KR100548005B1 - Control method of digital shooting device and digital shooting device using this method - Google Patents

Abstract

A control method of a digital photographing apparatus and a digital photographing apparatus using the method according to the present invention,

 Image data of a single frame is obtained by shooting. Next, optimal focus values for different focusing areas are obtained by using image data of focusing areas that are different areas in a single frame. Next, image data of a plurality of frames is obtained by performing focusing according to each optimum focus value. Next, the reduced images of the plurality of frames are displayed on the display panel using the image data of the plurality of frames. Next, the video data of any one frame selected by the user is stored in the recording medium. In addition, in the display step, the center of the focusing area corresponding to each of the reduced images of the plurality of frames is displayed.

Description

Method for controlling digital photographing apparatus and digital photographing apparatus using the method

1 is a perspective view showing the front and top appearance of a digital camera as a digital photographing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a rear view illustrating a rear shape of the digital camera of FIG. 1.

3 is a diagram illustrating an incident side structure of the digital camera of FIG. 1.

4 is a diagram illustrating the overall configuration of the digital camera of FIG. 1.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a control algorithm of the digital signal processor of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an internal algorithm of step 504 of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for describing step 503 of FIG. 5.

8 and 9 illustrate screens of the display panel by performing step 505.

<Explanation of symbols for main parts of the drawings>

      1 ... digital camera, 11 ... self-timer lamp,

12 ... flash, 13 ... shutter button,

14 ... mode dial, 15 ... function buttons,

17a, 17b ... view finder, 19 ... flash-light sensor,

20 lens part, 21 external interface part,

MIC ... microphone, SP ... speaker,

31 ... power button, 32 ... monitor button,

33 ... auto-focus lamp, 34 ... flash standby lamp,

35 ... color LCD panel, 36 ... manual-focusing / delete button,

37 ... Manual-adjust / play button, 39 _W ... Wide-Zoom button,

39 _T ... telephoto-zoom button, OPS ... optical system,

OEC ... photoelectric conversion part, 41 ... filter part,

      42.Playback mode button ZL ... zoom lens,

FL ... focus lens, CL ... compensation lens,

OLPF ... optical low pass filter, IRF ... infrared cut filter,

M _Z ... zoom motor, M _F ... focus motor,

M _A ... aperture motor, 401 ... analog-to-digital converter,

402 timing circuit, 403 real time clock,

404 ... DRAM, 405 ... EEPROM,

406 memory card interface, 407 digital signal processor,

408 ... RS232C interface, 409 ... video filter,

21a ... USB connection, 21b ... RS232C connection,

21c ... video output, 410 ... lens drive,

411 ... flash controller, 412 ... microcontroller,

INP ... user input, LAMP ... light emitter,

413 audio processor, 414 LCD driver,

      35S ... LCD screen, AFM ... Auto Focus Mark,

      801,802,803 ... reduced images, 901,902,903 ... reduced images,

FV ... focus value, HF ... high frequency content,

FV _MAX ... optimal focus value, HF _MAX ..optimum high frequency content.

The present invention relates to a control method of a digital photographing apparatus and a digital photographing apparatus using the method, for example, a digital camera. More particularly, the present invention relates to photographing a subject and storing an image file in a recording medium, A control method of a digital photographing apparatus for reproducing stored image files and displaying them on a display panel, and a digital photographing apparatus using the method.

 In the autofocus mode of the conventional digital camera, accurate focusing cannot be performed when the distance of the subject is not close or the focusing area desired by the user is not located at the center of the frame. Because of this, the user must use manual focus mode. However, most users have difficulty in using the manual focus mode.

On the other hand, the digital cameras of Japanese Laid-Open Publication No. 28,899 in 2000 and Japanese Laid-Open Publication No. 224,759 in 2003 disclose techniques related to the focusing.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a control method in which a user can select a desired focusing area with a simple operation and a digital photographing apparatus using the method.

The control method and the digital photographing apparatus of the present invention for achieving the above object, to obtain the image data of a single frame by the start of shooting. Next, image data of focusing regions, which are different regions in the single frame, is used to obtain optimal focus values for the different focusing regions. Next, image data of a plurality of frames is obtained by performing focusing according to the obtained optimum focus values. Next, the reduced images of the plurality of frames are displayed on the display panel using the obtained image data of the plurality of frames. Next, the video data of any one frame selected by the user is stored in the recording medium. In addition, in the displaying step, the center of the focusing area corresponding to each of the reduced images of the plurality of frames is displayed.

