JP6403511B2 - Imaging apparatus, control method thereof, and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging device that functions as a wireless terminal device, a control method thereof, and a program.

Imaging devices such as digital cameras often have wireless functions such as IrDA (registered trademark) and WiFi (registered trademark) in order to share various data such as images with other devices. As a result, various data can be directly transmitted and received between apparatuses without using a PC (personal computer).
In addition to data sharing between wireless terminal devices, there are wireless terminal devices that can upload various data to various Internet sites without a PC.

In such wireless terminal devices, inventions for improving user convenience, such as operation timing control of wireless terminal devices during wireless communication and transfer timing control of various data, have been proposed.
Patent Document 1 discloses a camera capable of canceling the eyepiece detection prohibition when SW1 is pressed during remote operation mode in which the eyepiece detection function is prohibited, and performing shooting with a function according to the eyepiece detection result. Yes.
Further, Patent Document 2 discloses an image playback device that can be easily connected to many networks while making use of portability of a mobile device and prohibit or restrict object access unintended by the user.

JP 2009-88887 A Japanese Patent No. 4478505

An imaging device that establishes a wireless connection with a wireless terminal device to which various data is to be transferred in advance and transfers the captured image data to the wireless terminal device to be transferred while continuing the shooting state after shooting. is there.
A finder provided in such an image pickup apparatus has a higher definition than conventional ones, and accordingly, there is a tendency that power consumption when displaying captured image data using the finder is increased.
For this reason, when the finder is used during wireless transfer of various data in the conventional technique, the power supply amount in the imaging apparatus is insufficient, which may affect other operations of the imaging apparatus.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and in an imaging apparatus equipped with a viewfinder, it is possible to secure a stable power supply amount and reduce the influence on other operations of the imaging apparatus. With the goal.

Imaging apparatus of the present invention is an imaging device functioning as a wireless terminal device, an imaging device, a finder eyepiece detecting means for detecting an eye to the viewfinder display unit, depending on the result of the detection of the finder eyepiece detecting means Control means for controlling data transfer by wireless communication , wherein the control means detects the eyepiece by the finder eyepiece detection means when the image data taken by the imaging means is being transferred by wireless communication. In addition, when an operation for performing a photographing operation is performed, the data transfer is stopped .

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, in the imaging device provided with the finder, the stable power supply amount can be ensured and the influence on other operation | movement of an imaging device can be reduced.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the imaging device which concerns on 1st Embodiment. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the imaging apparatus according to the first embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the form of the wireless data transfer in 1st Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the example of alerting | reporting of step S205. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the imaging device which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the example of alerting | reporting of step S502. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an imaging apparatus according to a third embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of an operation mode selection screen. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the imaging apparatus according to the fourth embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the deletion screen before data transfer.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 shows a configuration of an imaging apparatus 100 that functions as a wireless terminal apparatus according to the first embodiment.
An optical unit 1 includes a zoom lens, a focus lens, a diaphragm, and a motor and an actuator having a driver circuit for driving them.
Reference numeral 2 denotes an image sensor, which forms an image of image light indicating a subject on a light receiving surface and performs photoelectric conversion.
Reference numeral 3 denotes an image pickup driver, which outputs an image pickup signal for transferring a charge for each pixel photoelectrically converted by the image pickup element 2.
Reference numeral 4 denotes an amplifier that amplifies the image pickup signal output from the image pickup device 2 after removing noise by correlated double sampling processing.
Reference numeral 5 denotes an A / D converter, which digitally converts the imaging signal output from the amplifier 4 to generate image data.

An image data processing circuit 6 performs various image processing such as matrix calculation processing, white balance adjustment, and gamma processing on the image data output from the A / D converter 5.
A frame memory 7 temporarily stores the image data processed by the image data processing circuit 6.
A compression / decompression processing circuit 8 compresses or decompresses image data.
A memory card 9 records an image file.
A read / write circuit 10 writes or reads a compressed image file to / from the memory card 9.

Reference numeral 11 denotes an autofocus (hereinafter referred to as AF) circuit, which detects a focal length based on image data corresponding to a distance measurement area stored in the frame memory 7.
Reference numeral 12 denotes an auto exposure (hereinafter referred to as AE) circuit which measures subject brightness based on image data corresponding to a photometric area stored in the frame memory 7, and from this photometric value, aperture value, exposure time, not shown An exposure condition for determining whether or not to emit the strobe is calculated.
Reference numeral 13 denotes an auto white balance (hereinafter referred to as AWB) circuit, which automatically adjusts the white balance at the time of shooting.
An operation unit 14 includes a power button, a release button, a mode switching dial, and the like.
Reference numeral 15 denotes a display unit that displays a playback image in the playback mode and displays a through image for subject confirmation in the shooting mode.

