Digital movie camera and method of controlling operations thereof

• US 20030095191A1
• Filed: 11/21/2002
• Published: 05/22/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Saito, Osamu
• Granted Patent: US 7,528,865 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/220.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/212 Motion video recording combined with still video recording television signal recording H04N5/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/633 for displaying additional information relating to control or operation of the camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/772 the recording apparatus and the television camera being placed in the same enclosure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/907 using static stores, e.g. storage tubes or semiconductor memories H04N5/91 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/7921 for more than one processing mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8047 using transform coding

Abstract

When a continuous imaging mode is set while a movie image is being recorded, continuous imaging is performed. When a movie image pick-up mode is set, a CCD is brought into a movie image readout mode, in which movie image data representing a movie image is periodically outputted. An image corresponding to one of frames constituting the movie image is of a relatively low image quality. When a determination switch is pressed, the CCD enters a movie image recording mode, in which the movie image data is recorded on a memory card. When a shutter release button is pressed in a case where the movie image recording mode is set, the CCD enters a still image recording mode, in which still image data of a relatively high image quality is outputted. Until still image data corresponding to a predetermined number of continuously imaged frames are obtained, the continuous imaging is repeated. When the still image data corresponding to the predetermined number of continuously imaged frames are obtained, the CCD enters a movie image readout mode.

Claims

1. A digital movie camera comprising:

an imaging device including a solid-state electronic imaging device for imaging a subject and outputting image data representing an image of the subject;

a first driving device for driving said solid-state electronic imaging device so as to image the subject in a predetermined period and read out movie image data in response to the setting of a movie image recording mode;

a movie image recording control device for recording image data representing the movie image read out of said solid-state electronic imaging device under driving by said first driving device as movie image data on a recording medium;

a second driving device for driving said solid-state electronic imaging device so as to continuously image the subject at timing corresponding to a continuous imaging time period and read out still image data in response to the setting of a continuous imaging mode during operations by said movie image recording mode; and

a still image recording control device for recording image data representing the still image read out of said solid-state electronic imaging device under driving by said second driving device as still image data on the recording medium.

2. The digital movie camera according to claim 1, further comprising

a driving control device for controlling said first driving device so as to image the subject in a predetermined period within a movie image insertion time period which is a part of said continuous imaging time period, and read out the movie image data.

3. The digital movie camera according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising

a display device for displaying the subject image represented by the image data outputted from said imaging device.

4. The digital movie camera according to claim 3, further comprising

a buffer memory successively temporarily storing image data corresponding to a plurality of frames outputted from said imaging device,

a readout device for reading out the image data stored in said buffer memory and feeding the read image data to said display device, and

a readout control device for controlling, in a still image processing time period excluding said movie image insertion time period in said continuous imaging time period, said readout device so as to display on said display device the image of the subject which is imaged during the movie image insertion time period immediately before said still image processing time period.

5. The digital movie camera according to claim 4, wherein

said still image processing time period comprises a still image pick-up time period required to image the subject and read out the image data from said solid-state electronic imaging device and a signal processing time period required to subject the image data outputted from said solid-state electronic imaging device to signal processing.

6. The digital movie camera according to claim 4, wherein said still image processing time period is equal to a still image pick-up time period required to image the subject and read out the image data from said solid-state electronic imaging device, further comprising

a signal processing circuit for subjecting the image data outputted from said solid-state electronic imaging device to signal processing during said movie image insertion time period immediately after said still image pick-up time period.

7. The digital movie camera according to claim 1, further comprising

a related data recording control device for recording on said recording medium data for relating said movie image data and said still image data.

8. A method of controlling the operations of a digital movie camera, comprising the steps of:

imaging a subject using an imaging device including a solid-state electronic imaging device, to obtain image data representing an image of the subject;

driving said solid-state electronic imaging device so as to image the subject in a predetermined period and read out movie image data in response to the setting of a movie image recording mode;

recording image data representing the movie image read out of said solid-state electronic imaging device as movie image data on a recording medium;

driving said solid-state electronic imaging device so as to continuously image the subject at timing corresponding to a continuous imaging time period and read out still image data in response to the setting of a continuous imaging mode during operations by said movie image recording mode; and

recording image data representing the still image read out of said solid-state electronic imaging device as still image data on said recording medium.

9. A digital movie camera comprising:

imaging means including a solid-state electronic imaging device for imaging a subject and outputting image data representing an image of the subject;

first driving means for driving said solid-state electronic imaging device so as to image the subject in a predetermined period and read out movie image data in response to the setting of a movie image recording mode;

movie image recording control means for recording image data representing the movie image read out of said solid-state electronic imaging device under driving by said first driving means as movie image data on a recording medium;

second driving means for driving said solid-state electronic imaging device so as to continuously image the subject at timing corresponding to a continuous imaging time period and read out still image data in response to the setting of a continuous imaging mode during operations by said movie image recording mode; and

still image recording control means for recording image data representing the still image read out of said solid-state electronic imaging device under driving by said second driving means as still image data on the recording medium.