According to the control method of the digital photographing apparatus of the present invention and the digital photographing apparatus using the method, since the reduced images of the plurality of frames are displayed on the display panel, the user can select one of the images of the different focusing regions. There is a convenience that can be. That is, the user can select a desired focusing area with a simple operation.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail.

1, in front of the digital camera 1 as a digital photographing apparatus according to the present invention, a microphone (MIC), a self-timer lamp (11), a flash (12), a shutter button (13), a view finder ( 17a), a flash-light sensor 19, a power switch 31, a lens unit 20, and a remote receiver 41.

In the self-timer mode, the self-timer lamp 11 operates for a set time from when the shutter button 13 is pressed to when the shutter is operated. The flash-light amount sensor 19 detects the light amount when the flash 12 operates and inputs the light amount to the digital signal processor 407 of FIG. 3 through the microcontroller 412 of FIG. 3. The remote receiver 41 receives a command signal from a remote controller (not shown), for example, a photographing command signal, and inputs it to the digital signal processor 407 through the microcontroller 412.

Referring to FIG. 2, the rear of the digital camera 1 according to the present invention has a mode dial 14, function buttons 15, a manual-focusing / deleting button 36, a manual-adjusting / playback button 37. , Playback mode button 42, speaker (SP), monitor button 32, auto-focus lamp 33, viewfinder 17b, flash standby lamp 34, color LCD panel 35, wide angle There is an angle-zoom button 39 _W , a telephoto-zoom button 39 _T , and an external interface 21.

The mode dial 14 is configured to operate modes of the camera, for example, a simple shooting mode, a program shooting mode, a portrait shooting mode, a night view shooting mode, a manual shooting mode, a movie shooting mode, a user setting mode _14M , and a voice. It is used by the user to select one of the recording modes. Here, the user setup mode (14 _M) is, indicates the mode of operation for the recording information required for the recording mode is set by the user. In addition, the voice recording mode refers to an operation mode for simply recording only a user's voice.

The function buttons 15 are used for the user to set specific operation modes of the digital camera 1 while being used as direction-shift buttons and the like of the activation cursor on the menu screen of the color LCD panel 35. .

The manual focusing / deletion button 36 is used to manually focus or delete operation by the user in the shooting mode. The manual-adjustment / playback button 37 is used for the manual adjustment of certain conditions and for functions such as stopping or playing in the playback mode. The playback mode button 42 is used for switching to the playback or shooting mode.

The monitor button 32 is used by the user to control the operation of the color LCD panel 35. For example, in the shooting mode, when the user presses the monitor button 32 first, the image and the shooting information of the subject are displayed on the color LCD panel 35, and when the user presses the monitor button 32 first, it is applied to the color LCD panel 35. Power is cut off. In addition, in the playback mode, when a user presses the monitor button 32 first while a video file is being played, the shooting information of the video file being played is displayed on the color LCD panel 35, and the second is displayed. Press to display only pure images.

The auto-focus lamp 33 operates when the focus is well achieved. The flash standby lamp 34 operates when the flash (12 in FIG. 1) is in standby for operation. Mode refers to the selection mode of the indicator lamps (14 _L), a mode dial 14.

3 shows an incident side structure of the digital camera 1 of FIG. 1. 4 shows the overall configuration of the digital camera 1 of FIG. Referring to Figures 3 and 4, the overall configuration of the digital camera 1 of Figure 1 will be described.

The optical system OPS including the lens unit and the filter unit optically processes light from a subject.

The lens unit of the optical system OPS includes a zoom lens, a focus lens, and a compensation lens.

When the user presses the wide angle-zoom button 39w or the telephoto-zoom button 39t included in the user input unit INP, a signal corresponding thereto is input to the microcontroller 412. Accordingly, as the microcontroller 412 controls the lens driver 410, the zoom motor M _Z is driven to move the zoom lens. That is, when the wide-angle zoom button 39w is pressed, the focal length of the zoom lens is shortened to widen the angle of view, and when the telephoto-zoom button 39t is pressed, the focus of the zoom lens is pressed. The longer the length, the narrower the angle of view. Here, since the position of the focus lens is adjusted while the position of the zoom lens is set, the angle of view is hardly influenced by the position of the focus lens.