Reference numeral 16 denotes an image feature extraction circuit, which extracts features of image information.
Reference numeral 17 denotes a pixel sensitivity calculation circuit that calculates an appropriate sensitivity for each pixel of image information obtained by the image sensor 2.
Reference numeral 18 denotes a set value recording memory, which records set values relating to exposure, such as aperture value and shutter speed, terminal information, and the like.
Reference numeral 19 denotes a CPU which controls the entire imaging apparatus 100.
Reference numeral 20 denotes a wireless communication unit that performs control for communicating various data such as images with a wireless communication device of a wireless terminal device serving as a counterpart device.

Reference numeral 21 denotes a finder display unit which, like the display unit 15, confirms images in various operation modes.
Reference numeral 22 denotes a finder eyepiece detection unit that detects the presence or absence of an eyepiece on the finder display unit 21, that is, whether or not the photographer is looking into the finder display unit 21. The finder eyepiece detection unit 22 includes, for example, a light emitting element (light emitting unit) and a light receiving element (light receiving unit), and performs display switching between the display unit 15 and the finder display unit 21 depending on the detection state. Specifically, when the eyepiece is detected, the display of the finder display unit 21 is turned on and the display of the display unit 15 is turned off. On the other hand, when the eyepiece is not detected, the display of the finder display unit 21 is turned off and the display of the display unit 15 is turned on. Although it is not always necessary to make such exclusive display depending on the setting or the like, in the following embodiment, it is assumed that the finder display unit 21 is switched on / off according to at least the detection result of the eyepiece. .
When the photographer is looking into the finder display unit 21, the light emitted from the light emitting element is reflected by the photographer's eyes or face, and the reflected light level within a predetermined range is detected by the light receiving element. It is realized by doing. Although the example in which the finder display unit 21 and the finder eyepiece detection unit 22 are configured in advance in the imaging apparatus 100 is shown, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be a finder that is attached to and detached from an accessory shoe, for example.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment.
In step S <b> 201, the power is turned on in response to an operation on the operation unit 14 by the photographer.
In step S <b> 202, under the control of the CPU 19, a wireless connection is established with the wireless terminal device serving as the opposite device via the wireless communication unit 20 in accordance with an operation on the operation unit 14 of the photographer. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, an example of a system that captures images with the imaging device 100 and then transfers the captured image data to the wireless terminal device 200 that is the opposite device while continuing the imaging mode will be described. To do. The system of the present embodiment automatically starts an image (so-called live view) photographed on the display unit 15 or the finder display unit 21 when the photographing mode is set. For example, a smart phone or a tablet terminal can be considered as the wireless terminal device serving as the opposite device, but is not limited thereto, and can be changed as appropriate.

In step S212, it is determined whether the release button included in the operation unit 14 is pressed under the control of the CPU 19. If it is determined that the button has been pressed, the process proceeds to step S203. If it is determined that the button has not been pressed, the process is repeated.
In step S203, a shooting process is executed under the control of the CPU 19, a shot image is recorded in the memory card 9, and set as a transfer target.
In step S204, under the control of the CPU 19, the finder eyepiece detection unit 22 detects whether or not the photographer is in eye contact. If an eyepiece is detected, the process proceeds to step S205, and if an eyepiece is not detected, the process proceeds to step S207.

In step S205, under the control of the CPU 19, the photographer is informed that data transfer is possible without taking his eyes off the viewfinder. The form of notification will be described later. The reason why data cannot be transferred without looking away from the finder is from the viewpoint of power consumption. The number of pixels in the finder is higher than that in the past, and accordingly, the electric power required to display a captured image with the finder is increasing. When the image data is transferred to the wireless terminal device 200 while the photographer continues to display the captured image, the power supply amount of the imaging device 100 is insufficient and affects other operations of the imaging device 100. There is a fear. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the data transfer by the wireless communication unit 20 and the display process by the finder display unit 21 are prevented from overlapping.
FIG. 4 shows an example of notification in step S205. FIG. 4A is an example in which notification is made by displaying character guidance prompting the user to keep an eye on the finder display unit 21. FIG. 4B shows an example of notification by switching the background color of the finder display unit 21 in addition to the character guidance. Further, as shown in FIG. 4C, the photographer may be notified by emitting sound from a speaker (not shown). Further, it may be possible to notify the photographer by combining these.
In step S <b> 206, under the control of the CPU 19, it is confirmed whether or not the finder eyepiece detection unit 22 has detected the eyepiece, that is, whether or not the photographer has taken his eyes off the finder display unit 21. If the photographer keeps an eye on the finder display unit 21, the notification is stopped and the process proceeds to step S207. As described above, when the eyepiece is not in the eyepiece state, the display of the captured image by the finder display unit 21 is turned off.

