherwise.

  Further, when an image captured in a state where the communication setting invalidation processing is not performed is reproduced by the digital camera 100, the image is displayed as shown in FIG. An image is reproduced and displayed on the image display unit 112, and a message indicating that the image is captured without stopping the radio wave is displayed at the bottom.

  In step S220, the central control unit 107 performs a process of determining whether or not the shooting process has been completed. In the case of single image shooting, since the shooting process is completed, the process proceeds to step S221. In the case of continuous shooting, the process returns to step S218, and imaging processing is performed again.

  In step S221, the central control unit 107 performs processing for determining whether or not the shutter buttons 118 and 119 are not pressed. If the pressing of the shutter buttons 118 and 119 is not detected, the process proceeds to step S222. If it is detected that the shutter buttons 118 and 119 are pressed, the process returns to step S212 to perform AE / AF processing.

  In step S222, the central control unit 107 performs a process of counting the time from the start of detecting the end of the photographing process in step S220, and determines whether or not the threshold value N seconds set in the present embodiment has been exceeded. Perform processing to detect. If the predetermined time N seconds is exceeded, the process proceeds to step S223. If not, the process returns to step S221 to perform a process of determining whether or not the shutter buttons 118 and 119 are not pressed.

  In step S <b> 223, the central control unit 107 performs processing to detect whether a recording medium with a wireless LAN function is attached to the digital camera 100 199. If it is detected that a recording medium with a wireless LAN function is installed, the process proceeds to step S224. If not, the process ends.

  In step S224, the central control unit 107 confirms the current communication state of the recording medium with a wireless LAN function mounted in 199, and determines whether or not the communication setting is invalid. If the communication setting is invalid, the process proceeds to step S225. If the communication settings are valid, the process ends.

  In step S225, the central control unit 107 performs processing for instructing the validity of the communication settings for the recording medium with the wireless LAN function. The recording medium with the wireless LAN function that has received the instruction performs processing for enabling communication. This resumes the transfer.

  With the above processing, the photographing process of the digital camera when the recording medium with the wireless LAN function is loaded is completed.

  The present invention can also be realized by executing the following processing. That is, software (program) that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or apparatus via a network or various types, and a computer (or CPU, MPU, or the like) of the system or apparatus reads and executes the program. It is processing.

Claims (5)

In an imaging apparatus including a control unit that controls transfer when a storage medium having a function of transferring an image is attached,
When imaging is started by pressing the release button, an instruction is given to stop the transfer of the image, and after confirming that the transfer has been stopped before the imaging is started, imaging is performed. An image pickup apparatus, wherein transfer is resumed after storage of the completed image is completed.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a function related to communication is validated when there is no operation related to imaging for a certain period of time after completion of imaging processing.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising display means for displaying a message when a function relating to communication cannot be disabled during an imaging operation.   The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when photographing is performed when a function relating to communication cannot be disabled, information relating to communication is recorded as attached information of the image.   The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit that displays information indicating the fact that an image captured when an image is reproduced and a function related to communication cannot be disabled.

Images