Meanwhile, in the auto focus mode, the focus motor M _F is driven by the main controller embedded in the digital signal processor 407 controlling the lens driver 410 through the microcontroller 412. Accordingly, the focus lens is moved from the front to the rear, and in this process, a focus value (FV in FIG. 7) in which the high frequency component of the image signal is the largest is set. The focus value FV means the position of the focus lens, for example, the number of driving steps of the focus motor M _F.

The compensation lens compensates for the overall refractive index and is not driven separately. Reference numeral M _A denotes a motor for driving an aperture (not shown).

In the filter section 41 of the optical system OPS, an optical low pass filter (OLPF) removes optical noise of high frequency content. Infra-Red cut filters (IRFs) block infrared components of incident light.

A photoelectric conversion unit (OEC) of a charge coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) converts light from an optical system (OPS) into an electrical analog signal. Here, the digital signal processor 407 controls the timing circuit 402 to control operations of the photoelectric converter OEC and the analog-digital converter 401. The CDS-ADC (Correlation Double Sampler and Analog-to-Digital Converter) element 401 as an analog-to-digital converter processes the analog signal from the photoelectric converter (OEC), removes the high frequency noise, and adjusts the amplitude. After that, it is converted into a digital signal.

The real time clock 403 provides time information to the digital signal processor 407. The digital signal processor 407 processes the digital signal from the CDS-ADC element 401 to generate a digital image signal classified into luminance and chroma signals.

The self-timer lamp 11, the auto-focus lamp 33, and the mode indicating lamp are provided in the light emitting part LAMP driven by the microcontroller 412 under the control of the main controller embedded in the digital signal processor 407. 14 _L and flash standby lamp 34 are included. In the user input unit INP, the shutter button 13, the mode dial 14, the function buttons 15, the monitor button 32, the manual focusing / delete button 36, the manual adjustment / playback button 37 ), Wide-zoom button 39 _W , telephoto-zoom button 39 _T , and the like.

The digital video signal from the digital signal processor 407 is temporarily stored in the DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) 404. The EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory) 405 stores algorithms and setting data necessary for the operation of the digital signal processor 407. In the memory card interface 406, the user's memory card is detached.

The digital image signal from the digital signal processor 407 is input to the LCD driver 414, whereby an image is displayed on the color LCD panel 35. FIG.

On the other hand, the digital video signal from the digital signal processor 407 can be transmitted by serial communication via the USB (Universal Serial Bus) connection 21a or the RS232C interface 408 and its connection 21b, and the video filter ( 409 and through the video output unit 21c. Here, the digital signal processor 407 has a microcontroller therein.

The audio processor 413 outputs the audio signal from the microphone MIC to the digital signal processor 407 or the speaker SP, and outputs the audio signal from the digital signal processor 407 to the speaker SP.

On the other hand, the microcontroller 412 drives the flash 12 by controlling the operation of the flash controller 411 according to the signal from the flash-light amount sensor 19.

The algorithm of the digital signal processor of FIG. 5 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4 as follows. Here, the shutter button included in the user input unit INP 13 has a two-stage structure. That is, after the user operates the wide-angle zoom button 39w and the tele-zoom button 39 _W , the S1 signal from the shutter button 13 is turned on by pressing the shutter button 13 only one step. When the button is pressed all the way, the S2 signal from the shutter button 13 is turned on.

When the S1 signal is turned on by the user pressing the shutter button 13 only (step 501),

The digital signal processor 407 converts the image data generated through the CDS-ADC element 401 into image data classified into luminance and chroma signals to obtain image data of a single frame (step 502).

The digital signal processor 407 uses the image data of the single frame to obtain optimal focus values (FV _MAX of FIG. 7) for three focusing regions that are different regions. Here, the focus value FV means the position of the focus lens FL, that is, the number of driving steps of the focus motor M _F (step 503).

The digital signal processor 407 then drives the focus motor M _F according to the obtained optimum focus values FV _MAX for each of the focusing regions, and captures the images accordingly (step 504). That is, the image data of a plurality of frames, which are digital signals generated through the CDS-ADC element 401, is obtained by driving the focus motor M _F according to the obtained optimum focus values FV _MAX .