In step S207, data transfer is started under the control of the CPU 19. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that an image set as a transfer target including the image captured in step S203 is transferred to the wireless terminal device 200.
In step S208, under the control of the CPU 19, the finder eyepiece detection unit 22 detects whether or not the photographer is in eye contact. If an eyepiece is detected, the process proceeds to step S209, and if an eyepiece is not detected, the process proceeds to step S210.
In step S209, the data transfer is stopped under the control of the CPU 19, and the process returns to step S212. If the data transfer is stopped halfway in step S209, the transfer is started from the previous untransferred data in the next step S207. After the data transfer is stopped, the finder display unit 21 in the eyepiece state turns on the display of the captured image.

In step S210, it is confirmed whether or not the data transfer is completed under the control of the CPU 19. If the data transfer is not completed, the process returns to step S208 to monitor whether or not the photographer is in contact with the data while continuing the data transfer. If the data transfer has been completed, the notification is terminated and the process proceeds to step S211.
In step S <b> 211, it is confirmed whether or not the power is turned off by an operation on the operation unit 14 of the photographer under the control of the CPU 19. If the power is not turned off, the process returns to step S212. If the power is turned off, the operation is terminated.
As described above, by controlling wireless communication such as transfer of various data according to the state of the finder eyepiece detection unit 22, a stable power supply amount can be secured and the influence on other operations of the imaging apparatus can be reduced. it can.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The basic configuration of the imaging apparatus is the same as that of the first embodiment, and differences from the first embodiment will be described in detail below.
The present embodiment aims to improve the convenience of the photographer by switching the control of the imaging device in the state of the finder eyepiece detection unit 22 and the operation unit 14 during data transfer by the wireless communication unit 20. .

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the second embodiment. The same processes as those described in FIG. 2 of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.
After the start of data transfer (step S207), in step S208, under the control of the CPU 19, the finder eyepiece detection unit 22 detects whether or not the photographer is in eye contact. If an eyepiece is detected, the process proceeds to step S501. If an eyepiece is not detected, the process proceeds to step S210.
In step S501, it is confirmed whether an operation for performing a photographing operation has been performed under the control of the CPU 19, that is, whether the release button has been pressed. If the release button has been pressed, the process proceeds to step S209, and after stopping the transfer, the process proceeds to step S203. If an operation other than the release button has been performed, or if no operation has been performed, the process proceeds to step S502.

In step S502, under the control of the CPU 19, the photographer is notified that the viewfinder cannot be displayed because the data is being transferred, and then the process proceeds to step S210.
FIG. 6 shows an example of notification in step S502. FIG. 6A is an example in which notification is displayed by displaying that the viewfinder cannot be displayed on the viewfinder display unit 21 by characters. FIG. 6B is an example in which notification is performed by switching the background color of the finder display unit 21 in addition to displaying characters. Further, as shown in FIG. 4C in the first embodiment, the photographer may be notified by emitting sound from a speaker (not shown). Further, it may be possible to notify the photographer by combining these.
As described above, it is possible to improve the convenience of the photographer by switching the control of the imaging apparatus according to the state of the finder eyepiece detection unit 22 and the operation unit 14.

(Third embodiment)
Next, a third embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The basic configuration of the imaging apparatus is the same as that of the first embodiment, and differences from the first embodiment will be described in detail below.
In the present embodiment, for the purpose of enabling the photographer to select the operation mode when the data transfer is completed and displaying the notification screen during the data transfer so that the photographer can select the operation mode intended by the photographer. Yes.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the third embodiment. The same processes as those described in FIG. 2 of the first embodiment and FIG. 5 of the second embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.
After the end of data transfer (step S210), an operation mode selection screen for selecting an operation mode is displayed on the display unit 15 or the finder display unit 21 under the control of the CPU 19 in step S701. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the shooting mode and the power OFF can be selected as the operation mode. However, the displayed operation mode is not limited to this. For example, a mode for browsing a photographed image and a mode for performing various maintenance can be cited as examples.
In step S702, under the control of the CPU 19, according to the operation mode selected by the photographer, if the shooting mode is selected, the process proceeds to step S212, and if the power OFF is selected, the process proceeds to step S211.
As described above, it is possible to change the operation mode intended by the photographer by causing the photographer to select the operation mode when the data transfer is completed.

