Wireless hand-held digital camera

• US 20020171737A1
• Filed: 07/18/2002
• Published: 11/21/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Tullis, Barclay J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,256,820 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/143
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/001 Sharing resources, e.g. processing power or memory, with a connected apparatus or enhancing the capability of the still picture apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0055 By radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0087 Image storage device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

A method and system allow a hand-held digital camera to access and store large volumes of digital image data utilizing a wireless communications link between a host computer and the camera. In an embodiment of the invention, imaging optics and a photosensor array capture image data that represents an image of a subject. A transceiver integrated into the hand-held digital camera then transmits the image data to a host computer via a wireless communications link. The host computer stores the image data, or a copy of the image data, and retransmits related image data or, alternatively, the same image data back to the hand-held digital camera via the wireless communications link. Once the image data is received by the hand-held digital camera, an electronic image is formed by a display device that is integrated into the camera. The host computer may process the digital image data into enhanced digital image, thereby enabling the camera to display an enhanced electronic image of a subject. The communications link between the hand-held digital camera and the host computer can transfer data at a sufficiently high bandwidth to provide virtually real-time feedback to a computer operator.

Claims

1. A method of managing image information utilizing a hand-held camera comprising the steps of:

capturing image data representative of a subject of interest utilizing an imaging device of said hand-held camera;

transmitting said image data to a host computer, via a wireless link;

receiving, from said host computer, related image data at said hand-held camera via said wireless link; and

forming an image from said related image data on a display device of said hand-held camera.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of:

receiving said related image data includes a substep of receiving said image data echoed between said hand-held digital camera and said host computer; and

forming an image includes a substep of forming an image of said subject of interest from said image data.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of transmitting said image data includes a substep of storing said image data at said host computer.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said steps of:

receiving said related image data includes a substep of receiving enhanced image data, wherein said enhanced image data is generated at said host computer by processing said image data that is transmitted from said hand-held camera; and

forming an image from said related image data comprises processing said enhanced image data and forming an enhanced image.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein said substep of receiving said enhanced image data is executed in continuity with said steps of transmitting said image data and forming said enhanced image.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein said step of transmitting said image data includes a substep of transferring said image data to a network of processors that rapidly processes said image data into said enhanced image data.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein said step of receiving said enhanced image data comprises wirelessly inputting image data originally captured by said hand-held camera and transmitted to said host computer for enhancement with respect to at least one of:

adjusting said image data for color balance;

adjusting said image data for gamma;

adjusting luminance;

filtering said image data; and

changing zoom factors.

8. The method of claim 1 further including a step of buffering said image data in a memory within said hand-held camera.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of transmitting said image data comprises transmitting said image data in parallel via a plurality of wireless channels and wherein said step of receiving said related image data comprises receiving said related image data in parallel transmissions via a plurality of wireless channels.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of forming an image includes a substep of dynamically dithering pixel values of said related image data, thereby displaying a higher resolution image.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising steps of:

receiving stored image data from memory of said host computer, wherein said stored image data represents a previously captured image; and

forming an image from said stored image data that is received from said memory.

12. The method of claim 1 further including the steps of:

capturing audio data; and

transferring said audio data to said host computer via said wireless link.

13. The method of claim 1 further including the steps of:

receiving, from said host computer, audio data at said hand-held camera via said wireless link; and

projecting sound that is representative of said audio data from a transducer of said hand-held camera.

14. The method of claim 1 further including the step of receiving a broadcast signal via said wireless link from a broadcast signal source.

15. The method of claim 1 further including the step of browsing image data that is stored in said host computer.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein said remote computer has a computer transceiver means for receiving said digital image data from said camera transceiver means and for transmitting said digital image data to said camera transceiver means, and said remote computer has a computer memory means operatively associated with said computer transceiver means for accessibly storing said digital image data received from said camera transceiver means.

18. The system of claim 17 further including a control interface means attached to said camera housing for directing said computer transceiver means to transmit previously stored digital image data from said computer memory means to said camera display means.

19. The system of claim 17 wherein said remote computer has an image processor, said image processor having an input for inputting said digital image data from said camera transceiver means and having an output for outputting enhanced digital image data that is generated from said input digital image data.

20. The system of claim 16 further including a camera memory means having an input from said imaging means for buffering said digital image data.

21. The system of claim 16 wherein said camera transceiver means includes:

a multi-channel transmitter for transmitting said digital image data in parallel over a plurality of wireless channels; and

a multi-channel receiver for receiving said digital image data in parallel over said plurality of wireless channels.

16. A wireless digital imaging system comprising:

a camera housing;

imaging means attached to said camera housing for imaging a subject and generating digital image data representative of said subject;

camera transceiver means, attached to said camera housing and operationally associated with said imaging means, for transmitting said digital image data to a remote computer over a wireless communications link and for subsequently receiving said digital image data from said remote computer over said wireless communications link; and

camera display means, attached to said camera housing and operationally associated with said camera transceiver means, for displaying an image that corresponds to said digital image data that has been received by said camera transceiver means from said remote computer.

22. A digital image system having a host computer and a hand-held digital camera, wherein said host computer and said hand-held digital camera are co-operative in the absence of a physical connection, comprising:

an image capture module, located within said digital hand-held camera, having imaging optics and a photosensor array, said image capture module outputting electronic image data representative of an image of a subject;

a camera transceiver located within said digital hand-held camera and operatively connected to said image capture module, said camera transceiver having a first input for receiving said electronic image data output by said image capture module and having a camera transmitter and a camera receiver for transmitting said electronic image data and for receiving related electronic image data;

a computer transceiver located at said host computer and compatible with said camera transceiver for receiving said electronic image data and for transmitting said related electronic image data;

a computer memory, located within said host computer and operatively connected to said computer transceiver for storing said electronic image data and said related electronic image data;

an image processor located within said host computer and operatively connected to said computer transceiver and said computer memory for processing said electronic image data that is received from said camera transceiver to generate said related electronic image data; and

a camera display device, associated with said digital hand-held camera and operatively connected to said camera transceiver, for displaying a related image from said related electronic image data received by said camera transceiver from said computer transceiver of said host computer.