Next, the digital signal processor 407 reduces and displays the first to third images (see steps 505 and FIGS. 8 and 9). More specifically, the digital signal processor 407 reduces the image data from the DRAM 404 and displays each reduced image on the display screen (35S in FIGS. 8 and 9). Also, an autofocus mark (AFM) is displayed at the center of the focusing area corresponding to each of the reduced images.

 Next, after the user operates the function buttons 15 to select one of the first to third images (step 506),

When the S2 signal is turned on by the user pressing the shutter button 13 in two steps (step 507),

 The digital signal processor 407 stores the data of the selected image on the recording medium (step 508). In step 508, the digital signal processor 407 stores the selected image data from the DRAM 404 in a memory card as a recording medium, and erases the remaining image data that is not selected from the DRAM 404.

Referring to FIG. 6, the internal algorithm of step 504 of FIG. 5 will be described.

First, the digital signal processor 407 drives the focus motor M _F according to the first optimal focus value FV _MAX (step 601).

Next, the digital signal processor 407 captures the first image according to the first optimal focus value FV _MAX through the CDS-ADC element 401 and stores it in the DRAM 404 (step 602).

Next, the digital signal processor 407 drives the focus motor M _F according to the second optimum focus value FV _MAX (step 603).

Next, the digital signal processor 407 captures the second image according to the second optimal focus value FV _MAX through the CDS-ADC element 401 and stores it in the DRAM 404 (step 604).

Next, the digital signal processor 407 drives the focus motor M _F according to the second optimum focus value FV _MAX (step 605).

Next, the digital signal processor 407 captures a third image according to the third optimal focus value FV _MAX through the CDS-ADC element 401 and stores it in the DRAM 404 (step 606).

Referring to FIG. 7, step 503 of FIG. 5 will be described in detail as follows.

The digital signal processor 407 calculates a focus value FV corresponding to the high frequency content HF of the image data obtained through the CDS-ADC element 401, thereby obtaining an optimum focus value FV according to the optimum high frequency content HF _MAX . _MAX ) Here, the focus value FV means the position of the focus lens FL, that is, the number of driving steps of the focus motor M _F.

FIG. 8 is a view illustrating displaying downscaled images on the screen 35S of the display panel by performing step 505 of FIG. 5. Three reduced images are displayed on the screen 35S of the display panel, and an autofocus mark (AFM) is displayed at the center of the focusing area for each reduced image. The arrangement of the three reduced images is displayed in the order of 801, 802, and 803, and a border for identification is displayed on the reduced images selected by the user.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating another example of step 505 of FIG. 5, which is arranged in the order of 901, 902, and 903 on the screen 35S of the display panel, unlike FIG. 8.

As described above, according to the method of controlling the digital photographing apparatus and the digital photographing apparatus using the method, since the reduced images of the plurality of frames are displayed on the display panel, any one of the images of different focusing regions is selected. There is a convenience for the user to select. That is, the user can select a desired focusing area with a simple operation.                     

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but may be modified and improved by those skilled in the art within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims.

Claims (4)

A control method of a digital photographing apparatus which photographs a subject and stores an image file on a recording medium, and reproduces and displays an image file stored on the recording medium on a display panel. Obtaining image data of a single frame by the photographing; Obtaining optimal focus values for the different focusing regions by using image data of focusing regions that are different regions in the single frame; Obtaining image data of a plurality of frames while focusing according to the obtained optimum focus values; Displaying downscaled images of the plurality of frames on the display panel using the obtained image data of the plurality of frames; And And storing image data of one frame selected by a user in the recording medium. The method of claim 1, wherein the displaying of the display panel comprises: And a center portion of the focusing area corresponding to each of the reduced images of the plurality of frames is displayed. A digital photographing apparatus for photographing a subject, storing an image file on a recording medium, and reproducing the image file stored on the recording medium and displaying the image file on a display panel. Obtaining image data of a single frame by the photographing; Obtaining optimal focus values for the different focusing regions by using image data of focusing regions that are different regions in the single frame; Obtaining image data of a plurality of frames while focusing according to the obtained optimum focus values; Displaying downscaled images of the plurality of frames on the display panel using the obtained image data of the plurality of frames; And And a control method including storing image data of one frame selected by a user in the recording medium. The method of claim 3, wherein in the displaying on the display panel, And a center portion of the focusing area corresponding to each of the reduced images of the plurality of frames.

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