(Fourth embodiment)
Next, a fourth embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The basic configuration of the imaging apparatus is the same as that of the first embodiment, and differences from the first embodiment will be described in detail below.
In the present embodiment, a captured image that is a target of data transfer is displayed on the display unit 15 for a specified time, and if it is desired to be deleted, it is configured so that it can be deleted. The purpose is to allow only data to be transferred.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the imaging apparatus 100 according to the fourth embodiment. The same processes as those described in FIG. 2 of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.
When the photographer takes his eyes off the viewfinder in step S206, data transfer is started. Prior to that, in step S901, the image captured in step S203 is displayed on the display unit 15 under the control of the CPU 19.
Subsequently, in step S902, it is confirmed whether or not the photographer has performed an operation for deleting the photographed image within the specified time under the control of the CPU 19. If an operation of deleting within the specified time is performed, the image displayed on the display unit 15 is deleted, and the process returns to step S203. If no deletion operation is performed within the specified time, the process proceeds to step S207 to start data transfer.

As an operation to delete, for example, there is an example in which a delete button provided on the operation unit 14 is pressed. Further, as shown in FIG. 10, an example in which the display unit 15 is configured with a touch panel (not shown) and the photographer presses an area corresponding to the delete button is possible, but the present invention is not limited thereto. FIG. 10A shows an example in which an area corresponding to the delete button 1001 is displayed on the display unit 15. FIG. 10B is an example in which the time until the start of data transfer is displayed together with the delete button 1001. FIG. 10C shows an example in which an area corresponding to the transfer start button 1002 is displayed together with the delete button 1001.
As described above, the captured image is displayed on the display unit 15 for a specified time, and if it is desired to be deleted, it can be deleted so that only necessary image data is transferred among the captured images. It becomes possible.

(Other embodiments)
As mentioned above, although preferable embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to these embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and change are possible within the range of the summary.
The present invention supplies a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or apparatus read and execute the program This process can be realized. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

  2: imaging device, 14: operation unit, 19: CPU, 20: wireless communication unit, 21: finder display unit, 22: finder eyepiece detection unit, 100: imaging device, 200: wireless terminal device

Claims (7)

An imaging device that functions as a wireless terminal device,
Imaging means;
Finder eyepiece detection means for detecting an eyepiece to the finder display unit;
Control means for controlling data transfer by wireless communication according to the detection result of the finder eyepiece detection means ,
When the control means detects an eyepiece with the finder eyepiece detection means and transfers an image data captured by the imaging means by wireless communication, and an operation for performing a photographing operation is performed, An imaging apparatus characterized by stopping data transfer . The imaging apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising an informing unit that informs that data transfer is not possible unless the eyes are viewed from the finder display unit. When image data captured by the imaging unit is being transferred by wireless communication, if the eyepiece is detected by the finder eyepiece detection unit and no operation for performing a shooting operation is performed, data transfer is in progress. the imaging apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a notification means for notifying to the effect that can not finder display for certain. The imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , further comprising selection means for allowing a photographer to select an operation mode when data transfer by wireless communication is completed. Prior to the start of data transfer by radio communication, and display the data to be the data transferred to the display unit, imaging according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that to be able to remove apparatus. A method of controlling an imaging device that functions as a wireless terminal device,
Depending on the result of detection of the finder eyepiece detecting means for detecting an eye to the viewfinder display unit of the imaging device, it has a step of controlling the data transfer by radio communication,
In the step of controlling the data transfer by the wireless communication, when the image data captured by the imaging unit of the imaging device is being transferred by wireless communication, the eyepiece is detected by the finder eyepiece detection unit, and a photographing operation is performed. A method for controlling an imaging apparatus , wherein data transfer is stopped when an operation for performing the operation is performed . A program for controlling an imaging device functioning as a wireless terminal device,
According to the detection result of the finder eyepiece detection means for detecting the eyepiece to the finder display unit of the imaging device, the computer executes processing for controlling data transfer by wireless communication ,
In the process of controlling the data transfer by the wireless communication, when the image data captured by the imaging unit of the imaging apparatus is being transferred by the wireless communication, the eyepiece is detected by the finder eyepiece detection unit, and a shooting operation is performed. A program characterized in that data transfer is stopped when an operation for performing the operation is performed .

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